East Timor also known as Timor-Leste is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the nearby islands of Atauro and Jaco, and Oecusse, an exclave on the northwestern side of the island surrounded by Indonesian West Timor. Australia is the country's southern neighbour, separated by the Timor Sea. The country's size is 15,007 square kilometres (5,794 sq mi). Dili is its capital.

East Timor was colonised by Portugal in the sixteenth century and was known as Portuguese Timor until 28 November 1975, when the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (Fretilin) declared the territory's independence. Nine days later, it was invaded and occupied by the Indonesian military; it was declared Indonesia's 27th province the following year. The Indonesian occupation of East Timor was characterised by a violent, decades-long conflict between separatist groups (especially Fretilin) and the Indonesian military.

In 1999, following the United Nations-sponsored act of self-determination, Indonesia relinquished control of the territory. As Timor-Leste, it became the first new sovereign state of the twenty-first century on 20 May 2002 and joined the United Nations and the Community of Portuguese Language Countries. In 2011, East Timor announced its intention to become the eleventh member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). East Timor and the Philippines are the only two predominantly Catholic nations in Southeast Asia.

Uma Lulik

These sacred totem houses connect the Fatakulu people with the spirits of their ancestors.

THE FATALUKU PEOPLE OF TIMOR-LESTE (East Timor) are an ethnic minority renowned for their elegant totem houses on stilts, sacred houses called uma lulik. These holy huts symbolize a link between the past and present, the dead and the living.

There are traditional uma lulik still in place throughout the indigenous villages of East Timor, as well as several replica houses built more recently to honor the tradition and to display the Fataluku people’s craftsmanship.

These homes, which are built or renovated every 10 to 20 years, serve as a bond between families. The rebuilding process strengthens the ties between the past and the present and families that members are born into and those they choose. A uma lulik belongs to a specific family, but it also stands for all other descendant groups that have formed a bond with it through marriages. Ultimately, uma lulik embody the spirit of the family, its network, history, traditions, and, inevitably, its essence.

The presence of the uma lulik is as a testament to the resilience of the Fataluku people. First colonized by Portugal in the 16th century, the island was later occupied by Japan and Indonesia. The indigenous people were persecuted during Indonesia’s 25-year occupation. During this time, many of uma lulik were destroyed or fell into disrepair. In 2002, when the country gained its independence, a resurgence of traditional customs emerged and these sacred homes began appear again.

Uma lulik are usually built with local timber, bamboo and twine. Yet, each and every element transcends its physical properties and is charged with symbolism. This mingling of physicality and spirituality is extended to the way each element of the uma lulik is bound together with others to form something higher than itself. The structures are a connection between past and present, those here and those who have gone.

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/uma-lulik pics by Max Cortesi

wikipedia has only Deutsch and French pages

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uma_lulik great pics

We recently got the flag of this country. This reflects the spirit of the country much better than buildings constructed by colonists