Any schoolchild in the Philippines would be familiar with the Negritos, the dark-skinned people with kinky hair and short stature who were the first to live in the Philippines. With all those lessons in my Sibika at Kultura, I have never seen one until I moved to Iloilo for college.

My first encounter with them was not as pleasant or totally opposite of what I have learned in school. I saw many Atis as they are called in Panay island in streets usually beggars with little children tagging along. Still, my interest with them gradually came back as I learned more about their culture as I hang in my ropes to pass my Anthropology classes.

Atis keeping up with modernity

Known by many names in places where they live from Aetas to Agtas, the Atis are one of the keepers of our own history and heritage. Prior to the coming of the Malays and even the Spaniards, they lived in the lowlands especially in the Visayas. The Visayan island of Negros was named as such by the Spaniards due to the Negros or “black skinned” people that lived in the area.

In the island of Panay which that is consists of Iloilo, Antique, Capiz and Aklan,  most of them live in the mountainous areas  along with the hilly areas of Boracay Island with some lived along with non-Atis. Some intermarried with other groups but most of them prefer to marry their own kin.

The Atis survived through simple agriculture working in their fields. Though most of them are marginalized some have educated themselves and improved their way of living.

In general, Panay Island takes pride with the Atis, one of the indigenous peoples of the country. As seen in their festivals like the Ati-Atihan of Aklan and the Dinagyang, Panay pays homage to the Atis.

During the Dungog Festival, the Atis performed one of their traditional dances:

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Tausug

The Tausug perhaps is one of the most famous Muslim groups in the Philippines with majority of them migrating to other non-Muslim areas in the country like Cebu and Manila. At present, most of them concentrate in Sulu, Palawan and even in Northern Sabbah and often mistaken as the Badjaos, another ehtnic group in the Philippines but they are two different ethnic groups.

Their name literally means, ” people of the current” with the sea as their homeland and the boat not just a way to transport their goods for trade but serves as their homes. It may be a hyperbolic statement but they say that in their vintas, the Tausugs are born and then die.

The Vinta with its trademark of vertical colors

The Tausugs are known to have perfected the craft of boat-making like our own balangay that can withstand the trials of the sea sans modern equipments. Tausug craftsmen still make vintas and other boats like those often seen in the city of Zamboanga using the same methods and “technology” for hundreds of years and from generations to generations.

During the Indigenous Peoples Festival last October 2-5 2006, the Tausug representatives shared one of their famous dances – the Pangalay.

The Pangalay more commonly known as the “fingernail” dance in reference to the female dancers with long silver nails and often performed in special occasions like weddings. The performance featured a male and female dancer which is specifically called as the “Pangiluk”.

More than grace and controlled movements of the wrist,s, elbows and the shoulders, the dance depicts many moverments from an ancient martial arts of Sabbah. If you are familiar with some Buddhist images of angles with long fingernails, the Pangalay also has some characterists of per-Buddhist ideas of angels as portrayed by the dancers.

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