ABSTRACT
Timor Leste may have a comparatively small land territory, but its population is by no means homogeneous. Great cultural and linguistic diversity characterizes this small half-island nation. The population is highly heterogeneous, and aside from East Timorese, includes a small fraction of people who are not ethnically East Timorese, for example, Chinese merchants, and descendants of Arab migrants and Indonesians who married East Timorese. Prior to Independence very few of the indigenous cultures have been documented by professional anthropologists. These include the Tetum of Viqueque district, the Ema of Marobo in Bobonaro district, and the Mambai in Aileu district (See Hicks 1976, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1997, 2007; Renard-Clamagirand 1971, 1972, 1975, 1980, 1982; Traube 1980, 1986, 2007). This lack of documentation was the consequence of a ban on research in Timor Leste, especially by foreign researchers, during the period of occupation by Indonesia, when Timor Leste was known as Timor Timur-the 27th province of Indonesia. Since 1999 there has been an explosion of research by cultural anthropologists in this new country, many of whom are from Australia. (See for example, Soares et al. 2003; Bexley 2007; Crockford 2007; Graham 2008; Gunter 2007; Hicks 2007; McWilliam 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008; Meitzner Yoder 2005; Molnar 2004, 2005a, 2005b, 2006; Ospina and Hohe 2002; Traube 2007; Wise 2006 among others.) These works are not ethnographies but deal with a variety of cultural anthropology issues and foci pertaining to the cultures of Timor Leste. It is not just cultural anthropology research that is booming, however,
but linguistic research as well (See for example Duggan 2007; Hajek and Tilman 2008; Hattori et al. 2005; Huber 2008). Linguistic research is very carefully controlled by the National Institute of Linguistics (National University of Timor Leste) which has been mainly under the careful guidance of the Australian linguist, Geoffrey Hull (Hull 2002,
2006; Hull, Babo-Soares, and Teme 2005; Hull, Branco, and Tomas 2005; Hull and Costa 2005; Hull et al. 2006). This chapter provides an overview of major cultural features such as
those that pertain to indigenous social organization and religion. These cultural features had a significant impact on the historical development of the country and on the current processes of nation building.
