A review of the evolution of the Cocos Malays dwellings in Australia

This paper studies the unique anthropology of the Cocos Malays of Cocos (Keeling) Island in Australia. The focus of the study is on the evolution and transformation of their dwelling architecture and culture. Cocos Island is an isolated coral atoll located in the vast Indian Ocean and it became a...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Osri, Nurul Ain, Hj Mohd Ariffin, Noor Aziah
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Asia Pacific Institute of Advanced Research 2016
Subjects:
Online Access:http://irep.iium.edu.my/50442/
http://irep.iium.edu.my/50442/1/5_APJABSS_APCCR_BRR746_SS-242-250.pdf
_version_ 1848783644687073280
author Osri, Nurul Ain
Hj Mohd Ariffin, Noor Aziah
author_facet Osri, Nurul Ain
Hj Mohd Ariffin, Noor Aziah
author_sort Osri, Nurul Ain
building IIUM Repository
collection Online Access
description This paper studies the unique anthropology of the Cocos Malays of Cocos (Keeling) Island in Australia. The focus of the study is on the evolution and transformation of their dwelling architecture and culture. Cocos Island is an isolated coral atoll located in the vast Indian Ocean and it became a home for the small community of Cocos Malays. Cocos Malays is a group of people from various ethnicities who were brought by a British merchant as slaves when he decided to inhabit and settle on the island in the 1820s. The slaves were a combination of people, mostly of Malay origin with the majority coming from Banjarmasin, Indonesia. These people later became assimilated into what is known today as the Cocos Malays. Starting by being slaves to the British and later as Australian subjects, this paper traces their history through the transformation of their dwelling culture until the present time. The dwellings, apart from serving the function of basic needs for the human being also acts as a place for them to experience their sense of belonging, culture and worth of a people displaced by circumstances beyond their control. Through archival research and present observations, the paper in progress elucidates the transformation of the architectural practices of the Cocos Malays’ dwelling culture.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T16:24:38Z
format Article
id iium-50442
institution International Islamic University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
language English
last_indexed 2025-11-14T16:24:38Z
publishDate 2016
publisher Asia Pacific Institute of Advanced Research
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling iium-504422021-05-20T03:14:26Z http://irep.iium.edu.my/50442/ A review of the evolution of the Cocos Malays dwellings in Australia Osri, Nurul Ain Hj Mohd Ariffin, Noor Aziah GN Anthropology H Social Sciences (General) NA Architecture This paper studies the unique anthropology of the Cocos Malays of Cocos (Keeling) Island in Australia. The focus of the study is on the evolution and transformation of their dwelling architecture and culture. Cocos Island is an isolated coral atoll located in the vast Indian Ocean and it became a home for the small community of Cocos Malays. Cocos Malays is a group of people from various ethnicities who were brought by a British merchant as slaves when he decided to inhabit and settle on the island in the 1820s. The slaves were a combination of people, mostly of Malay origin with the majority coming from Banjarmasin, Indonesia. These people later became assimilated into what is known today as the Cocos Malays. Starting by being slaves to the British and later as Australian subjects, this paper traces their history through the transformation of their dwelling culture until the present time. The dwellings, apart from serving the function of basic needs for the human being also acts as a place for them to experience their sense of belonging, culture and worth of a people displaced by circumstances beyond their control. Through archival research and present observations, the paper in progress elucidates the transformation of the architectural practices of the Cocos Malays’ dwelling culture. Asia Pacific Institute of Advanced Research 2016 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://irep.iium.edu.my/50442/1/5_APJABSS_APCCR_BRR746_SS-242-250.pdf Osri, Nurul Ain and Hj Mohd Ariffin, Noor Aziah (2016) A review of the evolution of the Cocos Malays dwellings in Australia. Asia Pacific Journal of Advanced Business and Social Studies, 2 (1). pp. 242-250. ISSN 2205-6033 http://apiar.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/5_APJABSS_APCCR_BRR746_SS-242-250.pdf
spellingShingle GN Anthropology
H Social Sciences (General)
NA Architecture
Osri, Nurul Ain
Hj Mohd Ariffin, Noor Aziah
A review of the evolution of the Cocos Malays dwellings in Australia
title A review of the evolution of the Cocos Malays dwellings in Australia
title_full A review of the evolution of the Cocos Malays dwellings in Australia
title_fullStr A review of the evolution of the Cocos Malays dwellings in Australia
title_full_unstemmed A review of the evolution of the Cocos Malays dwellings in Australia
title_short A review of the evolution of the Cocos Malays dwellings in Australia
title_sort review of the evolution of the cocos malays dwellings in australia
topic GN Anthropology
H Social Sciences (General)
NA Architecture
url http://irep.iium.edu.my/50442/
http://irep.iium.edu.my/50442/
http://irep.iium.edu.my/50442/1/5_APJABSS_APCCR_BRR746_SS-242-250.pdf