What is "minangkabau"

Minangkabau may refer to:

• the Minangkabau people
• the Minangkabau language
• the Minangkabau Highlands of Sumatra
• The Padri War is also called the Minangkabau War, and was fought from 1803 until 1837 in West Sumatra between two rival Muslim factions
• Minangkabau International Airport

The Minangkabau legend told the story of the origin of the name " Minangkabau". It is thought to be a conjunction of two words, minang ("victorious") and kabau ("buffalo").

The legend told the story of a territorial dispute between the local West Sumatran people and a neighbouring invading prince. The invading prince and his troops was somehow traditionally associated with Javanese Majapahit kingdom. To avoid a battle, the local leader proposed a fight to the death between two water buffalo to settle the dispute. The prince agreed and set forward his largest, meanest, most aggressive buffalo. The locals set forth a hungry baby buffalo with its small horns ground to be as sharp as knives. Seeing the adult buffalo across the field, the baby ran forward, hoping for milk. The big buffalo saw no threat in the baby buffalo and paid no attention to it, looking around for a worthy opponent. But when the baby thrust his head under the big bull's belly, looking for an udder, the sharpened horns punctured and killed the bull, and the local people won the contest and the dispute and thus name their tribe "Minangkabau" the victorious buffalo to mark this important event.

The moral of the story set an example of the use of wisdom and strategy to avoid war and violence. It also celebrated the intelligence and victory of Minangkabau people.