Massenrempulu Ethnicity from South Sulawesi in the Transformation of Political Identity and the Production of Cultural Differences

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INTRODUCTION
From sources in the colonial and historical records of South Sulawesi and the anthropological literature, Massenrem-pulu (abbreviated Maspul) can refer to either the Federation or the ethnic group.In the context of the political history of the kingdoms of South Sulawesi up to the end of the Dutch colonial period, Maspul was interpreted as a political alliance of small kingdoms in the mountainous region of South Sulawesi, including Enrekang in the central region; Tallu Batupapan Duri (Malua, Allak, Buntu Batu) in the north and east (bordering Tana Toraja and Luwu); Letta, Kassa, Batu Lappa in the west (bordering the territory of the Kingdom of Sawitto/Bugis); and Maiwa in the south (bordering the territory of the Sidenreng/Bugis).According to these sources, the Maspul Federation was formed as the result of a political agreement among the six small kingdoms mentioned above to deal with the greater political power of the surrounding kingdoms, especially Bone, Sidenreng, and Luwu.
In the context of anthropological literature after Indonesian independence, the term Maspul is interpreted as an ethnic group among several more populous ethnic groups such as the Bugis, Makassar, Luwu, Toraja (South Sulawesi), and Mandar (West Sulawesi) that have expanded from South Sulawesi Province since 2009.Expressions such as orang Maspul, masyarakat Maspul, and Bahasa Maspul refer to ethnicity and are often heard to refer to people from Enrekang Regency (kabupaten, or secondlevel region; i.e., the Maspul area) by other ethnic groups, especially those living in large cities such as Makassar, Kendari, Palu, Manado, and even overseas.
Although the people of Enrekang have always claimed to be different from the three neighboring ethnic groups, this has received limited ethnographic or anthropological attention.The Maspul have never been widely mentioned as an ethnic group in the media in South Sulawesi or Indonesia as a whole compared to the Bugis, Makassar, and Toraja.In the 1960s or even before, the Maspul Student Association (HPMM: Himpunan Pelajar dan Mahasiswa Massenrempulu) and the Maspul Family Association (HIKMA: Himpunan Keluarga Massenrempulu) were formed in the city of Makassar and have organized and supported Maspul migrants since the beginning of Indonesia's independence.The two organizations also sprung up in the rantau area-that is, the provincial cities in eastern and western Indonesia.Through these two organizations, Maspul residents in the rantau have held meetings, cultural seminars, and workshops, as well as wedding parties at which is Maspul food is served.
During the initial fieldwork, it appeared that the ignorance of the Maspul ethnic group was influenced by internal and external factors.First, the Maspul appear to lack cultural uniqueness and also have many similarities with neighboring ethnic groups; this is one of the main internal factors inhibiting the acknowledgment of the group.These differences appear more significant, however, when comparing the lives of the northern Maspul people (the Duri, bordering Tana Toraja) with the Bugis and Makassar people in the south, or when comparing the Maiwa people in the south (bordering the Bugis and Makassar) with the Toraja.Although few in number, cultural elements that are unique appear among the people of Enrekang and its environs (Letta, Kassa, Batu Lappa) in the central part of the Enrekang Regency.The Maspul has acknowledged this in general.
Three influential external factors have affected the acknowledgment of the Maspul.
First, information from Mattulada's Bugis-Makassar ethnography states that the people of Enrekang Regency are a transitional community of Bugis, Makassar, and Toraja ethnic groups, such as also appear on the Pangkajenne Islands.This ethnographic information has depressed interest among the anthropological community for studying the Maspul community and culture.Second, during his time as Governor of South Sulawesi (during the late 1970s to early 1980s), Amiruddin did not respond to an initiative by academics and the HPMM to formalize the Maspul as one of the ethnic groups in South Sulawesi through a seminar on Maspul culture.This unsupportive attitude from the Governor disappointed the HPMM and HIKMA, as well as the Enrekang district government, and resulted in a loss of motivation.Third, the traditional and cultural figures of the Toraja people have long claimed that all people from Enrekang Regency, and especially the Duri, form part of the Toraja tribe.
People from Enrekang Regency have always acknowledged that the Maspul ethnic group is the product of a unique new culture that is distinguished from neighboring ethnic groups.From these complex phenomena, there emerge three research questions: how can this phenomenon be explained and represented?Should the Maspul be recognized as an ethnic group or not?What theoretical concepts or perspectives on ethnicity are relevant to this situation and could be applied and developed for future assessment?As a preliminary researchbased study, this article presents a brief overview of the area and people of Maspul, revealing the history of the formation of the Maspul alliance, to explain the transformation towards ethnic unity and cultural uniqueness both in the area of origin and the rantau region.A constructivist approach drawn from cultural anthropology is applied to illuminate the historical explanation of the socio-cultural complexity of Maspul ethnicity.

Framework for Research: Maspul Ethnicity and Constructivism
The Maspul was included as one of the ethnic groups in South Sulawesi in the encyclopedias of anthropology by Melalatoa (1995) andHidayah (1996), both of which briefly describe the group.Most of the relevant literature on the Maspul ethnicity has been summarized in Kennedy (1955), which has become a standard reference for ethnographers or anthropologists researching in Indonesia.The information in these sources is limited, however, as these reference works contain little information about socio-cultural aspects.Fortunately, there are research reports about the Maspul written by D. F. van Braam Morris (former Governor of the Duth East Indies in Makassar) during the colonial period and translated into Indonesian by Mappasanda in the early 1990s.These reports, although primarily intended to inform political contracts between the Maspul Federation and the Governor of the Dutch East Indies in Makassar, contain significant historical and socio-cultural information about the Maspul at that time.The reports are characterized by full descriptions of aspects of people's lives, as well as the genealogy of kings, government systems, geographical conditions, natural resource potential, demographics, and employment, including information about the types of employment available in the Maspul Federation (including Enrekang, Duri [further divided into the kingdoms of Malua/Anggeraja, Buntu Batu, and Allak], Maiwa, Kassa, and Batulappa).Because these reports were not the work of an ethnographer, but rather intended as background for contract negotiations, the subjective judgments contain many elements that undermine the way of life of the Maspul people.
The three ethnic reference works mentioned above are problematic in understanding the Maspul ethnicity based on an essential and primordial perspective-followed by, among others, Theodorson and Theodorson (Hidayah, 1996) that considers ethnic groups and cultural patterns as being homogeneous and lacking significant internal differences.Following this perspective, which has had widespread influence, it is difficult to recognize the Maspul as an ethnicity, and they would remain widely considered a nebulous community in South Sulawesi, although they have long aspired to more concrete recognition.The preliminary research using diverse sources most of which was gained from my field research conducted in 2015 found, however, that the complexity of the socio-cultural characteristics of the Maspul does not reflect this type of homogeneity.Based on these findings and following a constructivist perspective (although this, too, is not free from value judgments) that focuses on subjectivism, justice, humanism, history, context, and procession or the plural and multicultural the Maspul community can be understood as an ethnic group as well.
The history of the formation of the Maspul Federation can thus be connected, via the constructivist approach, to that of the Onderafdeling (bureaucratic subsection during the Dutch East Indies period), and ultimately ties together the transformation of the Enrekang Regency and Maspul ethnicity during the period of Indonesian independence.As a form of past political unity, the Maspul Federation is the result of a process of conflict, negotiation, and agreement among several small kingdoms of varying socio-cultural characteristics.The Maspul wanted to achieve the same sociopolitical goals namely, power and sovereignty, defense and security, social peace, and the economy.These goals conform to Hobbes's model of a social contract (Lindholm 2007), according to which a society is united not because its members share a common psyche, but because they rationally accept the implicit agreement that it is useful and profitable to work together and maintain social peace.Culture, according to Lindholm (2007), this is to be understood as a cognitive and moral framework within which individuals can solve problems and predict, more or less accurately, the outcomes of their behaviors.
Developing from the Maspul Federation into Maspul ethnicity is a transformation process that involves the functional union of several small ethnic groups with different cultures.The changes from a federation (during the period of the local kingdom in South Sulawesi) to an Onderafdeling (under the rule of the Dutch East Indies) to Regency (during the period of independent Indonesia) can be understood as a process of socio-political constructionist transformations that integrated the former (small) kingdoms that had joined the Maspul Federation in the past.That is, both the function of ethnic and cultural unity and the function of uniting the political power of the government form the basis for the Maspul Federation.Schultz and Lavenda in Sjaf (2014) note that ethnic identity is created by a historical process that combines different social groups into a single political structure under certain social conditions.In this case, Bourdieu in Sjaf and Kolpaking (2012) agrees that ethnic identity is the result and mode of social construction that is built between subjects and objects through actual practice (opus operatum) and abstract description (modus operandi).
The constructivist approach can also be applied to the analysis of the transition of ethnicity at the group or individual level (Eriksen, 1993).In the case of the Maspul, at first, the three kingdoms of Kassa, Letta, and Batulappa together with Enrekang, Duri, and Maiwa, were included in the Maspul Federation, but because the events of past political history caused, the three kingdoms first entered the Sawitto Kingdom (the Bugis).In the context of ethnicity, Kassa, Letta, and Batulappa still claimed to be Maspul, but over time claimed to be Patinjo because of their use of the Patinjo dialect, although this language has many similarities with Maspul dialects.Based on this linguistic similarity, the Kassa, Letta, and Batulappa agreed to unite and assert themselves as Patinjo Tribes, although the Patinjo has planned a new regency of their springing from the regency of Pinrang.In the same way, the Maiwa, who had previously been included in the Sidenreng Kingdom, joined the Maspul Federation because of political events and then gradually claimed to be Maspul based on ethnicity and culture.
The constructivist approach is also suitable for analysis of the complexity of cultural diversity within an ethnicity such as the Maspul, including the recognition of subjective ethnicity, the ability to engineer differences or cultural similarities, the production of distinctive new cultural elements, and the activation of stereotypes in different construction.According to Parekh in Budianta (2004)  Constructivist concepts follow the thinking of Sapirin in Fox (2004) that a culture has the potential to include considerable internal variability, and the difference between two individuals in one culture can be as great as the difference between two individuals from two different cultures.Some cultures have more internal variations than others.To represent the complexity of such socio-cultural phenomena, including Maspul ethnic culture, it is appropriate to adopt the concept of culture as a process of being from Sanjek in Borofsky (1994) "culture is ... in a continuous, fluid, interconnected, dispersed process of creation, breaking through, homogenizing, distinguishing, mastering, surviving, reformulating, transplanting, more open than closed, more partial than total, transcending boundaries, and changing." Even ethnographers or anthropologists who adhere to an essentialist and primordial perspective will find it difficult to explain away or even to hesitate to recognize a community group such as the Maspul as an ethnic group.
The existence, dynamics, and popularity of the Maspul (without the title of ethnicity) in other regions were made possible by the widespread and intensive interaction of Maspul people with people of various origins and other ethnicities, and this also requires certain ethnic concepts and relevant ethnic relationships according to, among other things, the opinion of Barth (1969) that shared culture is more properly seen as an implication of the process of longterm social relations rather than as a primordial characteristic of ethnic groups.It is erroneous to understand the phenomenon of the cultural uniqueness of ethnic groups in isolation.

RESEARCH METHOD
This field research followed a descriptive qualitative, and ethnographic approach.The research was conducted in three principal Maspul culture areas: Enrekang (Enrekang ethnic group), Cakke, Pasui, Kalosi (Duri ethnic group), and Maroangin (Maiwa ethnic group).Several informants were selectively recruited from each area, and these usually consisted of informal leaders (especially traditional cultural figures) and government employees (especially those in the Cultural Department of Enrekang Regency) who have rich information about the traditional and new society and culture, history, and mythology or folklore.
Guided in-depth interviews and observation are common and productive data collection techniques within the ethnographic method.In this case, interviews with several principal informants provided wide-ranging information, especially about past and contemporary Maspul people and their culture, their historical complexity within the context of the three periods under consideration (kingdom, colonial, and independence), and contemporary cultural reproduction.Direct observation yielded data about cultural artifacts, especially culturally unique products and procedures such as, among others, vegetable and cash crop farming landscapes, traditional foods, and traditional music instruments.Observation and in-depth interviews were undertaken equipped with visualization tools and recorders.To find informants, representatives from the groups HPMM and HIKMA were consulted, and then data were collected following the mode of progressive contextualization (Vayda, 1983).Data analysis techniques included data reduction, categorization, interpretation, and presentation or writing research reports concerning the dynamics of adaptive strategies approach.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Enrekang Regency and Maspul Land
The Enrekang Regency is the land of origin of the Maspul people and is one of 24 regencies or cities in South Sulawesi Province.The name is taken from the Kingdom of Enrekang, which was one of the kingdoms belonging to the Maspul Federation.It should be kept in mind that the city of Enrekang in the district of Enrekang is located at the center of Enrekang Regency (that is, Enrekang may refer to either regency, district, or city).Enrekang Regency is bordered by the regencies of Sidrap (south), Pinrang (west), Tana Toraja (north), and Luwu Raya and Wajo (east and southeast).The northern border of Enrekang Regency (with Tana Toraja Regency) is 275 km north of Makassar City, while its southern border (with Sidrap Regency) and 180 km from Makassar.All areas except the Maiwa district in the south are mountainous highlands (approximately 90.97% hill).The two highest mountains in South Sulawesi, Mount Latimojong and Mount Bamba Puang, are located in Enrekang Regency (Figure 1, Figure 2, and Figure 3).There appears to be a connection with these two mountains besides their value for social and cultural unity with the emergence of the meaningful motto "Massenrempulu tana rigalla, tana riabbusung" (in the Bugis language), which means sacred land.The economy of Enrekang is centered on agriculture and trade.Most people are employed as civil servants, traders, or farmers.Agriculture is dominated by cash crops, vegetables, tubers, and fruits, which all become market commodities.Long-term market mainstays include coffee, chocolate, pepper, and vanilla.Short-term agricultural products especially shallots, potatoes, kidney beans, chili, cabbage, coffee, chocolate, cloves, pepper, and vanilla are the mainstay commodities for Maspul traders.Coffee, chocolate, pepper, cloves, and spices, in general, are sold immediately to exporters or industrial agents in Makassar, although some are marketed to provincial cities and districts throughout Sulawesi, as well as Kalimantan, Maluku, and Papua.Among the Maspul, both men and women are involved in trading activities due to their skills.
The Enrekang or Maspul people have long been known as perantau (nomads) traveling to both large cities and rural areas with less population.There are several villages in Enrekang District that have become depopulated since the 1980s, is no less than half of the adult population live overseas, especially in Malaysia, Kalimantan, and Irian Jaya.There is an expression Enrekang, "dara'na lakoi in padangna tau," which means that the land itself is foreign.
During the Kahar Muzakkar regime (the mid-1950s to the beginning of the 1960s), Enrekang was a stronghold of the DITII forces after Luwu.The influence of Islamic propaganda based on politics and religious discipline was quite panicked and successfully eroding many traditions, beliefs, and rites that were similar to Aluk Todolo, which the Torajans still maintain today.The only tradition that remains is Maccera Manurung a ritual of worship in honor of the Most Powerful, the sanctification of life, and hospitality of the people in the districts of Enrekang and Maiwa.
The Enrekang community, which is mostly interpreted as ethnic Maspul, has a distinctive culture with many internal variations including, among others, regional language, music, song, the Lontara script (there are an additional 6 Lontara letters added to the 23 Bugis Lontara characters for a total of 29 to accommodate Maspul dialects), and cuisine.The new cultural norms ban the candoleng-doleng dance (a vulgar dance by female artists), smoking, gambling, drinking wine, and crime, and these norms appear in a new village in the Baraka District that has been established at the district level as a part of the process of reproducing the new culture.

The Maspul Federation and Its History
From the colonial history recounted in the Geschiedenis van het Bondgenoodschap Massenrempoeloe (van Braam et al., 1991), it is known that the Maspul was originally a federation of six small kingdoms of Maiwa, Enrekang, Duri, Kassa, Batulappa, and Letta in the mountainous regions, each of which had their respective sovereignty.Duri itself was a federation of three small regions Malua/Anggeraja, Allak/To'Banga, and Buntu Batu and the Duri federation was also popularly known as Tallu Batu Papan.
Since 1686, when Letta was conquered by Bone (allied with Wajo, Soppeng, and Sidenreng), the small kingdom finally lost its independence and was handed over to the Kingdom of Sawitto (part of Sidenreng).The two neighboring kingdoms of Kassa and Batulappa were also dragged into the Sawitto royal power.This shrank the Maspul Federation considerably, as only three kingdoms of the original six remained.According to colonial history, Maiwa was previously part of the Sidenreng Kingdom and entered the Maspul Federation as a replacement for Letta.For Maiwa, the surrender (through the agreement of the kings of Bone, Soppeng, Wajo, and Sidenreng) to the Maspul Federation was a process of increasing the status of subordinates (in the Sidenreng Kingdom) to sovereign equal to the two within the Maspul Federation (Enrekang and Duri).
Colonial historians alleged that before the small kingdoms had been united in the Maspul Federation, they had always been under the rule of the Kingdom of Luwu.This prompted the kings to agree to form a federation called Maspul (a mountainous regional empire alliance) to build political power to maintain independence from the supremacy of the large kingdoms in the lowlands especially the Bone, Sidenreng, and Luwu.Even so, according to colonial records, the three large powers alternately still controlled Maspul.Only once before the fall of South Sulawesi to the hands of the Dutch East Indies government did the Maspul forces succeed in repelling the invasion of Bone (with the assistance of Toraja forces) and destroy the Bone forces in the Toraja area.
According to the decision of the Dutch colonial government on December 26, 1825, No. 7, the Governor of Makassar included the Maspul kings in the contract of power.However, the enthusiasm among neighboring kingdoms for mastering the Maspul did not diminish.In 1866 the Federation of Tallu Batupapan Duri was conquered by King Sidenreng, who subsequently asked the Governor of Makassar (Bakkers) that Maspul be part of Sidenreng's domain.Governor Bakkers did not accept this proposal because of the lack of seriousness among the Lapangorisan (Raja Sidenreng) on this matter.There may still have been a kinship factor among the noble descendants such that some of the Maspul kings still recognized the supremacy of the Sidenreng Kingdom and Luwu until the Dutch colonizers left Sulawesi.
After the Dutch Colonial period, Maspul entered the period of Indonesian independence through a process of transforming political alliances into ethnic unity with the reproduction of its sociocultural uniqueness.This was necessary for the Maspul to maintain their existence during dynamic exchange across diverse Indonesian communities and globally.

From Federation to Ethnic Unity: Strengthening Political Identity and Culture
Since Indonesia's independence, the structure and function of the meaning of Maspul have undergone a shift.The political structure of the Maspul as a federation that is, as a combination of small sovereign kingdoms without a higher central leadership organization was and subsumed within the state bureaucracy of the Republic of Indonesia as a regency.The regency Enrekang has authority over several sub-districts, including the former kingdoms of Enrekang and Maiwa, as well as the Duri/Tallu Batupapan Federation (the kingdoms of Malua, Buntu Batu, and Allak).Bupati became the official capitol of the regency, while Camat was the district capitol and Lurah become the head village.During this period, each district has also experienced the expansion of one to three new districts.Although Enrekang Regency has emerged as a political, the use of expressions like orang Enrekang by outsiders retains a double meaning, meaning both resident of Enrekang Regency and member of an ethnic group (Maspul) with a distinctive culture, while terms such as orang Duri, orang Maiwa, or orang Maspul are often heard in reference to parts of the Maspul ethnic unit, which is similar to the use of terms like orang Bugis, orang Makassar, and orang Toraja, which refer to ethnicities with their distinctive cultures.
Although the Maspul Federation has been replaced with a new political structure, the meaning of its political history remains, to which has been added the emergence of a new ethnicity.The formation of Enrekang Regency is the most recent stage in the history of the Maspul Federation in its transition from local kingdom through greater centralized intervention during the colonial period, at which point it had become Onderafdeling Enrekang, level three district under the authority of Afdeling Parepare, which was in turn under the command of the colonial Governor in Makassar.For the governance of Enrekang, the revitalization of Maspul as an ethnic group with a distinctive culture became a source of strength and political identity, creating unity within multi-ethnic cultural communities, which in turn supports the political strength of the regency-level government.This has led to a district developmental policy of revitalizing of old cultural elements and reproducing new ones.When Latinro was regent, for example, Enrekang from time to time introduced new regional cuisine and arts with the support of the Enrekang Regional Cultural Service, including events held at Taman Mini Jakarta.Under Latinro's leadership, a Maspul cultural stand at Sultan Hasanuddin Airport was planned, but this had not occurred by the end of his reign.
The meaning of the Maspul people as an ethnicity without an ethnic label in South Sulawesi became prevalent after the migration of the Enrekang people to the cities of Parepare and Makassar, as well as other areas outside South Sulawesi.Many Enrekang migrants came from the higher economic classes and worked as traders, businessmen, public servants, and in the military.Through official, social, or commercial activities with other people, people from Enrekang, Kalosi, and Cakke developed a sense of the uniqueness of Maspul culture including regional languages, nomadism, and entrepreneurial ethos in the rantau areas and especially in the large cities such as Makassar, Parepare, and Kendari.Notable Maspul in Makassar from the beginning of the 1950s included Andi Sose (a retired ABRI who had been a Battalion Commander), Ahmad Lamo (former Governor of South Sulawesi), entrepreneurs such as Latunrung and Latandang (traders/entrepreneurs), Latanro (academia), and Muhammadong (who participated in the world Koran recitation competition in Malaysia in the early 1960s).These noteworthy individuals contributed significantly to the spread of awareness about Maspul culture.From the 1970s onwards, the number of migrants from Enrekang Regency to areas outside of South Sulawesi started to increase rapidly.These migrants formed the HIKMA and HPMM associations as a forum to strengthen social unity and solidarity (silaturrahmi) in many large cities in Indonesia, including Jakarta and Surabaya.This, in turn, leads to a broader awareness of Maspul cultural identity throughout Indonesia, especially of regional dialects such as Enrekang, Duri, and Maiwa.

Reproduction of Cultural Difference
In truth, there were not many similarities in the socio-cultural characteristics of the Enrekang, Duri, and Maiwa or indeed of other former member states of the Maspul Federation such as Kassa, Batulappa, and Letta (van Braam et al., 1991).The fact that some elements are similar, however, does deserve attention.Many cultural elements among the Duri in the north and east are very similar to the Toraja and Luwu, particularly in terms of language and traditional social structures, and religion.Similarly, Enrekang and Maiwa in the south are similar to Bugis.This phenomenon of internal differences and external similarities has been recognized by the Maspul people themselves and indicates the general lack of social conflict among the different ethnic groups along the border regions.This was possible given the lack mentioned above of cultural differences, as well as marital ties among the groups.It also allowed the spread of Islam from Duri to the border area.When outsiders equate the Maspul people with the Toraja, Luwu, and Bugis people, these groups usually reject this equivalence spontaneously and mention various culturally unique elements although these in truth are taken from limited parts of society, and such shared cultural elements are generally not many.The language and traditions of the Enrekang and Maiwa people are therefore usually cited as material differences with the Toraja and Luwu people, in contrast to the language of the Bugis and various traditions among the Duri.
Significantly, among all the regional ethnic groups, the Maspul people distinguished themselves, especially from the Toraja, Bugis, and Makassar tribes, while the Luwu and Mandar were less frequently mentioned.Religion (the Aluk Todolo, the ceremony of Rambu Solok, and Catholicism), language, and lifeways are perceived as striking cultural differentiators from the Toraja.Indeed, among the Maspul overseas, social groups such as housemaids, construction workers, students, housewives, and women, in general, are most sensitive and resistant to any potential similarities with the Toraja tribe.Indeed, from the 1960s to the 1980s, many housemaids from Duri living in Makassar did not acknowledge themselves as Duri for fear of being called or equated with Toraja women, although they tended to be mistaken for other ethnic groups, such as the Bugis.This group has always been known for the uniqueness of its language, rice farming (maggalung), focus on social status (nobility), wealth, high dowry, and art.This has led to the stereotype that Maspul people are robbers.This is similar to the stereotype of the Makassar people, who are thought to be rude and are considered to like going berserk because they maintain self-esteem (siri').These stereotypical elements of an ethnic group are sipa'Bugi' and sipa'Mangkasa', respectively.
Although the use of the term etnis Maspul is not yet widespread, the Maspul have consciously engineered elements of traditional culture and produced new and unique elements to differentiate themselves from other ethnic groups especially the Bugis, Makassar, and Toraja as interaction increased with the outside world.At first, the language was identified, then da'wah and Islamic religion (as a positive contribution from the political invasion of the Kingdom of Bone and the Kahar Muzakkar regime), as well as the Maccera Manurung ceremony tradition (comparable to the Rambu Solok ceremony in Toraja).Other recently developed Maspul cultural differentiators include regional arts (music, songs, and dance), cuisine, cloth motifs, traditional house forms, Maspul labeled articles, the six additional letters of Lontara Enrekang to accommodate the three Maspul sub-districts, a focus on agricultural economy and trade, a policy of smoking bans (specifically in Bone-Bone Village), and prohibition of the candoleng-doleng dance in all districts of Enrekang.
Interestingly, both old elements and new creations of Maspul culture are considered from the outside as characterizing Maspul society as a whole.Within the Enrekang Regency, however, these cultural elements are still recognized by the community as belonging to each subculture that created it.Even the Islamic religion, which is pervasive in the community, is a differentiator, as the Duri is associated with the Muhammadiyah sect (and the practice of traditional ceremonies has eroded), while the Enrekang and Maiwa are with Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), while maintaining some traditional practices such as the Maccera Manurung.

The Maspul Overseas: HIKMA and HPMM
Nomadism primarily for economic or educational reasons has been revealed as one of the main characteristics of the Maspul people.The Maspul live throughout Indonesia, and ethnic associations such as HIKMAs and HPMM education centers have also emerged since the 1980s in large cities with significant educational institutions such as Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta, and Surabaya.The Maspul and Youth Maspul mosques have been established in Makassar since the 1960s.There have also been HIKMA hospitals since the 1990s.This has led to the association (by outsiders) of immigrants from Enrekang with the Maspul in the form of HIKMA and HPMM, although this association is less common within Enrekang Regency, where people usually consider themselves as being Duri, Enrekang, or Maiwa.
According to interviews with members of HIKMA and HPMM, these organizations have two main functions.First, they provide information about employment and education opportunities, safety, socioeconomic security, and accommodation, as well as a venue for religious recitation, the sharing of scientific information, and political activism and campaigning, particularly for the election of council members and regents.Members of these associations tend to support and elect candidates from their respective regions (Enrekang, Duri, and Maiwa).Second, these associations strengthen the spirit of regional unity, solidarity, and nationalism, as well as a sense of shared culture through periodic seminars and Maspul cultural performances (i.e., for arts, handicrafts, and typical Maspul cuisine).An essential aspect of such programs is the expression of the motto: Massenrempulu Tanah Rigalla, Tana Ri Abbusungang (Maspul will be land above, Maspul will be a sacred land).

CONCLUSION
From a constructivist perspective, the Maspul people are an ethnicity in South Sulawesi in the same manner as the Bugis, Makassar, Luwuk, and Toraja.The precursor to the emergence of the Maspul ethnic group was the unification of political forces to defend the sovereignty of small kingdoms incorporated in the Maspul Federation from the threat of invasion by the surrounding great kingdoms especially the Bugis and Luwuk.
Since Indonesian independence, the Maspul ethnic group has consisted of three different subcultures, with their local histories, mythologies, and languages, which is understandable given the historical characteristics of the Maspul Federation.The political transformation of the federation into both the Enrekang Regency (regional government political administration unit) and the Maspul ethnicity has united the different subcultural groups (i.e., the Enrekang, Duri, and Maiwa) and created a strong, overarching identity to be recognized as a broader ethnic group.To strengthen the political and socio-cultural identity of the community, the production and reproduction of different cultural differentiators were necessary from each community group.The Maspul maintain consensus in diversity, which is a unique part of their ethnic, cultural unity.Like the Maspul Federation in the past, the Maspul ethnicity and its culture was formed and can only be understood in the context of its interactions with the outside world.