The sea nomad Bajau can swim in depths of up to 200 feet and stay underwater for 13 minutes.
Imagine that you are holding your breath. How much time can you spend underwater? For one minute? Two? During this exercise, you most likely visualized yourself sitting a foot or so below the surface of a pool; however, think about how long you could hold your breath while swimming as far below the surface of the ocean as you can. This would most likely appear as a sprint to the surface after maybe 30 seconds of swimming downward. However, stories state that the Bajau people of the Philippines were able to vividly picture swimming for up to 13 minutes at a depth of 200 feet beneath the ocean’s surface.
These skills come from more than just rigorous training. The Bajau people have spent many generations at sea, to the point where they have evolved unique adaptations to their marine way of life.
The Bajau: Who Are They?
The Bajau have spent generations living on the waterways off the shores of Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. They are also known as the Sea Gypsies or Sea Nomads.
Though their isolation from the mainland keeps them from contemporary civilization, their floating dwellings allow them to maintain a constant connection to the water. Maybe this division helps people to hold on to their ancient customs and way of life despite the effects of globalization.
- People in this community can stay underwater for 13 minutes. Breathe without.
- The Bajao community is also called Protectors of the Sea,
- Where people of this community spend 60 percent of their time underwater.
- Where an average Bajau can go underwater to a depth of almost 200 feet.
- Human evolution has also been seen in this community, where almost a thousand years of free.
- Due to diving, their lung capacity has increased, so they can carry more oxygen in their blood.
- The coral reef and heritage here are like their home because they spend 15 hours underwater.
- But currently, the oceans here have become quite polluted. The effect of this has also been seen on the marine life here. Because of this, it has become challenging for the community here to survive.
The Bajau people have spent the last thousand years building an impressive reputation for themselves as seafarers by traveling the Sulu Sea off the coast of the Philippines. The Bajau people, who are often called “sea nomads” or “sea gypsies,” spend almost all of their time aboard houseboats; they only set foot on land to build new houseboats, trade, bury their dead, and wait out storms. This ethnic group sails the waterways surrounding Malaysia and Indonesia, which are heavily pirated; the Bajau people typically choose to run from attacks rather than engage in warfare. The ethnic group has no formal ties to any of the bordering countries because they live only on the waterways.
The Bajau people are thought to have originated from Malay origins, while their precise origins are uncertain. They have largely relied on folklore to piece together their known past, which is primarily oral in nature. In one origin narrative, a guy by the name of Bajau is said to have used his body mass to move the water in rivers. So that they could readily gather the fish that were left behind, the villagers are said to have followed him. Though other tribes were envious of his people’s abundant fish harvests, Bajau’s death was avoided in every attempt. Subsequently, his people prospered and rose to become the current ocean kings.