kuda kepang

Situated tradition

PUSAKA describes kuda kepang as a dance of Javanese origin practised by communities of Javanese lineage in Johor, particularly Batu Pahat and Muar; this establishes a documented context rather than an exhaustive geographical boundary. [PUSAKA community profile](https://www.pusaka.org/communities-kuda-kepang)

1. Which community, locality and practitioners identify the documented practice as kuda kepang? definition
2. What testimony or documentation connects this practice to a teacher lineage or earlier troupe? provenance

Qualified name mapping

Record related names with speaker, locality and intended meaning; distinguish a synonym claim from a claim that repertoire and use conditions are identical.

1. When practitioners use kuda lumping, jaran kepang or another related name, do they mean this form, a broader family or a distinct local practice? boundary
2. Which differences require variant annotations within this entry rather than a separate model? boundary

Effigy as performance interface

Model how the dancer carries and moves the horse effigy, including its relation to posture and formation; distinguish essential conventions from variable prop materials.

1. Which carrying positions, steps and formations make the horse-riding representation recognisable to practitioners? definition
2. Which substitutions in prop shape, material or handling are accepted for this variant and presentation context? boundary

Cue-linked repertoire

Record locally identified instruments, rhythmic sections and leadership signals against movement transitions, without assuming a universal ensemble or sequence.

1. Which instruments and audible or visible signals cue entrances, formation changes and closure? definition
2. How many dancers and musicians are required for the documented arrangement, and which roles can be combined? measurement

Attributed performance states

Keep observed actions, practitioner descriptions of trance and spiritual explanations separately attributable; absence of documentation is not evidence of absence.

1. Which preparations or performance sections do practitioners identify as ritual, and what meanings do they assign to them? definition
2. Who described an episode as trance, and what observation or testimony supports that description? provenance

Presentation conditions

Assess the actual proposed arrangement and location, recording community expectations and any applicable requirements with their authority and date rather than assigning a timeless permitted or prohibited status to the tradition.

1. Which horse-dance or ritual sections are included, changed or omitted in this proposed presentation, and who accepts that framing? action
2. What current, location-specific conditions must be verified before the presentation proceeds? action

Teachable repertoire continuity

Assess whether people can still teach horse handling, formations, musical cues and any locally required preparation, rather than inferring vitality from the existence of a troupe name.

1. Who currently teaches each essential dance, musical and leadership role, and when was that teaching last documented? provenance
2. Which repertoire sections or roles lack an active learner or teacher? measurement

Documented rendition boundary

Distinguish the shared tradition from a troupe's arrangement, a particular performance and its recording; record whose contributions and consent are relevant to the proposed reuse.

1. Does this record describe the tradition, a named arrangement, one performance or a recording of that performance? boundary
2. What attribution, consent and access conditions apply to recording, teaching or adapting the documented horse-dance sequence? action

Check these first

Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.

1. Which of these check these first hold for the sense of kuda kepang this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Real-world use

Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.

1. Which of these real-world use hold for the sense of kuda kepang this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Failure modes and hazards

Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.

1. Which of these failure modes and hazards hold for the sense of kuda kepang this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Regional variation

Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.

1. Which of these regional variation hold for the sense of kuda kepang this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance

Neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart

Recalled without web access and unsourced; every item is a lead to verify.

1. Which of these neighbouring kinds and how to tell them apart hold for the sense of kuda kepang this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance