Panyabungan

Panyabungan lies in the Mandailing highlands of northern Sumatra, among valleys enclosed by the Barisan Mountains. Its local rulers governed communities linked by kinship and customary law. In the early nineteenth century the Padri movement advanced north from Minangkabau, bringing war and religious change to the Mandailing country. Patuan Naga of Panyabungan rallied people from both upper and lower Mandailing against the invaders, but could not halt their advance. Conflict prompted many families to leave their homeland.