History
Historically, this island exported sandalwood and was known as Sandalwood Island.
Before colonization, Sumba was inhabited by several small ethnolinguistic groups, some of which may have had tributary relations to the Majapahit Empire. In 1522 the first ships from Europe arrived, and by 1866 Sumba belonged to the Dutch East Indies, although the island did not come under real Dutch administration until the twentieth century.
Despite contact with western cultures, Sumba is one of the few places in the world in which megalithic burials, are used as a 'living tradition' to inter prominent individuals when they die. Burial in megaliths is a practice that was used in many parts of the world during the Neolithic and Bronze Ages, but has survived to this day in Sumba. Another long-lasting tradition is the sometimes lethal game of pasola, in which teams of horse-riders fight with spears.
Sumba has long been known for the ikat woven cloth, particularly very detailed hand-woven ikat, which is prepared on the island. The process of preparting hand-woven ikat is very labour-intensive and one piece can take months to prepare.
On August 19, 1977, an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale occurred, killing 316 people, including islands off the West coast.
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