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On the basis of the theoretical notions of discursive ambience and ambientdiscourse, this article examines the recent history of language and ethnicity inBanyuwangi in the far east of Java. Over the last three decades (with roots goingback to the 1920s and earlier) a redefinition of the language and culture of the?autochthonous? inhabitants of Banyuwangi has been occurring. Their status andconstitution have been changing from a variety of Javanese into an autonomouslanguage and ethnicity, called, after the name given to the language or dialect,Osing. At the same time, an idyllic and heroic picture of the regional past isbeing constructed and maintained. Prominent among the factors and agenciesinvolved in these two ongoing processes is popular media culture. The regencyof Banyuwangi and especially its capital (also named Banyuwangi) are beingcast ? albeit sporadically and incidentally and sometimes controversially ? asan Osing region. At the centre of this historical process, people publicly renderthemselves ? also sporadically and temporarily ? Banyuwanginese by listeningto and especially by singing, in karaoke-style, a genre of pop music with Osinglyrics and musical characteristics perceived as local. |
