Thursday, June 24, 2021
Monday, June 14, 2021
The Relevance of Lakan Dula of Tondo in the Philippine History
The Relevance of Lakan Dula of Tondo in the Philippine History
Historian Henry Scott, a Philippine historian, described Lakan Bunao Dula as the last Lord of Tondo. Lakan is his title, Bunao is his first name and Dula is his surname. Lakan means paramount ruler, meaning among rulers or datus in Manila, Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, he is recognized as the “paramount” or “respected head among heads”. Although at present, historians are still researching on how far is the influence of Lakan Dula as the paramount ruler, based on Laguna Copperplate, the influence of Tondo goes as far as Bicol Region. Based on Battle Bangkusay, the influence of Tondo goes as far as Bulacan, Pampanga and Cebu. Historians are still unsure what Legaspi said to the Bisayans to make them go with them to Tondo to “support the kingdom against invaders”. Based on the theory of the divide and rule, it is probable that the Bisayans were told by the Spaniards that the Kingdom of Tondo is being attacked by Muslims and it needs some help, so, the Bisayans went to Tondo to defend it. Bisayans, it seems, are not enemies of Tondo but they think that they go to the Battle of Bangkusay to help Lakan Dula. Based on the history of “Sabwatan ng mga Ginoo”, the influence of Lakan Dula goes as far as Palawan. In the history of the Sultanate of Sulu and the History of Brunei, the influence of Tondo goes as far as Muslim Mindanao and in other countries Lakan Dula being related to Bolkiah Family of Brunei and Doyley noble family of the British Kingdom. Tondo, it seems, is the the facto pre hispanic emerging nation which we call the Philippines today. This theory is supported by the fact that when the Aguinaldo revolutionary government sent a letter of protest to Spain and the US against the Treaty of Paris, the letter mentioned that the legitimacy of the Philippine revolutionary government came from the historical sovereignty of the kingdom of Lakan Dula. When Martin de Goiti, the founder of Manila betrothed his relative to the Batang Dula, the eldest son and heir apparent of Lakan Dula, the link of the bloodline between the House of Dula and the Kingdom of Spain was the intended consequence.
Lakan Dula therefore is a wise and sophisticated last lakan of the Kingdom of Tondo which has influence over Manila, Luzon, Bisayas and Mindanao and his diplomatic and blood link with royal houses of Brunei, Britain and Spain, made him the probable de facto head of the infant pre hispanic nation which we call the Philippines today. He is an institution respected by the Kingdom of Spain that is why their approach with Tondo is not invasion but friendship or alliance. There is an article by an American journalist in the Malacanang archive that a descendant of Lakan Dula with the surname Gatdula who resides in N. Zamora Street in Tondo who is pointing to a peace covenant between Lakan Dula and Lagaspi. The document was supposed to have been kept in one of the monuments in Manila which was destroyed during the war. This could be a good subject of research by historians because this document could show the friendship between the Lakanate of Tondo and Spain which led to the expansion of the Philippine territories and eventually, the birth of the Philippine nation. Lakan Dula being a respected institution by the Kingdom of Spain tempered down the abuse of the Spaniards against the natives “kasi papalag si Lakan Dula”. This leads to tempering down the collection of taxes and eventually, the appointment of the datus to the principalia ruling elite which even today are recognized in Europe as hidalgos or some sort of being part of hispanic royalties. The Kingdom of Spain however is secretly careful in dealing with the Kingdom of Tondo. Lepazpi, in his memoir in Mexico manifested this when he said that Lakan Dula secretly sent his second son, Magat Salamat, the warlike son -- to join forces with the natives of Hagonoy and Macabebe. During that era, rivalry for world power was between Britain and Spain. The Kingdom of Spain would have been worried about the fact that Ysmeria Doyley, the mother of Lakan Dula from where the Dula surname came replacing Bolkiah, came from the aristocratic lineage of British Kingdom. This leads eventually to the silent friction in the Tondo - Spain friendship. This will be known in history as the diaspora of native aristocracy where the descendants of Lakan Dula are hidden in far strongholds of the kingdom of Tondo all over the country. Some of the descendants openly resisted the Spanish occupation in the later part of the Philippine history. All said, it seems that Lakan Dula nurtured the seed for a future Filipino nation and his descendants seem to be driven by the patriotic endeavors from generation to generation.
Philippine Quarterly of Culture and Society
Vol. 22, No. 3 (September 1994), pp. 165-173 (9 pages)
Published By: University of San Carlos Publications
Piedad-Pugay,Chris Antonette THE BATTLE OF BANGKUSAY: A PARADIGM OF DEFIANCE AGAINST COLONIAL CONQUEST. https://nhcp.gov.ph/the-battle-of-bangkusay-a-paradigm-of-defiance-against-colonial-conquest/ retrieved June 16, 2011
Cruz, Patrick. REVOLT OF THE LAKANS: 1587 -1588. https://www.academia.edu/35806716/REVOLT_OF_THE_LAKANS_1587_1588?auto=download retrieved June 16, 2021
Tuesday, May 25, 2021
Chapter 5: The Ancestors and Descendants of Lakan Dula
The Kingdom of Tondo (Kaharian ng Tondo) or Lakanate of Tondo exists unnoticed by the public even today, the hereditary leaders are intact, but they decided to work in the background. One of their major concerns is to advocate for the ancient Filipino culture, arts and tradition like the arnis, baybayin, tinalak, kundiman, siday , hilot, bahay na bato architecture, etc.. They are getting in touch with Filipinos with native sounding surnames whom they believe are their blood relatives or descendants of loyal officers of the ancient kingdom. They secretly help manage the country through the "Sumpa ni Lakan Dula" and maintain secret rituals among key leaders thought "Dine with the Ancestors". Its hereditary leader is a descendant of Lakan Bunao Dula, the last King of Tondo, who inherited the royal title of Rajah or Lakan. They do pro poor projects, maintain websites and meet with potential partners and dignitaries. They are also in search for the descendants of other kingdoms listed below:
The Timeline of the Pre - Hispanic Philippines
Based on the Principalia Theory of Austronesian Inter Migration, the Rhinoceros man, Dawn man and Callao man existed in the ancient Philippines (Ophir) as early as 709, 000; 250,000 and 65,000 years ago respectively.
1800 BC – Ancient Lawan Pacific Settlement (Ophir, the homeland Asians, Polynesians and Austronesians)
1000 BC - Igorot Society (CAR)
601 AD - Chiefdoms of Zabag and Wak-Wak (Pampanga and Aparri
800 AD - Namayan (Mandaluyong, Sta. Ana Manila)
900 AD - Tondo (Tondo, Manila)
971 AD - Huangdom of Ma-i
1176 AD - Kingdom of Tondo
1200 AD - Rajahnate of Cebu, Madjas-as Confederation, Dapitan, Butuan
1252 AD - Lupah Sug (Sulu)
1376 AD - Bruneian Empire
1408 AD - Caboloan Vassal State of Ming China (Pangasinan)
1430 AD - Sultanate of Sulu
1450 AD - Kingdom of Tondo reached its peak with the largest territory in the archipelago
1470 AD - Namayan became a vassal state of Tondo
1492 AD - Kingdom of Taytay (Palawan)
1499 AD - Brunei conquered Ma-i and Sulu
1500 AD - Brunei conquered Tondo's Manila territory and established the puppet Kingdom of Maynila
1501 AD - Maguindanao established
1502 AD - Brunei totally took-over Tondo which lost its territories up north of Luzon.
1521 AD - Magellan reaches the Philippines & is killed by Lapu-Lapu in the battle of Mactan
1522 AD - Maranao established
1532 AD - Lanao established
1564 AD - Sultanate of Ternate established, Spain conquered Cebu
1567 AD - Datu Pagbuaya established
1573 AD - Spain conquered Madjas-As and Tondo
1577 AD - Spain conquered Caboloan
During the WWll, Philippine President Manuel L.Quezon, a native of the Pacific side of the Philippines within the influence of the ancient Lakanate of Lawan (Ophir), saved more than thousand Jews from Europe to be butchered by the Nazis by accepting them into the Philippines and settling them in his properties in Marikina Valley and the rest is history...
Rajah Sulayman (also Sulayman I, 1558–1575,[1]) was the Rajah or ruler of the Kingdom of Maynila, a pre-Hispanic state at the mouth of the Pasig River where it empties into Manila Bay in what is now the Philippines, who reigned after Rajah Lontok. He was also the ruler of Kingdom of Tondo inheriting from a long line of rulers: Timamanukum, Alon, Gambang, Suko and Lontok–Kalangitan. Sulayman I was the ruler of Namayan succeeding from Kalangitan and Ache. In effect, Sulayman I is the ruler of the united kingdoms of Manila. He was the kingdom's second to the last indigenous ruler (Lakan Banao Dula is the last), as the state was absorbed into the Spanish
Exclusive Interview with the Hereditary Patriarch of the House of Dula of Tondo
Empire during the latter's conquest of Luzon and the archipelago. His eldest son, Lakan Bunao Dula was crowned Lakan (paramount ruler) or King of the united kingdom when Sulayman I was too sick to function as monarch. Sulayman I is the grandson of Abdul Bolkiah and the son of Sulayman Bolkiah. Sulayman I however did not use the surname Bolkiah but instead used the official title of Rajah Soliman Dula l, to mark the new lineage of the united Manila aristocracy [2][3][4]. The regnal surname Dulay, later spelled as Dula came from the native ancient alibata direct translation of Doylly, the surname of the British wife of Rajah Sulaiman I named Ysmeria Doylly, mother of Lakan Dula, Rajah Matanda and Rajah Sulaiman II. In the ancient alibata alphabet, the translation of Doylly becomes Dulay , and later became Dula because there is no letter Y in the alibata, the ancient Filipino alphabet (Ka Totoy Talastas). Sulayman II resisted Spanish forces, and thus, along with Rajah Matanda and Lakan Dula, was one of three Rajahs who played significant roles in the Spanish conquest of the kingdoms of the Pasig River delta in the early 1570s.[5]
The Ancestors of David Dulay (David Dula y Goiti)
1. Batang Dula: Father of David Dula y Goiti; Son of Lakan Dula and Mutya;Brother of Magat Salamat, Felipe Salonga, Martin Lakan Dula, Dionisio Capulong, Luis Taclocmao and Maria Poloin (married to Juan Alonso Talabos).
2. Lakan Dula (1503 - 1589): David's grandfather; Husband of Mutya; Son of Rajah Sulaiman I and Ysmeria Doylly; Father of Batang Dula,Martin Lakan Dula, Magat Salamat, Felipe Salonga, Dionisio Capulong,Luis Taclocmao and Maria Poloin (married to Juan Alonso Talabos).
3. Mutya: David's grandmother; Wife of Lakan Dula; Mother of Batang Dula, Felipe Salonga, Magat Salamat, Dionisio Capulong,Luis Taclocmao and Maria Poloin (married to Juan Alonso Talabos).
4. Rajah Sulaiman I: David's great grandfather; Son of Rajah Lontok and Dayang Kalangitan; Husband of Ysmeria Doylly; Father of Lakan Dula and Rajah Sulaiman II, ; Brother of Dayang Panginoan, Dayang Lahat and Gat Kahiya
5. Ysmeria Doylly: David's great grandmother; Wife of Rajah Sulaiman I; Mother of Lakan Dula, Rajah Matanda and Rajah Sulaiman II.
6. Rajah Lontok: David's second great grandfather; Son of Sultan Bolkiah and Lela Mechanai; Husband of Dayang Kalangitan; Father of Dayang Panginoan, Dayang Lahat, Rajah Sulaiman I and Gat Kahiya; Brother of Rajah Gappandan
7. Dayang Kalangitan: David's second great grandmother; Wife of Rajah Lontok;Mother of Dayang Panginoan, Dayang Lahat, Rajah Sulaiman I and Gat Kahiya
8. Sultan Bolkiah: David's third great grandfather; Son of Sultan Sulaiman; Husband of Lela Mechanai; Father of Rajah Lontok and Rajah Gatpandan.
9. Lela Mechanai: David's third great grandmother; Daughter of Sultan Amir Ul-Ombra; Wife of Sultan Bolkiah; Mother of Rajah Lontok and Rajah Gatpandan
10. Rajah Gambang: David's third great grandfather; Father of Dayang Kalangitan
11. Sultan Sulaiman: David's fourth great grandfather; Father of Sultan Bolkiah
12. Sultan Amir Ul-Ombra: David's fourth great grandfather; Father of Lela Mechanai
13. Rajah Alon: David's fifth great grandfather; Son of Lakan Timamanukum
14. Lakan Timamanukum: David's 6th great grandfather; Father of Rajah Alon.
The Gatbonton Clan is one of the earliest clans in the Philippine history which was able to show their link with the pre Hispanic native nobility. Their research is comprehensive and often cited by Filipino historians. One of their clan members is Fernando Poe, Jr. who won the Philippine Presidency but was cheated by Gloria Arroyo, from the Lacandola Clan of Arayat Pampanga, who was jailed later on the charges of election offenses and plunder. The Gatbonton Clan kept a ancient secret genealogy of the native Filipino royalty, to wit:
The above genealogy of the Gatbonton Clan shows that the Dulay Clan of Marikina Valley are direct descendants of Lakan Dula of Tondo from the eldest and heir apparent Batang Dula. One of the respected traditional leaders of the Gatbonton Clan who has the key on this secret genealogy, said:
“I am a grandson of Feliza Gatbonton Corrales-Macam. The Gatbontons are not descendants of Lakan Dula but rather a direct relative. Gatbonton (mandala) who was the administrator of the rice granary of the kingdom. He was the son of Dayang Lahat, sister of Raja Sulaiman Sri Lila (salalila)I. His other kin were MONMON, GATCHALIAN, GATMAITAN, MACARALAGA, GATMAITIM, MANDIC, GATDULA and DUMANDAN." Note, the Gatdula of today is not in the line of the present day Dula but surely of the Gatbontons as their Father was Gat Timog. The will says:"GATBONTON married MACAYABONGDILI ( in English: the one with the ladies in waiting), a sister of my father*. They had five children, namely LOVERA, MACABAT, CAPITANGAN, TAUI and PAMPALUNG (founder of the Kingdom of Apalit) whom they called MACAPAGAL. The name could have been used as a cover up to avoid persecution when the Gatbontons escaped Tondo for Candaba via Rio Grande River. The name was used during his youth and assumed another before he died. He had also a son named Palong Gatbonton. From this line comes the line of my great Grandmother Simeona Gatbonton-Corrales, Martha Gatbonton-Kelly;grandmother of FPJ, Juan Gatbonton, Liborio Gatbonton, Manolo Gatbonton and Zcarina Gatbonton."
This Gatbonton Clan Genealogy is somewhat triangulated with the genealogy coming from the descendants of Rajah Suleiman l and his wife Esmeria Doylly who started the Dula (Doylly/Dulay) royal lineage when they decided to crown Rajah Bunao Dula as Lakan Bunao Dula. Lakan means paramount ruler, or the supreme leader among all rajahs. This somewhat manifested the secret influence of the British Royalty on ancient Filipino nobility. That era was a struggle of the Spanish Empire against the British Empire. The crowning of Tondo - based Rajah Bunao Dula as the Lakan over his brothers Rajah Matanda and Rajah Suleiman lll gave birth to the consolidated Kingdom of Manila based in Intramuros. In western nomenclature, Lakan is equivalent to King. This also signal the intense Spanish prosecution of the native aristocracy since the regnal name Dula (Doylly/Dulay) is close to the British Empire.
The descendants of Lakan Dula of Tondo can be traced by knowing the present descendants of his seven children, namely: the eldest Batang Dula, the priest Martin Lakan Dula, the warrior Magat Salamat, the childless Dionisio Capulong, the exile Felipe Salonga, the pretty Maria Poloin and the mysterious Luis Salugmoc. Take note that only two children are allowed to used the regnal surname Dula, the eldest and heir apparent Batang, and the brightest Martin.Some historians however say that the heir apparent Batang Dula on his olden years hid his identity by changing his surname from Dula to Capulong after he escaped a bloody purge of the native aristocracy in the Intramuros - based Kingdom, into a fertile land now known as Candaba and presently part of the province of Pampanga. He also hid his children by making them acquire new names, far different from Dula. The family of Diosdado Macapagal has been claiming descendancy from Lakan Dula of Tondo but they cannot point out who among the Lakan Dula children they came from. They always end up not connected with any children of Lakan Dula, but with a certain guy with a surname Lacandola from Arayat, Pampanga who turned out to be a traitor to the natives and pro Spaniards, whose one of the children is surnamed Reyes who married Juan Macapagal where the present Macapagal of Lubao came from. This is confirmed indirectly in the present Wikipedia article on Lakan Dula which is rating as number 1 in the Google search and which is dominated by the paid hacks of the Macapagal but is boycotted by respected Philippine historians. Lacandola is a very common Filipino surname but to show that it is a descendant of Lakan Dula of Tondo, it must show that it came from one of the seven children of Lakan Dula. Maybe, the Macapagal came from Gatbonton Clan, whose great great grandfather is the "administrator of the rice granary of the Kingdom of Lakan Dula". The assertion of some local historians of Pampanga are however possible, that since Batang Dula is the eldest son of Lakan Dula, his children has to be hidden from bloody Spanish persecution far away in plantations owned by the Kingdom of Tondo and protected by their relatives. The eldest son of Batang Dula is David Goiti Dula who was hidden from Spanish persecution under the protection of the Sumoroy family in Northern Samar, was given a vast plantation which is now known as Candawid and was was given another identity as David Goiti Dulay. The second child is Daba Goiti Dula who was given a big plantation now known as Candaba, protected by the Capulong family and was hidden as Daba Goiti Capulong. The youngest child is Dola Goiti Dula and was hidden in a vast tract of plantation now known as Candola in San Luis, Pampanga. She was hidden as Dola Goiti Lacandola. This lineage is where the Macapagals came from.
Lots of native sounding Filipino surnames today, just like the Gatbontons, are descendants of the relatives of Lakan Bunao Dula (Christian name: Lakan Carlos Dula) who served in special capacity in the Kingdom of Lakan Dula. As a general rule, modern Filipinos who have native sounding names are descendants of the loyalists, maginoo or officials of the Lakan Dula Kingdom to the point that they resisted the official order of the government of Spain for Filipinos to adopt Spanish surnames. Historians have several theories why they are loyal to the native Kingdom: maybe they are relatives by blood of the ruling Lakan Bunao Dula family, or maybe they occupy responsible positions in the kingdom, or maybe they are relatives by affinity, or maybe they are just by nature patriotic. The Spanish persecutions of the descendants of Lakan Bunao Dula continued and intensified, but a lot of descendants maintained their native surnames like lakandula, dula, dulay, gatdula, dulayan, abdullah, rebadulla, dulatre, duldulao, dulayba, lakandola, lacandalo, lacandola, lacandula, dula - torre and many others revolving around the root word “dula”. During the intense persecution of the Spaniards on the native aristocracy, some descendants have to disregard the “dula” root word and adopted totally different native sounding surnames for disguise like magsaysay, lontoc, agbayani, acuna, salonga, gatchalian, bacani, macapagal, guingona, gatpandan, pangilinan, pangalangan, sumuroy, dagohoy, kalaw, salalima, soliman, pilapil, mabini, pagdanganan, macalintal, angara, bamba, datumanong, panganiban, katigbak, macarambon, sakay, aglipay, kasilag, salamat, karingal, kiram, daza, lacanilao, lacanlale, gatchalian, manalo, lagumbay, tamano, ilagan, bunye, pangandaman, maliksi, silang, badoy, puno, lapid, ziga, nalupta, binay, gatbonton, sinsuat, capulong, puyat, gatmaitan, macuja, dagami, ablan, capinpin, punongbayan, madlangbayan, gatlabayan, batungbakal, cabangbang, sumulong, gustilio, calungsod, capangoy, kapunan, etc, but continued fighting for the liberation of the natives from Spain. Some of the descendents hid their Lakan Dula heritage by changing their names into the likes of guevara, aguinaldo, legaspi, aquino, mendoza, osmena, de Leon, estanislao, laurel, fernando, ejercito, delapaz, mercado, santos, bonifacio, de guzman, etc, while some adopted chinese surnames of their mother like lim, uy, go, tan, etc, but they continued to pursue a belligerent posture against Spain. The Spanish authorities know this and they countered by betrothing Spanish ladies to the heirs of the native aristocracy which explains why the Capulongs, Dulays, and Gatbontons, etc, of today have fairer complexion than the ordinary natives in the localities. There are however few who were forced to collaborate with the Spanish authority. Wishing to avoid the persecution experienced by his latter ancestors, Lakan Dula's alleged great grandson Juan Macapagal, but the number 1 Wikipedia article is suggesting that he is actually a descendant of certain Mr. Lacandola of Arayat who is a traitor to the natives and a proud pro Spaniards that is why their paid hacks are making efforts to combine the correct name of Lakan Banao Dula, (title - first name- surname), into Lakandula, which is nearer to their surname Lacandola of Arayat. Based on their own Lacandola of Arayat family history, their ancestor aided the Spanish authorities in suppressing the 1660 Kapampangan revolt of Francisco Maniago, and the Pangasinan revolt of Andrés Malong, and the 1661 Ilocano revolt. To some natives, this is an act of treason against their cause, but some leaders understand this as a heroism to save the future descendants of Lakan Dula, (if they are indeed descendants). The Philippine Genealogical Society has the official list of these native Filipino surnames in its website at https://angkangpilipino.wordpress.com. Each surname may have some secret family history that will show their designation or role in the Kingdom of Lakan Dula, the way the Gotbonton Clan had documented their clan history from the past. One example of which is the surname Lacandola of Arayat, who is proudly anti - native and pro Spaniards. Other native sounding surnames may have exciting histories, like the Sumulong of Antipolo who actually led the migration to the mountain (sumulong sa kabundukan) from Marikina Valley settlement of Lakan Dula descendants near the bank of Marikina River, using the present “Sumulong Highway path”. The pangilinan ancestor is a great warrior of the kingdom who was given a very special weapon, "nilagyan ng pangil". The unknown Pacqiao ancestor could have been a very succesful travelling businessman in the kingdom "na mahilig mamakyaw ng chinawares at dinadala sa malayong lugar".The calungsod ancestor may have been a neighbor of Lakan Dula of Tondo but settled in the far far away southern territory. The agbayani ancestor is actually a hero of the kingdom who was given vast tract of land in the northern part of the kingdom as a reward. The magsaysay ancestor is a great story teller of the kingdom.The Angara ancestor could have been the native fashion model of the kingdom because "ang gara nyang manamit." The Aguinaldo ancestor may have given Lakan Dula a gift, a sword made of gold. Pangalangan could have been a great warrior with a very specialized skills needed for special missions, or "pang alangan na laban". Their are several others very exciting family histories that are still on the research process.
Where can you find some descendants of Lakan Dula? According to local Marikina historian Servando de los Angeles, the earliest inhabitants of Marikina valley are descendants of Lakan Dula of Tondo who moved out of their homeland into a fertile valley along the Pasig river which is now knows as Marikina, to escape from the bloody Spanish persecution of native aristocracy centered in Intramuros. The descendants found peace in their new found land, an aura which they still carry up to the present time. A typical Sunday of the descendants, after a mass at the Our Lady of the Abandoned, Marikina natives would walk through the old Spanish jail which is now converted into Shoe Museum, dine in Isabelo's Secret or Tableria and walk leisurely towards Butiki Park and into the riverbank jogging lane. In that old path, people cant help but notice an old white "bahay na bato" with balcony, attic, lots of trees, ancient looking gate, capiz windows, Spanish looking iron grills, and vigan tiles. Some natives call it "bahay ni rizal", GMA 7, one of the two leading TV stations in the Philippines has twice shoot TV documentaries on it (one is about the Kingdom of Tondo, the other is Relasyon), an indi film featuring native Marikeno Lito Legazpi has done a film on it, some students film projects like Noli Me Tangere were filmed in the house, a commercial for Tabata slippers, and several others. What is the mystery behind the house? It is the place where the descendants of Lakan Dula, some coming from as far as Zamboanga City, do their "Dine with the Ancestors Rituals". When the image of Our Lady of the Abandoned was declared by the Pope as Shrine, the image stayed in the house for one week. All the last four Mayors of Marikina has dined in the house in different occasions. Miss Philippines contestants has dined in it. The members UP College of Law moot court debate team has practiced in the house, the Upsilon Sigma Phi Fraternity of UP has done initiation in it. At its main door are old alibata encryptions which read as "Lakan Dula", at the back of door is another baybayin encryptios which says, "Angkan ng Dulay". At the gate, there is a brass plate which says: "The House of Dulay Mendoza Clan". Sephardi Jewish Benito Mendoza was the first Teniente Mayor of Marikina, and the clan house is found in Isabelo Mendoza Street. Isabelo was another Teniente Mayor. At the back of the Shrine is and old cemetery with a jewish type columbarium and buried there was Ceferino Rivas Dulay, the 4th hereditary leader of the Dulay Clan of Marikina Valley. The clan house is the residence of the hereditary leaders of the Dulay Clan of Marikina Valley, a descendant of Lakan Dula of Tondo. The clan house, found in Isabelo Mendoza St. in San Roque (Poblacion), Marikina, is also the corporate office of the The CDM Foundation: the Administrator of the Descendancy of Lakan Dula, the Last King of Manila. The chairmanship of the foundation is traditionally bestowed to the hereditary patriarch of the Lakan Dula descendancy who serves as the unifying symbol of all descendants and Filipinos with native sounding surnames all over the land.
Sunday, May 9, 2021
Chapter 3: Ancestral Homeland of the Polynesians and the Austronesians
If we factor in the 700,000 year old rhinoceros man excavated in the Philippines by French archaeologists, the 250,000 dawn man of Otley Beyer and the 65,000 year old Callao man discovered by the UP archaeologists, plus the Australian DNA studies that say that Philippines is the homeland of the Polynesians, it can be concluded that the Philippines is perhaps the true homeland of Austronesian. Some of our ancestors may have moved to cold countries like China and Russia because just like the Out of Africa Theory, early humans moved from hot to cold topography; while some some of our ancestors moved to Southeast Asia and the Pacific. DNA studies confirmed that our DNA is more diverse ..making us the possible cradle of the beginning of life which according to Darwin started in the tropics and in the ocean, Pacific ocean, and perhaps moved inwards into the Philippine shores. This is supported by an American study that says that the Philippine marine life is the global epicenter of marine diversity. Let the Taiwan scholars present better scientific evidence than the earlier stated evidence by the Philippines. If Taiwan can not present more convincing scientific evidence, then it may be concluded that perhaps the true homeland of Austronesian is the Philippines and not Taiwan. The descendants of Lakan Dula believe in this theory until Taiwan can present a more convincing archaeological, DNA and scientific evidence. This theory is also supported by the Principalia Hereditary Council of the Philippines.
A civilization can be prosperous with the growth of the population its inhabitants, by birth or migration, and by the idealism of its people. Biological life from the ocean started to evolve in what Darwin described as a “pond of life”-- a complex interplay of ocean water, sea, bay, cove, big river, lagoon, luscious forest, stream, spring, beaches, islands, caves, mountain hills, plateau – all are found in the homeland of the Polynesians called in its ancient name as Lawan. According to Hebrew scholars like Dr. Narag, the original settlers of Lawan, the Lequios waray hadlok tribe, named the place after Awan or Aklia, the daughter of Adam. It also means in Hebrew as white beach which pointed to the golden white beach named Onay, in Lawan. In a note to the head of the Principalia Council, Dr. Narag said: "What I discovered is that Lawan is the center of Ophir". Today, Lawan is estimated to be in the area of Laoang – Catubig – Palapag officially called Pacific Area of Northern Samar, because these are island towns in the Philippines in the Pacific Ocean. The natives described the place as “kabubuhian san ilo” (translation: even orphans can survive here). The area is marked today by an old lighthouse guiding big ships from the Pacific entering the Philippine archipelago to Manila. With the diggings of early human and ancient treasures surrounding Lawan in the Pacific coasts of the Philippine archipelago like the 65,000 year old Callao man, the Limestone tombs of Kamhantik in the Buenavista Protected Landscape in Quezon province, existence of chief Dumaraug of Albay, the Mactan of Lapu Lapu settlement, the ancient shipyard in Palapag, the treasures in Surigao, the balangays in Butuan and the ancient plates, martabana (burial jar) and jewelries in Sawang (part of modern Lawan now called Laoang), and with siday and kandu (local historical epic), legends (sigbin, Araw City), ancient relics, the fortified main settlement; the historical fact that the name of the island Samar came from Samaria which is the ancestral homeland of Datu Iberein of the Lakanate of Lawan and one of the evidences that the Philippines is indeed the Biblical Ophir; the Catubig being the old historical capital of whole Samar island, and historical accounts of the Spaniards -- some historians conclude that Lawan is indeed an ancient Philippine civilization in the pacific ocean.
The surname Iberein may have come from the term Ibriy. In the Strong's Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and Chaldee, IBRIY derives from a family name. It is a surname from the Hebrew word Eber, and designates an Eberite. The Hebrew word Eber translates as "a region beyond" which partly explains that Samar of the Philippines is a region beyond their ancient Samarian homeland of the Hebrew civilization. Eber is also the name of a descendant of Shem, and ancestor of Abraham. Genesis 10:21 mentions Eber. The natives of Lawan, even today, are adventurous people found in different parts of the world but wherever they are, they are always dreaming of their homeland that they even celebrate their ancestral homeland fiesta in Manila, in the US and in different parts of the world. The cohesiveness, culture, familial bonds, legends, folklore, the homey feeling, oral kandu, and the written siday (epic) of its people are like the centrifugal force that evolve into a civilization and attracts the adventurers and migrants all over the world. The wave of migrations into the Philippines in the direction of the Pacific Ocean postulated by historian Otley Beyer supports the existence of a prosperous ancient kingdom in the Pacific.
Timeline of the Pre - Hispanic Philippines
Based on the Principalia Theory of Austronesian Inter Migration, the Rhinoceros man, Dawn man and Callao man existed in the ancient Philippines (Ophir) as early as 709, 000; 250,000 and 65,000 years ago respectively.
1800 BC – Ancient Lawan Pacific Settlement (Ophir, the homeland of Asian, Polynesians and Austronesian peoples)
1000 BC - Igorot Society (CAR)
601 AD - Chiefdoms of Zabag and Wak-Wak (Pampanga and Aparri
800 AD - Namayan (Mandaluyong, Sta. Ana Manila)
900 AD - Tondo (Tondo, Manila)
971 AD - Huangdom of Ma-i
1176 AD - Kingdom of Tondo
1200 AD - Rajahnate of Cebu, Madjas-as Confederation, Dapitan, Butuan
1252 AD - Lupah Sug (Sulu)
1376 AD - Bruneian Empire
1408 AD - Caboloan Vassal State of Ming China (Pangasinan)
1430 AD - Sultanate of Sulu
1450 AD - Kingdom of Tondo reached its peak with the largest territory in the archipelago
1470 AD - Namayan became a vassal state of Tondo
1492 AD - Kingdom of Taytay (Palawan)
1499 AD - Brunei conquered Ma-i and Sulu
1500 AD - Brunei conquered Tondo's Manila territory and established the puppet Kingdom of Maynila
1501 AD - Maguindanao established
1502 AD - Brunei totally took-over Tondo which lost its territories up north of Luzon.
1521 AD - Magellan reaches the Philippines & is killed by Lapu-Lapu in the battle of Mactan
1522 AD - Maranao established
1532 AD - Lanao established
1564 AD - Sultanate of Ternate established, Spain conquered Cebu
1567 AD - Datu Pagbuaya established
1573 AD - Spain conquered Madjas-As and Tondo
1577 AD - Spain conquered Caboloan
During the WWll, Philippine President Manuel L.Quezon, a native of the Pacific side of the Philippines within the influence of the ancient Lakanate of Lawan (Ophir), saved more than thousand Jews from Europe to be butchered by the Nazis by accepting them into the Philippines and settling them in his properties in Marikina Valley..and the rest is history...
Otley Beyer Theory of Philippine Migration Supports the Existence of Lakanate of Lawan
The most widely known version of the peopling of the Philippines during the prehistoric times is the theory of Prof. H. Otley Beyer. The theories of Prof. Beyer about Philippine prehistory on the waves of migration are now under attack by the new breeds of historians and anthropologists. Indeed the migration of ancient Filipinos cannot now be held tenable due to many questions about the manner in which this theory was postulated, and the be archaeological evidence which challenge many of Dr. Beyer’s hypotheses . Beyer basically postulated 4 levels of migration, namely, the dawn man (250,000 years ago), Negritoes from Borneo (25,000 – 30,000 years ago), Indonesian (5,000 - 6,000 years ago), and Malaysians (2, 500 years ago) (Zaide). Artifacts from the French Museum of Natural History on May 2, 2018 shows an archaeologist at work at the site of an archaeological dig in the Philippines. Were early humans living in East Asia more than half-a-million years ago clever enough to build sea-faring watercraft and curious enough to cross a vast expanse of open sea? This and other questions arise from a treasure trove of tools and a nearly intact skeleton from a butchered rhinoceros, found on the Philippine island that pushes back the emergence of the first homo species on the country ten-fold to 700,000 years ago (way earlier than the dawn man of Beyer), according to a study published on May 2, 2018. The study also shows that these ancient people developed a semblance of organized settlement like an ancient government somewhere in the Pacific side of the Philippines that make them develop a carefree and adventurous “Viking – like” (waray waray in their native terms) character that send people to different islands in the Pacific like in Indonesia and in the other islands within the Philippines (Thomas Ingicco. MNHN. AFP)
One of the defects of Beyer’s theory is it did not elaborate the dawn man or even the possibility of an indigenous man resulting from natural evolution of life coming from the pacific ocean to a fertile topography of say, Lawan, an island in Samar facing the Pacific. As it turned out, the Callao man found in the cave near the pacific ocean coast estimated to be 65,000 years old, which is describe as probable home grown since it has still the seemingly characteristics of “lesser than man”, is probable one of some other evidences that life started from the pacific ocean and evolved from lower form of animals into human, right here in the Pacific coast of the Philippine archipelago. The dawn man that Beyer was mentioning could be the ancestors of the Callao man that had evolved from the life form of the pacific ocean maybe 1,500,000 years ago (Beyer estimated it 250,000 years ago). This will however conflict with the “out of Africa” theory – that human being all came from Africa. Is it possible that human being evolved simultaneously from different oceans to a fertile luscious topography then found each other in some part of early beginning and their intermarriages resulted into the human form of today? This could be a possible theory much logical than “one source went into different directions” theory through connected land mass that later on disconnected. The out of Africa theory seem to imply that other oceans and other vegetation’s in any part of the earth are not capable of Darwin’s Theory of Evolution. Did Africa bought the franchise? Why only Africa when in fact, Pacific Ocean and the luscious and fertile vegetation of Lawan for instance, can sustain a life form better than Africa. Migration patterns of any civilization should start with the plausible explanation on the evolution of biological life in the area. Scientists like Darwin believes that life evolve from the ocean and into the shores, river and inlands. Then the human being evolved and populated a settlement after another. The human population grow and a system of protecting itself from nature and fellow men emerged through time and eventually flourished into some kind government ,culture, economics and civilization (https://www.popsci.com).
The human life in the Philippines is an evolution from the biological life that started in the Pacific Ocean. This was somewhat confirmed somehow by a US study that the biodiversity of the ocean waters in the Philippines is so dense that made them declare they believe that the Philippines is the center of the earth (Center Of Center Of The World "The Philippines).
The Lakanate (Kingdom) of Lawan (Ophir), an Ancient Civilization of Hebrew – blooded natives that started the Migration of the Polynesians
Well - known historians all over the world, both in the past and in the modern time prove the existence of an ancient civilization by studying their ruins, epic, artifacts, historical accounts and current articles of written in the standard history textbooks by well-known historians and archeologists. They did that for the Ancient China 2100 – 221 BC, Ancient Egypt 3150 – 31 BC, Inca Civilization 1200 – 1542 AD (Modern day Peru), Ancient Greece 800 BC – 146 BC, Maya Civilization 2000 BC – early 16th Century (Modern day Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras), Osirian Civilization (Modern day Mediterranean) and, Rama Empire 10,000 – 2,500 BC (Modern day India and Pakistan). The same rigid standard was being applied in the current study of the ancient Lakanate of Lawan where its existence was recently uncovered. Historian William Henry Scott wrote that a “Samar datu by the name of Iberein was rowed out to a Spanish vessel anchored in his harbor in 1543 by oarsmen collared in gold; while wearing on his own person earrings and chains.” In the local epic called siday entitled "Bingi of Lawan" as written in the article of Scott, Lawan is a prosperous Lakanate in Samar. Datu Hadi Iberein came from the Lakanate of Lawan. (Scott, William Henry). In the Philippines, the natives of the Lakanate of Lawan are called Waray or Waray - Waray. The Waray-Waray are often stereotyped as brave warriors, as in the popular phrase, Basta ang Waray, hindi uurong sa away, meaning "Waray never back down from a fight". They are also known as contented people, so much so that, during the Spanish era, they were often called parochial, for being contented to live in simplicity as farmers, and for making tuba palm wine from coconut nectar. The term Waray or Waray Waray came from their native dialect "Waray hadlok" (no fear in English translation, "walang takot" in Tagalog translation). They are the Vikings of the Philippines, because they sail the seas and the ocean without fear, they settle in one place without fear, and they attack settlements and kidnap people and bring them to the Lakanate of Lawan without fear. This fearless and carefree attitude of the natives of the Lakanate of Lawan made them scatter people and create settlements in different parts of the Philippines and polynesian settlements (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waray).
The Almuraya Fortress Ruins of Laoang
For 300 years, the Spaniards have been systematically marginalizing the native aristocracy of the Lakanate of Tondo and Lakanate of Lawan. Their strategy has always been the same: conquer the natives with religion. In Tondo, the seat of power of Lakan Dula was slowly erased by building the Sto. Nino Church right in his own ancestral home. The same tactics they did in Lawan. They build the church right in the seat of power of Datu Hadi Iberein and name the complex in Spanish so that the future generations will not remember it. They name it “Almuraya”. For 300 years, the Spaniards painstakingly remove all the vestiges of the ancient prosperous Hebrew lakanate. They destroyed all the structures of Almuraya by building their own structures like churches and bahay na bato houses, destroyed the secret passages from “Almuraya” to the caves of Isla de Batag and the shipping ports of Kahayagan, Kalomotan and Palapag which they converted into the ship repair station of the Galleon Trade from the Philippines to Mexico. They suppressed the siday, kandu, sorugmaton and other native folklores. They changed the surnames of the natives to Spaniards. They marginalized the native royal families who were forced to become businessmen (mostly in arastre and coconut plantations) and forget their ancient glorious past. Lawan, with its splendor as described in the “Bingi of Lawan” epic was reduced into a hispanized ruins called even today as “almuraya fortress ruins of Laoang”.
Fortunately, a small piece of the grandeur of the Lakanate of Lawan of Datu Hadi Iberein was described briefly by Fr. Ignatius Alzina in his book Historia de las Islas y Indios de Bisayas. The book said that the settlement was ruled by a monarch called Dato Karagrag, whose consort Bingi had an irresistible beauty that captivated other neighboring kings, especially the dato from Albay. (Fr. Alzina lived as missionary in Samar and Leyte for 38 years, from 1634 to 1674, working mostly in Palapag.) Describing the place of the settlement, Fr. Alzina in his visit to the place in 1640 says, “On the opposite side of Rawis, on the Lawang Island, which is a sandbar there is a solid ridge of rock. It is fashioned by nature itself and it is so steep that it looks like a façade of a wall… It was a natural fortification, due to its great height of massive rock; it was also secured as if by a moat which encircled its three sides. The fourth side was blocked by a palisade of strong logs. Then too, nature also formed on one side of this rock something like a small cove with its little beach.” It is this advanced stage of civilization, evidenced by the Dragon Jar of Laoang and many other artifacts found within the Lakanate of Lawan (Catubig-Laoang-Palapag) and their reign of influence like Albay, Surigao, Butuan, Quezon Province and Mactan, and combining the fact that the some historians are pointing to the Hebrew - influenced Lakanate of Lawan of Datu Iberein as the seat of Ophir that started the intermigration of Polynesian people in the Pacific as pointed out by an Australian study on DNA – native historians conclude that for 300 years, the Spaniards have been successful in erasing the political existence of the Lakanate of Lawan in the memory of its people and the history of the country. Fortunately, the surge of the clamor for identity of the present generation of Filipinos is paving the way for the search for the real identity of the Filipinos. One piece of artifacts that are subject to archeological analysis of some historians today is the ruins of the cobblestone watch tower of the Almuraya Fortress Ruins of Laoang. The use of cobblestone is very popular in ancient Egypt and Samaria of Israel. Is it possible that the ancient royalty of Lawan are the Hebrew – blooded people of Ophir that initiated the migration of Polynesian people into different islands in the Pacific?
The Laoang Dragon Jar, (Inalasan nga Tadyaw)
One archeological artifact that provided the conclusive evidence today of the existence of the Lakanate (a native Kingdom) of Lawan as an advanced ancient civilization in the Pacific coast is a dragon jar which is now kept by the Samar Archeological Museum in Calbayog City, Western Samar. Carl Bordeos, the curator of the museum said that the jar was found in Laoang, Northern Samar. It was carbon dated by foreign archeologists to have been used as a burial jar as early as 960 AD, as old as the Laguna Copperplate that provided the evidence for the existence of the Lakanate of Tondo. The jar is older than the coming of Islam in the Philippines. The dragon jar was discovered by a Polish Priest – historian by the name of Zdislaw Kobak. Historians said that the artifact is a secondary burial jar of a royal child, which indicate an existence of a long succession of monarch of a lakanate (a native kingdom). Historians believe that the Laoang Dragon Jar is one of the only three known dragon jars in Asia, and indication that the Lakanate of Lawan must have been a very prosperous kingdom to afford such kind of a jar for a burial of a minor member of the native royalty. Several other martabanas (burial jars), jewelries of gold and other precious stones, and some Hebrew artifacts have been excavated in an ancient burial ground in a place in Laoang now known as sawang, but they are kept by private collectors (businessmirror.com.ph). A dragon jar, also known as cloud-dragon jar, is a type of ceremonial porcelain vessel that became popular among the ruling classes of Korea during the Joseon Dynasty (1392–1910), China and in ancient Philippine royalty based in Lawan. They are decorated with large dragons against a background of stylized clouds, painted with under glaze pigments. In addition to being a generally auspicious symbol, the dragon represented the authority and beneficence of the ruler (Philadelphia Museum of Art). In 1754, King Yòngjo decreed that iron pigments were to be used exclusively, except for jars having a dragon design (Covell, p.74). Because of the scarcity of the traditional cobalt blue pigment, which was imported from Muslim Turkestan, and was also known as “Mohammedan blue”, an under glaze brown iron oxide pigment was also used between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries (Minneapolis Institute of Arts)
Bingi of Lawan: The Origin of Maharlika
There lived in this place a chief called Karagrag, who was its lord and ruler. He was married to a lady of his rank called Bingi, a name which had been bestowed on her because of her chastity, as we shall see. (I was not able to find out if she came from the same town; most probably she was from upstream on the Catubig River, where she was the daughter of the chief there.) This lady, according to what they recount, was endowed with many fine virtues and greedy celebrated for her beauty among these natives, so much so that, moved by the fame of her beauty, the Datu, or ruler, of Albay got ready a hundred ships. This chief was called Dumaraug, which means the victor, and with all those ships he weighed anchor in his land, and within a short time came in view of the [Lawan Island] town of Makarato.
His unexpected arrival excited the town, but since it was well-fortified by its natural location and it was the season of the Vendavales (the best time for going there from Albay) when the force of the sea and its waves were strong and turbulent, he did not venture to go straight in but took shelter instead near the beach which Rawis Point makes with very fine sand and free of shoals, where, became of an islet across the entrance from the sea, the surf is less obstructive and the sea milder and calm. From there he sent a small boat with a sign of peace to announce the purpose of his coming, which was simply to carry Bingi away as his wife, the fame of whose beauty alone had left him love struck and with only this would he then return to his land without making any attack and always afterward remain their friend and protector, since he think that he is more powerful than they, he could do it to their advantage. Karagrag, rather than making reply, showed them how well prepared he was by entertaining them, and when his wife was informed of Dumaraug’s intentions, she responded at once that she was greatly surprised that for something of such little worth he: had made such a demonstration and launched so many ships, that she was content with the husband she had and did not care to exchange him for any other, even to the most powerful man in the world, and that so long as he was alive, she could not think of leaving him; and if it should be her unlucky fate to fall into his hands captive, he should understand that though he might carry her off and command her as his slave, that to make her his wife, she would never consent and was ready to give her life first. Encouraged by so bold a response, her husband Karagrag simply added that he was there waiting with his men deployed, and that although they were not many, they were very good men, and that the place where they were was very secure and their arms are advanced, and if he came to try his arms in battle, they would do their duty; and if he should defeat them, he would be lord of his wife and property, but if not, he would return to his land empty-handed, if indeed he escaped from there with his life.
With this reply, and in view of the superior strength and impregnability of the place for them, with no more arms than spears and shields or at most some arrows, the chief reconsidered and hesitated a bit but not for long, and without attempting anything more and risking his men, he returned home just as he had come, leaving both the chief and his wife Bingi happy.
This happened a few years before the Spaniards came, and is still fresh in the memory of the natives of the Lawan town, who today are their descendants. Not many years ago, I buried a chief of the said island, who was more than seventy years old, whose parent had been alive when this raid took place; and a son of his who had heard it many times, related it to me with all the aforesaid details (Alcina 1668a, 4:20-23).
A bingi or bingil was a virgin or a woman who had been faithful to one man all her life. It must therefore have been bestowed on the heroine of this romance sometime after the Albay raid, the first step in an historic event’s becoming a legend. The quotation of her and her husband’s noble words indicates that the poetic process had already had its effect by the time Father Alcina heard the story. Perhaps with retelling over the centuries and the accumulation of apocryphal embellishments, the tale might have grown into a full-fledged kandu. Indeed, had ancient Visayan culture not succumbed to colonial acculturation, some Waray bard might now be singing the Epic of Bingi (William Henry Scott).
Laoang Twilight: The Lost Garden of Glory
(The picture is an ancient passage curved through the maintains, from the seat of the kingdom to the different settlements led by bagani (warriors) and war leaders. Through time, up to the present, this secret passage underwent several improvements from its ancient works curved from the mountain. At present, the passage has been cemented. Today's inhabitants of the island does not know the historic past of the canyon and its role in the preservation of the ruling family of the lakanate (kingdom),...the forgotten secret passage. )
The cradles of the Filipino civilization. The place of light, charm, beauty and harmony with its proud, insightful people stemming from enlightened culture originated before the chronicles of the Garden of Eden.
I have looked back on my life and recorded everything about my place, hence, I would like to share the wonder, glory and majesty of my beloved town—Laoang. Just imagine what it looks like before our time. The glorious name Laoang, the nature, lands, brackish and sea waters, legends, mythology's, epic of heroism and the first people in their quest through the epochs of time. This is my personal journey through my candid readings and research. I will not twist its history but I will carve up an expedition to its grandeur.
We must leave two things to our descendants when we die. One is tradition and culture and, the other is our golden history. A person without tradition and culture will fail—it is a soul that guides us to wonder in this world, our survival and the practices of our civilization. Through our history, people acquire knowledge and wisdom for living. To open up new future, we need, on the other hand, to pass on to our descendants the tradition, culture and history that has been handed down to us over thousands of years. Colorful as it is, we must continue to educate our successors especially the love for their native land, heroism, harmony and Glory.
Before our time, our ancestors worked for peace, harmony and love of our native land. People these days are raised by the picture of a hopeless society that they could not stop and suspend the perils of the forthcoming "human calamity". The present practices of "denial" to our good ancient culture, and tradition of love and harmony would lead us to our destruction, thus, developing sensitivities for our past communities and 'silvery-water history' can truly revive the resonance of a true character and proud Nortehanon-Laoanganon--the tribe of pintados-Lawagnon. Our ancestors, shed their blood and tears to make us free and happy, they didn't even fight each other rather shared their everything for 'common good', for their families, neighbors, and love of their native land.
In my expedition, in prehispanic centuries, my town was garlanded with so many names; 'Garden of Eden', 'Dawn of the Traders', 'Haven of Sailors', 'Land of Princess and Harmony', 'Gems of the East', 'Shining Islet of the Pacific', 'Port of Gold', 'Twilight of the Fishermen', 'City of Angels' and 'Land of Mystics and Miracles'. Spending time to recall its beauty will gives me pleasure and a smile. Ah, the splendor of my hometown! At bedtime, I would close my eyes, saying… I wish I have been there to see and observe the real story far from the current books of history where interest’s people were eluded inclined to their respected dimensions but not its true accounts. I could not sleep with the sounds of leaves rustling in the wind, the sound of the blowing wind through the reeds that keeps my imagination alive.
I have immersed myself in understanding the questions and finding their answers. Where did i came from? My ancestors? As I went through, my town was once known as the 'great port' of the Far East—"Pantalan-Sinirakan". The whole island was called "Sirac-an" popularly known as "Lawagan" which means "crystal torch" or something that can be associated with a fishing boat that uses light as a bait to catch fish. Sirac-an was named and called by the people living in hinterlands while Lawagan named by the people living in the plains and sea shores. Native people were known as "Lawagnon", "Lawodnon", "Sirakan", "Batacnon", "Anoron", and "Rawisnon" but most of the natives were called Lawagnon. They spoke four major dialects; Kawi, Waray, Lao and Baybayin. Batag Island used Kawi due to David Dula's influence; Waray was the native dialect of most Lawagnon and Sirakan while Lao and Baybayin were used for trading and business with the other people.
According to legend, without the crystal torch you could not find the island. Native people are 'naturists', they believed in the power of nature and spirits, they can heal wounds, they can summon good spirits to protect their land and hide them with a glow of a 'crystal torch' that evaded them from the attack of different pirates, calamities and evil spirits.
So majestic is Laoang before, native people in the different areas of the Lawagan land pray to good spirits. One day, their faith was challenged by a "great tidal wave", as tall as a 50-story building but it was easily subsided when a good spirits rubble the wave with his mighty shield and sword. Native people, young and old, saw this picture with their eyes and believed the power of their prayer. It was not Saint Michael the Archangel, not until the Spaniards and Jesuits established its mission in the area. Our ancestors believed that they be can be saved by their faith and prayer to the good spirits. This is also the light when people celebrate its feast to the good spirits that save their lives that eventually evolved to the Fiesta Celebration of St Michael the Archangel on the 29th day of September but before it was celebrated on the 8th day of August following the 'animists calendar'--It is the Feast of thanksgiving where people solemnly pray for their lives and fortune.
The land was once inhabited by the "Great Chieftains"," Princesses" and "Warriors of Virtues" whose majesty, beauty and charm were known to the world. Neighboring tribes would always visit the land; for friendship and trade, to marry their lovely women, to train as "spirit warriors" against invaders and pirates enlightened by good spirits.
The land was divided into three territories and constituencies but harmony existed in every person living in the land, they were united by one blood and honor to their sole ancestor—pintados-Lawagnon—a great family of Lawagan land who stand 15 feet tall who defended Lawagnon people many times against invaders and pirates. According to "surmatanons" (epic of Lawagnon) Pintados-Lawagnon family threw big stones to invaders that echoed Lawagnon and earned the description of "the unconquered land". Since then, people will come for trade not for war and invasions. This was our hallmark that we should remember day by day. Our hospitality has reached to the whole islands of the country then to Spain then to mexico and other parts of the world.
Moreover, the first territory was under Dato Karawton and his consort Princess Bangipa , he ruled and managed the "region of Anadanod" now the "poblacion of the town" extending Baybay to Mualbual then to Calomotan. These areas were also known as the "golden port of the pacific". The "port of Baybay" was used by different wealthy foreign citizens and Spanish royal blood who were honorable by the kingdom of Spain. They stayed in the area for a month to rest and treasured the island. The "port of Calomotan" was used by Spanish friars, officers and soldiers while the "port of Mualbual" was used to shuttle slaves going to other areas under Spain colony to perform "polo y servicio".
In other reign, the second territory was under Dato Sankayon who has lovely Princesses named Rawis and Talisay who were abducted by moro pirates in the fiercest battles in the shore of Rawis (now Titong beach). Dato Sankayon was a bitter brother of the Palapag ruler. He ruled the "Region of Rayang" extending from Rawis to Vigo to Oleras up to Pambujan (now Pambujan municipality). Dato Sankayon named the two barangays after his daughter's name. The port of Rawis was used as the Spanish elite trading capital of the pacific and "the great indies" route together with the galleon trade from Mexico then Rawis before going to Manila and Cavite.
The last kingdom, the third territory was under Dato Batac with his consort Princess Rayandayan, the land is presently named the Batag Island. He rules the "Region of Lawod" where most of his people were fishermen. People from different places in Asia, Europe and Oceania went to the place for "fish business" that's the reason why the "port of Kahagyan" now Brgy Cahayagan was made for fish market. Most people called themselves Lawodnon and Batacnon. Batacnon believed with the "Lady of the sea" (Senora de Salvacion) a good spirit who performs miracles for sick people from fishing, voyage and expeditions. The Lawodnon people were once lead by "David Dula" grandson of Lakan Dula, the great king of Tondo, Manila. When Lakan Dula's forces were defeated by the Spaniards, he sent a mission to keep his bloodline thus, his grandson David Dula was hidden at Kandawid, now Brgy Candawid in the Island of Batag, in the decree of Spanish high officials that all of Lakan Dula's heir and bloodline would be killed if found out by the Spanish soldiers. David rose to power and led "Lawagnon" side by side with a Palapag hero Juan Ponce Sumuroy against the Spanish conquistadors.
The old Lawagan regions were God's creation and His gift to presently Laoanganons. I intend to introduce the details of the history and the accounts of great men who contributed much in building Laoang. In these venues people would rather ask for a copy of its book rather than reading here. This is just a short story that is inclined to the forgotten jewel of the east but not as a complete elements of history but just to remind other about our past glories and true character.
To my constituents, we must work together to awaken our fellow Laoanganon of the preciousness of our true character, history, tradition, culture and, the urgent need to regain them the rich minds of our generation which can offer lessons from our true identity from the time of the "crystal torch" up today. We cannot allow our rich past to saddle in vain and to be damaged any further.
Laoang or Lawagan is one of humanity's treasure troves, where majesty and wonderful people and its colorful history live. The flora and fauna seem to exist as they might have on the first morning of Creation.The riverbanks used to have pineapples, banana and mango trees. Rice grows so well that it is possible to have three harvests in a year, even without irrigated fields. That's how rich the soil was. Crops such as corn and US beans could be grown just by spreading the seeds over the valley. Very little human labor is need. Farmer who lived there did not experience to be hungry; they went into the fields and dug up sweet potato and "agikway". Potatoes could be harvested without annual planting which can feed even the barrio folks. Laoang provides plenty of economic benefits just in its agricultural lands and marine wealth. The area has vast tracts of virgin hardwood forest. But now? Why?
Laoang provides a perfect environment for a Garden of Eden by its people's glory. It is not just birds and fish that are plentiful in the area but our true identity of love, harmony and glory. Lawagnon people must lead the way in the effort to save our precious nature, culture, tradition and history.
Simple words such as beautiful, wonderful and fantastic can begin to describe its value.We were once great people who lived in the "Garden of Eden".Sirac Laoang!!! (Mongas).
Note: Lawan (Laoang in todays name), was known to natives in the hinterland as Sirac, another evidence of a Hebrew heritage of the island. The Book of the All-Virtuous Wisdom of Yeshua ben Sira,[1] commonly called the Wisdom of Sirach or simply Sirach (/ˈsaɪræk/), and also known as the Book of Ecclesiasticus (/ɪˌkliːziˈæstɪkəs/; abbreviated Ecclus.)[2] or Ben Sira,[3] is a work of ethical teachings, from approximately 200 to 175 BCE, written by the Jewish scribe Ben Sira of Jerusalem, on the inspiration of his father Joshua son of Sirach, sometimes called Jesus son of Sirach or Yeshua ben Eliezer ben Sira.
The Lequios (waray hadlok) of the Lakanate of Lawan and the Vikings of Northern Europe are both Adventurous
There is something in the nature of the Warays in the Lakanate of Lawan that made them capable of sending people to faraway places over thousand years, namely: their Hebrew - influenced civilization, their personal adventurous character and the closeness of the bonds of their people. The Waray tribe is a result of intermarriages among the Lequios on one line of DNA, and on the other line, the blood mix of aboriginal natives of the ancient Philippine archipelago that were genetically refined resulting in the interbreeding of rhinoceros man, down man and callao man over half a million years. This long years of refinement made the Philippines of today the home of international beauty contest winners.
Recent findings would point to the Lakanate of Lawan as the center of biblical Ophir that became the ancestral homeland of the Polynesians. This is evidenced by the Almuraya Ruins of Laoang, the Hebrew – blooded Datu Iberein, the Dragon Jar of Laoang, their siday (local epic) such as the Bingi of Lawan and the name of the territory itself, Samar, which was named after the ancestral homeland of the ruling Lakans (paramount rulers) of the Lakanate, Samaria in the ancient Israel..
The personal characteristics of Warays have a great influence on their tendency to sail to faraway places. The ancient Waray tribal folk of Samar, Leyte, and Pintuyan Island were masters of the sea. Many of whom became pirates who attacked and raided coastal villages of present day Bohol, Bool, Cebu, the Luzon coasts and Mindanao. They utilized a form of indentured servitude to those who they captured in their raids and forced them in agricultural slavery even in forming
ranks of their war parties. The ancient Waray tribal folk hold similar semblance to the Vikings of Northern Europe (Visayas: Remaining Treasures of the Indigenous People). Warays are also describe even today as brave and principled. The Waray-speaking people of Leyte (Leyteños) and Samar (Samareños) are a strong and proud group (Ethnic Groups of the Philippines). Waray are known in the country for their suicidal courage. The Balangiga victory is done by Warays, so with Catubig Siege victory. The Sumuroy Revolt has sparked the early efforts of the natives against the Spain. The Waray descendants who were transported from Palapag to Cavite shipyards became the main forces of the Cavite rebellion which bloomed into the Philippine Republic.
The ancient songs of the Lakanate of Lawan will show their mastery and feeling at ease with sea as well as their propensity to settle in different places while being faithful to their homeland. One of the songs you can still hear today in the Isla de Batag in the ancient Lawan is this folk song (portion):
Makapira ka na, makapira ka na
Balentong baliskad,
Sini nga baloto, nga ginsasakyan mo.
(How many times, how many times
Have you fall and capsize
In this boat that you are riding now)
One of their songs speaks of the slaves enjoying too much their stay in the Lakanate and are reluctant to leave even if they are already freemen:
Diri ko gad ginhuhunaan an pagbaya dinhi
Kay naaawil man ak, san iyo kustombre
Labi na gud an sipyat ngan hiyum….
(authors note: well sorry, forgotten the next line, future researchers may just complete it)
Baman, an akon higugma, tyempo in mamingaw,
Matangis na man la.
(Never in my mind would I think of leaving this place
Because I really enjoy your customs
Specially those fleeting glances and stolen smiles
But whatever happens, if this flaming love
Becomes so lonesome
I will just cry)
This next folk song is mysteriously in Tagalog dialect, but is being sung in ancient Candawid in Batag Island even up to now, especially among old folks. Efforts have been made to search for the origin of the song in Manila and in the Tagalog provinces but to no avail. Local historians are saying that this song is the favorite of the widow of David Dulay in putting their children to sleep.. The widow is the granddaughter of Datu Iberein while the David is the son of David Dula y Goiti, a grandson of Lakan Dula of Tondo. The widow thought that David has left her to go back to Tondo. Years later, she came to know that David was executed by the Spaniards in Palapag.
An Tangis ni Iday Iberein
(an ancient lequios kundiman song)
Giliw ko, nasaan ang awa mo.
Ang puso, na sadyang nagmamahal sa yo.
Walang bukas, at walang anu ano.
Nilimot mo ang lahat, nang kaligayahan.
Mamahalin din kita kahit nilisan mo hirang.
Susuyuin din kita magpahanggang libing tunay.
Mamahalin din kita ikaw lang ang tanging mahal.
Nilimot mo ang lahat.
Ng kaligayahan.
(My love, where is your mercy
This heart of mine which is loving you truly
No warning, no signs -- you have left.
Forgetting all the happiness we shared.
I will still love you even though you have left me,
This love of mine I will carry through my grave.
I will love you and you will always be my one and only love
Even if you have forgotten all the happy moments we shared together.)
This romance and closeness of people in this prosperous civilization, their natural tendency to sail and their feeling homey to the sea made this Hebrew – blooded natives, over thousand years, send people through boats in the different islands in the Pacific and inside the Philippines archipelago in almost the same magnitude as the ancient Vikings.
The Migration Pattern of the Polynesians out of their Lawan Homeland.
Polynesians, including Samoans, Tongans, Niueans, Cook Islands Māori, Tahitian Mā'ohi, Hawaiian Māoli, Marquesans and New Zealand Māori, are a subset of the Austronesian peoples. They share the same origins as the indigenous peoples of maritime Southeast Asia, Madagascar, and Taiwan. This is supported by genetic, linguistic, and archaeological evidence.
Historian Otley Beyer said that the “dawn man”, the aborigines of the Philippines, existed 250,000 years ago, although the callao man fossils have been dated as 65,000 years ago – in both cases, they are much earlier than the cro magnun man of Europe. Darwin believes that life started in the ocean, so, it possible that the Pacific Ocean have bred life into the shores of Samar million years ago, but as to what year those life forms evolved into human form could still be a subject of scientific and archeological researches, but the possibility that it is earlier than 250,000 years ago is very strong. The possibility that Lawan in Samar Island in an important part of the Polynesian civilization was confirmed somehow by a finding in an Australian study that the Pacific Island Philippines could be the homeland of Polynesians in the pacific oceans. The migration of the Filipinos to different pacific islands who are identified today as Polynesians and inwards into the Philippine islands happened slowly in thousand years and is evidenced by an existence of an ancient shipping industry based in Palapag which was later converted into the shipping repair stations of the Galeon Trade (http://www.ancient-origins.net). In recent year, a group of French scientist unearthed what the scientific community described as the "rhinoceros man" in the pacific side of the southern Philippines. The French scientists revealed that based on their strict carbon dating, the artifacts they discovered were as old as 700,000 years. This somehow triangulated that the Philippines is an ancient cradle of humanity, even earlier than the "Out of Africa Theory". This also supports the existence of the Hebrew - blooded Lakanate of Lawan in the present - day Samar Islands in the Pacific once headed by a Lequios Datu Iberein.
Several diggings of Balangay (native ship) were also found in Butuan within the Pacific islands and the ships are so sturdy. In place called Sawang in Laoang Island, diggings of jewelries, antique plates and burial urns which the native called martabana shows sign of a prosperous ancient civilization. In a chronicle of the Spanish conquistadores as narrated by a British Scholar, 100 ships from a chieftain of Albay in the Pacific coast of Bicol headed by Chieftain Dumaraog attacked the Makarato settlement of Hadi Iberein of Lawan (now Laoang) but the Hebrew - blooded settlement repulsed the attack and the Albay warriors returned home.
No doubt, the ancestors of the Tagalogs reached Tondo and other places in boats, but it is hardly likely that Tagalog communities could have maintained their discrete boatload identities across centuries and millennia. But the choice of the term balangay (which is the origin of barangay, describing a settlement), and the explanation for it, would have reinforced the perception of each community as historically distinct from all others, and legitimized its captain’s claim to personal allegiance. With the exception of sparse populations inhabiting the interior mountain ranges, all sixteenth-century Filipinos lived on the seacoast or the banks of navigable lakes and streams. Their only means of transportation were boats: there is no evidence of wheeled vehicles or draft animals. Traders and raiders, friends and foes crossed from one side of a river to the other by boat, from island to island, and between distant ports on the same island. Communities were connected, not separated, by water: it was by water that they exchanged foodstuffs, manufactured wares, and foreign imports (Scott). The reign and intermigration of the Hebrew – influenced Lawan (suspected to be the Ophir) civilization went into different directions slowly over thousands of years reaching inward as far as Surigao, Butuan, Mactan, Albay, Tondo Manila, Quezon Province, Cagayan Valley, Palawan, Taiwan, and outward as far as Madagascar, and Marquesas Islands
Sukkot in Hebrew means it celebration of the gathering of the harvest. In ancient Lakanate of Lawan, sukot eventually would mean gathering of debts.
The Hebrew connection of the ancient Philippine civilization is again confirmed by the Biblical stories about Ophir that traded with the Israelites in the ancient times. The mapping of the exact naval location of Ophir points to the Philippines. A British scholar on the ancient Philippine civilization identified a Hebrew chieftain in Laoang, Samar in his studies as Datu Iberein who was responsible in naming the island as Samar, in memory of his homeland Samaria. The Spaniards attempted to rename the island as Filipinas (from where the Philippines came from) but the natives continue to call it Samar. A recent US study which was presented also in You Tube identified with certainty that the Philippines is the Biblical Ophir. This study was triangulated by the fact that that the Tagalog language is so near to the language of the Hebrews, ancient names of Philippine mountains and other important islands are named with Hebrew terms like Mt. Pulag, Mt. Canlaon, Batag Islands, etc (Solomon's Gold Series - Part 1: Introduction: Where is Ophir? Is it Philippines?).
A foreign study of the Tagalog dialect spoken in the Kingdom of Tondo reveals that Tagalog came from the dialect spoken in the hinterlands of Samar. This was confirmed by the Calatagan Jar found in the deeply Tagalog Region of Batangas. The jar is an ancient burial jar being used in the ancient settlements within the influence of the Kingdom of Tondo. The ancient markings in the Calatagan Jar is written in Waray dialect of Samar. The Samar - Hebrew connections was again confirmed in the recent times when Sephardi Jews escaping Spanish persecution in the Ibarian Peninsula decided to settle in Samar. One of those families is the Mendoza family of Lawan (Laoang) who up to the present, some of their relatives in the US are attending Jewish congregations. British scholars pointed out that the Bisayans are practicing circumcision in the ancient times, a tradition that came from the Hebrews. But because the Hebrews of Samar are in the influence of the Samaritan culture, the natives of Samar did not follow the strict Jewish rituals just like the native Samaritans of Israel. Quite recently, Philippine President Manuel Quezon of the Pacific town of Baler accepted Jewish refugees from Europe into the Philippines during WW ll. It seems that President Quezon is aware of the Hebrew ancestry of a civilization of Hadi Iberein of the Pacific Islands of Samar. It seems that the Pacific islander’s ancient Philippine civilization of chieftain Iberein which the natives called Hadi, slowly spread through time into the pacific islands and inward into the Philippine islands like in Mactan, Surigao, Butuan, Albay and eventually Tondo and most of these settlements prospered into a full blown Kingdom headed by a dynasty of Lakans (paramount ruler), even bigger than their homeland of Lawan. The respect of the Lakans of Tondo to their ancestral homeland of Hadi Iberein in the Pacific island of Lawan, Samar was shown during the height of Spanish persecution of the native nobility when Batang Dula (eldest son of the King of Tondo) and Senorita de Goiti, his Spanish wife, decided to hide their children from the possible harm from the Spanish Guardia Civil. They entrusted their eldest son, David Dula y Goiti to the care of a local chieftain of their allies in Lawan Island in Samar. The other children, Daba was entrusted to an uncle in Candada and Dola, the youngest was entrusted to a tribe in Candola, San Luis, Pampanga.
Some historians estimated the Lakanate of Lawan (forebear of Kaharian ng Tondo), to have existed on their ancient reign as around circa 70,000 years BC to 1,600 AD. The estimated seat of the epoch is calculated by some historians to be somewhere in the pacific islands of the Philippines, notably the third biggest island of the archipelago in the pacific called Samar -- somewhere in the present “Catubig – Laoang – Palapag” topography. Based on historical records of the Philippines and on recorded siday (the native oral historical epic) or oral Kandu of the people of Samar Island, some names of hadi (indigenous term for Lakan or paramount rulers) mentioned include Lakan Laon, Kerak, Magpog, Lakan Timamanukum, Lakan Arao, Lakan Matayon, Lakan Apula, Lapiton, Patuki, Hantik, Lakan Biringon, Kalyaw, Makarato, Karagrag, Bingil, Dumaraog, Wihano, Karawton, Lakan Malagas, Taboon, Sangkayon, Waytanggi, Bathaq, Uhabi, and Hadi Iberein. In the book by historian William Henry Scott, it was said that a “Samar datu by the name of Iberein was rowed out to a Spanish vessel anchored in his harbor in 1543 by oarsmen collared in gold; while wearing on his own person earrings and chains ”, a sign of a long prosperous civilization long before the Spaniards came.
In the latest study published in the American journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, an international team of researchers led by Alan Cooper, director of the Australian Centre for Ancient DNA (ACAD), at the University of Adelaide used ancient DNA to study the origins and dispersal of ancestral Polynesian chickens. They found that Polynesian chickens had their genetic roots in the Philippines, making that region a candidate for the homeland of the mysterious Lapita people who transported the domesticated birds to the Pacific islands. The estimated dates of the reign of the above mentioned lakans or hadis are still subject of anthropological researches. For so many thousand long years, the Lakanate of Lawan slowly initiated a slow and enduring process of what could be a series of inter migration of inhabitants or expansion of their reign into the different Polynesian islands in the pacific and inward into the Philippine archipelago that gave rise to the emergence of several prosperous settlements in most part of the country, like the Kingdom of Tondo in Manila, and into the different islands in the Pacific.The Emergence of the Polynesian Consciousness
The Lakanate of Lawan (Ophir) in Samar (from their homeland in Samaria) is at the influence center of several prosperous settlements in the pacific side of the Philippines - from Surigao, Butuan, Mactan, Quezon Province and Albay - have created lots of legends, curiosity and attraction from as far as India, Israel, Indonesia, China, Malaysia, Brunei, Spain, USA and Japan. Forces from Majapahit, Srivijaya, India, Borneo and China tried to interact with the Lakanate of Lawan (Ophir), bringing their own people and culture and ended up settling in different places near the center of the Lakanate instead. The Sanskrit - speaking people ended in Butuan, the Muslims ended in Sulu, the Bornean Datu, Indonesians and Negritoes ended in Panay, as per the theory of migration of Otley Beyer…only the people historians describes lequios – hebrews – warays - lapita managed to settle right at the heart of the Lakanate of Lawan (Ophir) as natives of the settlement and their operation base to bring gold and other items to Israel every three years. Meantime, these natives of the Lakanate which are known in some history books as the hebrew, lequios, lapita people or waray intermarried with migrants and their captives. They are known for their Viking - like characteristics: love of the seas, bravery, adventurous and loyalty to their homeland that wherever they settled – Tondo, Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao and other land in faraway countries, seas and ocean - they still dream of going back to the Lakanate of Lawan, a trait that even the modern day warays still carry today. Thus, the very nature of the people of Lawan (Ophir) led to the series of intermigrations and intermarriages in this part of the world – settle, go, return, settle, go, return, process - exchanging culture, ways of life, beliefs, religion, stories and writing system. Though thousands of long and arduous years, the writing system of the people of Baybay (poblacion) of Lawan (Ophir) and the native Hebrew of Israel have influenced each other as well as with the other writing systems of nearby civilizations and settlement, their bloodline have spread as well, so with their practices. Tagalog (pronounced təˈɡɑːlɒɡ in English) is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV (CALABARZON and MIMAROPA) and of Metro Manila. Its standardized form, commonly called Filipino, is the national language and one of two official languages of the Philippines. It is related to—though not readily intelligible with—other Austronesian languages such as Malay, Javanese, and Hawaiian. The word Tagalog derived from tagailog, from tagá- meaning "native of" and ílog meaning "river". Thus, it means "river dweller". Very little is known about the history of the language. However, according to linguists such as Dr. David Zorc and Dr. Robert Blust, the Tagalog dialect originated, along with their Central Philippine cousins, from Northeastern Mindanao or Eastern Visayas. The Lakanate of Lawan (Ophir) is in the Eastern Visayas or Waray Region. The western writers garlanded the Philippine land with more names such as Maniolas, Ophir, Islas del Oriente, Islas del Poniente, Archipelago de San Lazaro, Islas de Luzones(Island of Mortars), Archipelago de Magallanes and Archipelago de Legaspi. The western writers and ocean navigators called the islands Ophir before the Western people arrived and renamed it as Felipinas from the name of King Felipe of Spain. When the first European historian set their foot in the land of Ophir, it was written by historian Gregorio F. Zaide in page 2 and page 24 of History of the Filipino People, that Padre Chirino an eminent Jesuit historian found in Tagalog language that “it has the Mystery and obscurities of the Hebrew language”. Since the Tagalog dialect came from ancient Waray dialect. Therefore in the islands of Ophir the people speaks Ancient-Hebrew. (http://www.scribd.com/doc/78713593/Philippines-is-Ophir, retrieved December 23, 2012). Baybay is the poblacion at the center of the Lakanate of Lawan (Ophir). Their ancient script was described in nearby Palapag by Spanish Priest Alcina in 1668 and this ancient form of Baybayin is called by Dr. Bonifacio Comandante as Surat Waray. It is so ancient that it has only 14 pelasgic scripts. Further away from the center Baybay is the same crude 14 pelasgic Baybayin scripts recorded by historian Delgado in 1751 in Guian, Eastern Samar. It is also identified by Dr. Comandante as an older version of Baybayin as Surat Waray. The expansion of the ancient Baybay 14 pelasgic Scripts was also recorded in Carigara Leyte in 1683 by Spanish historian Esguerra and Dr. Comandante also identified it as Surat Waray. The 14 crude scripts from Baybay, Ophir may have been used by the Viking – like people describe by historians interchangeably as lequios, warays, lapita or hebrews to list the names of people and materials they bring in and out of different settlements they create or invade or trade with, but in the process, different settlements kept on improving or adding extra scripts. Dr. Borrinaga said that the Baybayin in the Doctrina Cristiana is a modified form of Baybayin from a crude origin. Even today, the Warays and the Samoans have almost the same way of pronouncing their numbers from 1 to 10; the scripts of the Tagalogs of Luzon and as far as people of Java in Indonesia developed further the ancient and crude scripts of Baybay from the poblacion of Ophir.
Towards the end of the nineteenth century and in the early years of the present century, scholars, colonial administrators, missionaries and the like were genuinely concerned that Pacific islanders quite possibly faced physical extinction. The voluntary and not-so-voluntary recruitment of Melanesians to work on distant overseas plantations, the kidnapping of Polynesians to work in mines in South America, greater destructiveness of warfare due to the introduction of firearms, and especially the ravages of introduced diseases, were some of the factors behind the alarming decline of island populations in the Pacific. But with improved health care, better control of labor recruitment, the proscription of internecine warfare, and so forth, the situation was gradually reversed (Hau’ofa). Fortunately, Lawan and other polynesian settlements are so strong and cohesive that they have not encountered abuses from foreigners.
From the point of view of physical and cultural survival, the Polynesians have to respect and be proud of their common ancestry and heritage. One curious and interesting song that the Polynesians should enjoy is the “Laoang Sunset”, an English version of an old kundiman song, favorite song of the natives of the ancestral homeland of all Polynesians, the Lawan in the Island of Samar in the Philippines.
We invite all Pacific Islanders to share their music, dance, poetry and stories to fellow Polynesians -- for our survival and identity.
References:
BusinesMirror.https://businessmirror.com.ph/polish-priest-lays-foundation-for-samar-archeological-museum/. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
Center of Center of the World "The Philippines. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4efhXRP6qc. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
Covell, Jon Carter & Alan Covell, The World of Korean Ceramics, Seoul, Si-sa Yong-o-sa, 1986, p. 74
Ethnic Groups of the Philippines. http://www.ethnicgroupsphilippines.com/people/ethnic-groups-in-the-philippines/waray/.. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
Gallery label, Minneapolis Institute of Arts
Gallery label, Philadelphia Museum of Art
Hau'ofa, Epeli . The Future of Our Past. https://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/bitstream/10125/15522/1/OP27-151-169.pdf. Retrieved April 15, 2018
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misliya_cave. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waray_people#Stereotypes Retrieved August 27, 2019
https://fahwany.files.wordpress.com/2018/01/philippine-medical-and-solidarity-mission-4-14-september-2018-1-1.pdf. Retrieved October 10, 2018
http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-evolution-human-origins/new-study-suggests-philippines-ancestral-homeland-polynesians-001463. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
https://www.popsci.com/where-and-when-did-life-begin#page-4. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
Noel Acedera Mongas. Tribute to Laoang Fiesta 2013: First Edition
Scott, William Henry. Cracks in the parchment curtain and other essays in Philippine history. 1985. New Day Publishers. 978-971-10-0073-8. 93.
Solomon's Gold Series - Part 1: Introduction: Where is Ophir? Is it Philippines? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gL2eltMMK0U&t=118s. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
Thomas Ingicco. MNHN. AFP. https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2018/05/03/1811785/early-humans-philippines-700000-years-ago-study#c5tTHUecmbK9cV1y.99. Retrieve May 20, 2018.
Visayas: Remaining Treasures of the Indigenous People. https://sites.google.com/site/humanities2visayas2015/home/c-eastern-visayas/waray. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
William Henry Scott. https://archive.org/stream/BarangaySixteenthCenturyPhilippineCultureAndSociety/Barangay++Sixteenth+Century+Philippine+Culture+and+Society_djvu.txt. Retrieved April 4, 2018.
Zaide, Sonia M. The Philippines: A Unique Nation: With Dr. Gregorio Zaide History of the Republic of the Philippines. All Nations Publishing Co. Inc. 1994, p.32
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