API SANGEANG (28 01 14)

By: Fransiskus Borgias M.


Since yesterday or two days ago, I read in the running text of some television broadcasts, the news of the explossion of gunung Sangeang in Sape Strait. Today, very early in the morning, I got the short messages from my brother, Hubertus MT., and Kanisius S., in Daleng, and in Dempol, Lembor, in which they told me about the dust covering the whole area of Lembor, the street, the roof of the houses, the leaves of trees (including, cassava or saung daeng). But the dust is not so thick. I can imagine that this bring some difficulties for the life of those people, as I have experienced in Java because of the explossion of Merapi, Kelud, Slamet. There are a lot of volcanoes in Flores. Most of them are still active. One of them is Sangeang. We do not know when for the last time this volcano has errupted. There is no clear historical record of it.

Upon hearing and reading this news, I immediately remember of my experince in my childhood about the linguistic expression used by people in Lembor. In my childhood I have already heard the elder people in Lembor, especially in Wol, Daleng, Dempol, Wae Nakeng, and Roga, mentioned about what they call Api Sangeang, or sometimes it was spelled as Api Samiang. The existence of Api Sangeang has already become like a legend or even a myth among the West Manggaraian people. But this expression of Api Sangeang was remembered by the people in its mythical-magical sense. It is told about the magic fire sent by “ata mbeko” from Sangeang, the name of one little island in Selat Sape, near Sumbawa island. In Manggarai very often we hear about the magic story about the fire sent from one Kampung to another Kampung in order to burn the houses in the intended Kampung. The expression of “Api Sangeang” was imagined like this kind of magic fire. But actually this island of Sangeang also has its own volcano, but there is no historical written-record or report on its activity in the past.

The expression “Api Sangeang” may refers to two historical natural events in the past as it was record in the collective memory of the west Manggaraian people. First, it may refers to the real-historical eruption of the volcano in this Island and from a far the Manggaraian people in its western part saw only the fire flying and falling like a rain from the west blown by the southern-west wind. Of course this event has a certain natural impact on Manggarai and the surrounding area. For example, the falling dust that covers the surrounding area. Or the earthquake or just the tremor as the consequence of this volcanic explossion. But because there is no historical report so far on this activity of this volcano in Sangiang, I take another resort to explain this phenomenon of linguistic expression.

Secondly, it may refers to the real eruption of the Tambora volcano in Sumbawa, 10 April 1815. Scholars said that this is the most great eruption of volcano in the whole history of the world. No eruption of the volcano in the world, can be compared to this eruption of Tambora. The eruption of Krakatau at the end of nineteenth century (1885) also cannot be compared to the eruption of Tambora. Being so close to Sumbawa, it can be said that the eruption in Tambora can also be seen its fire and dust from western Manggarai. The sound of the explosion can also can be heard from Yogyakarta and Borneo, as it was recorded in some historical records made by historians and scholars. It changes the climate of the world also. I think this is the fire that is called Api Sangiang because the fire seems like came from Sangeang island, while actually it came from Tambora through or over Sangeang island.

If this is true, then this expression of Api Sangeang is the sediment of the collective memory in linguistic layer of the Manggaraian people of the volcanic eruption and explossion. Maybe it come from Sangeang, but after reading about Tambora I would like to suggest that this fire is coming from Tambora eruption in 1815. The Tambora tragedy has a great political and economical impact upon Manggarai. Before the Tambora explossion, there are six or seven small kingdoms surrounding Tambora Mountain. One of this small Kingdom is Tambora. Some historians says that this Tambora Kingdom has a certain relationship with Manggarai. Even it is said that the language of people in Tambora was very similar to Manggaraian Language. Maybe there was a certain blood affinities between the two area. Once this kingdom of Tambora was destroyed because of this natural dissaster, then come Bima Kingdom to claim sovereignity over Manggarai. A scholarly study of Dami N.Toda has proved that this claim of Bima actually has no historical basis at all. But one thing is very clear with the coming of Bima to Manggarai: the tragedy of slave trades kidnapped from Manggarai by the pagora (pirates), which later on in the Manggarain tongue becomes empo-gorak.