Karo (people)
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The Karo people, or Karonese, are the indigenous people of the Karo plateau in North Sumatra. They belong linguistically to the Batak people but often consider themselves as separate.
There were five prominent Karo villages before the political influence of the Acehnese and the Dutch on the Karo people. Each one of these five villages was established by a Sibayak, a founding community. The Sibayak of Suka whose family name was Ginting Suka established the village of Suka. The Sibayak of Lingga called Karo-karo Sinulingga established the village of Lingga. The Sibayak of Barusjahe whose family name was Karo-karo Barus pioneered the village of Barusjahe. The Sibayak of Sarinembah, called Sembiring Meliala established the village of Sarinembah. The Sibayak of Kutabuluh named Perangin-angin established the village of Kutabuluh.
Each one of these five villages has its own satellite villages inhabited by the extended families of the main village inhabitants. The satellite villages were established for the convenience of the villagers whose fields were relatively far from the main villages. The purpose was to save them time when travelling back and forth from the village to their fileds. Today, these satellite villages have developed and matured to be independent of the main villages. In the old times, these satellite villages used to ask for helps from the main villages to deal with natural disasters, tribal disputes, diseases and famine.
The leaders of these satellite villages were called URUNGs. The Sibayak of Lingga administered five villages i.e Tiganderket, Tiga Pancur, Naman, Lingga and Batukarang. The Sibayak of Suka administered four villages i.e Suka, Seberaya, Ajinembah and Tengging. The Sibayak of Sarinembah administered four villages i.e Sarinembah, Perbesi, Juhar and Kutabangun. The Sibayak of Barusjahe administered two villages i.e Barusjahe and Sukanalu. The Sibayak of Kutabuluh administered two villages i.e Kutabuluh and Marding-ding.
Today one of the main settlements in the Karo area is the town of Berastagi. The administrative centre is the town of Kabanjahe.
