Reconceptualizing the Jepin Dance Festival as an Ethno-Sustaining Pedagogical Arena for Malay Cultural Identity

Abstract

Traditional dance festivals face the challenge of sustaining cultural knowledge while accommodating creative change and diverse regional practices. This study examines how the Jepin Dance Festival in West Kalimantan, Indonesia, functions as an ethno-sustaining pedagogical arena for Malay cultural identity. Employing a qualitative ethnographic design, the research draws on participant observation, in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, and festival documentation. Participants were selected purposively from dancers, trainers, cultural authorities, organizers, and adjudicators. Data were examined through condensation, display, and conclusion drawing and verification. The analysis identifies three interconnected dimensions: community-based learning through documentation and practitioner exchanges; negotiation between regional performance conventions and choreographic innovation; and recognition of embodied cultural knowledge through festival representation and evaluation. These dimensions suggest that the festival’s pedagogical significance depends on opportunities to explain inherited practices, acknowledge regional differences, and discuss the cultural grounds for adaptation. The study develops Ethno-Sustaining Pedagogy as a contextual framework connecting cultural transmission, aesthetic negotiation, and community recognition. It highlights the importance of collaborative festival guidelines and continued learning between editions, while treating long-term effects on young participants’ identities and cultural resilience as questions requiring further investigation.