ABSTRACT
This chapter presents aspects of customary land tenures and patterns of historical displacement in Lautem, especially as they relate to the principal ethno-linguistic grouping in the district, the Fataluku language community. The comparatively smooth reinstatement of these arrangements among Fataluku settlements reflects the fact that the influence of Indonesian law surrounding land appropriation and its transfer has had surprisingly little lasting impact on underlying Fataluku customary tenure patterns. The most populous ethno-linguistic community of Lautem is the Fataluku who number around 35,000 resident native speakers. Consequently most Fatal.
