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Philippines Upland Tribal Groups
Another minority, the more than 100 upland tribal groups, in
1990 constituted approximately 3 percent of the population. As
lowland Filipinos, both Muslim and Christian, grew in numbers and
expanded into the interiors of Luzon, Mindoro, Mindanao, and
other islands, they isolated upland tribal communities in
pockets. Over the centuries, these isolated tribes developed
their own special identities. The folk art of these groups was,
in a sense, the last remnant of an indigenous tradition that
flourished everywhere before Islamic and Spanish contact.
Technically, the upland tribal groups were a blend in ethnic
origin like other Filipinos, although they did not, as a rule,
have as much contact with the outside world. They displayed great
variety in social organization, cultural expression, and artistic
skills that showed a high degree of creativity, usually employed
to embellish utilitarian objects, such as bowls, baskets,
clothing, weapons, and even spoons. Technologically, these groups
ranged from the highly sophisticated Bontocs and Ifugaos, who
engineered the extraordinary rice terraces, to more primitive
groups. They also covered a wide spectrum in terms of their
integration and acculturation with lowland Christian Filipinos.
Some, like the Bukidnons of Mindanao, had intermarried with
lowlanders for almost a century, whereas others, like the
Kalingas on Luzon, remained more isolated from lowland
influences.
There were ten principal cultural groups living in the
Cordillera Central of Luzon in 1990. The name Igorot, the Tagalog
word for mountaineer, was often used with reference to all
groups. At one time it was employed by lowland Filipinos in a
pejorative sense, but in recent years it came to be used with
pride by youths in the mountains as a positive expression of
their separate ethnic identity vis-à-vis lowlanders. Of the ten
groups, the Ifugaos of Ifugao Province, the Bontocs of Mountain
and Kalinga-Apayao provinces, and the Kankanays and Ibalois of
Benguet Province were all wet-rice farmers who worked the
elaborate rice terraces they had constructed over the centuries.
The Kankanays and Ibalois were the most influenced by Spanish and
American colonialism and lowland Filipino culture because of the
extensive gold mines in Benguet, the proximity of Baguio, good
roads and schools, and a consumer industry in search of folk art.
Other mountain peoples of Luzon were the Kalingas of KalingaApayao Province and the Tinguians of Abra Province, who employed
both wet-rice and dry-rice growing techniques. The Isnegs of
northern Kalinga-Apayao Province, the Gaddangs of the border
between Kalinga-Apayao and Isabela provinces, and the Ilongots of
Nueva Vizcaya Province all practiced shifting cultivation.
Negritos completed the picture for Luzon. Although Negritos
formerly dominated the highlands, by the early 1980s they were
reduced to small groups living in widely scattered locations,
primarily along the eastern ranges of the mountains.
South of Luzon, upland tribal groups were concentrated on
Mindanao, although there was an important population of mountain
peoples with the generic name Mangyan living on Mindoro. Among
the most important groups on Mindanao were the Manobos (a general
name for many tribal groups in southern Bukidnon and Agusan del
Sur provinces); the Bukidnons of Bukidnon Province; the Bagobos,
Mandayas, Atas, and Mansakas, who inhabited mountains bordering
the Davao Gulf; the Subanuns of upland areas in the Zamboanga
provinces; the Mamanuas of the Agusan-Surigao border region; and
the Bila-ans, Tirurays, and T-Bolis of the area of the Cotabato
provinces. Tribal groups on Luzon were widely known for their
carved wooden figures, baskets, and weaving; Mindanao tribes were
renowned for their elaborate embroidery, appliqué, and bead work.
The Office of Muslim Affairs and Cultural Communities
succeeded in establishing a number of protected reservations for
tribal groups. Residents were expected to speak their tribal
language, dress in their traditional tribal clothing, live in
houses constructed of natural materials using traditional
architectural designs, and celebrate their traditional ceremonies
of propitiation of spirits believed to be inhabiting their
environment. They also were encouraged to reestablish their
traditional authority structure in which, as in Moro society,
tribal datu were the key figures. These men, chosen on the
basis of their bravery and their ability to settle disputes, were
usually, but not always, the sons of former datu. Often
they were also the ones who remembered the ancient oral epics of
their people. The datu sang these epics to reawaken in
tribal youth an appreciation for the unique and semisacred
history of the tribal group.
Contact between primitive and modern groups usually resulted
in weakening or destroying tribal culture without assimilating
the tribal groups into modern society. It seemed doubtful that
the shift of government policy from assimilation to cultural
pluralism could reverse the process. James Eder, an
anthropologist who has studied several Filipino tribes, maintains
that even the protection of tribal land rights tends to lead to
the abandonment of traditional culture because land security
makes it easier for tribal members to adopt the economic
practices of the larger society and facilitates marriage with
outsiders. Government bureaus could not preserve tribes as social
museum exhibits, but with the aid of various private
organizations, they hoped to be able to help the tribes adapt to
modern society without completely losing their ethnic identity.
Data as of June 1991
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