Kadazandusun (also written as Kadazan-Dusun or Mamasok) are the largest ethnic group in Sabah, Malaysia, an amalgamation of the closely related indigenous Kadazan and Dusun peoples.

The unification has since strengthened the ties and brought the Kadazandusun community together as an ethnic group towards more positive and prosperous growth in terms of urbanisation, sociocultural, economic and political development.

Meanwhile, the Muruts and Lundayeh also refused the term, but remain their warm relationship with KDCA and responded positively in ways to unite the two largest Sabahan native groups.

Nowadays, the umbrella term "KDMR" (an acronym for Kadazan, Dusun, Murut, and Rungus) is very popular among the younger generations of the three native groups in Sabah to differ themselves from the Malay or Muslim Bumiputra in the state.

According to Owen Rutter (The Pagans of North Borneo, 1929, p31), "The Dusun usually describes himself generically as a tulun Tindal (landsman), or on the West Coast, particularly at Papar, as a Kadazan".

According to a Genome-wide SNP genotypic data studies by human genetics research team from University Malaysia Sabah (2018),[8] the Northern Borneon Dusun (Sonsogon, Rungus, Lingkabau and Murut) are closely related to Taiwan natives (Ami, Atayal) and non–Austro-Melanesian Filipinos (Visayan, Tagalog, Ilocano, Minanubu), rather than populations from other parts of Borneo Island.

The mutation series products from M7b1'2'4'5'6'7'8 are present today in several ethnics including Jakun the aboriginal of peninsular Malaysia, Dusun in Brunei, Tagalog and Visayas in the Philippines, and Dayak in Kalimantan and Riau Islands of Indonesia.

According to a study by Prof. Dr. Zafarina Zainuddin from Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kadazandusun ethnic belongs to Y-DNA haplogroup of O2-P31 (O-268), which she believes plays an important role in the modern Malay genome sequence.

Domestically, modern Kaamatan is celebrated as per individual personal aspiration with the option of whether or not to serve the Kadazandusun traditional food and drinks which are mostly non-halal.

Upon hearing this chant, dancers will raise their hands to the sides of their body and in line with their chest, and move their wrists and arms up and down resembling the movement of a flying bird.

Musical instruments in Sabah are classified into Cordophones (tongkungon, gambus, sundatang or gagayan), Erophon (suling, turali or tuahi, bungkau, sompoton), and Idofon (togunggak, gong or tagung, kulintangan) and membranophones (kompang, gendang or tontog).

Few of the many handicrafts that are synonym to the Kadazandusun people are wakid, barait, sompoton, pinakol, siung hat, parang, paddy cutter linggaman, and gayang.

The beheading tradition was not intended for the purpose of war alone, but rather to meet the society's cultural demands and expectations, and to fulfill the sacrificial requirements of the ancient rituals.

In the olden times, a Kadazandusun man's pride and power were measured by his courage and physical strength in combat, as well as the number of heads of fallen enemies that were brought home.

This is due to the traditional Kadazandusun belief that man's intelligence, spirit and courage are in his head (called tandahau), while the heart functions as the life source to the body.

The KDCA's Triennial Delegates Conference provides a forum where the various Kadazandusun multi-ethnic representatives discuss major issues affecting them and their future and take up both individual and collective stands and actions to resolve common challenges.

The KDCA fosters unity, friendship, and co-operation among the multi-racial population of Sabah through its participatory cultural programs and celebrations such as the Village, District and State levels Annual "Kaamatan Festival".

It has sent Cultural Performance Troupes on goodwill tours to the other Malaysian States, to neighbouring Asian Countries, to Europe, America, Canada and New Zealand.

The movement's main aims are to encourage more participation of the young generation in the activities of the association and be empowered in various fields so that they would be able to help develop the Kadazandusun community in general.

Ulu Sugut Dusun or Talantangic are a group of Central Dusunic sub-tribes that mainly resides in the Ulu Sugut river delta around the borders of Ranau, Beluran, Telupid as well as Kota Marudu district within the tripoint area which connects the West Coast, Sandakan and also Kudat divisions, but are also found in Keningau as well as Tambunan districts of the Interior division.

Western Malayo-Polynesian then split into two type of languages : Philippine-type (original form) and Malay-type (developed when the Austronesian people reached Borneo from the Philippine islands about 4,000 years ago).

Southwest Sabahan language began to split into three group when ancestors of the Murutic-speaking people moved further southward to Pensiangan (located at the upper reach of Sembakung river), the Dusunic went westward to coastal region, while the Paitanic migrated eastward .

Meanwhile the Dusunic-speaking people began to migrate to Brunei when the ancient pre-Malay Po-Ni kingdom established there by the Funan royals from mainland Southeast Asia who ran away from Chenla occupation.

Po-Ni also became a vassal state of Ming China when a Chinese named Ong Sum Ping or Awang Alak Betatar became sultan.

When the Brunei Sultanate expanded their territories into east coast of Sabah, the Bisaya and Nunuk Ragang people in the area began to be called as "Dusun".

Rumanau, also known as Dusun Lobu, is the westernmost Paitanic language as it also spoken in Nunuk Ragang Ranau and Lanas Village in Keningau district.

In contrast, migration to different places caused less contact among the Nunuk Ragang people due to geographical distant, paved the ways to new languages to develop separately.

It is possible that they initially migrated as a single group before splitting into two: Tangaa' choose to settle in the plain near the coast in Penampang while Rungus moved to Kota Marudu, and further to Kudat after the arrival of Northern Dusun tribes several generations after.

Eventually they choose to go westward, pass-crossed the Talantang settlement in Ranau and Tambunan, then found unpopulated places near the coast at the upper reach of Kadamaian and Tuaran rivers.

Tribes in the Kadamaian began to call themselves as one name, Tindal to distinguish themselves from the Bajau Sama lived around the lower Tempasuk river near the coast.