Background Information on the Mangyan

The term “Mangyan” is an umbrella term that refers to several indigenous communities on the island
of Mindoro in the Philippines. There are eight recognized groups: Iraya, Alangan, Tadyawan,
Tawbuid, Bangon, Buhid, Hanunuo, and Ratagnon. While these groups are often referred to as
“Mangyan,” they speak different languages, and only one of the ethnic groups—Hanunuo—refers to
itself as Mangyan. “Hanunuo” is an exonym for both the ethnic group and the language, and is often
tagged onto “Mangyan” to form “Hanunuo Mangyan.” “Hanunuo” means “truly, real,” or “genuine.”
Hanunuo Mangyans tend to drop the descriptor “hanunuo” within their communities, and refer to
themselves and their language as “Mangyan.”
Of the eight groups of Mangyan listed above, only the Hanunuo and the Buhid from the southern
part of Mindoro Island have attested writing systems. Both writing systems, called “Surat Hanunuo
Mangyan” and “Surat Buhid Mangyan” respectively are thought to be of Indic origin, and perhaps
introduced into Mangyan culture from what is now Indonesia around the 12th or 13th centuries. The
Hanunuo Mangyan and Southern Buhid have similar syllabic scripts due to their geographical
proximity. The Northern Buhid, on the other hand, have their own syllabary. These syllabaries, that
date back to pre-Spanish times (before the early 1500s), are one of the few pre-Spanish writing
systems that survived Spanish rule, and enabled the Mangyan peoples to preserve a rich literary
tradition.
One of the most widely loved Mangyan literary forms is the song poem. There are three distinct
classes of song-poems: ambahan, urukay, and adahiyo. The ambahan is a poem with 7 syllables
per line with the last syllable of each line rhyming with the others. Ambahan are composed
anonymously and still immensely popular. They cover a wide range of subjects such as birds, plants,
and natural phenomena. The composers use the symbolism of these subjects to express their
desires, deal with embarrassing situations, and in courting, among other things. Ambahan are often
recited during large gatherings and there is no musical accompaniment. Those who participate
in ambahan sessions often go back and forth in exchanges that highlight the improvisational skills of
the poet. In addition to public settings, ambahan are also recited in more private surroundings for
pleasure. The Library’s Mangyan bamboo collection contains 22 ambahan (Set 1).
Another poetic form is the urukay. Urukay consist of lines of eight syllables and have uniform end-
rhymes. The word urukay probably comes from the neighboring island of Panay where it means
“merrymaking.” The language of the Mangyan urukay is old Hiligaynon-Bisaya and is no longer
understood by most Mangyan singers today. Urukay was probably acquired by the Mangyans from
early contacts with Bisayans. Usually, urukay is less popular with younger audiences and confined to
the older generation of Mangyan. They are sung to the accompaniment of a guitar.
The adahiyo is the third kind of poem in the Mangyan literary tradition. The term comes from the
Spanish adagio or “adage.” The adahiyo usually has six syllables to a line but without a fixed final
syllable rhyming scheme. This literary form is not widely performed among the Mangyan and might
have been acquired through contacts with Tagalogs who settled in Mindoro. The adahiyo is recited
without the accompaniment of music, and contains many adapted Spanish words and Catholic
religious terms.
As is evident, the Mangyan have a rich literary tradition with a long history. Despite its deep roots,
most of the extant historical examples of Mangyan writing are no more than a century old. This is
because Mangyan writing was carved on bamboo, a material that deteriorates quickly in the local,
tropical climate. The Library of Congress’s Mangyan bamboo collection—which dates to between ca.
1904-1939, thus preserves a link between the current living tradition of Mangyan writing and
literature and its past.
While the Mangyan script is still not widely known, its preservation has received a boost in the last
few decades. In 1997, the Mangyan script was declared as a National Cultural Treasure by the
government of the Philippines and the following year, it was inscribed in the Memory of the World
Registers of UNESCO (United Nations Scientific and Cultural Organization).
The work of Antoon Postma—a Dutch scholar who originally went to Mindoro as a Society of the
Divine Word or SVD missionary in 1958 and lived among the Mangyan for more than half a century
—inspired the establishment of the Mangyan Heritage Center, a non-profit organization based in
Calapan City. The Mangyan Heritage Center continues to promote and keep alive the cultural
heritage of the indigenous peoples of Mindoro through digital collections, recordings, and
publications on the Mangyan as well as through programs to revive Mangyan syllabic scripts
and ambahan.
At the Library of Congress, in addition to the Mangyan bamboo collection, users can also listen
to recordings of ambahan donated by the Mangyan Heritage Center onsite.