ABSTRACT
The Malays continue to perceive and map Riau as part of the wider Malay World. A system of social ranking prominent in the Malay society of Riau during the era of the Sultan continues to pervade intergroup relations with the Orang Laut today. Through the signs of purity that are perceived by the Malays, contrasting meanings of purity and impurity in one’s Malayness are expressed in establishing group boundaries. These boundaries have become starker with the Orang Laut’s redefinition and attribution of different meanings to the signs of purity observed by the Malays. Against this backdrop, interand intra-group relations underpinned by such hierarchical boundaries have found expression in different forms of exchange.
