PRE-COLONIAL LIFE AND CULTURE

At the end of the lesson, students will be able to:

1. Describe the culture of ancient Filipinos and their cultural development;

2. Be proud of the achievements of early communities;
3. Identify the social hierarchy in early society;
4. Enumerate the differences among the social classes in Luzon and Visayas; and
5. Appreciate the barangay as an early community.

LESSON 1
Barangay as an Ancient Community
Filipino today live in Barangay. The barangay is the smallest political unit of government
today. But the term barangay originated among the early Filipinos.

The ancient Filipinos lived in communities composed of families. This community was
called barangay. In this barangay, early Filipinos were stratified into social classes that dictated
their status in society.

Early Filipinos had a religion and other belief systems. There are evidences dictating
that they believed in life after death. They also had varied economical activities, a system of
writing, a political system, and oral traditions. These things served as the bases of their
civilization.

Origin of the Word ‘Barangay

The migration of Austronesian from Southern China became possible because of their
knowledge of navigation and boat-building. They were able to reach the island through their
boat called balangay. According to historian Jaime B. Veneracion, the concept of barangay as a
community was derived from the concept of balangay since both are composed of families and
both had leaders who guided them in their undertakings. The balangay and the barangay both
require unity and coordination among members in order to reach their destination and fulfill
their objective. The spirit of unity and cooperation are both alive in the balangay and the
barangay.

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 According to the Spanish chronicler, Juan de Plasenciathe Tagalogs had their own
leader. The leader was called datu, who also served as the leader in war. Each barangay was
composed of 30-100 families. The barangay did not exist under the authority of other
barangays but lived independently in harmony and in relation with one another. There was
social hierarchy within the barangay where each member belonged to a particular class.

Barangay

The Barangays carry on trade and commerce among themselves. They concluded treaty
of friendship and alliancewith each other through the ritual, the sanduguan (blood compact).
Some barangay confederations were formed through the marriage of a noble of one barangay.
Barangays also merged for protection against enemies.

Baranganic wars were caused by, among others: maltreated or murder of a member of
one barangay by another, and rape or abduction of the wives and woman.

Barangay Laws

The earliest laws of our ancestors were mostly oral handed down from one generation
to another. These were made up of traditions, beliefs, practices, and customs.

The council of elders together with the wise people in the entire barangay ratified the
laws made by the datu with the help of his advisers. Once approved, the laws were announced
to the people through the umalohokan or town crier.

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 Our ancestors made a lot of laws. Many of them were recorded but the materials used
were not durable enough to withstand thousand of years. Some of them were burned by the
Spanish missionaries, thus, only a few were preserved. Examples of laws then are the Code of
Maguindanao and the Code of Sulu, also known as Luwaran.

Some of the written laws of our ancestors are:

1. The leader of the barangay should be respected;

2. Creditors should pay on time;
3. Everyone should be hardworking. Those who are found lazy will become slaves;
4. Couples should only have two offspring so that they can sufficiently provide for their
needs;
5. The crime of murder is punishable by death; and
6. A finger will be cut from anyone who will be caught stealing.

Duties and Rights of the People

Every member of the barangay had his rights and corresponding duties which were in
accordance with their beliefs and traditions.

Duties Rights

1. Respect and obey the datu 1. Choose the livelihood he would like to
2. Be loyal to the datu engage in
3. Pay taxes 2. Choose his life partner
4. Help in farming, hunting, and fishing 3. Acquire properties like house and lot,
for the datu farm animals, and other belongings;
5. Defend their barangay in times of and
war. 4. Defend himself when attacked or
when wrongfully accused.

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The Trial

Trials then were public, as they are nowadays. The datu served as the judge. He
consulted the elders and the wise men. People who had conflicts were asked to face each
other and explain what happened. They were allowed to bring in their own witnesses. The one
who bought the most witnesses won the case.

The system was different when it came to criminal cases. In such cases, the accused
were asked to undergo tests. For example, they were asked to put their hands in a pot of
boiling water and the one who got the most blisters was convicted. Another form of test was
when the accused were asked to dive under the sea or river and the one who surfaced first was
considered guilty.

LESSON 2
SOCIAL HIERARCHY IN LUZON

The Scholar William Henry Scott studied the chronicles or records of the first Spaniards
in the Philippines. Based on Spanish records, Scott concluded that there were three social
classes in pre-Spanish Luzon and Visayas. The first was the maginoo in Luzon and the datu in
Visayas. The second was composed of the Maharlika andtimawa. Belonging to the third class
were the slaves who could be alipingnamamahay or alipingsaguiguilid among the Tagalogs and
oripun in general among Visayans.

Maginoo

The maginoo class was the highest among all classes. This is composed of datus and
their families. The babaylans were also members of this prestigious class. The datu was the
political and economic leader while the babaylan orkatalonanwas the spiritual leader.
Babayalan is the Visayan term for the spiritual leader and katalonan is its Tagalog counterpart.

As political leader, the datuwas the one who implemented the laws. One of the traits
that he needed to possess was knowledge of the adat or customary laws in his barangay. In
case where new laws needed to be formulated, the council of advisers (usually the elders in a
barangay) were conculted by the datu and whatever was agreed upon was announced to his
subjects through and umalohokan, the one who announces the edicts of the datu.

According to historian Zeus A. Salazar, the datuwas responsible for political

administration, military duties, and the economy of the barangay in general. He further said
that the datuwas not merely political leader but more of an administrative of the barangay as
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an economic unit since economics activities during that time were done in the level of
barangays. He also servedas mediator in case of conflict among members of the barangay.

The babaylan or katalonan was the spiritual leader in a barangay. This position was
usually held by an elderly woman, proof that women held an important status in pre-Spanish
Philippine society. If the man wished to be a babayalan or katalonan, he had act, dress, and
speak like a woman. In Visayas, male babaylan were call bayog or bayoguin.

As spiritual leaders , the babayalan presided over different rituals such as the rituals
dine before planting and after harvest. The destruction of crops due to calamamities was
interpreted as the work of angry gods that must be appeased.

The babaylan also served as healer; mediator between the gods and the people, as well
as between the dead and their living relatives; and keeper of oral traditions such as lehgends,
epics, and songs of the barangay.

MAHARLIKA

The Maharlika class was next to the maginoo class. This class was composed of warriors
who served as protectors of the barangay from its enemies. It was duty of the Maharlika to
keep peace and order in the barangay.

According to Plasencia, the Maharlikadid not pay taxes but they were obliged to
accompany the datu in times of war. Before they went to war , the datuusally held a festivity
for them. After winning a war, the datu and Maharlika divided among themselves the spoils of
war which they acquired from the vanquished. When datu had to build a house, the
maharlikahelped him. In exchange for their help, the datu would feed the Maharlika. The
Maharlika also rendered military services to the datu. When datuwent on a maritime trip, he
could summon the Maharlika to row the boat for him as comrade-in-arms. In general,
themaharlika enjoyed numerous privileges in exchange for all the support he rendered to the
datu.

TIMAWA

The expression “para kangtimawa” has a negative connotation at present.

Itmeans“patay-gutom” or being gluttonous, selfish, self-centered, or greedy. This definition is
very different from the original definition of timawa in the precolonial period which means
“free people”.

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 According to the study of historian Nancy Kimuell-Gabriel on the timawa, the change in
the meaning of the term can be traced back to the Spanish colonial system when the concept of
slavery was abolished since everyone had become a timawa or a free person. During the
Spanish perio, being a timawameant being free to be exploited and enslaved by the Spaniards.

During the pre-Spanish society, the timawa, as the free people, composed the main bulk
of the population. They engaged in different economic activities such as agriculture, fishing,
basket making, pottery, weaving, and other activities. Since they wee the ones who derived
profit from these activities, they had the obligation to pay taxes to the datu. They could also be
summoned by the datu to row his boat or accompany him in his trip.

According to the chronicle of Miguel de Loarca, it had become customary for the
timawa to drink from the pitarilla(wine vessel) of the datu before the datu drank from this. As
recognition of the timawa’s goodwill to the datu, the datu had the duty to protect the
timawain times of danger. The panday(blacksmith) also belonged to the timawaclass. The
panday took care of making weapons and tools made to metal.

SLAVES

The slave class was the lowest class in early Philippine society. Among the Tagalogs, this
was divided into two subclasses—the alipingnamamahayand alipingsaguiguilid.

The alipingnamamahay lived in their own houses and were called only by the datu to
help in building a house or in farming. In contrast, the alipingsaguiguilidlived in the
datu’shouse because of a large debt he had incurred which was payable by serving the datu.
Because the alipingsaguiguinid lived in the house of datu, they can be summoned anytime and
be made to do any kind of work. But they can be become alipingnamamahay when they have
already paid their debt by serving the datu for a certain period of time.

A citizen became a slave if he/she was:

1. Born to slave parents;

2. Captured during war;
3. Sold as payment for a loan; and
4. Bought or punished for a crime.
A slave could be set free if he/she:

1. Was freed by his or her master;

2. Paid a certain amount to his or her master;
3. Married somebody who belongs to an upper societal class; and
4. Displayed bravery during war.

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SOCIAL CLASSES IN THE VISAYAS

The social hierarchy in the Visayas was very similar with that of the Tagalogs. There
were only some differences in terms and in types of slaves. There were three social classes in
Visayans society—datu, tumwa, and oripun.

Datu

The highest class was the datu. The daturefers to the position of the leader and also to
the highest social class. The leader of the barangay was the datu. The authority of the datu
emanated from his family and ancestry.

But his power depended on his wealth, number of subjects or slaves, and physical and
intellectual prowess. As a social class, the datu was composed of the political leader, his family,
and those who belonged to their class.

Timawa

Among the Tagalogs, the timawa belonged to the second class and were known as free
people. In the Visayas, the timawaaccompanied the datu during war, served as the datu’s
representative in arranging the wedding of the children of the datu, and the food taster who
sampled the datu’swine.

Oripun

The oripunwas the lowest class. They could be bought and sold. There were many kinds
of oripun. Here were those who served the families of their masters. Some were engaged in
farming and were given their share of the profit. The oripun who lived in their own houses and
farms were called namamahayor tuhay while those who lived in their maters’ house were
ayuey. The lowest oripun was called hayohay or those who lived in their masters’ houses,
received clothing and food from them, and had one out of four days allotted for themselves
only.

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 There were oripun who could be linked to the timawa. There were oripunswho were
warriors and there were those who rowed the boat for the datu. It is believed that the most
Visayans were oripuns during the pre-Spanisg period.

SOCIAL MOBILITY IN PRECOLONIAL PHILIPPINES

The existence of the social mobility in precolonial Philippine society makes it very
different from other societies in the world. For example, under the caste system in India,
belonging to a specific social class was a lifetime and interclass marriages were strictly
prohibited.

In the Philippines, one could be promoted or demoted in terms of social status due to
some factors. For instance, an alipingsaguiguilidcould become an alipingnamamahay if the
alipingsaguiguilidhad already paid his or her debt to the datu. The alipingnamamahaycould
become a timawaafter marrying Maharlika.

On the other han, a datucould become a slave if captured by another datu during a war
or if the datu committed a serious crime and he was not able to pay the penalty for it. The
nature of the ancient social class system encouraged the people to strive harder and be
promoted to a higher class or to maintain their dignity in order to retain their social class.

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LESSON 3
The Status of Women

Women were highly regarded in our society before the Spaniards came to our country.
Our women even enjoyed a high societal status way before the women in other countries like
China, England, USA, India, and the others. In the Philippines, They fad equal standing with
men. They were accorded respect by our men.

1. A suitor had given service to the family of his beloved for a period of time to win her
hand in marriage. In some remote areas, the man was required to serve the family for
months or even years. He chopped wood, fetched water, and did other chores that
were asked of him. When family of the girl agreed to him as an in-law, he had to meet
further conditions. He was to give a dowry or bigay-kaya to the family of his beloved.
This may consist of land, farm animals, or any valuable items. He was also required to
give money to the girl’s parents called panghimuyat, as payment for the mother’s
efforts for rearing the girl.
2. High regard for women could also be seen in the way the man gave all of his earnings to
his wife. The woman took care of budgeting and spending the money as she saw fit.
3. The mother took care of all the needs of her family. She was also the one who allocated
money to the family members. She was always consulted regarding any important
matter.
4. Respect for women was also illustrated in the way they walked. Women always walked
ahead of men. Men who ahead of women were considered disrespectful. If members
of a family walked together, the mother and daughters walked ahead of the father and
sons. This was to ensure their protection and safety.

Rights of Women

1. They could be datus of their tribe and lead men to fight wars like Princess
Paramisuli.
2. They were given the right to possess and inherit properties.
3. They could engage in trade and industries.
4. They could be priestesses or spiritual leaders.
5. They had an exclusive right to name their children.
6. They could be leaders of their barangay.

Our ancestors had an innate respect and value for women. We dis not inherit these
traits from foreigners.

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Religion

The early Filipinos believed in immortality of the soul. They also believed in life after
death. They worshipped a Supreme Being they called BathalangMaykapal. Other minotdieties
they worshipped wre:

 Idianale-God of agriculture;
 Sidapa- God of death;
 Agni- God of fire;
 Mandarangan- God of war
 Lalahon- goddess harvest
 Siginarugan- God of Hell

The pre-Spanish Filipinos worshipped nature, the sun, the moon, the animals, the birds
and even old trees. Even crocodiles and some types of birds were venerated.

They believed in ancestral spirits called anitos by the Tagalogs and diwatas by the
Visayans. The anitos were either good or bad spirits and early Filipinos offered food and animal
sacrifices to appease or win the goodwill of these spirits.

The rituals offering of sacrifice were performed by early priests and priestesses called as
the babaylanand katalona.

EDUCATION

The education of Pre-Hispanic Filipinos was fit for the needs of their times. There was no
formal schooling. Parents trained their children informally. Mothers educated their female
children in housekeeping, weaving, basket-making and other agriculture-related activities.
Fathers trained their male children in hunting, carpentry, agriculture, shipbuilding and mining.
Skills taught would vary on their industries and locations, i.e., whether highland, lowlands or
along seashores. Education was oral, practical and hands-on.

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 Alibata is an ancient writing system that was used in what is now the Philippines.
Although it was all but extinguished by Western colonization, variants of it are still used in parts
of Mindoro and Palawan, and it is also increasingly used by Filipino youth as a way to express
their identity.

While controlled by colonial rule for several years, once the Philippines gained their
independence they took over control of the educational system and began to move it in their
own direction. • Children in the Philippines are educated in the primary and secondary school
systems for about thirteen to fourteen years, depending on when they start, after which they
complete the College Entrance Examinations, that allow them to qualify for one of the many
institutions of higher learning. • There are both private and public schools in the Philippines,
and on the whole the education provided by the private schools is much more comprehensive
than that provided by the public school system. • In fact, the Philippines was home to the first
modern public schooling system in Asia. It is also home to the oldest universities, colleges, and
vocational schools. • Education has been a priority in the Philippines for decades, and this is
evidenced in the fact that many of the advancements in education in Asia have been pioneered
in the Philippines.

During the Pre-Spanish period, education was still decentralized. Children were provided
more vocational training but lesser academics, which were headed by their parents or by their
tribal tutors. They used a unique system of writing known as the baybayin. Pre-Spanish Period

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BAYBAYIN The term Baybay literally means "to spell“ in Tagalog.  It also known as the
alibata, were in it is the ancient writing system that was used before by the Filipinos.

MARRIAGE AND WEDDING

The traditional marriage proposal takes the form of

the pamanhikanor pamamanhikan or the "parental marriage proposal", a formal way of asking
the parents of the woman for her hand. The would-be groom and his parents go to the would-
be bride's home, and ask the parents for their consent. Once the woman's parents accept the
proposal, other matters will be discussed during this meeting including among other things, the
wedding plan, the date, the finances, and the list of guests. The expenses for the wedding are
generally shouldered by the groom and his family.
Pamamanhikan enforces the importance of the familial nature of the wedding, as
traditionally a marriage is the formation of an alliance between two clans as well as the joining
of individuals. This is sometimes further expressed in how the whole extended family goes with
the groom and his parents, using the occasion as a chance to meet and greet the other clan. In
this situation, there is a feast held at the bride's family home.
This event is separate from the Despedida de Soltera (Spanish: "Farewell to Single-hood") party
some families have before the wedding. The local variant of the Hispanic custom normally holds
it for the bride, and it is held by her family. It is similar in sentiment to the hen night, albeit a
more wholesome and formal version.

A typical ancient traditional Filipino wedding, during pre-colonial times, is held for three
days and was officiated by a babaylan, a tribal priest or priestess. The house of the babaylan
was the ceremonial center for the nuptial. On the first day, the couple was brought to the
priest's home, where the babaylan blesses them, while their hands are joined over a container
of uncooked rice. On the third day, the priest would prick their chests to draw a small amount
of blood, which will be placed on a container to be mixed with water. After announcing their
love for each other three times, they were fed by the priest with cooked rice coming from a
single container. Afterwards, they were to drink the water that was mixed with their blood. The
priest proclaimed that they are officially wed after their necks and hands were bound by a cord
or, sometimes, once their long hairs had been entwined together.In lieu of the babaylan,
the datu or a wise elder may also officiate a pre-colonial Filipino wedding.

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 After the ceremony, a series of gift-exchanging rituals was also done to counter the
negative responses of the bride: if asked to enter her new home, if she refuses to go up the
stairs of the dwelling, if she denies to participate in the marriage banquet, or even to go into
her new bedroom, a room she would be sharing with her spouse.

HOUSES
Pre-spanish houses were typically made in bamboos, wood, and nipa palm. It was above
the ground enclose with stakes called "haligi". These stakes were made also in bamboo where
house was set on. Fowls were placed inside the enclosure. There was a ladder one had to
ascend in order to go up the house. "Batalan" was a sort of gallery where household work was
done. "Silid" was near the "sala" where mats, pillows, and baskets of rice were kept.

Kalingas in Northern Luzon, Mandayans and Bagobos in Mindanao were places in the
Philippines who made tree houses. Sea houses were built by Badjaos or sea gypsies of Sulu.
Badjaos were a sea loving people.

MODE OF DRESSING
Clothes for male were divided into two parts: upper and lower. The upper part was a
jacket whis was consisted of colors. The red jacket was merely wore by the chief and black or
blue jacket was wore by of people that below to the chief. "Bahag" was the term known to the
lower part of a male clothing. It was composed of a cloth wound about the waist and passing
down between the thighs.

Female clothing was also had a division: its upper and lower parts. The upper part was called
"baro" or camisa while the lower part was called "saya" or skirt. In Bisayans, "patadyong" was
what they were called to the lower part. The piece of white or red cloth usually wrapped about
he waist was called "tapis".

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ORNAMENTS
In terms of ornaments, ancient Filipinos were used gold and precious stones. Kalumbiga,
pendants, gold rings, earrings, leglets, and bracelets. Whether men or women wore such
ornaments. In order to adorn their teeth, fillings were made. Not only the teeth but also the
body and faces were adorned. Mostly in men, body ornaments were not only gold but they
tattooed themselves.

Tattooing, for them, had another meaning. It was a man's war record. If a man had
more tattooed the more he was admired by the people for his bravery in the battle. The most
tattooed people in the Philippines were the Bisayans, that was, according to the first Spanish
missionaries who wrote about the ancient Filipinos. A painted or tattooed people of Bisayans
were called "pintados" by the Spanish missionaries.

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