Abstract
This Chapter is based on the strategy of the cultural dimension of development which has recently been introduced as an alternative approach to reach sustainable development. While some authors underscore the significance of an emic approach to development which engenders the full participation of the local people, other studies have shown that ignorance of the cultural factors in the development process generally leads to unsuccessful development programmes. The Chapter presents the case study of Gintingan as an interesting example of a local socio-cultural institution in the Subang Region of West Java, which is based on both communality in terms of joint participation in collective contributions to the community and individual assistance to fellow villagers in need. Furthermore, the description of the research on Gintingan in Kabupaten Subang documents the function of this local institution for many generations, representing an indigenous form of Community-Managed Development based on the Sundanese worldview of Tri Tangtu as the binding factor of the community. The practice of Gintingan is based on the principle of mutual assistance through reciprocal transactions, which is related to the pan-Indonesian institution of Gotong Royong originating from the Javanese culture and its parallel institutions of Andilan in the Sunda Region of West Java, and Metulung in Bali. Finally, a description is given of the important role which Gintingan is playing in the process of socio-economic development in the rural areas of West Java in terms of achieving human health and well-being. As such, it provides a sound basis for the implementation of a renewed strategy of integration of its significant principles of mutual assistance and communality in development policies, which in turn contribute to the realisation of poverty reduction and sustainable community development throughout the region.
The problem of indigenous institutions for development agencies is their embeddedness in other aspects of life, but ultimately this may make them a more powerful resource for development….
Elizabeth E. Watson (2003)
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
According to White (2009), there are three dimensions embodied in the concept of ‘well-being’:
-
1.
the material dimension, which concerns practical welfare and standard of living;
-
2.
the social dimension, which concerns social relations and access to public goods;
-
3.
the human dimension, which concerns capabilities, attitudes to life and personal competence.
-
1.
References
Agung, A. A. G. (2005). Bali endangered paradise? tri hita karana and the conservation of the island’s biocultural diversity. Ph.D. Dissertation. Leiden ethnosystems and development programme. LEAD studies No. 1. Leiden University. xxv + 464 pp. ill.
Chambers, R., Pacey, A., & Thrupp, L. A. (1989). Farmer first: Farmer innovation and agricultural research. London: Intermediate Technology Publications Ltd.
Djunatan, S. (2011). The principle of affirmation: An ontological and epistemological ground of interculturality. Ph.D. Dissertation, Rotterdam: Erasmus University.
Geertz, C. (1956). The rotating credit association: A ‘middle rung’ in development. Cambridge, MA: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, International Studies Center.
Harris, M. (1997). Culture, People, Nature: An Introduction to General Anthropology, Pearson Higher Education. URL: https://www.pearsonhighered.com.
Irawan, E. (1999). Sistem Gintingan dalam Hajatan terhadap Kelangsungan Ekonomi dan Perkembangan Kesenian Tradisional di Daerah Kabupaten Subang. Laporan Penelitian, Bandung: STISI.
Loeffelman, C. (2010). Gender and development through western eyes: An analysis of microfinance as the west’s solution to third world women, poverty, and neoliberalism. DissertationsWashington, D.C.: George Washington University.
Mauss, M. (2002). The gift: The form and reason for exchange in archaic societies. London: Routledge Classics.
Mulyanto, D. (2011). Gintingan and social structure of sundanese people, an interview by the author with Dede Mulyanto. Field Note, Nov 2011.
Posey, D. A. (Ed.). (1999). Cultural and spiritual values of biodiversity: A complementary contribution to the global biodiversity assessment. Nairobi/London: UNEP/Intermediate Technology Press.
Prasetyo, J. E. (2012). Komersialisasi sosial di pedesaan: Studi terhadap modal sosial gantangan di tiga desa miskin di kabupaten subang. MA Thesis, Bogor: Program Studi Sosiologi Pedesaan, Institut Pertanian.
Richards, P. (1985). Indigenous agricultural revolution: Ecology and food production in West Africa. London: Hutchinson.
Saefullah, K. (2019). Gintingan in Subang: An Indigenous Institution for Sustainable Community-Based Development in the Sunda Region of West Java, Indonesia. Ph.D. Dissertation. Leiden Ethnosystems and Development Programme. LEAD Studies No. 11. Leiden University.
Sumardjo, J. (2010). Estetika paradoks. Bandung: Sunan Ambu Press.
Temuan Galeri. (2012). Picture of a wooden vessel of gantang. URL: http://temuangalery.blogspot.nl/2014/10/literan-beras-1-gantang-450-rb.html.
United Nations. (1966). Ganta measure from different sources. URL: https://sizes.com/units/ganta.htm.
Van den Brink, R., Chavas, J. P. (1997). The microeconomics of an indigenous african institution: The rotating savings and credit association. Economic development and cultural change. Vol. 45, No. 4 (July 1997).
Warren, D. M., Slikkerveer, L. J., & Brokensha, D. (1995). The cultural dimension of development: Indigenous knowledge systems. IT Studies on Indigenous Knowledge and Development, London: Intermediate Technology Press.
Watson, E. E. (2003). Examining the potential of indigenous institutions for development: A perspective from borana Ethiopia. Development and Change, 34(2), 287–309. Blackwell Publishing.
Wessing, R. (1978). Cosmology and social behavior in a west javanese settlement. Papers in International Studies, Southeast Asia Series No. 47. Athens, OH: Ohio University Center for International Studies, Southeast Asia Programme.
White, S.C. (2009). Analysing well-being: A framework for development practice. Development in Practice 20(2) (Mar 2009).
Wijaya, K. (2009). Kondangan sistem Narik Gintingan dalam Perspektif Sosiologi Hukum Islam: Studi Kasus di Desa Citrajaya Kecamatan Binong Kabupaten Subang (unpublished thesis).
Woodley, E., Crowley, E., Pryck, J. D. de, Carmen, A. (2006). Cultural Indicators of Indigenous Peoples’ Food and Agro-Ecological Systems, SARD Initiatives, Paper on the 2nd Global Consultation on the Right to Food and Food Security for Indigenous Peoples, 7–9 Sep 2006, Nicaragua.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Saefullah, K. (2019). Gintingan: An Indigenous Socio-cultural Institution in Subang, West Java. In: Slikkerveer, L., Baourakis, G., Saefullah, K. (eds) Integrated Community-Managed Development. Cooperative Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05423-6_15
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05423-6_15
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-05422-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-05423-6
eBook Packages: Business and ManagementBusiness and Management (R0)