The Function and Meaning of Headdress (Blangkon and Udeng) Amid Community Social Changes Nise Samudra Sasanti
Faculty of Language and Arts, Department of Japanese Language and Literature, Japanese Language Education
Universitas Negeri Surabaya
Jl. Lidah Wetan, Lidah Wetan, Kec. Lakarsantri, Surabaya, Jawa Timur, Indonesia
nisesamudra[at]unesa.ac.id
Abstract
The headdress, especially worn by men, is identical to the traditional Indonesian dress. Not only had the Javanese community, but most of Indonesia^s customs also used headdress to complement traditional clothing. People in Central Java call it Blangkon while those in East Java call it Udeng. Based on their naming and shapes, the headdress has deeper functions and meanings. It can reflect the customs and culture of a region. The shape of the headdress from Yogyakarta, Solo, and East Java especially Surabaya and Madura are different. Yogyakarta has a spherical Mondolan on the back side while Surabaya has a unique form of Udeng, shaped like a triangle reaching high up. Special characteristics also have different meanings. This study focused on functions and also implicit and expressed meanings of the headdress wearer^s community. The methods used are library methods as well as interviews. The data-collecting techniques are observation data collection, interviews, and documentation, while the data-analysis technique is a qualitative data analysis technique. Results of the study showed that 1) a headdress serves as a head covering, 2) indicates the social status of the wearer, 3) has expressed and implicit meanings, a) the social level of the wearer, the presence of dignity in accordance to the ethics of the community, b) indicates the personality of the region.
