Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Danao Cas-11-601a Ethnoastronomy Visayas
Danao Cas-11-601a Ethnoastronomy Visayas
Danao Cas-11-601a Ethnoastronomy Visayas
IN VISAYAS
DANAO, MARC EDZEL
CAS-11-601A
Report Outline
Introduction to Visayas
Ethnoastronomy of Visayas
Most Prominent Mythology of Visayas:
Bakunawa
Prominent Celestial Objects in Visayan
Ethnoastronomy
INTRODUCTION
TO VISAYAS
INTRODUCTION
TO VISAYAS
Capiznon
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
Capiznon is derived from the word
kapis, a seashell used to make square
panes for windows (and obtained
from the mollusk Placuna placenta)
and the suffix “non” or “people.” The
term refers to the culture, language,
and people of Capiz province, one of
Panay Island’s four provinces: Iloilo,
Capiz, Antique, and Aklan. Capiz is
bounded by the Sibuyan Sea on the
north, Aklan province on the
northwest, Antique province on the
west, and Iloilo province on the south
and southwest.
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
Folk history recorded in the Maragtas by
Pedro Monteclaro (1907) says ten Bornean
datu ‘chieftains’ landed at a site now
known as San Joaquin town in Iloilo
province. They purchased Panay from the
Aeta, cultivated the land, and renamed the
island Madya-as. They divided it into three
sakup ‘communities’: Irong- Irong, Akean
(which included the area of Capiz), and
Hamtik (now Antique). These were loosely
united under a government called the
Katiringban it Madya-as (Confederation of
Madya-as).
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
POSSIBLE Deities of past Capiznon. Compiled from other historical
sources from surrounding areas by Lucero, R., Pototanon, R. M (2018):
Laon: the supreme deity; a goddess said to reside in the mountain at the
neighboring island of Negros
Bulalakaw: a bird god who looks like a peacock and can cause illness; lives in
Mount Madja-as
Bangutbanwa: ensures good harvests and an orderly universe
Mangindalon: intercedes for sick persons; punishes enemies
Soliran: one of two performers of the marriage ceremonies
Solian: one of two performers of the marriage ceremonies
Manunubo: the good spirit of the sea
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
POSSIBLE Deities of past Capiznon. Compiled from other historical
sources from surrounding areas by Lucero, R., Pototanon, R. M (2018):
Tungkung Langit: the god of the sky who brings famine, drought, storms, and
floods
Lulid-Batang: the god of the earth, responsible for earthquakes and volcanic
eruptions
Linting Habughabug: the god of lightning, whose look kills people and who
shouts in anger
Launsina: the goddess of the sun, moon, stars, and seas, and the most beloved
because people seek forgiveness from her
Burigadang Pada Sinaklang Bulawan: the goddess of greed to whom people
pray when they want to get rich
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
POSSIBLE Deities of past Capiznon. Compiled from other historical
sources from surrounding areas by Lucero, R., Pototanon, R. M (2018):
Saragnayan: the god of darkness who has the power to replace brightness with
darkness
Lubay-lubyuk Hanginun si Mahuyuk-huyukun: the goddess of the evening
breeze; cools people, especially during the summer
Suklang Malayun: the guardian of happy homes
Maklilum-sa-twan: the god of the plains and valleys.
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
Sulod (Panay-
Bukidnon)
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
The Sulod are the most populous of the varied
cultural-linguistic groups inhabiting the
mountains of Central Panay; Tapaz, Capiz;
Lambuano, Iloilo; and Valderrama, Antique
Provinces, who remain relatively
unassimilated. They occupy the rugged finger-
like slopes along the banks of the river in the
interior and higher mountains. Due to the
sandwich-like location of their territory, the
inhabitants earned the moniker Sulod by their
neighbors, which literally means “closet or
room”; they’re also called montesses by
lowlanders, which means “mountain dwellers”.
They speak a dialect that is a combination of
Kiniray-a which is characterized by many
archaic expressions and Hiligaynon.
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
These deities were documented by F. Landa Jocano during his work
with the Sulod Societies of Panay.
Tungkung Langit: the supreme deity and the most powerful male Diwata; he is
of unknown origin, coming from somewhere foreign to the other beings of the
Sulod pantheon
Bangun Bangun: the deity of universal time who regulates cosmic movements
Pahulangkug: the deity who changes the seasons
Ribung Linti: the deity of lightning and thunderstorms
Sumalongsong: the deity of the rivers and seas
Santonilyo: the deity of good graces
Munsad Burulakaw: the deity who has direct power over men; most respected
and feared in the upperworld
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
These deities were documented by F. Landa Jocano during his work
with the Sulod Societies of Panay.
Bayi: one of the two primordial giants who appeared out of nowhere and were
responsible for the creation of many things; caught the primordial earthworm
and gave birth to the wild animals that inhabit the earth
Laki: one of the two primordial giants who appeared out of nowhere and were
responsible for the creation of many things
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
The Ati are a Negrito ethnic group in the
Visayas, the central portion of the
Philippine archipelago. Their small
numbers are principally concentrated in
the islands of Boracay, Panay and Negros.
The Ati, who inhabit the mountain areas of
Panay and Negros, are also called ‘Negrito’
(an outdated term). Rahmann and Maceda
(1955) believe that ‘Negritos’ of pure blood
still exist in northern Negros, although
their number is extremely small and
continually reduced by intermarriage with
lowlanders. The Ati speak Hiligaynon
(particularly a variant known as Kiniray-a)
and some are fluent in Cebuano.
Ethnoastronomy
of Visayas
Here are the deities of Ati:
Magwala: also called Magdili, the supreme spirit
Abog: chief herdsman of wild pigs and deer; the daga or diwata ritual is offered
to invite the herdsmen spirits, headed by Abog
Assistants of Abog:
Makalisang
Kangil-iran
Spirits of the Forest: the first-fruits sacrifices of the hunt are offered to them
through bits of meat, which would bring good luck to the people
Bakero
Tawo-nga-talonon
Most Prominent Mythology of
Visayas: Bakunawa
CEBUANO
Tales about the Bakunawa say that it is the
cause of eclipses. During ancient times, Pre-
colonial Cebuanos believed that their supreme
god, Bathala, created 7 moons to light up the
sky. The Bakunawa, amazed by their beauty,
would rise from the ocean and swallow the
moons whole, angering Bathala and causing
them to be mortal enemies.
CEBUANO
To keep the moons from completely being swallowed
by the Bakunawa, ancient Filipinos would go out of
their homes with pans and pots, and would bang on
them with great force to make noise in order to scare
the Bakunawa into spitting out the moon back into
the sky. Some of the people in the villages would
play soothing sounds with their musical
instruments, in hopes that the dragon would fall
into a deep sleep. Thus, the brave men of the village
hoped that while the dragon was hypnotized by the
musical sounds they could somehow slay the dragon.
Although the dragon was known as a "moon eater" it
was also known as a "man eater".
CEBUANO
Other tales tell that the Bakunawa has a sister in the
form of a sea turtle. The sea turtle would visit a
certain island in the Philippines in order to lay its
eggs. However, locals soon discovered that every
time the sea turtle went to shore, the water seemed
to follow her, thus reducing the island's size.
Worried that their island would eventually
disappear, the locals killed the sea turtle.
CEBUANO
When the Bakunawa found out about this, it
arose from the sea and ate the moon. The
people were afraid so they prayed to the
supreme god to punish the creature. The god
refused but instead told them to bang some
pots and pans in order to disturb the serpent.
The moon is then regurgitated while the
Bakunawa disappeared, never to be seen
again.
CEBUANO
When the Bakunawa found out about this, it
arose from the sea and ate the moon. The
people were afraid so they prayed to the
supreme god to punish the creature. The god
refused but instead told them to bang some
pots and pans in order to disturb the serpent.
The moon is then regurgitated while the
Bakunawa disappeared, never to be seen
again.
CEBUANO
Others tell how the Bakunawa fell in love with
a human girl in one of the native tribes. The
head of the tribe found out about their affair
and had their house burned to ashes. The
Bakunawa, finding out about this, became
immersed in anger and tried to take revenge
by eating all the 7 moons. When the Bakunawa
was about to eat the last one, the supreme god
took action and punished the Bakunawa by
banishing it from its home away from the sea.
It also tells that the reason of the eclipses is
how the Bakunawa is trying to come back to
its home and deceased family.
CEBUANO
Some Filipino elders believe that Bakunawa is
a moving island with communities mounted
on its back, and that there are two
classifications: the flying Bakunawa and the
land Bakunawa.
WEST VISAYAN
WEST VISAYAN
According to the ancient folks, when Bathala created
the Moon, he created seven of it so that each would
illuminate one night of the week. The nights were
bright and ever so beautiful because of these seven
“Queens” who continuously shone in the night sky.
But the joy of the people on earth didn't last, and the
beauty of the sky was no more when one night a
terrifying creature, that coiled around the world like
an evil serpent, as Saint John told about in
Apocalipsis, envied the beautiful creations of the
Almighty, and to the great dismay of the people on
earth, swallowed 6 of the Moons. This serpent was
named Bakunawa.
WEST VISAYAN
To the people's despair at the loss of the 6 Stars*,
they learned to heavily guard themselves so that the
one last Moon would not be taken and destroyed by
the frightening Serpent. One night the whole world
panicked at the deafening scream of the people, the
banging of drums among other objects that people
could get a hold of to produce loud noise and sharp
echoes as they saw the Moon being attacked by the
Bakunawa. Children, big people, the elderly, women
and men all cried:
“Return our Moon” among other unpleasant words.
WEST VISAYAN
WEST VISAYAN
Milky Way
Bisayans, they called it BINUGSAY or
Among the
BINUASAY. To them they saw it as the bubbles formed
when paddling the water or the formation of the
water behind a boat as it sailed. The Milky Way was
termed "Binugsay" by the ancient Visayan
ethnolinguistic group, whose meaning is referred to
the act of "rowing" in English. Which makes sense
given the Milky Way's appearance, which resembles
the bubbles created by rowing a boat in water.
Southern Cross
Southern Cross
The Southern Cross is another constellation prominent in
the night sky. BUTITI is the term in Waray. According to
Big Dipper
The Visayans called the Big Dipper
North Star
Visayans coined the term "Bituon sa
The Ancient
amihanan," by combining the words "Bituon"
literally meaning "star" and "Amihanan," which
refers to the North direction. Polaris, the famous
star for remaining almost motionless in our view
from earth as the entire northern sky passes
around it, is the subject of this "Bituon."
Scorpius
Scorpius