Rapin Hirik

About

Product: Rapin Hirik (Tais woven with tali palm leaf)

Rapin Hirik is a unique tradition in Atauro and Timor-Leste. This tradition has already started from the ancestors to the present generation, and only in the suco of Makadade, Atauro, they continue this tradition. When we see Rapin Hirik elsewhere it is because it was bought or taken from the suco of Makadade, or that people from Makadade moved and stayed there to make the Rapin Hirik. 

According to history, in the past, when no clothing was available, the ancestors of the suco of Makadade, Atauro, gathered and used Rapin Hirik to cover the body and this has become a traditional clothing of the communities of the suco of Makadade, Atauro. But now, Rapin Hirin can be used for decoration, on a table, as a gift and so on. The process of making Rapin Hirik is very difficult and takes a lot of time because women have to go and pick up the leaves, and cut them very thinly.

Group Profile

The Rapin Hirik group was created in 2010 in the suco of Makadade, Atauro, located on the mountains and far from the villages and the sea. The Rapin Hirik group is now composed of 8 out of 12 women who formed the group initially. 

The group was created with the aim of continuing to cultivate the traditional Rapin Hirik and to further promote this tradition to all. Every day the women gather together to make Rapin Hirik with different measures. Women are working independently, and they will ask for help from their husbands when there is a heavier job. When the product is ready, the group sells the products so that they can provide money to support the family. 

The group is led by women only, namely Josefa Lisboa Soares, the head of the group (7661 4303 / 7655 1817), Alberta de Sousa Araujo, the Secretary, and Olinda Soares, the Treasurer.

Handicrafts