To Be or Not to Be...: The Cultural Identity of the Jawi (Thailand)

Abstract

At the beginning of the century, the sultanate of Patani was permanently annexed by Siam (Thailand), and its inhabitants were cut off from a common future with Malaysia. Since then, these people, Muslims of Malay origin, have resisted political and cultural integration, maintaining themselves as Malays vis-a-vis the Thai and distinguishing themselves from other Malays in elaborating an autonym, the usage of which is somewhat of a puzzle to those outside the community. But in this way it seems an appropriate mark of identification for the Jawi: existing, but much debated; used, but not recognized; in short, in a state of limbo.