Marriage Ritual Objects and Collective Identity in Kangean Society, Indonesia

Marriage rituals constitute a central cultural domain through which communities articu-late social values, regulate social relations, and construct collective identity. This study investigates the semiotic functions of marriage ritual objects in Kangean society, Indone-sia, focusing on their symbolic structure, social roles, and implications for cultural conti-nuity. A qualitative interpretive design was employed, drawing on ethnolinguistic and social semiotic approaches, with data collected through observation and in-depth inter-views with cultural practitioners and community members. The findings show that ritual objects such as sere penang, kettan, beras koneng, koade raje, and sawer money operate within a structured ritual cycle comprising four stages: pepentaan, akad, resepsi, and ko-kocoran. These objects function as dynamic semiotic agents within layered systems of meaning, including denotation, connotation, and myth, and are continuously re-signified across ritual stages. They mediate social interaction, encode moral obligations, and rein-force cultural ideologies that position marriage as a socially regulated and publicly vali-dated institution. This study concludes that Kangean marriage rituals represent an inte-grated semiotic system in which material culture, symbolic practice, and social structure converge, contributing to the reproduction of cultural identity and the resilience of local traditions in contemporary society.