Philippine Literary Period

Pre-colonial (…1564)

Spanish Period (1565-1898)

Americans (1899-1945)

Post World War II (1946-1971)

Martial Law Year (1972-1986)

Post-Edsa Revolution

Pre-colonial Literature

(…-1564)

I. How Philippine Prehistoric/Pre-colonial Literature Got Rediscovered

Philippine pre-colonial literary history is the longest (…-1564)

Filipinos have the misconception that Philippine literary history began with the coming of the Spaniards in 1521.

This human skull cap was discovered by Dr. Robert B. Fox, American anthropologist of the National Museum, inside Tabon Cave Palawan, on May 28, 1962. This human relic was called the "Tabon Man".

With the discovery of the Tabon Man in 1962, we learned that the history of the Filipinos dates to as far back as 50,000 years ago, suggesting also the possible length of existence of Philippine literature.

According to scholar William Henry Scott, “there is a discrepancy between what is actually known about Philippine prehistory and what has been written about it” many chroniclers possessed biases towards early Filipinos and these were reflected in their accounts/writings.

William Henry Scott, renowned historian who authoried 15 books in Philippine history including The Discovery of the Igorots, is dead. He was 72 years old.

Reading for the Day: William Henry Scott on the IgorotsFebruary 25, 2007 at 3:06 pm

They were intelligent, well-built, light-skinned, naked save for G-strings, and estimated to number between 18 and 20 thousand.

They were headhunters frequently at war with their neighbors, held the most successful collectors of these trophies in high regard.

They worked their mines mainly by panning gold in placers in the streams and bartered it, at qualities up to 22 carats, with particular trading partners in Pangasinan for rice, pigs, and carabaos, driving these animals back on the hoof.

Igorot gold fields are regularly referred to in 16th-century accounts as the wealthiest in the archipelago.

Pre-colonial People

Today, it is easier for scholars to do an analysis of Philippine pre-colonial literature for a wealth of oral lore has been collected.

These indigenous literature were preserved by Filipinos whose ancestors stayed beyond the reach of colonial forces.

II. Characteristics of Philippine Pre-colonial Literature

1. Communally owned

Subject matter was common experience of a group of people (food gathering, work in the home, caring for children, nature…)

Common in riddles, proverbs and songs

Riddles/Bugtong

Hindi hari, hindi pari Ang damit ay sari-sari

         

Neither king nor priest> But has a variety of clothes

It is a tree trunk but is without fruit

It has leaves but has no branches

sampayan

sandok

May puno, walang bungaMay dahon, walang sanga

Chavacano Riddles/ Adivinanza

Tiene un pono, ta comé de suyo mismo cuerpo.

De negro si vivo, de colorao si muerto.

Ya parí ya, pero no hay pa salé el anak.

Cielo arriba, cielo abajo agua entremedio.

Binili ko nang mahal, isinabit ko lamang

Isang prinsesang maganda, punong-puno ng mata.

Bawat dahong itinatapon ay lumilipas na panahon.

Limang magkakapatid, laging kabit-kabit. Heto na si Kaka, bubuka-bukaka. Maliit na bahay, puno ng mga patay.

Lumuluha walang mata, lumalakad walang paa.

Isa ang pasukan, tatlo ang labasan.

Sa maling kalabit, may buhay na kapalit.

Dalawang batong itim, malayo ang nararating.

Magandang prinsesa, nakaupo sa tasa.

Salawikain: Pinoy Proverbs

In general, a Pinoy will resort to quoting proverbs if he wishes to express himself eloquently, or if he wishes to fancy himself as a sage of wisdom. Defined interchangeably as

"ornament to the language,“ "words of our ancestors," "wisdom of experience”

Salawikain are sayings that are steeped in traditional Filipino culture and wisdom.

They are forceful expressions cloaked in poetry, and are basically euphemistic passages that not too infrequently enter daily conversations.

Proverb/Salawikain

Ang hindi lumilingon sa pinanggalingan Hindi makararating sa paroroonan.

A person who does not remember where he/she came from Will never reach his/her destination.

Ang lumalakad nang mabagal, kung matinik ay mababaw. Ang lumalakad nang matulin, kung matinik ay malalim.

Thorns bury shallowly into one who walks slowly. Thorns bury deeply into one who walks fast.

Proverb/Salawikain

Ang umaayaw ay di nagwawagi, ang nagwawagi ay di umaayaw.

He who quits does not succeed, he who succeeds does not quit.

Proverb/Salawikain

Para qué el compay si muerto ya el caballo?

El pono del cahel hende ta prutá guayabas.

Ang puno ng suha ay hindi magbubunga ng bayabas.

El vida del gente igual rueda, Ahora abajo, mañana arriba.

El dalaga guapa, demonio na bolsa.

(A beautiful maiden is a devil’s pocket.)

Si ta hablá vos malo con otros, malo también vos el oí.

(If you speak evil of others, you shall hear evil in return.)

El malo para con vos, no dale con otros. (Ang masamá sa inyo, huwag mong gawin sa kapwa mo.)

Maxims/Sayings

1. Pag makitid ang kumot, magtiis kang mamaluktot.

2. Ang taong nagigipit, sa patalim man ay kumakapit.

Group Activity

By group explain the chosen proverb through a short skit.

(Using of Filipino, Chavacano, or Visayan languages are allowed)

Criteria

The group provides a clear example that best explains the proverb.

The presentation is smooth flowing, at the same time entertaining.

Members play their part/role very well.

1. May tainga ang lupa, may pakpak ang balita.

2. Kung may isinuksok, may madudukot.

3. Kung ano ang puno, siya rin ang bunga.

4. Lahat ng gubat ay may ahas. 5. Kung ano ang itinanim,  siya rin ang

aanihin.

6. Nasa tao ang gawa,  nasa Diyos ang awa.

Pagmakitid ang kumot, magtiis kang mamaluktot.

Kung nakakaranas ng kakulangan sa buhay ang isang tao ay dapat siyang mamuhay ng naaayon sa kanyang kakayahan. Matutong magtipid at maging payak sa pamumuhay.

Pagkahaba-haba man ng prusisyon, sa simbahan din ang tuloy.

Sa tinagal-tagal man ng samahan ng magkasintahan, sa bandang huli ay humahantong din eto sa kasalan.

Ang taong nagigipit, sa patalim man ay kumakapit.

Ang taong nagigipit kung minsan ay napipilitang gumawa ng mapangahas na bagay na maaaring maging dahilan upang lalu lamang siyang magipit. Halimbawa, ang taong may mabigat na pangangailangan ng pera ay nagagawang mangutang ng patubuan, tulad ng five-six, na nagiging dahilan upang lalu pa siyang mangailangan ng pera.

KULALENG

Gangsa

Tongali

The tongali is a four holed nose flute (one hole in the back) from northern Philippines and

played by the Kalinga and other peoples of Luzon. The tongali is one of the few nose

flutes in the world that is still actively taught, thanks to the work of Jose Maceda at the University of the Philippines and the ongoing effects of the music department of UP Quezon. The tongali is one of numerous traditional instruments that students can study at UP. There are stories from this region that say that the nose flute was used to help rice grow when it was young, as the rice was attracted to the soft sounds of the flute, and would grow to put its ear above

the water to hear it better.

2. Uses language of daily lifeThis is except for the epic, the epic singer must have good memory and be musically creative.

Any member of the community can be a poet as long as he knew the language

3. Orally transmittedIt was because folk literature was orally transmitted from one generation to another that they exist up until now.

Conventions of oral literary form: formulaic repetitions, stereotyping of characters, regular rhythmic and musical devices.

III. Ways in which Indigenious Culture Survived

Resistance to colonial ruleDone by Maranaws, Tausugs of Mindanao and Ifugaos and Bontocs of Mountain Province

Bontocs Ifugaos

Maranaos

Tausugs

Isolation from colonial power

Done by Mangyans, Bilaans, Isnegs and etc.

Their settlements were also geographically inaccessible

IV. How Indigenous Culture Disappeared

Filipinos became Christianized resulting to indigenous literature being set aside.

Written literature were written on easily perishable materials.

Indigenous literature intentionally destroyed by Spanish missionaries for they considered these pagan.

V. Forms of Oral Literature

1. Simple formsRiddles and Proverbs which contained talinhaga (metaphor)

Vocabulario de la lengua tagala by Pedro Sanlucar and Juan de Noceda, collection of early riddles and proverbs directly obtained from the people during the Spanish time.

2. PoetryMuch of pre-colonial poetry were monoriming and heptasyllabic

Example ambahan of Hanunoo-Mangyans

Tanaga, like a Hispanized version of ambahan and has four lines

3. Lyric PoetryTagalogs have 16 species of songs for different occasions

Ambahan

Ako mana manrigsan

sa may panayo pinggan

sa may tupas balian

ako ud nakarigsan

inambing bahayawan

sinag-uli batangan

I would like to take a bath

scoop the water with a plate

wash the hair with lemon juice;

but I could not take a bath,

because the river is dammed

with a lot of sturdy trunks

Tanaga

You may stand sturdy

But when the waters flow

I, the humble moss

Can strangle you.

Katitibay ka, tulos

Sakaling datnang agos,

Ako’y mumunting lumot,

Sa iyo’y pupulupot

Functions of Songs

1. Political - taught people of their membership to the community

2. Religious- used to give praise to the divinities

4. Prose NarrativesConsisted of origin myths, hero tales, fables and legends.

Functions of Prose Narratives:1. Explain natural phenomena, past events

and contemporary beliefs to make the world more comprehensible and less fearful.

2. Make idle hours less tedious.

5. DramaPhilippine drama as a literary form did not exist yet but existed in the simplest form.Mimetic dances imitating natural cycles and work activities

TiniklingPangalay

Dances

Singkil

Most sophisticated prehistoric/pre-colonial drama were participated in by priest/priestess and the entire community.

To Lumbera, if no colonial interference in the development of indigenous Philippine drama, Philippine drama may be dance-drama like those of other Asian countries.

6. Epics

To E. Arsenio Manuel, the Philippines does not have a national epic but has several ethnoepics.

Manuel listed in his study in 1962, 13 epics from pagan Filipinos, 2 from Christian Filipinos and 4 from Muslims.

Characteristics of Philippine ethnoepic:

1. Narratives of sustained length2. Based on oral tradition3. Revolving around supernatural events or

heroic deeds4. Verse form5. Sung or chanted6. Certain seriousness of purpose which

embodies beliefs, customs, ideals of people

Iliad

Odyssey

Filipino EpicAliguyon or the Hudhud of the Ifugaos tells of the exploits of Aliguyon as he battles his arch enemy, Pambukhayon among rice fields and terraces and instructs his people to be steadfast and learn the wisdom of warfare and of peacemaking during harvest seasons.  Biag ni Lam-ang (Life of Lamang) tells of the adventures of the prodigious epic hero, Lam-ang who exhibits extraordinary powers at a very early age. At nine months he is able to go to war to look for his father’s killers. Then while in search of lady love, Ines Kannoyan, he is swallowed by a big fish, but his rooster and his friends bring him back to life.

Labaw Donggon is about the amorous exploits of the son of a goddess Alunsina, by a mortal, Datu Paubari. The polygamous hero battles the huge monster Manaluntad for the hand of Abyang Ginbitinan; then he fights Sikay Padalogdog, the giant with a hundred arms to win Abyang Doronoon and confronts the lord of darkness, Saragnayan, to win Nagmalitong Yawa Sinagmaling Diwata.

The Agyu or Olahing is a three part epic that starts with the pahmara (invocation) then the kepu’unpuun ( a narration of the past) and the sengedurog (an episode complete in itself). All three parts narrate the exploits of the hero as he leads his people who have been driven out of their land to Nalandangan, a land of utopia where there are no landgrabbers and oppressors.

Thank you!