10 Easy Ways How to Preserve Indonesian Culture

Recently Indonesian Cultures are increasingly forgotten by the young generations. It is slowly eroded by modernization things. Teens and youngster of Indonesia are rarely learning about Indonesian culture, such as singing traditional songs, dancing, studying local dances, and many others. So, how can you keep the culture sustainable? Here we would like to give ideas of How to Preserve Indonesian Culture.

1. Use local product of Indonesia

Using the local product of Indonesia could be one of the effort to preserve the culture. While there are many people like to use the popular branded product, you could move to use the local brand of Indonesia.

Many Indonesians say they love Indonesian products, however they still like to buy import product rather than local products. When you choose to buy and use Indonesian products, you don’t not only help to preserve our culture, but also also help the Indonesian economy stronger.

2. Learn the traditional music of Indonesia

Each country has its own musical culture, including in Indonesia. In our country, you can feel the distinctive culture that is different from each region. Such as Central Java and West Java which still located in the same island, they have different musical nuances. This means that when you study music, you will know how rich the cultures in Indonesia is. Some of Traditional Music of Indonesia even has been well known for foreigner.

Do you know that Gamelan of Indonesia has already popular in the world? Some people in abroad are interested to learn how to play Gamelan. Now, this is your turn! You could join some Gamelan course in your surrounding.

Read also:

• Gamelan Facts
• Facts about Gamelan music of Indonesia

3. Share your culture’s art through the technology

Nowadays social media have multi function technology that would be useful to share everything, including your local culture’s art. You could start to make such a video or vlog about the unique art in the local environment. Then, share it through social media. Many people would easily see your video. Don’t forget to give complete information of your recording. Now, see how it works. Some or art lovers might contact you for helping you to preserve it.

4. Participate a traditions

Teens and youngsters today rarely participate in some local traditions. They don’t even know the traditions that exist in their surroundings since their parent no longer apply them anymore. That is why, when you want to preserve the culture in Indonesia, participate to the tradition could be the effective way. As the example, you could visit a wedding party with the local traditions. If not, joining some local festivals in your city is the nice idea. (Read also: Indonesian Marriage Traditions)

5. Speak your local language

Besides able to speak Indonesian Language, it would be great if you could speak the local language really well. Local language is also an asset of the culture. Do you still speak local or regional languages, that also called Mother’s language in daily activity?

Some of you might be strongly use the local language, or couldn’t speak the local language at all. Fortunately, there is a lesson that learning the local language in some schools in Indonesia. However, some students sometimes don’t really practice it in their daily activity. (Read also: Language in Bali Indonesia)

6. Watch the traditional art performance

For those who like seeing an international artist or actor concert with not so affordable price, have you counted how many times you watch Indonesian Traditional Puppets  or Traditional Dances of Indonesia? Unfortunately, some of you would say never. If you have recognized enough to preserve the culture of Indonesia, you could try to watch the traditional art performance. You know that Indonesia is rich of the traditional art that needs to preserve. (Read also: Balinese Puppets)

7. Cook the traditional foods

If you love culinary, trying some traditional recipe is a good thing to do. Today the world of culinary is already developed well. Some people even make it as the business.

However, it has already been difficult to find traditional foods  in fancy restaurants. It could be an idea for your business if you love cooking. Imagine that if you could make a traditional food than make it as the business of culinary. Hopefully, people still could taste the traditional foods in a fancy restaurant. (Read also: Famous Food of Indonesia)

8. Go to the museum of traditional art

Today there are many museums that have the great collection of traditional art. There you could learn many things such as the traditional art of Indonesia. If you are in Bali, you could try to visit Puri Museum. There are many collections of traditional paintings that exhibited. Besides, you could also go to traditional puppet museum in some regions of Indonesia. In Purwakarta, there is ‘Galeri Wayang’ that exhibits Sundanese traditional puppets. While in Yogyakarta, you could experience to visit Museum in Yogyakarta.

9. Listen the traditional song

 If you could memorize English song really well, why don’t you try to learn and listen the traditional songs of Indonesia? Nowadays most of Indonesians youngsters and teens are not familiar with them. It could be a great concern for government to add the traditional song in the lesson of their studying at school.

If you are a music lover which has beautiful voice, you could try to sing them and share through social media as the effort of preservation. See how many people would like the song and how many the viewers of your video you would get.

10. Practice the local traditions in your future family

It could be the long term planning for those who want to build a family. There is not such a bad thing if you could practice the local traditions in your future family. You could teach your children a mother tongue. Having a quality time by seeing a traditional puppet performance with your family would be nice too. If not, you could keep the traditions by doing the mapati or mitoni of pregnancy.

Those are the things that you could do to preserve the Indonesian culture. Remember that Indonesia has the great number of culture. You need to keep and preserve them as your cultural heritage. Don’t let people from other countries claim them as their culture.