Minangkabau oral traditions and local wisdom in disaster prediction

¹ Faculty of Humanities, Universitas Andalas, Padang, Indonesia
² Faculty of Languages and Linguistics, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

^* Corresponding author: sheena@um.edu.my

Abstract

This study examines how Minangkabau oral traditions and linguistic practices contribute to disaster prediction and mitigation, using a corpus-driven approach grounded in Cultural Linguistics. Drawing on a self-compiled corpus of fifty Kaba texts totaling over 800,000 words the analysis identifies 52 lexical items related to natural phenomena, such as angin (wind), paneh (heat), hujan (rain), gampo (earthquake), and galodo (landslide). The study also examines proverbial expressions and metaphors, which reveal culturally shaped schemas of risk, causality, time, and uncertainty. Findings demonstrate that the Minangkabau language serves as a repository of ecological knowledge, embedding disaster awareness into symbolic forms such as proverbs. This oral tradition not only guides practical responses to natural hazards but also fosters psychological resilience, community cohesion, and architectural adaptation, as evident in the earthquake-resistant design of rumah gadang houses. By situating these linguistic patterns within the framework of Cultural Linguistics, the study highlights how language reflects local epistemologies and ecological cognition. The research offers theoretical insights into the cultural conceptualization of disaster and practical implications for integrating indigenous knowledge into disaster mitigation strategies. It calls for culturally grounded, linguistically informed policies that bridge traditional wisdom and modern science to strengthen community resilience in disaster-prone regions.