ABSTRACT
This chapter provides historical and comparative perspectives on various aspects of the Great Transformation in a Malaysian context; it is organized into three sections. The first examines the ways in which the systems of kinship, gender, and prestige that obtained among Malays in late precolonial Negeri Sembilan predisposed men to take advantage of new opportunities to engage in cash cropping. The second section isolates some of the variables that worked against Negeri Sembilan Malays "taking the extra step" and includes comparative references to Chinese kinship and entrepreneurial ethics. The third section analyzes similarities and differences between Negeri Sembilan Malays and the Minangkabau of Sumatra, from whom Negeri Sembilan Malays trace their descent. The chapter provides an overview of commonalities between the two populations and explains why, despite broad similarities of kinship, gender, prestige, and so on, entrepreneurial traditions are far more pronounced among the Minangkabau than among Negeri Sembilan Malays.
