The Symbolic Meaning of the Role of Bundo Kanduang in the Badatuk Ceremony at the Gadang House

Abstrak. Minangkabau is an indigenous ethnic group of West Sumatera. The adopted kinship of this ethnic group is matrilineal, which is a lineage based on mother’s ethnicity. In this ethnic group, a woman who is married, wise, and considered as elder, is called Bundo Kanduang. Badatuk ceremony is a ceremony to select Minangkabau tribe leader, and in this event, the role of Bundo Kanduang is not only functionally vital, but also has an implicit symbolic meaning. Considering the importance of the role of Bundo Kanduang, it is considered necessary to acknowledge the representation of symbolic meaning of Bundo Kanduang on activities conducted in the Gadang House. The method utilized in this research is an ethnographic method with qualitative analysis approach. In this research, we discovered that the symbolic meaning of the role of Bundo Kanduang is reflected in the interior of Gadang House that is adjusted to facilitate Bundo Kanduang activities on Badatuk ceremony.