Contributing Writer: Elwa Gloria Justin
When the Sabah Fest 2025 kicked off on August 30 in Kota Kinabalu, it wasn’t just another cultural event; it was a living, breathing stage for Sabah’s stories. With the theme “Unity in Diversity: Culture Unites Us”, the month-long celebration invited everyone (locals, tourists, performers) to step into the legends, dances, and identities that give Sabah its soul.
Take the Huminodun legend, for example. It’s one of the most well-known Kadazan-Dusun stories. Huminodun, the daughter of Kinorohingan and Suminundu, was said to have sacrificed herself to save her people from famine. In dances inspired by her such as the Sumazau, every slow turn and flowing hand movement tells of purity, sorrow, and blessing. It’s not just performance; it’s remembrance, keeping her sacrifice alive with every harvest festival.
Or the Nunuk Ragang story, about the red banyan tree where the Kadazan-Dusun people are believed to have originated. Some dances open with grounded, rooted movements, symbolising the gathering of people under its branches. It’s a way of saying: this is where we come from, and we dance so we never forget.
Then there was Daling-Daling, which reached Sabah through centuries of cultural mingling. Its playful, flirtatious style comes from courtship traditions, and you can still feel that cheeky back-and-forth in the way dancers interact on stage.
From the Murut, echoes of their past as headhunters survive in performance. The Magunatip, Sabah’s famous bamboo dance, is thrilling to watch with its clapping bamboo poles and quick footwork. But behind the excitement lies a story of Murut endurance and discipline. Once training the body and spirit for survival, now transformed into cultural pride and celebration.
Watching those dances in Sabah Fest wasn’t just entertainment. It’s storytelling through the body. Whether it’s the rooted spirit of Nunuk Ragang, the bold leaps of the Murut headhunters, the sacrifice of Huminodun, or the electrifying rhythm of Magunatip, every performance is a living archive of identity. The gongs may set the beat, but it’s the legends that give the dances their soul.
Sabah Fest 2025 reminded everyone that culture doesn’t just preserve the past, it lives today. In every movement, every dance, Sabah’s folkloric spirit walked the streets again, echoing its legends under city lights.
