The Inhabitants of the PhilippinesSawyer, Frederic H.
History
The Inhabitants of the Philippines
Sawyer, Frederic H.
Ethnology -- Philippines; Philippines -- Social life and customs
Tattooing is very general amongst them. In some districts you can
hardly find a man or woman who has not a figure of the sun tattooed in
blue on the back of the hand, for in Central Benguet they worship the
sun. Some of them tattoo the breast and arms in patterns of straight
and curved lines pricked in with a needle in indigo blue. The Busao
Igorrotes, who live in the North of Lepanto, tattoo flowers on their
arms, and in war-dress wear a cylindrical shako made of wood or plaited
rattan, and large copper pendants in their ears. These people do not
use the Talibon, and prefer the spear. The Burik Igorrotes tattoo
the body in a curious manner, giving them the appearance of wearing
a coat of mail. But this custom is probably now becoming obsolete,
for at least those of the Igorrotes who live near the Christian
natives are gradually adopting their dress and customs.
White is the colour of mourning, as amongst the Moros of Mindanao and
Sulu. Both sexes are fond of personal ornaments, such as ear-rings,
collars, arm-rings, bangles, leg-rings and belts. Collars of
crocodiles' teeth are highly esteemed. In the long list of their
manufactures I shall enumerate their ornaments. Their arms are the
talibon, a short double-edged sword; the gayang, a javelin or assegai;
and the aligua, a light axe, having a spike at the back opposite to
the cutting edge. After throwing their javelins, they rush on with
their drawn swords, holding their shield, called a calata, on the
left arm. This is made of light wood and is long and narrow. With the
exception of the shape of the shield their equipment is much like
that of the Roman Legionaries twenty centuries since. The aligua
appears to be used, not as a fighting weapon, but to decapitate
their fallen enemies and as a means of carrying the head home on a
spike. Great rejoicings, with feasts and dances, were held after a
successful skirmish, and large quantities of liquor consumed. But the
constant pressure of the Spanish authority has in a great measure
stopped these petty wars. They make a kind of beer called Basi by
fermenting cane-juice, and another liquor, something like the chicha
of the Peruvian Coast Indians, from rice. This latter is called
bundang. They are great smokers, and make their own pipes of various
materials. They appear not to have universally adopted the Malay
custom of chewing buyo. There is a settlement of Christian Igorrotes
on the coast of Ilocos Sur, close to the boundary of La Union,
which has been established many years. But in general the Igorrotes
have steadily refused to embrace Christianity, and evidently do not
want to go to the same heaven as the Spaniards. The behaviour of the
troops led against them in 1881 by General Primo de Rivera doubtless
confirmed them in this repugnance. The expedition did not do much in
the way of fighting, Remingtons and mountain-guns failed to subdue
the bold mountaineers armed only with javelin and sword. The Spanish
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account