Bagondang is the roof style of the Minangkabau house. The roof turns upward at the ends like horns. Why are they shaped like horns? That's because the Minangkabau people engaged in bullfights as a pastime. The word Minangkabau comes from "menang kerbau" when they won bullfights. So the bull horns decorate not only the Minangkabau women's headgear but also the roofs of the Minangkabau houses. They must be proud of the bull horns. The Malacca palace in the old days had bagondang roof structure because the sultans were probably Minangkabau people from West Sumatra. The photos below were taken at USM students' hostel cafeteria. The caterers are probably of Minangkabau extract or origin or probably travelled there.
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| Minangkabau houses with bagondang roofs |
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| Reduced bagondang appearance of the roof of a house in Banda Hilir, Malacca, more Chinese like. This was the Minangkabau house I lived in, in Malacca in 1958-1963. It was built by my great-grandfather in the late 1800s. It was demolished in 2007. That's my eldest brother and me at the top of the brick staircase. The eave at right is that of Masjid Banda Hilir (now Masjid an-Nur), which was built in 1820 or earlier (1734 according to Penang records and a similar mosque, built by the same man, Nakhoda Nan Intan). |
