Magic Thursday: Saving Sang Kancil with Theresa Fuller!

I have 2 heroes.

This is my kun kun.

My late grandfather told me many stories.

Some of the stories that he told me were of a mousedeer named Sang Kancil.

My grandfather is my first hero.

My second hero is the mousedeer Sang Kancil.

You can see the Tragulus Javanicus in this Youtube clip. 

This hero, I discovered only recently, goes by many names. Only I didn’t know this at the time.

(mousedeer or mouse-deer or mouse deer)

The mousedeer hero of these stories goes by many names:

Sang Kancil – Malay

Kanchel – Baba Malay

Akal Pelanduk – Borneo, Malay, and Indonesian

Pilandok – Philippines

Mīminnī – Ceylonese or Sri Lankan

??? - Moken

Europeans have also spelt his name as P’landok, Pelandok, or Kantchil, Kantjil, etc.

Further meanings

Sang = Revered

Akal = Timeless

Pelanduk = Mousedeer or Horn or Moth

There is a saying ‘As clever as a Kancil.’

Cover Illustration by Isabella La Torre
Copyright Theresa Fuller

The granddaughter grew up, came to Australia and met her prince charming, got married and had a baby.

Then she remembered the stories of her grandfather.

She tried to tell her son the stories only she could remember 2-3.

She asked others and they could only remember a few themselves.

And so, the granddaughter asked herself what she could do to preserve the stories. She did some research and wrote a book chronicling some of the stories that she grew up with. And telling of the journey of her ancestors. How Chinese men sailed down to SE Asia and intermarried with the local women and how a new race was formed – the Peranakans.

And that should have been the end of the story…

Cover Illustration by Isabella La Torre
Copyright Theresa Fuller

My son grew up. Tim wanted to become a game designer, so I was busy researching local Southeast Asian stories when I came across the stories of the Sea Dyaks, today known as the Iban. I was particularly interested in their strong women. 

Women were able to increase their rank and not just through marriage.

Then Covid hit – I lost 4 uncles and 1 aunt

I decided to throw myself into preserving my heritage. So I embarked on a mission to save both the language of my ancestors – Baba Malay – which is on the verge of extinction.

Here's the listing in the Endangered Languages Project. 

I produced a series of books – but no one wants to learn a language when there is no one to speak it with.

And I began on a journey to capture as many of the folktales that I could.

I thought it would take me 3-4 months. One year tops.

Two years later, I admitted defeat.

There were stories popping up each time I thought I was at an end.

The thing I didn’t know was that there are mousedeer all around the world. I didn’t know that the mousedeer was known by so many different names. And species.

Different Species

It is unsure in SE Asia if Sang Kancil is Tragulus Kancil or Tragulus Javanicus.

Tragulus Kanchil is the smallest of the hoofed animals. About 45 cms.

6 species: 

Java mouse-deer (Tragulus javanicus)
Lesser mouse-deer (Tragulus kanchil)
Greater mouse-deer (Tragulus napu)
Philippine mouse-deer (Tragulus nigricans)
Vietnam mouse-deer (Tragulus versicolor)
Williamson's mouse-deer (Tragulus williamsoni).

From Southern China down through the Phillipines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia etc. 

He is a trickster like Brer Rabbit and Anansi etc.

He is the chevrotain and the water chevrotain is found in Africa. There are links to the whale.

Small
Cute
Prey

Yet he survives when the mighty tiger is on the verge of extinction.

When I asked my students how they knew whether an animal was prey or predator they shook their heads.

It has to do with the eyes. If the eyes are on the front of the head, then they are predator. If the eyes are on each side, then the animal is prey.

So yes, man is a predator.

I found stories of Sang Kancil tricking the farmer, the elephant etc.

Then I came across this guy – the late Dr Ian Proudfoot of ANU.

Ian had come across an ancient Malaysian text. The Hikayat Pelanduk Jenaka or History/Tales of the Trickster Mousedeer hails from the dawn of Malay literature. Inside were stories that were epic.

It was then that I realised that folktales are in reality political satire.

My journey took a different turn.

I had been trying to Save Sang Kancil.

But in the past, it had been Sang Kancil Saving.

I suddenly realised the enormity of what I was striving to preserve.

His legacy had been dumbed down.

I had to do something.

My research material:

• Internet Archive

• Rare books

• Project Gutenburg

• Journals

• Blogs

• Websites

• My Memory

• Rarely from word of mouth (This latter made me sad. I began to feel that if I didn’t do this then nobody was.)

Problems I encountered

Walter Skeat. (1901). Fables & Folk-Tales from an Eastern Forest.
University Press Cambridge.

• What was the context?

• Americanised version e.g., Jumbo instead of Gajah

• Added their own names and identifiers e.g., Preceptor (Latin meaning teacher) or artificer (skilled mechanic in the armed forces.)

• Tried to go back to the original (primary) source, so Malay.

• Not a linguist (Tagalog)

• Unknown words

• What was the hidden meaning?

• Political agenda?

• Satire?

Here is a page from Iban Animal Stories from the Borneo Literature Press

Unless you know it, the background is Head hunting.

On the 3rd of August 2024, I shared my journey at the Australian Fairy Tales Society Conference down in Melbourne.

I know I haven’t collected every single story, but it’s a start.

My book

My book EATING THE LIVER OF THE EARTH comes out soon.

Theresa Fuller

Theresa Fuller was born in Singapore to Peranakan parents. She was encouraged in her writing by her teacher, Chia Hearn Chek, a well-known local author. Educated in Singapore and Australia, she worked as an analyst/programmer and later as a high school teacher. Her first short story THE CRICKET SON was published in VOICES OF THE PAST, An Anthology of Stories Passed Down In Australian Families.

Her breakthrough novel is the Steampunk YA THE GHOST ENGINE, published in March 2018. It won a mentorship at the Australasian Horror Writers’ Association. THE GHOST ENGINE combines her love of technology with her enthusiasm for Victorian England.

Theresa currently resides with her family in Sydney, Australia.


You can find Theresa at her website: theresafuller.com.