Malaysia Compiled Genealogies

Online Records
Microfilm of original manuscript in the Sarawak Museum, Kuchin, Sarawak, Malaysia. Text in English. Includes index of first ancestor of each pedigree line. Pedigree interviews of Iban persons conducted by Benedict Sandin and his assistants at the Sarawak Museum. These traditional genealogies start from a founding ancestor often with magical powers and usually identify an ancestoral home. Notes on how these oral genealogies were collected, titles of persons mentioned, and places where they resided are included in the introduction at the beginning of the first reel.
 * Iban Genealogies

Genealogical collections and family histories (Koleksi silsilah)
Research use: Provide the results of previous research such as pedigree lineage information and may lead to the original sources of documentation. Often provide information from record types, areas, and time periods where we have not yet been able to acquire the original records.

Record type: Compiled genealogies, organized collections of lineage data, family histories, pedigrees, family and community genealogies, whether manuscript or published.

Time period: Varies.

Contents: Names of individuals; dates and places of birth, marriage, and death; names of parents and children. Many include histories and illustrations of ancestors and ancestral homes. Community genealogies list families of a specific place. May provide source citations or copies of documents. Many are indexed.

Location: Varies; public and private libraries, archives, and other repositories.

Population coverage: Not applicable.

Reliability: As accurate as the compiler. Compiled information is subject to error. Generally, family histories are a reliable source but should be verified from primary sources.

Iban People
The Iban are the largest indigenous tribe in Eastern Malaysia. They have an extensive oral tradition and this includes oral genealogies each spanning dozens of generations. Preservation in writing began in the 1930s

Nature of an Iban Oral Genealogy
A tusut is a descending lineage including couples in each generation. It begins with the most remote ancestor down to the present, and usually includes descriptive passages about major ancestors. It may pass through male and female ancestors. There is no limit to the number of tusut lines an individual may trace. Exact relationships are commonly known at least to third or fourth cousins. All children of either sex may have tusut