olifanten (army elephants) (English: “army elephants”) is a term or concept described in Jongejan’s Land en Volk van Atjeh Vroeger en Nu in relation to Aceh. Army elephants used for military transport between Tangsé and Geumpang until recent years.
Translation
army elephants
Description
Army elephants used for military transport between Tangsé and Geumpang until recent years. Three stationed at Tangsé. Loaded by lying down, covered with heavy deck, chained down, soldiers walked over them with spiked shoes to ‘stow’ loads. Male ‘Agam’ was put down after becoming recalcitrant. Females: one donated to Rotterdamsche Diergaarde, one sold to the Soesochoenan.
Significance
The term olifanten (army elephants) is recorded by Jongejan as part of the cultural, administrative, or institutional vocabulary of Aceh.
See Also
Source
Land en Volk van Atjeh Vroeger en Nu, by J. Jongejans, Oud-Resident van het Gewest Atjeh en Onderhoorigheden, with a foreword by Dr. H. Colijn (Baarn: Hollandia Drukkerij N.V., c. 1938), pp. 64.