Oral Lore From Pre-colonial Times

ORAL LORE FROM PRE-COLONIAL TIMES —1564

LAS ISLAS FILIPINAS

BEGINNING OF THE CHRISTIAN ERA

GOLD

TEXTILES

IRON

GLAS

HISPANIZATION OF THE PHILIPPINES

JOHN L. PHELAN

WILLIAM HENRY SCOTT

“… Filipinos were wearing bark and woven cloth and gold, bronze, stone and shell hair ornaments, earnings, pectoral disks, bracelets, finger rings and imported beads, and mined and worked gold for jewelry and iron for tools and weapons; they filed, stained, blackened or chipped their teeth and decorated them with gold, and had been chewing betel nuts for 3,000 years; they owned tens of thousands of valuable Chinese porcelain jars and plates but cooked in a type of local pot with a history going back to 1,000 B.C.; they deformed skulls, removed them, preserved them, and buried their dead supine, prone or flexed in caves, graves, jars or coffins, and disinterred them, reburied and venerated their bones.”

BARK AND WOVEN CLOTH

CHINESE PORCELAIN JARS AND PLATES

BLACKENED TEETH AND BETEL NUTS

 Through

these studies, much can be reliably inferred about pre-colonial Philippine Literature from an analysis of collected oral lore of Filipinos whose ancestors were able to preserve their indigenous culture by living beyond the reach of Spanish colonial administrators and the culture of sixteenth-century Europe.

“NATIVES,” “ETHNIC MINORITIES”, “TRIBAL FILIPINO”

FOLK SONGS 

Pamulinawem Pamulinawen usok indengam man Toy umas-asug Agrayod'ta sadyam. Panunotem man Inka Pagintutulngan Toy agayat, agukkoy dita sadiam.

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Paruparong Bukid Paruparong bukid na lilipad-lipad Sa gitna ng daan papaga-pagaspas Isang bara ang tapis Isang dangkal ang manggas Ang sayang de kola Isang piyesa ang sayad May payneta pa siya — uy! May suklay pa man din — uy! Nagwas de-ohetes ang palalabasin Haharap sa altar at mananalamin At saka lalakad nang pakendeng-kendeng.

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Leron, Leron Sinta Leron, Leron, sinta Buko ng papaya Dala dala'y buslo Sisidlan ng sinta Pagdating sa dulo'y Nabali ang sanga, Kapos kapalaran Humanap ng iba. Halika na Neneng, tayo'y manampalok Dalhin mo ang buslo, sisidlan ng hinog Pagdating sa dulo'y uunda-undayog Kumapit ka Neneng, baka ka mahulog. Halika na Neneng at tayo'y magsimba At iyong isuot ang baro mo't saya Ang baro mo't sayang pagkaganda-ganda Kay ganda ng kulay -- berde, puti, pula. Ako'y ibigin mo, lalaking matapang Ang baril ko'y pito, ang sundang ko'y siyam Ang lalakarin ko'y parte ng dinulang Isang pinggang pansit ang aking kalaban.

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As literary woks created in the setting of society where the resources for economic subsistence—land, water and forest— were communally owned, the oral literature of the pre-colonial Filipinos bore the marks of the community.

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At this phase of literary development, any member of the community was a potential poet, singer, or story-teller as long as he knew the language and had been attentive to the conventions of the forms.

CONVENTIONS OF THE VARIOUS ORAL LITERARY FORMS

• • • •

Formulaic repetitions Stereotyping of characters Regular rhythmic Musical devices

OWNERSHIP OF LITERARY COMPOSITION

Not emphasized in the process of oral transmission  Conceivable  Communal authorship 

NATIVE SYLLABARY 3 vowel (a, e-i, u-o) and 14 consonants (b, d,g, h, k, l, m, n, ng, p, s, t, w, and y)  No way of indicating the consonantal ending words 

Disuse of Syllabary •Information about pre-colonial culture was LOST. •Fewer Filipinos kept the record of their oral lore •Fewer and fewer can decipher •Destroyed by the missionaries

2 WAYS BY WHICH THE UNIQUENESS OF INDIGENOUS CULTURE SURVIVED THE COLONIZATION 1.

By resistance to colonial rule 

2.

Maranaws, Maguindanaws and the Taosug of Mindanao, Igorots, Ifugaos, Bontocs and Kalingas of the Mountain Province

By virtue of isolation from centers of colonial power 

Tagbanwas, Tagabilis, Mangyans, Bagobos, Manuvus, Bilaan, Bukidnons

RIDDLES AND PROVERBS

•simplest

forms of oral literature •Started early in the 17th century



Ambahan -is the traditional poetry of the Hanunuo Mangyans of Oriental Mindoro.

-The syllabic script and the ambahan poetry have complemented each other, contributing to their continued existence today.

AMBAHAN

It is usually written on bamboo in the Surat Mangyan, a centuries-old preSpanish script. -

TANAGA The Tanaga is a type of Filipino poem, consisting of four lines with seven syllables each with the same rhyme at the end of each line.  "Katitibay ka Tulos Sakaling datnang agos! Ako'y mumunting lumot sa iyo'y pupulupot." 

PROSE NARRATIVES IN PREHISTORIC PHILIPPINES

Myths  Hero tales  Fables  Legends 

DRAMA 

Philippine theater -Mimetic dances imitating natural cycles and activities •

Ch’along -is part of a wedding rite, involving the propiatiation of evil spirits who might bring harm upon the couple.

RIDDLES Lucy had it first Ethel had it last Mary Lungel had it twice until she married Peter Stupid and never had it again. What is it?  Answer: L  The queen tilt her head but the crown did not fall  Answer: Guava 

RIDDLES 

   

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Five coconut trees, one stands out. Answer: Fingers A deep well that is full of chisels. Answer: Mouth What can travel around the world while staying in a corner? Answer: Stamp What kind of tree can you carry in your hand? Answer: Palm How many of each species did Moses take on the ark with him? Answer: None, Moses wasn't on the ark Noah was.

PROVERBS

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"The pen is mightier than the sword.“ Trying to convince people with ideas and words is more effective than trying to force people to do what you want

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"Necessity is the mother of invention." When you're really in need, you think of creative solutions to your problems.

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"The darkest hour is just before the dawn." There is hope, even in the worst of circumstances.

FOLK EPICS

E. ARSENIO MANUEL he surveyed “ethnoepics” (folk epics)  1962: he was able to describe a total of 19 epics found in the Philippines: 

 13:

PAGAN Filipinos  2: CHRISTIAN Filipinos  4: MUSLIM Filipinos

COMMON FEATURES OF FOLK EPICS: (ACCD. TO MANUEL) Narratives of sustained length  Based on oral tradition  Revolving around supernatural events or heroic deeds  In the form of verse (chanted or sung)  With a certain seriousness of purpose 

LAM-ANG

1889: first recorded  Christian Ilokos 

INES KANNOYAN

RARANG

TUWAANG 1956: discovered  Pagan epic among Manuvus of Central Mindanao  “The Maiden of the Buhong Sky”  “Tuwaang Attends a Wedding” (1957) 

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Tuwaang

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The Maiden

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Giant (Pangumanon)

HINILAWOD Recorded only recently  Pagan epic: Sulod of Panay  Longest epic so far recorded in the Philippines  Noted for it’s richly inventive narration and magnifence of it’s fantasy.  Composed of 2 parts: 

HINILAWOD 1ST PART: 

Labaw Denggan  

 

Aso Mangga Buyung Buranogan

Buyung Humadapnon Buyung Dumalapdap

2ND PART:  

Humadapnon Nagmalitung Yawa

BANTUGAN Maranaw epic  Central character (the prince) is the most popular hero of the Muslim epic song  A prince who excels not only as a valiant warrior but also a fabulous lover  More than 15 songs are said to detail his exploits 