Traditional and Bakul Semanggi Gendong legend phenomenon in surabaya: dynamics and urgency of its preventive extinction

Abstract

This article discusses the heritage and traditional cultural study of small-business clover sellers (Bakul Semanggi Gendong) at Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia. Aims to: 1) describe the traditional values of clover carried basket as a micro heritage of culinary business in the city of Surabaya; 2) explore the history of the journey and development of the clover seller from the past to the present. The main relevance provides knowledge to the audience about the importance of maintaining heritage traditions. Implications for scientific discussions in the field of cultural anthropology, including History. Using a naturalistic approach with qualitative, and a focus on ethnographic methods. The subject of this study was a basket of clover carry. The determination of informants is carried out purposive according to predetermined requirements. There are nine informants selling clover, one person from the family, and two customers. The determination of the location of the study was based on the area being the center of clover heritage traditions. Test the validity of the data using triangulation. The results of the study found: 1) The traditional values of the heritage of the clover seller are the scientific capital of the community, as the identity of Surabaya; 2) The history of the journey of the clover seller which is a microeconomic business, its existence still exists today and has developed in terms of how to market, namely by cycling or opening non-permanent booths along Kendung street, Benowo, Surabaya City, Indonesia.

Keywords:

• Semanggi seller
• legend phenomenon
• traditional
• heritage

Reviewing Editor:

• Geng Yuqing, Shanghai Dianji University, Shanghai, China

Subjects:

• Human Geography
• Anthropology - Soc Sci
• Urban Cultures

1. Introduction

Indonesia is the largest archipelago country in the world and has more than 17,000 islands, both large and small. Each island has a variety of cultures and traditions, which is a heritage. One of them is Bakul Semanggi Gendong in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia. Heritage traditions can be a characteristic of the area (Khodjamkulov et al., 2020; Kittipongvises et al., 2020). As the capital city of the East Java Province, it has a distinctive heritage tradition; the name is clover seller. This small business is known for its culture that is carried (gendong in the Indonesian language), so it is called a Bakul Semanggi Gendong. The tradition brought by the Bakul Semanggi Gendong is named Basket (container), as Figure 1.

Figure 1. Baskets as a clover culinary container carried by Bakul Semanggi Gendong.

(Source Picture: https://www.tokopedia.com/find/bakul-jamu-gendong).

Figure 1 Photos the Bakul (container) made of woven bamboo, usually carried by Bakul Semanggi Gendong (clover seller) in peddling culinary clover. The word carrying comes from gen-dong, which means carrying or supporting in the back (at the waist). Meanwhile, gen-dong-means means goods carried. (Indonesian Dictionary). So, what is meant by Bakul Semanggi Gendong (clover seller) is a person or several people who peddle clover by being carried.

The problem that arises is that Bakul Semanggi Gendong the average elderly age (50 years–67 years), which has entered the age of load. On the one hand, this heritage tradition is needed to provide knowledge to today’s people that Surabaya has a unique and legendary micro business identity, namely clover culinary, the seller is called Bakul Semanggi Gendong. On the other hand, the next generation is reluctant to work as a clover basket. Clover culinary is the identity of the city of Surabaya, worthy to be preserved in the midst of the global culinary boom that has hit Indonesia, especially the city of Surabaya. Clover culinary and Bakul Semanggi Gendong is a unity that cannot be separated from heritage traditions. The purpose of writing this article: 1). Describe the traditional values of Bakul Semanggi Gendong as a micro heritage of culinary business in the city of Surabaya; 2). Exploring the history of the journey and development of the clover basket from the past to the present.

The urgency of this article is to provide knowledge to the public about the importance of preserving heritage traditions, especially the Bakul Semanggi Gendong heritage which is part of Surabaya’s identity and is related to the tourism sector which is being intensively promoted by the government. As a very interesting topic and relevant to the scientific context, this article has implications for scientific discussions about Surabaya’s identity in the field of cultural anthropology, including history associated with past, present and future orientations. Citing opinion (Creese, 2000b), literature (Creese, 2000a), culture and tourism, sociology and anthropology. Identity, as stated by Stuart Hall, is a ‘production’ that is never finished, always ongoing, and always formed within, not outside, representation. In other words, ‘all identities are in constant mutation’. Social and political situations play an important role in social identity. Semanggi seller is a form of cultural representation that can be proven by ‘identity mutation’.

According to the view of cultural anthropology, the Bakul Semanggi Gendong comes from Javanese culture, which describes simplicity, originality, uniqueness, persistence, and rarity. The Bakul Semanggi Gendong and its culinary became a legend and icon of the city of Surabaya. This can be seen from history that the existence of the clover gendong basket is related to the history of the struggle of Arek-arek Suroboyo who in 1945 had fought to defend Indonesia’s independence from the NICA Army. Bakul Semanggi Gendong which sells clover culinary became the food of choice for fighters, until one of the fighters named S Padimin created a song verse entitled ‘Semanggi Suroboyo’. Research conducted by Adhere to Ramlia (2015) concluded that classic and traditional foods are closely related to food heritage and have become an important role in the lives of people and individuals. A study examines how far Malaysians know the identity of their food heritage. A total of 500 respondents located in the Klang Valley participated in the study. The findings showed a significant relationship between gender and the definition of food heritage and the association of food heritage questions. The overall findings show that respondents understand the definitions, criteria, and types of traditional foods associated with food heritage (Adhere to).

Bakul Semanggi Gendong still exists today. This is inseparable from the role of Kendung area women, who can maintain the ancient heritage of their ancestors. They are the ones who peddle this culinary until now known. Kendung area is one of the area in Benowo District, Surabaya City, which is the forerunner to a clover seller. In this village, the clover sellers cultivate clover plants, process them into clover culinary, and sell them around Surabaya City. Citing the opinion of Kittler et al., humans use plants, from how they are selected, obtained, and distributed to those who prepare, serve, and eat them. These processes are unique to humanity. They added that the essential aesthetics of food illustrate authentic cultural identity. In cultural studies, clover sellers use recipes for ancestral heritage, especially the culinary tradition of East Java (Surabaya), which must be preserved. Clover has high economic value so that it can be developed into an individual micro business. According to Hisrich et al., entrepreneurship is creating something new and valuable by utilizing power and time, considering social, physical, and financial risk factors and personal satisfaction and independence. Based on this definition, clover seller small businesses enter entrepreneurial criteria at the individual level, with the following views:

1. Able to create new products from the innovation of wild clover.

2. Having a relatively high business adaptation, it is proven that this profession has long been implemented to decline in the next generation.

3. Business risks are managed well by dividing the territories fairly between old and new traders.

4. The physical form of most clover sellers is still maintained as the original clover seller profile, although several new generations have begun to use bicycles. The original profile of the clover seller as a form of local wisdom is typical of Javanese culture.

5. Financially, they can survive because they have their market, so their income is also inevitable.

6. Personal satisfaction in the form of independence of micro-businesses that have run for dozens of years/decades. Significant small businesses result from their hard work as a traveling merchant clover (Bakul Semanggi Gendong). They have assets in the village in the form of residential ownership.

Classically, according to Geertz, the tradition of traditional microbusiness studies in anthropology is placed in the study of markets operating among peasants and markets. Two approaches are used, namely the bazaar economy, also called ‘penny capitalism’, and the institutional approach, where the market is considered embedded in the sociocultural context (Geertz, 1992). Research and papers on culinary clover sellers have yet to be done much. For this reason, the author compares with other similar studies, such as the following. The results of the research Rindawati (2015) show that Clover is an integral part of the Clover Village community, and there is an element of socio-cultural attachment that has been maintained until now by its successors. The cultural attachment is manifested in the tradition of clover carrying, which is genetic or hereditary.

According to Suarez, culture has long been considered marginal to the core functional areas of companies. However, we still lack a proper understanding of how and where culture – that is, information affecting the behavior of customers and stakeholders – affects business processes and the very positioning in the market (Chatzopoulou & de Kiewiet, 2021; Edinger-Schons et al., 2020; Melović et al., 2020; Pfajfar et al., 2022). What happens to the clover sellers is a culture of selling the past preserved by generations without change. This phenomenon is fascinating because, in this era of sophistication, there are still some people who do social and economic activities, such as Bakul Semanggi Gendong. Henderson’s research also explained that food heritage needs to be preserved and maintained as the image and identity of the country it represents because some dishes have been blessed with iconic status and deserve to be protected (Henderson, 2014). Therefore, every young generation must preserve food to maintain their ethnic identity. Anthropological perspectives on digital media have opened up analyses for the study of social relations, as they become evident in various online and offline environments that have different social interactions. As a form of face-to-face interaction, anthropologists always support substantial involvement in locality-based reality with local traditions and contexts. Such studies often refer to complex relationships between virtual and real, online and offline, abstract and material, global and local. Boellstorff (2012) defines this as an indexic relationship that is always co-virtual and actual, and it is the core of digital anthropology.

Norazmir et al. (2012) stated that The United Nations, through the International Workshop on Traditional Knowledge, emphasized that traditional food knowledge should continuously be retained for future generations as they will carry out the profound spiritual and identity for self or as people. Some ethnics are reported not only facing the problem of deskilling issues related to domestic cooking skills but have started to lose the traditional food culture owing to the weakening of the old generation to pass down the traditional cooking knowledge to the young generations. For instance, the young generation is to embrace pre-prepared, packaged, and convenient foods, which lessens their interest in adopting domestic and traditional cooking from their mothers.

In Malaysia, modern Malay society, especially the young generation, has gradually ignored the practice of Malay traditional food, which is being replaced with commercial food products. In addition, social transition and unlimited information technology are believed to influence the changes in food intake and practices. This scenario has received more significant concern among the older Malay generation, the Malaysian Cultural Association, and the Ministry of Information, Communication and Culture, as well as other government agencies, in order to preserve Malay traditional food knowledge. This was evident when the former Minister of Culture, Arts, and Heritage, Dato’ Seri Utama Dr. Rais bin Yatim, urged the Malaysia citizens to preserve their food heritage delicacies by passing down the knowledge, skills, and practices to the next generation (Kekkwa, 2008).

The formation of Malay traditional foods occurred earlier and had continuously developed during the trading years, receiving a significant influence from neighboring countries. This can be seen through the influence of Thai in northern and eastern states of peninsular Malaysia. In contrast, the southern region states like Negeri Sembilan, Melaka, and Johor had significant influence from Indonesia, such as Minangkabau, Bugis, and Javanese. Ling (2002) noted that despite the various Malay cuisine through its region from north to south, east to coast and East Malaysia including Sabah and Sarawak but they are identical in terms of the characteristic of the food itself which are robust, spicy and aromatic, This can be proven through the preparation, methods of cooking, availability, and uses of the ingredients like ginger, turmeric, chilies, lemon grass and dried shrimp paste and many others.

United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) stated that food heritage has emerged as one of the leading segments in the cultural tourism business by taking into consideration the dynamic nature of the global cultural tourism market and the importance of Malaysia having to sustain its competitiveness as a food haven destination in the region, it is pivotal for the government to have a supportive policy and planned a framework conducive to the sustainability of their food heritage as a cultural tourism product. Food heritage has been used by many nations, societies, and communities as a symbolic border in the convergence of taste (Barrionuevo et al., 2019). Hence, it can be seen as one of the ideal identity, identification, and nation-building tools in a country.

From various research results that have been conducted on food in many countries, Surabaya clover culinary is a traditional cuisine that is worthy of research. As an academic, the author wants to contribute to preserving and appreciating the traditional local culinary culture, especially clover-carrying. The existence of a traditional clover carrying a relatively surviving and operating in a pattern is the main reason to find a model of running a traditional heritage business in harmony with local social and cultural conditions. Meanwhile, Surabaya is also known as one of the centers of tourism, industry, and culture. The city of Surabaya is also not immune to changes in people’s lifestyles due to the inclusion of modern culture. The existence of several traditional small business micro traders in the Clover Seller is the answer to how the development of community culture still leaves elements of traditional culture that remain attached to some communities.

The novelty of this article is to show the wider community how important it is to maintain and preserve Surabaya’s clover heritage culture, which has not been done so far. There are still many things that need to be revealed about this inherited tradition. For this reason, the author recommends that other researchers study the marketing strategy, management and prospects of clover culinary tourism as a Surabaya heritage. This article is based on the Scopus database dated 6 November 2023. There has been no scientific research or publications related to clover food or clover sellers. Therefore, this article is very important to provide an overview and promotion to the public, especially the younger generation, regarding Surabaya’s semanggi culinary culture in order to add to the richness of the nation’s culinary heritage.

2. Method

This research uses a naturalistic approach, with qualitative methods, focusing on ethnographic methods. The advantages of ethnographic methods are used because they want to illustrate the value of the legendary Bakul Semanggi Gendong tradition, and its historical journey. In addition, the author’s ethnographic method is used to obtain natural and contextual data, meaning that it explores values, social behavior/actions and cognitive expression in everyday contexts, not based on conditions created by researchers. Data were collected from several sources, both oral and written/documented, relying on participant observation and relatively informal interviews. Research undergoes the same ethical oversight as that conducted by researcher’ academic institutions, State University of Surabaya. Consent for participation in the study has been obtained verbally from the participants before they gave their interviews.

The ethnographic method focuses its study on small-scale cases so that it can be carried out in depth. Data analysis uses interpretations of meaning, function, and all consequences arising from various human actions and institutional practices in society. The substance of this article is to develop an understanding of the cultural phenomenon of Bakul Semanggi Gendong as the identity of Surabaya. In addition, the nature of the phenomenon under study will not be treated as a rigid form of causality. It will not form a framework of relationships, correlations, or influences between variables. Therefore, qualitative research is the top choice in this article.

2.1. Research location

The location of the study was conducted in the Kendung area, Surabaya City, East Java, Indonesia, which was selected purposively. The reason for taking this area as a research location is because this area is the origin and center of the tradition of Bakul Semanggi Gendong which has existed for decades.

2.2. Research subjects

The subjects of this study are traditional clover baskets and parties related to their existence. Research subjects will be treated primarily as research informants. Informants were selected based on the following criteria: (1) Individuals who are always involved in traditional clover business activities, (2) have continuous involvement and dependence on clover sellers in social and cultural aspects, (3) understand about the problems of clover sellers, and (4) have knowledge of the history and daily activities of clover sellers. Based on the criteria, informants were selected as many as nine clover sellers, one family member and two customers (community).

2.3. Data collection techniques

The main field data collection techniques are participant observation and in-depth interviews. Participatory observation is carried out with the role of researchers occasionally involved in the activities of traditional clover sellers. Researchers plunge directly into the daily atmosphere of clover baskets so that they can feel and understand the context correctly. In line with this technique, data collection from informants is also carried out using in-depth interviews, related to their business, history of beginning, networking, construction of past, present and future orientations.

This in-depth interview is conducted in two forms, namely limited interviews and collective interviews. Limited interviews are a form of question and answer between researchers and informants (face-to-face). Meanwhile, collective interviews were conducted between researchers and several related informants, including family members, and customers. The reason is, the existence of informants is always related to social networks and business, so it is necessary to confirm data from one informant to another. Data collection is done with case studies. A case study, according to Bogdan and Biklen, is a detailed examination of a subject’s setting, such as the storage of a particular document or event. Stake (1994) states that a case study is a choice of objects to be studied. Some things that will be done in the selection of cases according to the instructions of Stake (1994) are (1) identifying the characteristics/uniqueness of the situation of clover sellers, (2) looking for problems, namely discourses/conditions (conditions) that are the problems of clover sellers, (3) telling events that represent the tradition of Bakul Semanggi Gendong.

2.4. Data analysis

Data analysis uses a qualitative approach, which is carried out in the stages of the research process. The obtained data analysis is organized by categories: coding, indexing, and Physical sorting of data. Efforts to organize the data are included in the analysis step of data management. In this data management steps: a) Determination of data accessibility and quality (data relevance); b) Document data obtained from the previous step; c. Meaning through data construction that has been commented on. Data is reconstructed based on the framework built on the research plan. Data are then elaborated according to the central concept/focus of the study. The reconstructed data are then interpreted according to theoretical and conceptual understanding of the phenomena studied by triangulation. In general, the data analysis of this study adheres to an interactive model as recommended by Huberman and Miles, namely 1. Data collection, 2. Data reduction, 3. Data display, 4. Conclusion: consists of drawing and verification. To check the validity of the research data, triangulation techniques were used, namely method triangulation, data triangulation and theory triangulation.

3. Results and discussions

3.1. The history of Bakul Semanggi Gendong (clover seller)

The history of Bakul Semanggi Gendong begins with an abundance of raw materials, namely clover plants in Kendung village, Benowo, Surabaya. In the past, the population in the area was tiny but had large tracts of rice paddy fields. Clover plants are wild plants that are usually present in rice fields. Seeing the abundance of clover plants in the area, the Kendung women tried to cook it traditionally, then sell it by going around until now, can still be enjoyed with the name the Surabaya clover culinary.

Bakul Semanggi Gendong is legendary because it has been around since 1950, 5 years after Indonesia’s independence. For residents of Surabaya City, Bakul Semanggi Gendong is not a stranger anymore because it comes from Surabaya itself. The origin of the Bakul Semanggi Gendong is because one of the original women of Kendung tried to sell culinary clovers to other areas in Surabaya. It turned out that other women in Kendung village followed this way. Finally, in Surabaya, they have customers who are fond of this cuisine. From there, the Bakul Semanggi Gendong sells daily on foot to meet customers. Bakul Semanggi Gendong is a unique local heritage micro business tradition. Has been very famous in Surabaya since the independence war. In the past, Clover was a favorite food of Surabaya fighters, especially when they drove NICA out of the City of Heroes in 1945. Because it was famous, Clover was enshrined in the keroncong song titled Semanggi Suroboyo in 1950 by S. Padimin, which was popularized by Tatiek Wiyono (Surabaya Story.com). The song lyrics are as follows:

Semanggi suroboyo, lontong balap wonokromo

di makan enak sekali, sayur semanggi krupuk puli

bung… mari….

harganya sangat murah, sayur semanggi suroboyo

didukung serta dijual, masuk kampung, keluar kampung

bung. beli…

sedap benar bumbunya dan enak rasanya

kangkung turi cukulan dicampurnya

dan tak lupa tempenya

mari bung, coba beli, sepincuk hanya setali

tentu memuaskan hati

mari beli, sayur semanggi, bung… beli…

Suroboyo Clover, Lontong Racing wonokromo

it is delicious: Clover vegetable puli crackers

Bro… let’s …

the price is very low, suroboyo clover vegetables

supported and sold, entered the village, left the village

man. buy …

delicious seasoning and tastes good

the cunch turi kale mixed

and do not forget the time

Come on, bro, try to buy just one

certainly satisfying

let us buy, clover, bro … buy …

The song has been very famous until now. With the keroncong rhythm, the song is often played on the birthday of Surabaya City on 31 May. On that day, there will also be a Surabaya culinary exhibition with free meals for everyone who wants to enjoy. One of the poems in the song is the word Bung (dude). The term Bung is a greeting word for Indonesian independence fighters in the Dutch, English, and Japanese colonial era in Indonesia. Therefore, the Surabaya clover song is very closely related to the history of the independence of the Indonesian people, especially what happened in Surabaya, which was dubbed the City of Heroes. Surabaya fighters are very fond of culinary Clover sold by Bakul Semanggi Gendong.

Natural heritage is the majority focus of most conservation efforts around the world. Intangible inheritance is often less researched and more challenging to preserve due to the lack of physical space to be occupied and the difficulty in measuring it. Food inheritance is one example of intangible inheritance, which began to be studied more widely (Shariff et al., 2008). Traditional food is an expression of culture, history, and lifestyle. Food is consumed by people for a long time. These can be essential in building local identity, culture, and customs and transferring cultural heritage from generation to generation (Nitiworakarn, 2015). Another uniqueness is that clover traders sell by walking around to their customers.

Bakul Semanggi Gendong continues to wrestle with micro business life in Surabaya to form a unique traditional community and is always eagerly awaited by customers. Bakul Semanggi Gendong community walks around from village to village every day. Until now, the generation of clover sellers has entered the third generation of its origins. Although the demands of the times are increasingly advanced, they remain in the way of their tradition, so it is a rare socio-economic phenomenon. Bakul Semanggi Gendong comes from the same village, Kendung, Surabaya, East Java. Lately, Bakul Semanggi Gengdong has been rather tricky to find, but they still exist even though the amount is less than in the past because the average Seller of Clover carries old age. Bakul Semanggi Gendong is a challenging, independent woman who wants to continue the tradition of the family, who are also clover sellers in Surabaya. This is what the authors say: that the heritage Bakul Semanggi Gendong is very different from other micro businesses.

Bakul Semanggi Gendong sells by walking around to their customers. Clover traders are often called ‘Clover Sellers’. They came from the outskirts of Surabaya, about 20–40 km from the city center, precisely in the village of Kendung, Benowo, Surabaya. They traveled from their home to the gathering point by public transportation. Usually, they go together in the morning and then rent transportation to be escorted to the gathering point location. After getting off the transport, they scattered around Surabaya to visit their respective customers. The older generation of Bakul Semanggi Gendong started leaving in the morning from Kendung village to peddle Clover culinary to Surabaya City. They departed together and parted according to their routes in peddling their clover merchandise.

Figure 2 illustrates the current development of a change in marketing patterns from picking up customers to stopping waiting for customers. This is one way to preserve the culture of clover sellers. Unlike the older generation of Bakul Semanggi Gendong, who peddled by carrying and traveling around, the current generation of his successors sell many stalls selling models along Kendung Benowo Street, Surabaya City.

Figure 2. The next generation of clover sellers.

(Source Picture: Documented by Author).

3.2. The meaning values of Bakul Semanggi Gendong

Before presenting the existing data on Bakul Semanggi Gendong (clover seller), the author introduces the characteristics of the micro business heritage in Table 1.

Table 1. Bakul Semanggi Gendong characteristics.

No	Subjects	Existence of socio-economic level			Level of genetic culture
		Experience (years)	Education	Income/Month (million)
1	Mu’ripah	22	no	3.5	in-laws
2	Ruhana	26	no	4.0	grandma, mom
3	Salamah	15	Elementary	3.5	Mom
4	Ati	25	Elementary	3.5	Mom
5	Muni	26	no	3.2	Family
6	Warsini	15	Elementary	3.7	Mom
7	Patemi	18	Elementary	3.0	in-laws
8	Munawaroh	17	Elementary	3.0	in-laws
9	Sumi	12	Elementary	3.0	sister-in-law

Source: Primary data, processed, 2022.

Thus, it can be described that the clover-carrying traders have the following characteristics: 1. A woman in the middle and older categories with decades of experience, 2. The level of education is low, 3. The income level is high because it is relatively the same or almost the same as the MSE Surabaya, 4. Experience gained from genetic or hereditary culture. Furthermore, the factors of Bakul Semanggi Gendong’s existence can be seen in Table 2.

Table 2. Bakul Semanggi Gendong existence.

No	Subjects	Factors
		Experience become trader	Availability of raw materials	Customer in Surabaya
1	Mu’ripah	Suffer	Easy	Rarely buy, quiet
2	Ruhana	Complex in the rainy season	Summer is hard	Regular customers
3	Salamah	Hard to find money	Buy at Skipper	Ask for a cracker bonus
4	Ati	Difficult but happy	Buy at Skipper	In offices
5	Muni	Happy if sold	Buy at Skipper	For party events
6	Warsini	Tired old	Plant self	Old people
7	Patemi	Suffer	Buy at Skipper	Quiet (not like before)
8	Munawaroh	Do not have skills	Buy at Skipper	Old and new
9	Sumi	No education	Buy at Skipper	Quiet

Source: Primary data, processed, 2022.

Table 2 shows that the existence of Bakul Semanggi Gendong is supported by several factors, including 1. Very long experience; 2. Low education and skills; 3. genetic culture/traditions; 4. It is easy to get raw materials, and 5. There are loyal customers in Surabaya. From Tables 1 and 2, it can be concluded that Bakul Semanggi Gendong has characteristics other traders do not possess. These characteristics include: 1. Traditional; 2. Only carried out by women; 3. Originating from the exact location; 4. Sell it by carrying and walking around to villages in Surabaya.

Based on the explanation above, it can be illustrated that the mental process experienced by Bakul Semanggi Gendong is through the process of interpreting the previous clover seller and is the result of the learning process of understanding the habits of the previous generation. These habits are genetic traditions, namely hereditary. Other factors that contribute to these individuals becoming clover sellers include low education, limited knowledge and skills, experience, natural environment factors that support, and loyal customers in Surabaya.

Based on the results of research on the subject of Bakul Semanggi Gendong, their goals still exist in order to be able to meet the needs of their life and families, as explained by the clover seller subjects named Mrs. Salamah (58 years), Mrs. Ati (63 years), Mrs. Muni (63 years), and Ms. Sumi (52 years). They explained that: ‘The goal is still to be a clover seller to get prosperity and increase income’. We want an increase in income with the aim that our family’s economic level is better. Thus, we can meet household needs, not just basic needs, but other needs, for example, being able to buy land and better household appliances, such as refrigerators, televisions, fans, etc. ‘Existence we will have no meaning if just physically peddling a clover in Surabaya takes a long time and will be in vain if it does not produce something better for our life’.

From the results of this study, it was found that the struggle to become Bakul Semanggi Gendong was a struggle and a long journey. Their relationship with family and semantical semantic carry must be maintained well, especially with customers. Because with loyal customers, they will still exist. In the interview with Bakul Semanggi Gendong, their existence, when related to the culinary culture typical of Surabaya, did not seem so important because, for them, the most important is the increasing family needs. The most important thing for them is to get daily money to sell more clothes and use the profits to meet family needs. Different things were obtained from the answers to other carrying baskets, Mu’ripah, Rukana, and Patemi. ‘Besides earning money’, our existence is highly needed by customers of the Clover governments government because of historical and heritage value. The existence of Bakul Semanggi Gendong is likely to last only a short time after the current generation. Bakul Semanggi Gendong, among others, conveyed this: Mu’ripah, Rukana, Patemi, and Munawaroh. ‘Nowadays, it is tough to pass down the Bakul Semanggi Gendong tradition to children. They prefer to work in others, for example, in factories, shops, supermarkets, offices, and others, which they say are not as miserable as us.’

Bakul Semanggi Gendong represents the Kendung community, Benowo, about the way and the local nature to survive. This is a reality but also an economic process motivated by the support of family-friendly social and cultural relations for generations. As a cultural heritage that is certainly full of the value of social capital, the existence of a Bakul Semanggi Gendong is perfect if analyzed with several theoretical approaches, especially in the scope of social science studies. As a social reality, Bakul Semanggi Gendong comes with all the elements that are part of their lives. In short, we can draw a common thread that Bakul Semanggi Gendong are units born with their cultural identity characteristic of the Kendung community. The author tries to align with this essential Korean food culture. We have tried to understand Korean food culture by analyzing Korean traditional music (pansori) and painting (Kwon et al., 2015). We understand the strength, compassion, healing, and desire in traditional Korean food. We also understand Korean food as a symbol of Korean culture in terms of aesthetics, namely harmonization, patience, care, and beauty (Chung et al., 2015). In addition, we discuss Korean food aesthetics, given philosophical and aesthetic values, by exploring traditional Korean food and analyzing Korean food culture in terms of scientific understanding. This will be very helpful for people who want to understand culture and Korean food.

Ancient times have a very long history in Myanmar. Fermented tea leaves were used as a symbol of peace or peace offerings between warring kingdoms. Presently, lahpet trays are the primary expression of hospitality offerings to homeowners (Kwon et al., 2015). Matta (2013) cited Bessiere and Tibere in defining food heritage as a set of material and immaterial elements of food cultures, considered as a shared legacy or a common good. This food heritage includes agricultural products, ingredients, dishes, techniques, recipes, and food traditions. It includes table manners, the symbolic dimension of food, and, in its more material aspects, cooking artifacts and the table setting: utensils and dishware. In Ramli et al. (2013), food heritage has been clarified broadly by several researchers on the topics of food heritage, which are related to agricultural place and history, the origin of the food products (i.e. breed fruits, vegetables, and livestock-related to regional climate and suitability) and in terms of food production of local produce. From a Malaysian perspective by Nor et al., it has been associated closely with classical and traditional foods that are continuously prepared and consumed by all generations without significant alteration in the original flavors. Food heritage has been reflected in the environmental history, beliefs, ideology, and food technology of society in an era. While in Wahid et al. stated that former Commissioner of Heritage,

Tibere and Aloysius comprise food heritage with rich cultural value and historical insights that belong to the societies, which can be traced from their food trails, for instance, the recipe used and cooking technique. The rich cultural value creates a sense of ‘belongingness’ and enhances people’s pride, which, in turn, could lead to their willingness to preserve cultural heritage. Meanwhile, the historical facts provide knowledge of the past. This could instill public national ethos that unity brings ‘togetherness’. It would increase the level of understanding among the people, especially those coming from a pluralistic country like Malaysia. The knowledge also helps them to learn and continue to negotiate their cultural differences. This has led to cultural diversity becoming the country’s valuable asset.

The transmission modes of Malay traditional food knowledge within generations. Food heritage needs to be preserved and sustained, as it represents the country’s image and identity, as some dishes have been endowed with iconic status and are worthy of celebration and safeguarding (Henderson, 2014). Hence, every ethnicity needs to preserve the food practiced by the young generations to retain their ethnic identity—the transmission modes of Malay tradition.

Similar to Monica et al., a famous traditional feast prepared during marriages, local festivals, and special occasions in Himachal Pradesh is a complete food not only according to Ayurveda but also nutritionally. The ethnic foods, including rajmah madra, kadi, khatta, sepu badi, and so forth, exhibit a treasure of food heritage and are an integral component of the diet of the people in the state. The cuisine is developed keeping in mind not only the geographical and climatic conditions of the state but also according to the traditional methods under natural conditions, mostly from the staple ingredients.

If drawn back to the root of the problem that is the focus of this article, whether we realize it or not, culture is understood as everything that consists of various components. These components are part of an interconnected community cultural system. One of the things that can be obtained from this research is clover seller as a clover culinary micro business performer to maintain family traditions. This is reflected in the family tradition, which is carried out to devote the faith that has been held up for generations. Bakul Semanggi Gendong is an essential element of cultural heritage and local wisdom that needs to be preserved. Other than that, the merchandise it sells plays a vital role in civilizing local traditional food, as written by Jordana (2000). Traditional foods are an important element of cultural heritage and play an essential role in local identity and consumer behavior.

Unfortunately, clover culinary is underestimated by society. Not many people know about the values reflected in Bakul Semanggi. It has not been exposed to much so the younger generation does not know much about it. In fact, judging from history, it used to be so well known that the Surabaya City government designated clover as an icon. Semanggi is present and demonstrated at celebration events, thanksgivings, both in the government when commemorating the anniversary of the city of Surabaya and from some of the community who are lovers of preserving it.

In simple terms, the traditions carried out by clover seller are difficult to release from their daily lives. That is the reason why Clover sellers are committed to maintaining their traditions and habits towards Clover cuisine. The clover seller culture is an added value that can be categorized as social capital for the people of Kendung Village, Sememi, Benowo, and Surabaya. Social capital is explicit knowledge arising from a prolonged period that has evolved with the community and its environment in the local system that it has experienced. The long and inherent process of evolution in society can make social capital a potential energy source from the collective knowledge system of society to live together dynamically and peacefully.

As a result of in-depth observations and interviews with Bakul Semanggi, the author was able to reveal important concepts about social values that need to be emulated. These concepts include ‘nrimo ing pandum’ (accepting what is) and not solely seeking profit (not materialistic), ‘sing pending dadi seduluran’ (what is important). Something becomes a brother), namely economic attitudes and actions carried out by a person and a group, which prioritize social-humanitarian values for the sake of future sustainability. This dialect gives rise to the view that economic factors are not the only way to survive in economic activities. From this dialectic, the author can describe the actions taken by clover sellers to maintain it as follows: Clover sellers in carrying out their economic activities will behave and make decisions that cannot be separated from socio-cultural factors. part of the hope and rationality of a relationship in the future. This concept, if abstracted, will become a model of the relationship between concepts, as seen in Figure 3.

Figure 3. Relationship between Aspects of the behavior of Clover Seller.

Based on the previous analysis, it can be described that the mental process experienced by clover sellers is through an interpretation process from previous clover sellers and the result of learning to understand the habits carried out by previous generations. This habit is a genetic tradition that has been passed down from generation to generation. Based on this tradition, the women in the family continue the legacy as sellers of clover, although nowadays the marketing method is different.

3.3. Bakul Semanggi Gendong cultural construction

Bakul Semanggi Gendong only exists in Surabaya and has never been found in other cities in Indonesia. This has proven that Clover Culinary is unique, especially for traditional culinary enthusiasts. However, the existence of a clover culinary micro business is now increasingly worrying. The data from direct interviews with Bakul Semanggi Gendong indicate that their customers are mostly older adults aged 40–55, while young people/millennials are few. If the authors associate with the results of the study Maukar, Typical female network services in Toulour Minahasa, both in the form of catering services and food industry-class households, are urgently needed. The development model includes providing education and training on the excellent quality of services from entrepreneurs (catering business, household food industry) related to traditional Minahasa food, staple food, and side dishes to a delicious, small network of women at the grassroots level. This effort, in addition to improving and enhancing the food business of female entrepreneurs, also preserves the local culture of the Toullu Minahasa, especially the traditional Toulour Minahasa food with Toulour farmer raw materials are rice freshwater fish. According to Jordana (2000), choosing to be an entrepreneur by starting a business is a challenging decision; it is also not easy to understand the impact of this decision on the entrepreneur himself and the community as a whole.

In fact, Bakul Semanggi Gendong is a traditional local micro business. Until now, the inheritance of the Clover micro-culinary business has entered the third generation of the Clover seller family. The development of this clover micro-culinary business has been relatively constant for decades, not undergoing change or innovation. From the Clover’s culinary style, how to market it, and the seller’s fashion style, the age of the clover seller remains the same as his ancestors. However, in the fourth generation, there have been several clover sellers, who were initially marketed from village to village and began to stop somewhere, such as city parks (on holidays) in Surabaya. For example, Bungkul Park. This park is one of the city parks in Surabaya, which once won first place in world city parks. It is a very strategic area for micro-business ventures such as Clover Culinary. In this park is a gathering place for Surabaya people who carry out recreational activities; even parents, young people, and children, while playing or relaxing, can enjoy the unique Surabaya clover. Usually, this clover seller is in the morning to evening. However, if you want to enjoy clover cuisine at night, it has started to enter the Mall, supermarkets, and star hotels. That is a good development for Clover Seller to go up in class. From the lower classes to the upper class, they can enjoy it. Because of this unique Clover, if there is a big event in Surabaya, for example, Surabaya’s birthday or even a wedding reception held by residents in buildings or hotels, this menu is always present and ready for guests.

The clover seller will represent the communities of Kendung, Benowo, and Surabaya and teach them how to survive locally. This is reality, but also economic processes motivated by the support of family-cultural social relations handed down from generation to generation. As Whitehead calls it, ‘reality is a process’. Reality is not made up, but it is determined based on events that contain creativity, interdependence, and dialectics. Clover Seller still applies the culture of cooperation and working together daily. Solidarity with fellow clover sellers has become evidence that their existence is an unorganized form, but they have a strong sense of family among themselves to preserve clover culture.

The study’s results, Rianti et al. explained that an Indonesian anthropologist interpreted it as one of the symbols of social solidarity or reciprocal or give-and-take relationships, known as the law of reciprocity. The reciprocal relationship is related to the habit of giving to each other. The behavior of giving indicates a mutual relationship between one person and another. Such behavior signifies a social relationship because of contact and communication with others that will lead to the attitude of solidarity. This statement, when associated with a clover seller, is very suitable. All Clover Sellers interviewed by the author said that they help each other and always foster togetherness with fellow Clover Sellers and customers.

The results of in-depth interviews with Bakul Semanggi informants showed that most of them did not want their children to become clover sellers. Because the clover seller is miserable. Every day, they have to sell on foot and outside the house. But on the other hand, the clover seller earns well, so he goes home with money, and the next day is eager to sell it again. The hope is that their descendants can continue to run the micro business with easier marketing patterns and better income. This aims to ensure that clover continues to exist

Interview with one of the Bakul Semanggi family. The informant, aged 45 years, said that since childhood I have known my parents (mother) as clover traders. Our family is descended from Bakul Semanggi. Apart from my mother, my grandmother and female relatives also work as clover traders. However, clover traders rarely go around now. Some of them cycle or set up stands along Kendung street. The values I learned from my mother are tenacity, patience and persistence to meet the needs of my family and traditions.

The next generation of clover sellers are all women, on average 35–45 years old. They are children or grandchildren. They are the next generation of clover sellers who now run their business by bicycle, not walking like their predecessors. There are also those who open stands along Kendung street. This is how unique the journey of the Semanggi culinary micro business is that it is still going strong for the time being.

The United Nations through the International Workshop on Traditional Knowledge emphasized that traditional food knowledge must continue to be preserved for future generations because they will bring deep spirituality and identity to oneself or society (UNESCO, 2007). Some ethics are reported not only by issues related to household cooking but also from the traditional generation to the traditional cooking knowledge of the younger generation. Likewise, research results explain that the issue of preserving traditional food knowledge is also a concern for government leaders and academics regarding the impact of traditional food knowledge.

Apart from family, the social environment also influences an individual’s interest in traditional semanggi cuisine. The first category is previous orientation, namely the understanding and experience that customers have regarding Semanggi Culinary which is a typical culinary specialty of the city of Surabaya. In the future, the category will be oriented towards the present, meaning customers will understand the unique and increasingly rare culinary romance of clover. Future orientation means that customers hope to contribute to promoting Semanggi culinary delights to stay abreast of developments. Responses from young customers (15–23 years) said that Semanggi Culinary is a unique and delicious culinary delight, even though it is said to be old-fashioned.

Two customer informants admitted that they were interested in this food because it was traditional, the container was made from banana leaves (pincuk), the seller was dressed in traditional (Javanese) clothes, and it was old. So, they feel that there is a rare and strange phenomenon in the millennial era, there is a group of people who still maintain ancient traditions. From this opinion, the author concludes that semanggi culinary needs to be preserved so that young people know more about it and become pioneers of contemporary innovation and promotion. Apart from being an asset to Surabaya’s culinary culture and identity, it also has implications for tourism which is currently being promoted by the government.

4. Conclusion

1) In simple terms, the traditions values carried out by Bakul Semanggi Gendong are difficult to release from their daily lives. That is why they are very strong in maintaining their traditions and habits towards their merchandise. The Clover Seller culture is an added value that can be categorized as social capital for the people of Kendung Village, Sememi, Benowo, and Surabaya. Social capital is explicit knowledge arising from a prolonged period that has evolved with the community and its environment in the local system that it has experienced. The long and inherent process of evolution in society can make social capital a potential energy source from the collective knowledge system of society to live together dynamically and peacefully; 2) The history and development of the classic and traditional Bakul Semanggi Gendong has existed since Indonesian independence, which is closely related to heritage and has played an important role in social and individual life. Clover sellers are a microeconomic business tradition that still exists and should be preserved. The culture of clover sellers is a form of family economic resilience in urban Surabaya. This is proven by the continuity of this legacy until now. Apart from selling by going around, for generations of heirs, there are also those who open non-permanent stands or outlets along Jalan Kendung, Benowo, Surabaya. It is hoped that the Semanggi Gendong basket will continue to exist and become a community identity that will last for a while.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

Non-digital data supporting this study are curated at Kendung Village, Surabaya City, East Java, Indonesia. The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, [RR], upon reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

No funding was received.

Notes on contributors

Dr. Rindawati is an experienced lecturer in the field of Geography Education at Universitas Negeri Surabaya. As an education professional, she has taught 10 courses in the past year and has been actively involved in community service activities with a total of 6 engagements.