General Results
Our study has brought out certain general results. We have seen that Tinguian folklore has much in common with that of other tribes and lands. While a part of this similarity is doubtless due to borrowing—a process which can still be seen at work—a considerable portion of the tales is probably of local and fairly recent origin, while the balance appears to be very old. These older tales are so intimately interwoven with the ceremonies, beliefs, and culture of this people that they may safely be considered as having been developed by them. They are doubtless much influenced by present day conditions, for each story teller must, even unconsciously, read into them some of his own experiences and the current beliefs of the tribe. At the same time these traditional accounts doubtless exercise a potent influence on the thoughts, beliefs, and actions of the people. In Tinguian society, where custom still Page 31holds undisputed sway, these well-known tales of past times must tend to cast into the same mould any new facts or experiences which come to them.
We believe that we are justified when we take the viewpoint of the Tinguian and consider “the stories of the first times” as essentially very old. How old it is impossible to state definitely, but a careful analysis of our material justifies us in believing that they reflect a time before the people possessed terraced rice fields, when domestic work animals were still unknown, and the horse had not yet been introduced into their land. That these are not recent events is attested by the great part they all now play in the ceremonial and economic life. It is evident that outside influences of great importance were introduced at a period later than the time when the Chinese first began to trade along the coasts of the Philippines for the prized jars, which play such an important rôle in the mythology, are not to be identified as those of native make but are ancient Chinese vessels dating back at least to the fourteenth and perhaps even to the tenth century[81].
It is probable that the glass, porcelain, and agate beads, which are second only to the jars in importance, are exceedingly old. Many ancient specimens are still in use and are held for as fabulous prices as are those found among the interior tribes of Borneo. Nieuwenhuis has shown that the manufacture of beads had become a great industry in the middle ages, and had extended even to China and Japan, whence the products may have spread contemporaneously with the pottery[82].
We have seen that, for the most part, the life, customs, and beliefs which appear in our reconstruction of “the first times” agrees closely with present conditions; certain things which seem formerly to have been of prime importance—such as the sending of a betel-nut covered with gold to invite guests to a festival or ceremony—appear to have their echo in present conditions. The betel-nut which played such a momentous part in the old times still holds its place in the rituals of the many ceremonies, although it is not now much used in daily life. The magic of to-day is less powerful than formerly, but is still a tremendous force. The communication of the ancient people with other members of the animate world, as well as with the inanimate and spiritual, and their metamorphosis into animals and the like, offers nothing strange or inconsistent to the people of to-day. They even now talk to jars, they converse with spirits who come to them through the bodies of their mediums, Page 32and people only recently deceased are known to have had the power of changing themselves, at will, into other forms.
In short, there is no sharp break between the mode of thought of to-day and that exhibited in the folklore. It is true that the tales give sanction to some things not in agreement with Tinguian usage—such, for instance, as the marriage of relatives, or the method of disposing of the dead—and it may be that we have here a remembrance of customs which long ago fell into disuse.
In a previous paper[83] the writer showed that there have been many migrations into Abra from the north, south, and west. A part of the emigrants have become thoroughly amalgamated with the Tinguian people and have doubtless introduced some part of their material culture and beliefs. This helps us to understand such conflicts as we have already noted in regard to the place held by thunder and lightning in the spirit world, as to the future abode of the spirits of the departed, as well as other discrepancies which the limits of this paper have prevented us from discussing.
It is not impossible that those customs of “the first times,” which are at variance with those of to-day, may represent older ideas which have been swamped, or, on the other hand, the memory of the strange customs once practiced by the emigrants may have caused them to be attributed to the people of the tales.
Finally, we believe that a study of Tinguian mythology has shown us that we can gain a real knowledge of the past of a people through their folklore; that we can secure an insight into their mental life; and can learn something of the valuation they attach to certain of their activities and beliefs, which to us may seem at the surface trite and trivial. Page 33
[1] Men or women through whom the superior beings talk to mortals. During ceremonies the spirits possess their bodies and govern their language and actions. When not engaged in their calling, the mediums take part in the daily activities of the village.
[2] See page 29.
[3] The initial portion of some of these names is derived from the respectful term apo—“sir,” and the attributive copulate nī; thus the original form of Aponītolau probably was Apo nī Tolau, literally “Sir, who is Tolau.” However, the story-tellers do not now appear to divide the names into their component parts, and they frequently corrected the writer when he did so; for this reason such names appear in the text as single words. Following this explanation it is possible that the name Aponībolinayen may be derived from Apo nī bolan yan, literally “Sir (mistress) who is place where the moon”; but bolan generally refers to the space of time between the phases of the moon rather than to the moon itself. The proper term for moon is sīnag, which we have seen is the mother of Gaygayóma—a star,—and is clearly differentiated from Aponībolinayen.
[4] ♂—male. ♀—female.
[5] Occasionally the storytellers become confused and give Pagbokásan as the father of Aponītolau.
[6] The town of Natpangán is several times mentioned as though it was the same as Kaodanan.
[7] Only the most important references found in the texts are given here. For a fuller list see the index.
[8] The only possible exception to this statement is the mention of a carabao sled on [p. 150], and of Aponītolau and Aponībolinayen riding on a carabao [p. 51].
[9] A term applied to any of the wilder head-hunting tribes.
[10] Ladders are placed on each side of the town gate and are inclined toward one another until they meet at the top. Returning warriors enter the village by climbing up the one and descending the other, never through the gate.
[11] Copper gongs.
[12] Sharpened bamboo poles which pass through the foramen magnum.
[13] This poison is placed in the food or drink. The use of poisoned darts or arrows seems never to have been known to this people.
[14] A similar custom is found among the Kayan of Borneo. See Hose and McDougall, Pagan Tribes of Borneo, Vol. II, p. 171 (London, 1912).
[15] In this dance a man and a woman enter the circle, each holding a cloth. Keeping time to the music, they approach each other with almost imperceptible movements of feet and toes, and a bending at the knees, meanwhile changing the position of the cloths. This is varied from time to time by a few quick, high steps. For fuller description see article by author in Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. III, No. 4, 1908, p. 208.
[16] The custom was formerly practised by the Ilocano. See Reyes, Folklore Filipino, p. 126 (Manila, 1899).
[17] See Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. III, No. 4, 1908, pp. 206, ff.
[18] The Tinguian do not have a classificatory system of relationship terms. The term kasinsin is applied alike to the children of mother's and father's brothers and sisters.
[19] A sacred dance in which a number of men and women take part. It takes place only at night and is accompanied by the singing of the participants.
[20] The night preceding the greatest day of the Sayang ceremony.
[21] Runo, a reed.
[22] See [p. 11, note 3].
[23] A short ceremony held for the cure of fever and minor ills. It also forms a part of the more extensive rites.
[24] A sugar-cane rum.
[25] See [p. 10, note 1].
[26] Lesser spirits.
[27] Like ideas occur in the folktales of British North Borneo. See Evans, Journal Royal Anthro. Inst., Vol. XLIII, 1913, p. 444.
[28] In various guises the same conception is found in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Malaysia. See Cox, An Introduction to Folklore, p. 121 (London, 1904).—In an Igorot tale the owner captures and marries the star maiden, who is stealing his rice. Seidenadel, The Language of the Bontoc Igorot, p. 491 ff. (Chicago, 1909).
[29] The Dusun of Borneo have tales of talking jars. Evans, Journal Royal Anthro. Inst., Vol. XLIII, 1913, pp. 426–427. See also Cole and Laufer, Chinese Pottery in the Philippines (Pub. Field Museum of Nat. Hist., Vol. XII, No. 1, p. 11 ff., 1912).
[30] Piper sp.
[31] Bagobo tales relate that in the beginning plants, animals, and rocks could talk with mortals. See Benedict, Journal American Folklore, Vol. XXVI, 1913, p. 21.
[32] Tales of animals who assist mortals are found in all lands; perhaps the best known to European readers is that of the ants which sorted the grain for Cinderella. See also Evans, Jour. Royal Anthro. Inst., Vol. XLIII, 1913, p. 467, for Borneo; Tawney's Kathá Sarit Ságara, pp. 361 ff., Calcutta, 1880, for India.
[33] Fabulous birds of gigantic size, often known under the Indian term garuda, play an important part in the beliefs of the Peninsular Malays.
[34] A similiar incident is cited by Bezemer (Volksdichtung aus Indonesien). See also the Bagobo tale of the Kingfisher (Benedict, Jour. American Folklore, Vol. XXVI, 1913, p. 53).
[35] The magic flight has been encountered in the most widely separated parts of the globe, as, for instance, India and America. See Tawney, Kathá Sarit Ságara, pp. 361, 367 ff. and notes, (Calcutta, 1880); Waterman, Jour. American Folklore, Vol. XXVII, 1914, p. 46; Reinhold Köhler, Kleinere Schriften, Vol. I, pp. 171, 388.
[36] In the Dayak legend of Limbang, a tree springs from the head of a dead giant; its flowers turn to beads; its leaves to cloth; the ripe fruit to jars. See H. Ling Roth, The Natives of Sarawak and British North Borneo, Vol. I, p. 372.
[37] Similar incidents are to be found among the Ilocano and Igorot; in Borneo; in Java and India. See Reyes, Folklore Filipino, p. 34, (Manila, 1889); Jenks, The Bontoc Igorot, p. 202, (Manila, 1905); Seidenadel, The Language of the Bontoc Page 18nIgorot, p. 491, 541, ff, (Chicago, 1909); Evans, Journal Royal Anthro. Inst., Vol. XLIII, 1913, p. 462; Ling Roth, Natives of Sarawak and British North Borneo, Vol. I, p. 319; Tawney, Kathá Sarit Ságara, Vol. II, p. 3, (Calcutta, 1880); Bezemer, Volksdichtung aus Indonesien, p. 49, (Haag, 1904).
[38] This peculiar expression while frequently used is not fully understood by the story tellers who in place of the word “whip” occasionally use “make.” In one text which describes the Sayang ceremony, I find the following sentence, which may help us to understand the foregoing: “We go to make perfume at the edge of the town, and the things which we take, which are our perfume, are the leaves of trees and some others; it is the perfume for the people, which we give to them, which we go to break off the trees at the edge of the town.” Again in tale 20, Kanag breaks the perfume of Baliwán off a tree.—The use of sweetly scented oil, in raising the dead, is found in Dayak legends. See Ling Roth, The Natives of Sarawak and British North Borneo, Vol. I, p. 314.
[39] According to a Jakun legend, the first children were produced out of the calves of their mothers' legs. Skeat and Blagden, Pagan Races of the Malay Peninsula, Vol. II, p. 185.—A creation tale from Mangaia relates that the boy Rongo came from a boil on his mother's arm when it was pressed. Gill, Myths and Songs of the South Pacific, p. 10 (London, 1876).
[40] This power of transforming themselves into animals and the like is a common possession among the heroes of Dayak and Malay tales. See Ling Roth, The Natives of Sarawak and British North Borneo, Vol. I, p. 312; Perham, Journal Straits Branch R., Asiatic Society, No. 16, 1886; Wilkinson, Malay Beliefs, pp. 32, 59 (London, 1906).
[41] The present day Tinguian attach much importance to these omens. The gall and liver of the slaughtered animal are carefully examined. If the fluid in the gall sack is exceedingly bitter, the inquirer is certain to be successful; if it is mild he had best defer his project. Certain lines and spots found on the liver foretell disaster, while a normal organ assures success. See also Hose and McDougall, Pagan Tribes of Borneo, Vol. II, p. 60 ff.
[42] See [p. 24, note 1].
[43] The present capital of Ilocos Sur.
[44] See [p. 10, note 1].
[45] Barrows, Census of the Philippine Islands, Vol. I, pp. 456 ff., 1903.
[46] Paul P. de La Gironière, who visited the Tinguian in the early part of the nineteenth century, describes these ornaments as follows: “Their heads were ornamented with pearls, coral beads, and pieces of gold twisted among their hair; the upper parts of the hands were painted blue; wrists adorned with interwoven bracelets, spangled with glass beads; these bracelets reached the elbow and formed a kind of half-plaited sleeve.” La Gironière, Twenty Years in the Philippines, pp. 108 ff.
[47] See Cole and Laufer, Chinese Pottery in the Philippines (Pub. Field Museum of Natural History, Vol. XII, No. 1).
[48] This is entirely in agreement with Chinese records. The Islands always appeared to the Chinese as an Eldorado desirable for its gold and pearls.
[49] See [p. 21, note 1].
[50] See [p. 10, note 1].
[51] A bamboo pole, about ten feet long, one end of which is slit into several strips; these are forced apart and are interwoven with other strips, thus forming a sort of basket.
[52] See Cole, Distribution of the Non-Christian Tribes of Northwestern Luzon (American Anthropologist, Vol. II, No. 3, 1909, pp. 340, 341).
[54] See [p. 13, note 5].
[55] Among the Ifugao, the lowest of the four layers or strata which overhang the earth is known as Kabuniyan. See Beyer, Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. VIII, 1913, No. 2, p. 98.
[57] An Ifugao myth gives sanction to the marriage of brother and sister under certain circumstances, although it is prohibited in every day life. Beyer, Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. VIII, 1913, No. 2, pp. 100 ff.
[58] As opposed to the spirit mate of Aponītolau.
[59] According to Ling Roth, the Malanaus of Borneo bury small boats near the graves of the deceased, for the use of the departed spirits. It was formerly the custom to put jars, weapons, clothes, food, and in some cases a female slave aboard a raft, and send it out to sea on the ebb tide “in order that the deceased might meet with these necessaries in his upward flight.” Natives of Sarawak and British North Borneo, Vol. I, p. 145, (London, 1896). For notes on the funeral boat of the Kayan, see Hose and McDougall, Pagan Tribes of Borneo, Vol. II, p. 35.—Among the Kulaman of southern Mindanao an important man is sometimes placed in a coffin resembling a small boat, which is then fastened on high poles near to the beach. Cole, Wild Tribes of Davao District, Mindanao (Pub. Field Museum of Natural History, Vol. XII, No. 2, 1913).—The supreme being, Lumawig, of the Bontoc Igorot is said to have placed his living wife and children in a log coffin; at one end he tied a dog, at the other a cock, and set them adrift on the river. See Jenks, The Bontoc Igorot, p. 203, (Manila, 1905); Seidenadel, The Language of the Bontoc Igorot, p. 502 ff., (Chicago, 1909).
[60] For similar omens observed by the Ifugao of Northern Luzon, see Beyer, Origin Myths of the Mountain peoples of the Philippines (Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. VIII, 1913, No. 2, p. 103).
[61] Page 6, note 3.
[62] See tale 22.
[63] For a discussion of this class of myths, see Waterman, Jour. Am. Folklore, Vol. XXVII, 1914, p. 13 ff.; Lowie, ibid., Vol. XXI, p. 101 ff., 1908; P.W. Schmidt, Grundlinien einer Vergleichung der Religionen und Mythologien der austronesischen Völker, (Wien, 1910).
[64] See [p. 13, note 5].
[65] The Pala-an is third in importance among Tinguian ceremonies.
[67] This is offered only as a possible explanation, for little is known of the beliefs of this group of Igorot.
[68] See [p. 14, note 2].
[70] Hose and McDougall, The Pagan Tribes of Borneo, Vol. II, p. 148, (London, 1912).
[71] Bezemer, Volksdichtung aus Indonesien, p. 304, Haag, 1904. For the Tagalog version of this tale see Bayliss, (Jour. Am. Folk-lore, Vol. XXI, 1908, p. 46).
[72] Evans, Folk Stories of British North Borneo. (Journal Royal Anthropological Institute, Vol. XLIII, 1913, p. 475).
[73] Folk Stories of British North Borneo (Journal Royal Anthropological Institute, Vol. XLIII, p. 447, 1913).
[75] Hose and McDougall, The Pagan Tribes of Borneo, Vol. II, pp. 144–146.
[76] [Tale 91]. The cloak which causes invisibility is found in Grimm's tale of the raven. See Grimm's Fairy Tales, Columbus Series, p. 30. In a Pampanga tale the possessor of a magic stone becomes invisible when squeezes it. See Bayliss, (Jour. Am. Folk-Lore, Vol. XXI, 1908, p. 48).
[77] Ratzel, History of Mankind, Vol. I, Book II. Graebner, Methode der Ethnologie, Heidelberg, 1911; Die melanesische Bogenkultur und ihre Verwandten (Anthropos, Vol. IV, pp. 726, 998, 1909).
[78] See Waterman, Journal American Folklore, Vol. XXVII, 1914, pp. 45–46.
[79] Stories of magic growth are frequently found in North America. See Kroeber, Gross Ventre Myths and Tales (Anthropological Papers of the Am. Mus. of Nat. Hist., Vol. I, p. 82); also Lowie, The Assiniboin (ibid., Vol. IV, Pt. 1, p. 136).
[80] Other examples of equally widespread tales are noted by Boas, Indianische Sagen, p. 852, (Berlin, 1895); L. Roth, Custom and Myth, pp. 87 ff., (New York, 1885); and others. A discussion of the spread of similar material will be found in Graebner, Methode der Ethnologie, p. 115; Ehrenreich, Mythen und Legenden der südamerikanischen Urvölker, pp. 77 ff.; Ehrenreich, Die allgemeine Mythologie und ihre ethnologischen Grundlagen, p. 270.
[81] Cole and Laufer, Chinese Pottery in the Philippines (Publication Field Museum of Natural History, Anthropological Series, Vol. XII, No. 1, Chicago, 1913).
[82] Nieuwenhuis, Kunstperlen und ihre kulturelle Bedeutung (Int. Arch, für Ethnographie, Vol. XVI, 1903, pp. 136–154).
[83] Philippine Journal of Science, Vol. III, No. 4, 1908, pp. 197–211.