We call them sirung or siung in Kadazan/Dusun. There are many versions of Borneo hat according to the various ethnics in Borneo. The photo below are mostly worn by the people in east coast of Sabah, namely the KadazanDusun and Bajau found in Penampang, Tuaran and Kota Belud.
The sirung frame is handmade from rattan and the surface is from weaved bamboo. Most Borneo hat is in a cone shape and in the middle of the cone, the bamboos are colored to create a pattern to make it look attractive.
The sirung came in different sizes. The biggest one is to fit one head and used to protect the wearer from the sun. And the the small one are usually sold as a tourist souvenir and can be hang on the wall.
In the older days, the sirung is mostly worn by the ladies when working outside under the sun especially when tending their paddy field. Nowadays, we hardly see the local wearing the sirung unless to go to a remote area. And it is mostly worn by the elderly.
I remember when I was a little girl, I like to wear my mom's sirung and she only have one. My sisters and I usually fight who would get it first. Since, my head was quite small back then, the sirung would slip off my head easily so I had to tie the rope tightly under my chin:)
Here, I made a bit of innovation with the small or mini sirung.
Now, you can wear it as you are wearing a headband. I made two version, the side sirung headband and middle sirung headband.
Each is price at RM34.90 (USD10). I will post more photo later and how to order them. For enquiry, you can email me at
chanteek.borneo@gmail.com
