Tana TorajaTana Toraja

The name Toraja comes from the Buginese to riaja, "people of the uplands". In the valleys around Rantepao and Makale, tongkonan ancestral houses with soaring boat-shaped roofs face rows of rice barns (alang), carved with passura' motifs in red, black, yellow and white. A tongkonan is not just a house: it anchors an extended family and its lineage. Toraja social life is also known for Rambu Solo', funeral ceremonies that can last several days to honour a family member who has died, and for cliff graves such as Londa. The traditional settlements of Tana Toraja have been on UNESCO's World Heritage Tentative List since 2009. On the highland slopes, smallholders grow arabica coffee known well beyond Indonesia.