Anthropology of the Filipino People I Filipino Prehistory Rediscovering Precolonial Heritage

By: Felipe Landa Jocano

A Book Report

Submitted by: Alexson T. Battung A student of Bachelor of Arts in History 1-1 Submitted to: Prof. Maria Rhodora Agustin Professor in History

I. Introduction

This book is the revised and expanded version of an earlier one, entitled Philippine Prehistory: An Anthropological Overview. Many new archaeological materials have been recovered since its publication in 1975, requiring changes in the earlier descriptions and interpretations of Philippine prehistoric society and culture. The title of this new edition is focusing in keeping with the currently emerging national consciousness which seeks to uncover the roots of Filipino cultural identity.

I guess that the objectives of this book or this study are considered in four purposes. First, to reconstruct obscured by external influences- particularly those of the earlier interpretations of prehistoric events in the country. Old assumptions, including our earlier views, have to be reexamined and revised in the context of new data and new scientific thinking in order to highlight our prehistoric achievements. These have be. Third, to suggest new interpretations of the old data. And fourth, to present this of colonization and modern a wholistic picture of the development of Filipino society and culture during prehistoric times. Second, to critically reevaluate some book as an introduction to the study of Filipino prehistoric culture.

This book is focused on local developments. It gives little reference to outside parallel developments of the archipelago. This is also a generalized reconstruction of Filipino prehistoric society and culture.

There are many gaps in the data, but it is only natural because we all know that history cannot be written with precision. There are events that, by their very nature, are cannot historians have to rely on limited data provided by the archaeologist. But properly studied archaeological materials, often the only existing records of prehistoric activities, can document what happened in the past. It is here where certain allowances have to be made because many aspects of ancient community life (i.e., in kinship, values, beliefs, and attitude) cannot be documented with concrete artifacts. Their realities can only be inferred from the way the artifacts were manufactured, used, or discarded. be documented. The same is true with respect to prehistoric studies. The pre-

The approach of this book is to present reconstruction of Philippine prehistoric society and culture is that of a cultural anthropologist, using data and research tools of the archaeologists and the pre-historians. This means that for documentation, we relied heavily on the artifacts dug up by the archaeologists.

However, instead of dealing with the problem of recovering the artifacts, we have sought, through cultural analysis, to discover the reason(s) why these artifacts were made, used, and discarded. Hence, our focus in describing cultural events is developmental, and our analytical interpretations of available artifacts are systemic and functional.

II. Short Biography of the Author

Felipe Landa Jocano was a Filipino anthropologist, educator, and author known for his significant body of work within the field of Philippine Anthropology and in particular for documenting and translating the Hinilawod, a Central Visayan folk epic. His eminence within the field of Philippine anthropology was widely recognized during his lifetime, with National artist F. Sionil Jose dubbing him “the country’s first and foremost cultural anthropologist. Jocano served as Professor Emeritus at the Asian Center of the University of the Philippines and Executive Director of PUNLAD Reasearch House, Inc. he has authored numerous books on various aspects of Filipino Society and Culture.

F. Landa Jocano was born on February 5, 1930 in Cabatuan, Iloilo. He is the ninth of eleven children born to Eusibio Jocano, his father and a farmer, and Anastacia Landa, his mother. He finished his elementary studies at a public school in Iloilo, and then ran away to Manila because his family could not afford to send him to high school. He eventually graduated from the Arellano High School in Manila, working his way through to graduation. After this, he tried to enroll in some college courses, but distractions and an illness forced him to return to his native Iloilo in 1954, where we eventually earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Central Philippine University in 1957.

It was during Jocano's period of return to Iloilo that he first developed an interest in folklore. This interest brought him into contact with Robert Fox, then an anthropologist working for the National Museum of the Philippines, who got him a job as "research aid" at the museum - doing mostly janitorial work. Through his work ethic and by taking the initiative to draw the museum director's attention to his typing skills, Jocano was eventually moved to the museum's typing pool.

Work at the National Museum inspired Jocano to write a series of articles discussing Philippine legends surrounding plant and animal life, which was published in the Manila Times. The Department of Education took note of the series and asked Jocano if it could be published in "Diwang Kayumanggi", a high school teaching supplement regularly issued by the Department of Education at the time. Jocano's condition for the reprinting was that the publication would also indicate his position as "janitor." As a result, Jocano was promoted from “Research Aid” to “Scientist 1”, although his job description remained the same. Jocano was one of the first scholars to suggest alternatives to H. Otley Beyer’s Wave Migration Theory of migration to the Philippines.

His Core Population Theory proposed that there weren't clear discrete waves of migration, but a long process of cultural evolution and movement of people. The theory suggests that early inhabitants of Southeast Asia were once of the same ethnic group with similar culture, but eventually -through a gradual process driven by environmental factors - differentiated themselves from one another.

Other prominent anthropologists like Robert Fox, Alfredo E. Evangelista, Jesus Peralta, Zeus A. Salazar, and Ponciano L. Bennagen agreed with Jocano. However some still preferred Beyer's theory as the more acceptable model, including anthropologist E. Arsenio Manuel.

Reference(s): 1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F._Landa_Jocano

III. Summary

This book that Felipe Landa Jocano made tells us many important details about our prehistory, about our archipelago and the people living by it. This was elaborated by Jocano in many views. He imposes to us about the sources or data that present reconstruction of our prehistoric culture. There are three main sources of materials which based our prehistoric culture. First, is mythology- the findings in the body of oral narratives or the jars that have been buried shows how our forefather perceived how all things began on earth and how they explained and related to their environment. Second, is the physical sciences. From geology, we gain knowledge in the geological structure of land base of our culture. In botany, we learn about the plant cover existing in our ancient environment that made our forefathers survive. In zoology, we include the fauna, and the early humans, that roam and survived in our land. In archeology, we know how our forefathers lived during prehistoric times, specifically their culture. The third source, the written documents. This sources consists of accounts by early travelers, both Westerners and Asians and at the time of Spaniards contact.

And they also show the Archaeology in the Philippines, about the Archaeological excavations that has been undertaken in the Philippines by many different archaeologists. This results on archaeological discoveries, many Pleistocene sites, limestone buried jars, fossils and many artifacts that helps us interpret, analyze, and reconstruct the ancient life of our forefathers. This data from various exploration by researchers also provided us with enough materials to make an interim wholistic picture of our prehistoric heritage. And about Dating techniques, on how they study the dates of archaeological materials used based on determinations of organic samples recovered from archaeological sites. And aside from dating, the other worrisome issue in Philippine prehistory is chronology, about the use of Grecized terms Paleolithic (old stone age), Mesolithic (middle stone aged), and Neolithic (new stone age) to divide and to describe the sequences of cultural development in our country during pre-colonial times. This have presented the archaeological studies in the Philippines. The new sites that haves been discovered or excavated, the artifacts that have been recover… this helps us widen our understanding about the development of our pre-colonial heritage and culture.

Jocano also show the relevance of prehistoric culture, that this is the fundamental preconditions for having a better understanding of the contemporary life and society of Filipinos. And the relevance of it to our contemporary life, that prehistoric past is the foundation of our present society. It is also the least known and understood aspect of Philippine studies. Because without this foundation, we cannot appreciate our indigenous culture because the colonizers integrated the ideas and traits of the external cultures of our forefathers and narrower the frameworks in the local development. this imply the need to go back to our prehistoric past. To understand more in our prehistoric culture than just knowing the name of our country or our nationality. That we feel more emotional in our unity and progress. Because that sensation of knowing more in our prehistoric culture that prehistory becomes important to us or to our nationhood.

It also explains why our own cultural development have been hard for us to properly understand. The reason is the advent of colonization, that in this time, changes took place in our culture and life ways as a people. We can say that there are many colonizers that reached our shores, but some came accidentally, like for instance search for safety during storms some came for trades. But among these colonizers, there were three dominant groups that stayed and attempted to establish their culture to our land: The first were Muslim seafarer’s, actually they are the first people that stay and introduce their culture to our ancestors, about their culture which is Islam, their language which is Arabic, their political form which is Sultanate. Next, is the Catholic Spaniards, they were the second group of people who came and introduce another set of culture to us, about their religion which is Catholic Christianity, their language which is Spanish and their political form which is European feudalism. And the last, the Protestant Americans, who came as initially as friends, saying that they will liberate us from oppressive rile of the Spaniards. But for another reason, they stay in our land and civilize us. About their religion which is Protestant Christianity, their language which is English, and their political form which is Liberal democracy. This review us about the coming of different groups of people who attempted to change our culture. And this influence of these external cultures affect and obscured our local ways of thinking, believing and doing things. That’s why Filipino cannot appreciate the achievements of our past.

Several anthropologist also attempt in classifying Filipinos and made theories on our Racial origins. In Filipino Racial Affinity, J. Montano came to the conclusion that the inhabitants of our country could be divided into: Negritos- the small, dark-skinned group and the first inhabitants of the archipelago and can be considered as the aboriginal population; Malays- the brown skinned group which included the inhabitants of Bicol; Indonesian group- the group similar to the Malays in complexion. This examined the major assumptions with Filipino pre-colonial origins. But I think that it is not enough, that we need to pursue more research in prehistory in order to gather more data, so we can resolve the problems associated in searching for our national identity.

They also discussed about the Migration Theory. Researchers say that the Philippines is a clean geographical slate until it came to a series of waves of migration. There were different migrants that came to our archipelago. And these were: The primitive type of people similar to the Java man- the first group to come. They subsisted primarily on raw foods that they were able to gather from their surroundings by means of stone tools. The Negritos and other primitive Australoid-Sakai type- that built shelters of tree branches and leaves and probably wore primitive clothing and ornaments made from barks and leaves. The sea-travelling and stone-using Indonesian who came via rafts and plank-built boats- That lived in grass covered houses with wooden frames and rounded roofs. They built rough stone walls around their houses. Probably their clothing was undecorated skins and barks. The seafaring group from Indo-China and South China coast to Luzon and Formosa via dugouts- They constructed houses with pyramidal roofs raised above the ground. They also had advanced small wood-working tools made of very hard stones, such as nephrite or ancient jade. Their clothing was beaten bark-cloth, often intricately decorated with fine designs, imprinted on the bark of stone or wooden blocks. The more advanced group from Central Asia- They were said to have introduced metal tools and improved agriculture, like wet-rice cultivation and terrace-building techniques. The civilized Malays from whom a majority of the contemporary population descended.- They filtered into the archipelago in fleets of dugouts, up from the west coast of Borneo into Luzon via Palawan and Mindoro, and in other ocean pathways through Celebes Straits to Mindanao and the Visayas. And the people who came to our country during the Christian era- Of these groups, the Hindus contributed five percent of the present population; the Arab-Persian stocks two percent; the Chinese and other East Asians, ten percent; and the Europeans and Americans, three percent. This shows the assumptions of the migration theory and examined the data used to support it, and challenged the validity of the conclusions reached. And also about the Maragtas, not as a historical document, but as to accept it as a piece of folklore.

They also show us about the Geological foundation of our archipelago. On tracing the emergence of humans and the development of human culture in the Philippines. And our Geological Framework. Geologically, the basic land structure of the Philippines was defined during the Tertiary, several million years ago. During this period that mammals, including primates, became dominant. This was brought by two major events. First, the earth’s surface underwent tremendous upheavals known to geologist as land uplifts. Second, such uplifts were brought about by radical changes in climatic and other ecological conditions favorable to mammalian adaptation. so basically, the geographical framework of the archipelago was the same as is appears today, with a slight modification as readjustment of island forms occurred during the various phases of their geologic evolution. About the Pleistocene Period, that followed Pliocene period. The Pleistocene was characterized by climatic changes of considerable magnitude. The earth underwent a series of alternating warm and cold climates, each one lasting for several thousands of years. The effects of Pleistocene on Southeast Asia- the Pleistocene period last for about million years ago at the height of dry period, during this period a great river valley existed across Sunda land to karimata. These revering connections account for the striking similarities of fish fauna in eastern Sumatra with those in Borneo and with species found in the Philippines. Now, what is the impact of the Pleistocene on the Philippine- the Philippines was linked through a narrow projection of island rows occupied by Balabac, Palawan, and Calamianes. Toward the end of the Pleistocenen, several changes in the land formation in the archipelago took place. This was due to a number of factors, such as volcanic eruptions, the faulting and the folding of the geological base of the islands, and erosion.

In sum, the geological data reveal that the archipelago has gone through a series of structural changes, accompanied by some basic disturbances that brought about differences in altitude, depth, and forms of the islands constituting the archipelago. And also the significance of natural environment to our understanding of the development of Philippine culture and society during prehistoric times. And also the tremendous climatic conditions of the place where ancient humans lived asserted influence of adaptation they had to adjust or make in order to survive. Also, the surrounding animals and plants provided ancient humans with basic materials for economic sustainment and survival and forming social organizations a certain belief system. This became a working knowledge of the geographic, vegetation, faunal and climatic conditions that put proper perspective in the cultural developments in the Philippines during prehistoric times. Specifically speaking, we are a maritime country. This should helps us and guide our interpretation of our prehistoric society and culture.

And also the significance of the physical and natural environment to our understanding of the development of Philippine society and culture during prehistoric times. Narrowing it to our climate, flora and fauna. The climate affects the evolution, growth, and movements of plants and animals within the region of Southeast Asia. Philippine also shared the same tropical climate with its neighboring archipelagos ( Malaysia, Indonesia, and New Guinea) during the Tertiary and Quaternary periods. This was characterized by periodic monsoon rains, which favored the growth of forest, as well as other types of prehistoric vegetation capable of supporting both animal and human inhabitants of the archipelago. In flora, before the advent of man in the country, the archipelago was covered with forest, from sea level to the highest mountaintops. These were open spaces, but these were along margins of stream, flood plains, beaches, and places where vegetation was destroyed by such natural phenomena as volcanic eruptions and floods. And the floral relationship in the Philippines, it is similar to those found in other parts of Southern Asia. It also shared certain affinities with the floras of New Guinea, Australia, Formosa and the Asiatic continent. And the ancient fauna found in the Philippines was certainly different from what it is now. It is, however, safe to infer that there were just as numerous species of birds, insects, snakes, crocodiles, pigs, and other animals on the islands as there are now. In Mammalian fauna, there were big animals that formed part of our mammalian fauna, like elephants, rhinoreceroses that are no longer found living in the archipelago. However, their fossil bones have been recovered in a number of places in Asia. And the human fauna, the faunas found in our ancient environment, it is the human species that interest me more. It’s emergence and ultimate dominance have given rise to certain configurations of adaptive experience we call society. This described the setting of our prehistoric society.

They also discussed the Mythic Phase [from beginning of time] that each society has its own origin, an idea of how things began. It would be instructive if we begin the reconstruction of our prehistoric society and culture with myths of origin. Thos enable us to see how our ancestors thought about the mystery of human beginnings. This pursue the search for understanding of what happened in the past. but we can say that Myths can be considered as cultural documents. Because if we examine closely the elements found in these myths, we can discover that they reflect many of the basic elements of our prehistory and contemporary Filipino culture and personality. They served as records suggesting that our ancestors possessed the ability to observe, reason and interpret to their environment. Myths and legends, as oral narratives, function as records of ancient events at a time when writing was not yet used to account for them. This have presented the local sources on the origins of Filipino. That we explored briefly the contributions of mythology in explaining how our ancestors perceived our beginnings as people. When this facts is matched with the findings of science, the knowledge we gain sharpens our insights into our ancestors.

The next that they have discussed is the Formative Phase [cultural developments, 50,00-500 BC]. The cultural configuration, that the earliest noticeable configuration in the development of Filipino prehistoric society and culture may be labeled as Formative Phase. The two is explained, that the first term which is Formative is used to described the kind of adaptation our ancestors were able to fashion out of their prehistoric environment. While the second term which is Phase, used in referring the level of technological development attained by our ancestors. In the core industries there were two dominant industries from which we have drawn materials to document Formative Phase: stone-tool and ceramic technologies. The industry refers to the recurrent assemblage of the same kind of artifacts in a given site or the same geological layer that shows distinctive characteristics from other types of artifacts found elsewhere: Stone-tool Industry, the early stone tool industry was estimated by the archaeologist to have begun with the Liwanian industry in northern Luzon. Characteristically, there were three main trends in technological development. The first one was characterized by roughly made, unpolished, and more generalized implements. The second trend was by skillfully narrow flakes from a stone nodule or core, a process called flaking. The third trend was characterized by polished, highly developed, and more specialized tools. That were elaborately fashioned out of fine grained and hard stones and according to the taste and fancy of the toolmaker. The discovery of stones were as good materials for manufacturing tools. The ancient toolmakers were selective in the choice of their materials. In addition to hardness and tenacity, the homogeneity of the surfaced and of the elements constituting the materials were considered.

The early stone tools manufactured by our ancestors were made of crudely sharp stones. This are the Pebble or cobble tools that are made from rolled river stones, either igneous or siliceous rocks. And the flake tools, that are made from hard stones, like chert, andesite, and opaline rock. Flakes are smaller stones with sharp edges chipped from the nodule or core by carefully striking it in an angle to produce the desired fragments. Polished stone tools- new tool types started to appear in various parts of the archipelago. Early polished tools, were stools during the early phase develop rough to flaked tools, with ground blades or cutting edges. Late polished tool types- this were the oval-shaped, cross section tools with bodies and blades that were ground and polished. The level of manufacture though was still crude. The new techniques in the manufacture of stone implements clearly shows that the skills of our ancestors greatly improved. Between 1,750 to 200 BC, numerous tool types successively appeared in the archipelago. Included in these new assemblages were the angled-butt tools. In the Ceramic industries, aside from tool making the ancient Filipino were also engaged in ceramic manufacturing. Nevertheless, pottery making was an important industry. The process of pottery making involved kneading, molding, drying, and firing. A lump of clay was first kneaded, molded, and dried before firing. Before drying, fine sand was plastered around the pots as additive material. Apparently, the whole process of pot making was initially done by hand. Some pots were plain; others were decorated. Pottery type included cord-making designs and paddled-impressed decorations. Some were highly polished; others were varnished probably with almaciga. Burying the dead in coffins is not a modern development. our prehistoric ancestors were already practicing it. The early ceramics, particularly the jars, were associated with burial practices before they were used for other purposes. And there were also other economic activities that are forefathers do. Like foraging and gathering, our forefathers roamed around the nearby forest, streams, rivers, and seashores looking for food. And also hunting and fishing, our forefather were great hunters. They hunted birds, deer, wild pigs, and possible big animals. And they also implement the use of fire to keep themselves warm during cold and rainy nights. They lit bonfires, to roast tubers and edible shells. And horticulture, it was during this time tubers were domesticated for carbohydrates and protein respectively. Because agriculture is horticultural. This have documented with artifacts the early phase in the development of our culture. We call this Formative Phase because it was during this time that a discernible pattern of life started to emerge. This way of life revolved around two major industries- stone-tool making and ceramic manufacturing. Aside from these industries, our ancestors were also involved in other economic activities, like foraging, hunting, and horticulture.

Then there is Incipient Phase [cultural developments, 500 BC- 1 Millennium AD]. The years following the Formative phase saw radical changes in the life ways of our ancestors. These changes appears to be the discovery and use of metal as the basic material for manufacturing effective tools in harnessing the environment for survival. We call this phase of development the Incipient Phase. The term Incipient means the beginning of the general leveling off of local and regional sociocultural differences and the breakdown of isolation, especially among communities along the coastal areas throughout the archipelago.

The Incipient Phase may best be understood in terms of two important developments- the use of metal and the improvements of pottery. The metal industry, in turn, was characterized by two important technological developments- the early and the developed phases. The first metal said to appear in the country was copper. The fact that there are many known sources of copper in the archipelago makes this easy to understand. Although bronze was identified as one of the first metal tools to be encountered in the Philippines, it did not constitute a major technological part in the development of Incipient Phase. Whether or not metal extracted and manufactured locally remains an unsettled issue. What techniques in metalworking were not clear. It is evident from available nut limited metal artifacts, however, that certain methods were used to harness the raw materials for tool and ornament manufacturing. Metal products found in archaeological sites include projectiles or spearheads, tanged daggers, arrowheads, and swords. Other than tools, our prehistoric ancestors were also preoccupied with their physical appearances.

On the other hand, stones and metals last forever. Thousands of semiprecious stones, shells, and metal ornaments of different kinds, sizes, and designs have been recovered from different archaeological sites in the country. Examples of this are: ‘Ling-ling-o’ or ear pendants- ear pendants made of jade, stones, shells, and clay are one set of jewelry recovered from Luzon and Palawan. The term ling-ling is derived from the name of contemporary jewelry of similar design encountered among many upland groups. Bracelets- this were another type of jewelry found in many archaeological sites in the Philippines. The ornaments recovered from excavated sites were made of glass, jade, metal, seashells, and clay. They show remarkable craftsmanship. Beads- it is yet another type of jewelry common during the early part of the Incipient Phase. These ornaments, like those described above, were also made of stone, jade, glass, and shells.

Improvements in metal industry saw the appearances and dominant utilization of metal, especially iron, in exploiting the environment for survival. This was the first major technological innovation in the economic life of our ancestors. This development was reinforced by the elaboration of associated industry. And the dominance of iron, it began to be an established source of material for tool manufacturing around. In response to the demands of expanded economic activities, the abundance of iron facilitated this endeavor. One of the associated developments during the later part of the Incipient Phase was weaving. This weaving technique replaced the bark cloth beaters for fashioning fabrics for dress, clouts, and other apparel. Another development during the Incipient Phase is the growth of population size. They say that there were no village sites has yet been excavated. But the widespread distribution if burial sites can indirectly tell us of the growth of the population. Another factor that tells us about the emerging social class during the Incipient Phase is the type and quantity of grave furniture recovered from ancient graveyard. Ceramic technology is the most impressive innovation during the developed phase of the metal industry was pottery. Prehistoric pottery reveals the combination of human impulses to meet adaptive needs and give meaning to human tendencies for aestethic creation. Pottery also illustrates the search by the ancient people for better control over technology through systematic experimentation and observation.

This includes the Tabon Pottery Complex, this development in Tabonian ceramics becomes remarkable clear when materials recovered from different stratigraphic layers were compared. And the Kalanay Pottery Complex, the diagnostics designs found on some vessels from both Kalanay and Bagopano consist of scalloped decorations, done in relief, on the sides of rims or on angles aroud the vessels. And the Novaliches Pottery Complex, this shows further improvements in the making of pots, and the tremendous variations in form and design indicate that the slow wheel or tournette was used. And the Maitum pottery- compared with other burial jars like those in Palawan, the Maitum pottery documents further the developing sophistication in the ancient Filipinos’ aesthetic preferences and their deep reverence for the dead. From what we know about jar burials, the people during the Incipient phase continued to use big earthen jars as coffins for burying their dead. These jars were well-decorated and well-fired. But what focus this phase is the progress in trade, as materials progress resulting from improved economy. Foodstuffs and utensils were traded, perhaps in the form of barter. The presence of objects, like carnelian beads and jade ornaments, suggest long-distance or foreign trade because there was no local source for these materials. Now what do these all mean? This new development demonstrates that our ancestors were able to adapt to their environment effectively. The transition from stone to metal tools altered much of the local life ways during the Incipient Phase. In addition to metal tools, the ceramic industry showed tremendous improvement. Pots of different types, sizes, and possible uses appeared. Some pots were highly decorated. These decorations show the growing aesthetic tastes and preferences of the customers. They could also mean symbolic representations associate with religious rituals-pots being one of the articles in rites and ceremonies associated with important religious offerings, folk medicine, and burial.

Then there was Emergent Phase [cultural developments 1st-14th centuries AD]. This took dramatic changes in the social and economic life of our ancestors. This phase was called development of our prehistory, characterized by intensive trading. By emergent, it meant the appearance of a definable social organization ( political, economic, and religious) and certain dominant patterns of culture in some absence in others. The major stimulus for these internal developments, aside from the manufacturer and use of iron tools, was trade, which began during the Incipient Phase. This led not only to contacts with foreign cultures but also to the intensification of interisland commerce. The result if these events was the transformation of small villages of slash and burn agriculturist. During this time community life throughout the archipelago revolved around trading: domestic and foreign. Commerce brought about economic affluence. It also stimulated the development of craft specializations, like pottery , iron smelting, jewelry designing, and fabric weaving. These trading activities also stimulated intensive contacts between the inland and coastal settlements. Archaeological evidence suggests such interactions. Another factor that could have facilitated the leveling of interisland differences was writing. Similar forms of syllabary writings were noted by the early friar chroniclers at the time of Spanish contact.

While there was a growing cultural homogeneity, there was political heterogeneity. Each trading community was separate from one another. Archaeological artifacts recovered from all over the country show that, by the Emergent phase, our ancestors had made contacts with other peoples in Asia, initially India and Indonesia.

Different traders have come to our archipelago and we came contact with. Like the trade with India-Indonesia- one of the great traditions believe to have extended its broad cultural influences in Southeast Asia, including the Philippines, was India. there were trade with China- the Chinese were among the early groups of Asian traders who had direct contacts with our ancestors and who contributed to the enrichment of ancient Filipino culture. Chinese influences Filipino lifeways, even up to contemporary times, cannot be overemphasized. Chinese traders come in different groups: The T’ang Traders- the earliest Chinese traders to reach the Philippine. Sung Traders- another group of Chinese merchants who came to trade with the early Filipinos. Yuan and Ming traders- with the fall of Sung, there were attempts to establish a government monopoly of local industries and to regulate external trade. Chinese sources indicate that Chinese-Philippine trade relations grew even more. We also trade with other Asian countries, other countries that perhaps traded directly or indirectly with early Filipinos included Thailand. This accounts for similarities in the kilning techniques involved in manufacturing export goals, such as those in the Philippines.

We also came to trade with the Middle East, the Arabs comprised another group of people who came during prehistoric times, first to trade, then to do missionary work and, finally, to establish a political foothold in the archipelago. The exact date of conversion of Manila to Islam is not known. However, that when the Spaniards arrived, the process of Islamization had already begun. In short, only the ruling families apparently accepted the techniques of Islam. But this was a significant start. It was through these families, which constituted the elite class, that political power was established and the introduction of Islam was facilitated.

This described the nature of our prehistoric culture during the Emergent Phase of its development. A definable social organization and cultural patterns had emerged. Our prehistoric society had grown in population in size, had increased its contact with rest of Asia, had developed craft specialization and had heightened its appreciation of art as expressed in its ceramic products and jewelry. In other words, the society had reached a level of development more complex that the two previous phases- the Formative and the Incipient.

And last, the Baranganic Phase [cultural developments 14th-16th Centuries AD]. As foreign trade increased and local production improved, certain strategically located barangays became progressive trading centers. The barangay was last phase in the development of Filipino precolonial society and culture. It represented the florescence of indigenous culture growth before the colonizers came and stopped its momentum and changed the course of its development. Now, they also reconstruct or changed the view about the barangay. The current view about barangay may perhaps be the smallest sociopolitical unit of the pre-colonial Philippine society, but they do not agree to this claim. They said that it is big rather than small in terms of sociopolitical unit or being a state. They support their argument by detailing the status of the barangay before.

They first came to detail about the barangay as a state, they said that the barangay can be qualified as a state, perhaps not in terms of level in government or status like the complexities of Greece or Rome, but it can be called a state in terms of local development. If we define the state as the complex of institutions by means of which power of the society is organized on a basis superior to kinship, we can say that the barangay can be qualified as a state because of its power extends beyond kinship, especially in punishing. They also set laws in deciding for a group, and they also set authority and superiors like Datu which serves as their superior.

So we can say that a Barangay was indeed a complex not simple sociopolitical unit of our prehistoric society and it can be called a state. We can support this statement by enumerating its different branches in our society in terms of territory, large aggregate of people, government, sovereignty, and a common heritage.

In terms of territory each barangay has well defined rights over its domain. Some were found in coastal areas, some besides rivers, some in large valleys. Some domains were big and some were small. Nevertheless the control of barangay extended widely, to all lands and water they control the house or the community. Many in these coastal barangay were trading centers of ancient commerce. Some of them are located near big coastal areas or big river systems.

And in the structure of a barangay, the residence pattern were varied nucleated types similar to present day towns were mostly found in coastal areas, like Manila and Bulacan. Some of these communities encountered by the Spaniards spanned the length of about a league and half along the beach. In the interior, the residence patterns were scattered, located close to the widens of the households. Few houses were concentrated atop high promontories and steep ridges. Such distribution was highly influenced by the broad of the land, the economic activities that happened, the religious beliefs, and in certain areas, the degree of political development reached.

Whatever its size, the barangay had definite territory belonging to it. In case of disputes in boundary, the problem was resolved through the unanimous decision of the claimant- barangays . Within the barangay, the cultivable lands was allocated to each household composing it. No one belonging to another baragay would cultivate it unless after inheritance of their bloodline or through purchasing.

Then there’s the large aggregation of people, at the time of Spanish contract many barangays were became trading centers. The population varied in sizes. The encomienda census of 1604 showed some barangays with large populations. There were small barangays with the less number of people, but these were generally inland communities; or, if coastal, they were not located in areas good for business purposes.

Then there’s the form or way of the government in the barangay, the sociopolitical unit were led by a datu who acted as a chief, judge, mediator, a legislator, and a leader in war. All power of authority and power over the land and influence were hold by the status of being a datu , in his powers in war nobility and wealth. In some barangays the datu was aided by a council of elders. In spite of the absence of centralized bureaucracy, the barangay as a whole functioned as the protector of the community by repelling the attack or invasion by outside enemies. It stood as a function to preserve peace and order within its territory. These functions were legimate by custom laws. This laws define the area or range and limit of the behavior in a certain community or society. This also set the people to be required to maintain or to follow traditions, in the development of ethical and social and moral values or modes of behavior. For the authority to served punishment or compel people to pay for their offenses and not following the laws.

Then there’s the sovereignty, that each barangay was independent from each other, even if they were allied with their neighboring barangays. Each of this barangay has a sovereignty or territory. It is like no barangay was near or in the boundary of another barangay’s land without the permission from the barangay head. Because there was law/ custom laws that define the range and limits of a certain barangay territory or boundary.

And there is the common heritage, that there was a system where barangays traced their heritage to founding families or groups of families, like the tracing of their ancestors or in their bloodline. Supporting to that the term coined term barangay was derived from a boat called balanghai, which people believed to have carried them from their place of origin to the place where they settled.

Jocano also discussed about the Barangay social organization. There were already stable social units that served as the core of our institutions of society: political, economic, social, and religious in our barangay even before the invasion of the Spaniards. The part of political leadership in the assumed of decisions by the influential people, generally persons that have ranked or from affluent and rich families. They were called datu, in some regions or areas, they were known and called maginoo.

And about Datuship, that being a datu was based on being descent. The throne to the heredity, the right to become one was through hereditary, although it is impossible to become a datu based through courage and skills in war, the accumaltion of wealth, and marriage. But the most important aspect of being a datu was personal charisma. Even if one belonged to the kadatuan but was weak and inept, he was going to be likely replaced or lose to it to another more capable leader or datu.

The barangay did not develop a centralized administrative mechanism for government as we understand it today. Government was minimal, but nevertheless government existed. It is through kinship. It is like in a modern state with kinship-defined and tradition bound organization. Also, many barangays, especially in barangays that common for trade, were already forging alliances with one another when the Spaniards arrived.

Even if different barangays entered into alliances, there was no sovereign datu. each datu ruled his own barangay independently. The alliances were limited to mutual protection and assistance in times of need. The grouping was based consensus. Thus, whoever was chosen by the groups as their leader exercised leadership and asserted authority over them. It was living democracy.

The datu who had influence over the other datus was called pangulo (head or leader). If he were at the same time the founder of the barangay, he was called the pinuno. In a big barangay, which had contacts with Muslim traders, the datu took the title of rajah, as in the case of Rajah Matanda and Rajah Soliman.

The duties of a datu in his barangay were to protect the barangay from outside enemies, to maintain peace and order, to lead the warriors in battle, to administer to the needs of the people, and to settle family feuds and other personal disputes. He also served as intermediary or go between in marriage negotiations and many other social activities requiring his presence.

Political power emanated from the datu’s personal charisma, descent and lineage, courage and prowess in war, wealth and knowledge of the local lore. In carrying out duties, the datu was assisted by a council of elders, known as the agorang among the Bisayans. Next to the council, there was a staff of loyal followers called sakop. The head of this unit was called atubang sa datu who can we say that it is a kind of executive secretary of a datu.

In return for his services to the community, the datu received certain privileges. Among these were: the people gave him a share of their crops, helped prepare plant, harvest his fields, assisted him during hunting, and fishing activities, joined him in religious activities or festivities and fought with him when outsiders raided the community. The democratic nature of leadership system can be gleaned further from the fact that the families, in spite of expressed alliances, were allowed to transfer residence in case they were not happy with their barangay. Upon transfer, they became subjects of the datu of the barangay where they took residence.

Then jocano also discussed the Inter-barangay relations, the relationship among barangays. It must be remembered that each barangay was an independent in terms of political, social, and economic unit. Among the dominant ones were encroachments into another barangay’s territorial land claim. Each one of these members knew his own property. No one belonging to another barangay would cultivate it unless permitted. Even within the barangay itself, trespassing through other people’s fishing was probihited. Inter- barangay warfare was common among our prehistoric ancestors. This was mostly carried out in the form of raiding a neighboring barangay, arising from family feuds, betrayal of blood pacts or sandugo, abuse of friendship, or vendetta for unprovoked attacks while in other barangays.

Then there is the Legal system, the political leadership that was legitimized and supported by sets of custom laws called battasan in some barangays. Each barangays possessed an legal system. This system was made up of a complex set of custom laws, which described the ranged and defined the limits of behavior in a society. On the whole, it served as the basis for local decision making, social control, and social justice. Comparatively, this ancient legal system was similar to our contemporary system, both aim to define and limit authority, maintain peace and order, protect the interest of the larger society, insure harmonious relations, and enhance the well-being of the people.

And Jocano also mentioned the economic organization of ourb society or community before. Economic life in ancient barangay communities centered on trade, hunting, fishing, kitchen utensils manufacturing farm implements, weapons and agriculture however agriculture was most dominant among these economic pursuits. Because it is the main source of livelihood agriculture are based in the centers of land and water used. In land use, the basic agriculture pattern was slash and burn or kaingin. This residential implications of this type of agriculture were many: First, it is influenced the mobility of farmers. the harvest of crops were difficult to recultivate, particularly because the farmers did not have work animals or plow. Because of that they moved to other places where trees gre abundantly and where soil was free of grass. Second , because of population dispersal, the development of large and unified inter-barangay groupings, except those with big trading centers, did not take place. In such centers, however , membership in the barangay had come to rest as much on territory as kinship. Any timawa could move from one barngay to the other barangay without much hindrance. The transferee became subject to the authority of the host barangay. Third , because of the lack of a despotic ruler, a big, stonewalled community did not develop. It was not necessary. The only megalithic structures resembling those in other countries are the rice terraces of the central Cordillera people. Residence were permanent, and economic activities were centered on irrigated agriculture. In water used, water use was another factor influencing the settlement and residential patterns of prehistoric Filipinos. It was found in near the coastal areas and mouth of big rivers where big communities were found. The reasons for this preference were many. The sea and the river were sources of protein food. Transporting goods from the interior village was easier by rafts or banca. Looking back, many inland dwellers abandoned their interior homes and established residence in the trading centers. For protection against enemies, some of the communities were surrounded by palisades and bronze cannons. In other places, dwellings were located on top of a high ride or hilltop