Know Koteka: The typical outfit of Papuan Island
Knowing Koteka ...
Koteka is a kind of clothing to cover male genitalia in the culture of some indigenous Papuans. Koteka is made of pumpkin fruits. The type of pumpkin used to make koteka is a water gourd. For making the contents of kotaka and pumpkin seeds of old water is removed and the skin and dried in the sun to dry. Literally, this word means "clothing", derived from the language of one of the tribes in Paniai. Some mountain tribes Jayawijaya also often call it honim or also can be called horim.
Making koteka
Unlike the general assumption, the size and shape of the koteka is not related to the wearer's status. The size is also different, usually the use of koteka is related to user activity, users usually wear koteka want to work or traditional ceremony. Many tribes there can be recognized by the way they use koteka. Short Koteka is used when working men are at work or hunting wild boar, deer etc,
While long ones with ornaments are used in traditional ceremonies in the village, or weddings on the island of Papua.
However, each tribe in Papua has different forms of each koteka. The Yali, for example, love the long pumpkin shape. While the tribe of Tiom usually wear two large pumpkins.
Along with the development of the era, koteka users increasingly less popularly used everyday by tribal tribes in Papua. The use of koteka is prohibited from being worn in public transport and schools. Even if there is, koteka only to be traded as souvenirs only.
In mountainous areas, such as Wamena, koteka is still widely used. To take pictures with the wearer, tourists must reach a few tens of thousands of dollars. While In the coastal area, people are harder to find again.