The identity of someone who identifies as Minangkabau is partially oriented around the notion of one’s kampung (literally a village or district in an urban area), but in this instance shorthand for kampung halaman (literally “native village”). The kampung halaman is usually conceptualized as “home”—even if a person does not currently live there, never has lived there, or rarely visits—because it is tied to one's ancestral heritage: the place where a person will trace their mother’s line. This "home" is typically traced to a particular nagari or the jorong (subdivisions within it). Minangkabau trace their ancestral heritage through their mother’s line from the broadest classification, suku (clan), down to the narrowest, the sub-lineage.

Although many migrants were not born nor have ever lived in their ancestral nagari, their identification with it is important. My host mother, for example, who was raised in Java and only moved to the homeland after marriage, identifies her place of origin as the nagari of Sulit Air, even though she has never resided there. Nagari, and the broader units within which they are contained, provide a basis for many Minangkabau migrant collectivities in the rantau, such as Jakarta, Bandung, and other multi-ethnic cities.

The attachment to one’s place of origin is manifest in the return of migrants during Lebaran (celebrations following the end of Ramadan), when they come "home" to visit extended families and friends. Most of my host mother's siblings lived in lived in Java, in Surakarta, Bandung, and Jakarta, while she had other relatives in Jakarta and Pekanbaru. During Lebaran, these families often returned to the homeland, visiting us in Padang Panjang while they were there. My host father, in comparison, was born and raised in Koto Panjang, a different neighborhood of Padang Panjang from where he currently lived, Kampung Jambak. All his sisters still lived there and this was his “home,” the place where he traveled for holidays centered on family connections. During major ritual days, such as Idul Fitri, the day marking the end of Ramadan, the first port of call for the entire family, myself included, after morning prayers was his ancestral home. 

In saluang, this ancestral place of origin is activated in a number of ways. Many saluang performers live in Payokumbuah, but when they say they are from x, y or z, they are referring to this ancestral place of origin (see Mapping Performers). Pagurau sometimes request songs because they are from their place of origin, especially when they have relocated further away from their home. People have a strong emotional attachment to their place of origin and the homeland.