|
|
|
|
Culture of the Philippines
|
| |
|
| |
The culture of the Philippines reflects the complexity of the history of the Philippines through the blending of cultures of diverse indigenous civilizations, and foreign influences.
Spanish colonization of the Philippines, governed from Spain and Mexico, lasted for over three centuries thus, there is a significant amount of Spanish-Mexican influence in many facets of Philippine custom and tradition. Hispanic influences are most visible in Philippine folk music, folk dance, language, food, art, and religion.
Pre-Hispanic indigenous Philippine culture had similar cultural influences from Malaysia, Indonesia and throughout Southeast Asia, particularly the Srivijaya Empire and the Majapahit Empire.
Discussion
Ask a question about 'Culture of the Philippines' Start a new discussion about 'Culture of the Philippines' Answer questions from other users |
Encyclopedia
The culture of the Philippines reflects the complexity of the history of the Philippines through the blending of cultures of diverse indigenous civilizations, and foreign influences.
Spanish colonization of the Philippines, governed from Spain and Mexico, lasted for over three centuries thus, there is a significant amount of Spanish-Mexican influence in many facets of Philippine custom and tradition. Hispanic influences are most visible in Philippine folk music, folk dance, language, food, art, and religion.
Pre-Hispanic indigenous Philippine culture had similar cultural influences from Malaysia, Indonesia and throughout Southeast Asia, particularly the Srivijaya Empire and the Majapahit Empire. Philippine Mythology, like Asian mythologies, has been influenced by Islamic, Hinduism and Buddhism.
The Philippines were a territory of the United States from 1898 until 1946. American influences are evident in the use of the English language, and in contemporary pop culture, such as fast-food, music, movies, and basketball.
The Chinese and the Japanese have been settling in the Philippine Islands since pre-colonial times, and their influence is evident in the popularity of gambling games such mahjong, jueteng, Filipino martial arts, cuisine like mochi and palitao, seaweed salad, and other Asian cuisine.
Various Muslim Filipinos living in the southern Philippine Islands also celebrate their own customs and traditions, such as concepts of local law (Agamat), and personal honor (Maratabat), which are related to both Islamic, and native concepts. The martial art of Kali emerged from the island of Mindanao.
The Kulintang gong-chime ensemble, which is still played by various groups in the south, is a celebrated icon of surviving ancient Philippine culture. Kulintang has a history that dates back hundreds of years before the Spanish period, and shares concepts with other court and folk gong ensembles in Southeast Asia, such as Gamelan.
Philippine society
The Philippines is a multi-ethnic society. The nation is divided between Christians, Muslims, and other religio-ethno-linguistic groups; between urban, and rural people; between high-land, and low-land people; and between the rich, and poor. Although different from one another in many ways, Filipinos across all of these culture groups are generally hospitable and will give appropriate respect to anyone regardless of race, culture or belief.
Way of life
About two-fifths of the Philippine population live in urban areas, while three-fifths of the people live in rural areas, although the proportion of people living in towns, and cities is steadily increasing. Most people live in urban areas, while farmers, with agriculturalists living in rural towns, and villages. The majority of the people follow an old-age tradition in addition to the latest contemporary life styles, and fashion trends.
Social life is an important aspect of Philippine society. It implies family or togetherness in a group, and the cause of one’s being socially accepted. It requires someone yielding to group opinion, pressuring him to do what he can for the advancement of his group, sacrificing individual welfare for the general welfare. Consensus takes precedent over individual needs or opinion. The concept of "hiya" or "shame" plays a central role in social harmonization.
Social harmony implies smooth social interaction. Relationships, no matter with whom and on what level, should be without open conflict. Most Philippine nationals in general will avoid verbal confrontations, or using rude words or gestures, the direct decline of a request, and will try to act politely and calmly even when agitated. You will seldom hear no to a request or question. To an expatriate this will be confusing, and sometimes lead one to think Filipinos are insincere or otherwise misleading with their answers. It is not so. Maybe is a standard reply which often means no, or sometimes yes, and other times maybe. If you are now totally confused, it is understandable. It takes exposure, and time to understand the difference.
The concept of social harmony may partly stem from the hierarchal structure of Filipino society. The hierarchy itself stems from the family, where the father, who is traditionally seen as the bread winner, is considered the "king" of the household. However, the title of "king" is inaccurate as the mother often controls the finances and discipline over the children. In Filipino folklore, both the husband and wife came from a single piece of bamboo. So, there is an egalitarian concept to the role of husband and wife in Philippine society. This egalitarian concept, however, may have evolved through the eras of colonization, when Philippine culture began to adopt some aspect of Spanish machismo culture and the Hindu and/or Confucian concepts of familial and social hierarchy.
The Filipino hierarchy extends towards the children, where the eldest child is seen as having the oner of responsibility over the other siblings. The hierarchy, thus, continues in descending order from oldest to youngest. What this means in practice is that the younger sibling must obey the elder sibling. Yet, all the children must obey the parents. In some families, the mother must obey and sometimes "serve" the father. The children, of course, must also serve both parents. This idea of filial service is tied to debt of gratitude. Children are deemed to have eternal debt of gratitude to the parents. As a general rule of hierarchy, anyone who is younger must obey or defer to anyone who is older, a rule that also exists in many other Asian cultures. The strength of obedience or deference depends, but is not dependent, on consanguinity.
The hierarchal nature of Philippine society perhaps partly explains the perpetuation of avoiding social disharmony no matter how brief or slight. The hierarchy assures that those who are in the lower rung of the hierarchy cannot question social norms and belief systems. A common explanation to many questions may be that "that's just the way things are." Yet, social hierarchy itself does not fully explain the avoidance of social disharmony, which has become embedded in Filipino identity. The hierarchal social structure itself stems from Hindu and/or Confucian philosophy. Yet, other Asian philosophies like Taoism might also help explain the desire to avoid social conflict. There is a culture "go with the flow" attitude among Filipinos, which is sometimes referred to as "pakigsama." Pakigsama seems to have Buddhist and Taoist roots.
Arguing, disagreeing, and being very straightforward or frank, is considered by many Filipinos as a breach of etiquette. The avoidance of social conflict has helped create the idea of "bahala na" or "let's see" philosophy. When a problem arises, a Filipino will often respond by saying "bahala na" or "let's see what happens." In this sense, the avoidance of conflict has become internalized in Filipino psyche. In order to avoid conflict, a Filipino would rather avoid discussing a "sensitive" or an "uncomfortable" topic. Pushing the discussion of an "uncomfortable" topic can be deemed as a lack of etiquette. One tool for avoiding an uncomfortable discussion is through humor or by changing the topic of discussion completely. Yet, almost anything controversial can become taboo or sensitive. Thus, there can become a lack of serious dialogue over some serious social issues, including sexuality. The avoidance of social confrontation may also help perpetuate social injustices in the Philippines, including the systemic problems of graft and corruption.
Often, critical matters are negotiated through third parties to avoid direct conflict. Sometimes a quarrel between two individuals escalates to an unsolvable row between two clans or families. The only way to resolve the conflict peaceably, is to go to the local barrio or barangay chief captain, and use him as a mediator. The town chief will explain to both parties in private why he is doing them a favor by entertaining their side of the argument. In the end all go home satisfied that they have been heard and perhaps nothing was gained or lost in the process.
Harmony, is most important at work places, and is considered as an important factor in Philippine society. Harmony has many manifestations in Philippine society, one of which is extending support or offering help to neighbors who are in need. This comes from the still relevant necessity to bind together to survive as a group. When food is scarce, and rice is expensive, all eat, for the good of the group. Harmony reflects the togetherness spirit, which involves cooperation among fellow men to come up with a certain idea or accomplish a certain task.
Nonetheless, feuds, vendettas, and violence are not uncommon in Philippine society.
Reciprocity
Utang-na-loob is a Filipino cultural trait which academics sometimes refer to as "reciprocity," and which transliterates as "a debt of one's inner self (loob)." It is also sometimes translated as a "debt of gratitude." In the study of Filipino psychology, utang na loob is considered an important "accommodative surface value," along with "hiya" and "pakikisama". That is to say, it is one of the values by which the Filipino accommodates the demands of the world around him, as opposed to confrontative values like "lakas ng loob" and "pakikibaka".
The essence of utang na loob is an obligation to appropriately repay a person who has done one a favor. The favors which elicit the Filipino's sense of utang na loob are typically those whose value is impossible to quantify, or, if there is a quantifiable value involved, involves a deeply personal internal dimension. This internal dimension, loob, differentiates Utang na Loob from an ordinary debt("utang"); being an internal phenomenon, utang na loob thus goes much deeper than ordinary debt or even the western concept of owing a favor. Filipino psychology explains that this is a reflection of the "kapwa" orientation of shared person-hood or shared self, which is at the core of the Filipino values system.
In some cases, utang na loob is repaid by giving special favors to the other person regardless of the moral outcome.
Philippine personal alliance systems are anchored by kinship, beginning with the nuclear family. A Filipino's loyalty goes first to the immediate family, and personal identity is deeply embedded in the matrix of kinship. It is normal that one owes support, loyalty, and trust to one's close kin and, because kinship is structured bilaterally among relatives, one's kin can include quite a large number of people. With respect to kin beyond this nuclear family, closeness in relationship depends very much on physical proximity.
A bond between two individuals may be formed based on the concept of Dept of gratitude. Another way of saying obligation to repay a loan or debt. Although it is expected that the debtor will attempt repayment, it is widely recognized that the debt, as in one's obligation to a parent, can never be fully repaid and the obligation can last for generations.
Saving someones life, providing employment, or making it possible for another to become educated are "gifts" that incur utang na loob. Moreover, such gifts initiate a long-term reciprocal interdependency in which the grantor of the favor can expect help from the debtor whenever the need arises and the debtor can, in turn, ask other favors. Such reciprocal personal alliances have had obvious implications for the society in general and the political system in particular.
There is also a tying between Asian, European and Latin American etiquettes from previous external travelers and explorers who have influenced the Filipino culture as these behaviors and social norms and beliefs are found in the Filipino mainstream culture. Some of these behaviors continue over with Overseas Filipinos.
Family
It should be emphasized that close familial ties are upheld to the highest extent. The primary social welfare system for the Filipino is the family. Many Filipinos live near their family for most of their lives, even as independent adults. A nuclear family is very common among Filipinos. Divorce does not exist in the Philippines.
Courtship among the Philippine nationals is heavily influenced by Spanish, and Roman Catholic traditions. Many parents disapprove of girls visiting boys' homes. Usually, the boy comes to the girl's house to formally introduce himself to her parents, and family. The Filipino must win the Filipina's parents' approval.
Among great distances of the family, balikbayan boxes are transferred through vast distances as some are compelled to move to international territories. These overseas Filipinos send huge boxes called the balikbayan box to their families back in the motherland containing goods, gadgets and/ or popular trendy items. They also bring balikbayan boxes when they return to their motherland on vacation to visit their family. Sometimes their families in the Philippines return the favor and send exotic food items only found in the Philippines or indigenous property expressing Filipino workmanship. It is another way to express cultural exchange and a way of helping out their families at home.
Community
The creation of community friendship with neighbors, and a helping attitude whenever one is in dire need is what Filipinos call bayanihan, which means togetherness.
Philippine nationals get around by riding in jeepneys, buses, and cars. In urban areas, there are trains such as the LRT and MRT as well as boats, taxis, and ferries. In rural areas carabaos are often used for transport. Bus transportation is used to get from one major city to another. Taxis or tricycles are used to get from place to place within a city. The driving style in the country follows that one honks the horn to warn of an oncoming vehicle.
Wealth and beauty
The belief that white is beautiful is held by many Filipino women, leading them to stay out of the sun to keep their skin from getting dark. Even at a young age, children are taught and practice this belief. Furthermore, many of these women use bleaching or whitening skin products to keep their skin white, and also use anti pimple or anti blackhead products. This bias towards favoring white skin came from the influential behaviours of the Spanish, and the American during the colonial period, and continues to be used among many Filipinos to this day.
Fatness was once associated with wealth, while being too skinny, on the other hand, a sign of poverty. Nowadays, being slim has become a trend not only among the young but also among the older generations.
Rebonding, and hair relaxing are popular among teenagers. Spa treatments are also famous. Indulging in various salon treatments is a common activity among well-off Filipinos which helps the rising popularity of many salons.
In formal gatherings, men wear the Barong Tagalog, a translucent pearl white shirt, usually made of piña (pineapple) fibers or jusi [hoo-si] (banana) fibers. But in informal settings, such as at home or at picnics, Filipinos either go barefoot or wear slippers. Due to the humid tropical climate, men are often found in a tank top or go barechested, wearing shorts and with a towel on their shoulder to wipe away the sweat.
In rural areas of the country, some Filipino children resort to bathing naked in public. Those who live near rivers take baths there, and natives will use river stones as washcloths to scrub themselves. Since water pressure is lacking in many areas of the country, many people resort to using buckets (timba at tabo) for bathing. People are so used to the routine of using the bucket bath method that they will continue to use it even when water pressure is more than adequate for shower use. Places that have adequate water pressure like hotels do have running shower heads.
Communication
Some urban, and rural Filipinos often call for attention by saying "hoy!" (meaning: Hey!, in the Tagalog language) or use a rising hiss like a snake by saying "psst."
To greet a friend, or express "what's up," one usually whips his head upward for acknowledgment. Sometimes, people who know with each other high-fives called by the locals as “apir” or “appear”.
The use of lips to point is widely practiced. Instead of using their pointer fingers, Filipinos may point with their lips extended out to indicate the position of an object.
Telecommunications, and e-mail are popular as well as the usage of cell phones. Many Filipinos, even those who live in poverty, own mobile phones. Sending SMS messages is a common way of communication, as it is cheaper than making a call. The Philippines is considered to be the Txt capital of the world sending millions of SMS messages a day.
Religion and Superstition in the Philippines
Before the arrival of the Spaniards, and the introduction of Roman Catholicism, and Western culture in the 1500s, the indigenous inhabitants of the Philippine Islands were adherents of a mixture of animism, Sufi, Islam, Hinduism, and Vajrayana Buddhism. Bathala was the supreme God of the Tagalog people, represented by the "langit" (sky), The Ninuno, or the ancient ancestors, were the people who taught believed in the supreme God. For the Bikolanos, the supreme God was Gugurang. Other indigenous gods, and goddesses include "araw" (sun), "buwan" (the moon), tala (the stars), and natural objects (such as trees, shrubs, mountains, or rocks). However, they were not the Western kinds of gods and goddesses; they were representations for some Ancient Filipino believe; or they were representations as gifts. As the Abrahamic religions began to sweep the islands, most Filipinos became Christians, consequently believing in only one God. Other Filipinos became Muslims, especially in the southern islands of the country such as Mindanao. Spirits such as the "aswang" (weredog), the "tikbalang" (a creature with the head of a horse and the physique of a man), the "kapre" (a giant that is seen smoking tobacco), the "tiyanak" (monster-like, vampire-esque child), the "santelmo" (fireball), "duwende" (dwarves, and elves), the manananggal (witches that can split their bodies at their torsos and feed on baby's blood), "engkanto" (minor spirits), and "diwata" (fairies/nymphs), are believed to pervade the Philippines. Aside from that, voodoo practices (such as pangkukulam) and witchcraft were practiced by pre-colonial inhabitants. Beliefs such as usog (a child greeted by a stranger will get sick) and lihi (the child will resemble the food craved during pregnancy) are also present. These beliefs have been carried up to the present generation of Filipinos, which has led some foreign authors to (incorrectly) describe them as Pagan-Christians.
Voodoo, psychic surgery, and the rituals of medicine men and women are commonly practiced in most indigenous Filipino societies. These spiritual-ritual practices are found mostly in rural areas throughout the islands. In Tagalog, people who cast spells and lay curses are called "mangkukulam"; people who curse their enemies by putting insects inside their bodies are called "mambabarang"; and, in contrast to these two, the healers of these curses are called "albularyo".
Psychic surgeons are people who appear to remove tumors and diseased tissue by sticking their hands into a patient's body and extracting bloody human flesh, but leaving the patient scar free. Some see this practice as just sleight of hand fakery, others accept it as true, still others accept it as an alternative healing method and a way to take advantage of the placebo effect.
Arts of the Philippines
Philippine cultural arts cover a variety of forms of entertainment.
Literature
The literature of the Philippines started with fables, and legends of prehistory, and colonial legacy of the Philippines, written in both indigenous, and Hispanic writing system. Most of the notable literatures of the Philippines were written during the Mexican, and Spanish period. Philippine literature is written in Spanish, Filipino, English, and other native Philippine languages.
Performance Arts
Music
Music in the Philippines features several styles. Some are contemporary such as Filipino rock and Filipino hip hop. Some are traditional such as Filipino folk music with indigenous instruments.
Dance
Philippine folk dances include the Cariñosa and Tinikling. In the southern part of the Mindanao, there is another dance called singkil using long bamboo poles as in Tinikling; however, it is primarily a dance which showcases lavish Muslim royalty. In this dance, there are four bamboo sticks arranged in a tic-tac-toe pattern in which the dancers exploit every position of these clashing sticks. The dancers try to avoid all 4 bamboo sticks as the sticks clap together in the middle. They can also try to dance an entire rotation around the middle avoiding all sticks. Usually these stick dances are performed in teamwork fashion, not solo. The Singkil dance is identifiable with the use of umbrellas and silk clothing. See and .
Visual Arts
Painting
Filipinos began creating artistic paintings in the 17th century during the Spanish period, and have continued up to the present, with such revered artists as Juan Luna, Fernando Amorsolo, and Fernando Zóbel. Other popular artists include Hugo C. Yunzon reflecting an earthy style that touches on indigenous culture in pieces such as Early Risers and Mariang Makiling,, Nestor Leynes with Mag-ina Sa Banig, and Tam Austria with Mag-Anak.
Cinema and Television
The advent of the Cinema of the Philippines can be traced back to the early days of filmmaking in 1897, when a Spanish theater owner named Pertierra screened imported moving pictures.
The formative years of Philippine cinema, starting from the 1930s, were a time of discovering film as a new medium of expressing artworks. Scripts and characterizations in films came from the popular theater shows and familiar local literature. Nationalistic films were also quite popular, although they were labeled as being too subversive.
The 1940s and the war brought to the Philippine cinema the consciousness of reality. Movie themes comprised primarily of war and heroism had proven to be a huge hit among local audience.
The 1950s saw the first golden age of Philippine cinema, with the emergence of more artistic and mature films, and significant improvement in cinematic techniques among filmmakers. The studio system produced frenetic activity in the local film industry as many films were made annually and several local talents started to earn recognition abroad. Award-giving bodies were first instituted during this period. When the decade was drawing to a close, the studio system monopoly came under siege as a result of labor-management conflicts, and by the 1960s, the artistry established in the previous years was already on a decline. This era can be characterized by rampant commercialism, fan movies, soft porn films, action flicks, and western spin-offs.
The 1970s and 1980s were considered as turbulent years of the industry, bringing both positive and negative changes. The films in this period now dealt with more serious topics following the Martial Law era. In addition, action and sex films developed further introducing more explicit pictures. These years also brought the arrival of alternative or independent cinema in the Philippines.
The 1990s saw the emerging popularity of massacre movies, teen-oriented romatic comedies, as well as anatomy-baring adult films, although slapsticks still draw a large audience. Genres of previous decades had been recycled with almost the same stories, and love teams, which had been popular in the past, had become reincarnated.
The Philippines, being one of Asia's earliest film industry, remains undisputed in terms of the highest level of theater admission in Southeast Asia. Over the years, however, the film industry has registered a steady decline in the movie viewership from 131 million in 1996 to 63 million in 2004. From a high of 350 films a year in the 1950s, and 200 films a year during the 1980s, the country's film industry was down to making a total of new 56 films in 2006 and around 30 in 2007. Although the industry has undergone turbulent times, the 21st century saw the rebirth of independent filmmaking through the use of digital technology, and a number of films have once again earned international recognition and prestige.
Architecture
Pre-Hispanic architecture is usually characterized by its use of indigenous woody materials. The bahay kubo is the mainstream form of housing. It is characterized by indigenous materials such as bamboo and coconut as the main sources of wood. Cogon grass and Nipa palm leaves are used as roof thatching, although coconut fronds are also used. Most native homes are built on stilts due to frequent flooding during the rainy season. Regional variations include the use of thicker and denser roof thatching in mountain areas, longer stilts on coastal areas especially if the structure is built outright on the water. The architecture of some tribes in other regions, especially in Mindanao, is characterized by very angular wooden roofs, bamboo in place of leafy thatching, and ornate wooden carvings.
The Spanish introduced stones as housing materials. The introduction of Christianity brought western style churches which subsequently became the center of most towns. Colonial era architecture still survives in Intramuros, and Vigan.
Contemporary architecture usually favors western style structures although pre-Hispanic housing is still largely common in rural areas. American style suburban gated communities are popular in the cities, especially Metro Manila, and the surrounding provinces.
Cuisine
Filipinos cook a variety of foods influenced by Spanish, and Asian cuisines.
A typical Philippine meal consists of at least three meals a day served with boiled or fried rice, and other dishes. Filipinos regularly use spoons together with forks, as opposed to knives, and forks in Western culture. They also eat with their hands, especially in informal settings and when eating seafood. Accompanying rice, popular dishes such as adobo (a meat stew made from either pork or chicken), lumpia (meat or vegetable rolls), pancit (noodle dish), and lechón (whole roasted pig) are served on plates.
Other popular dishes include: afritada, asado, chorizo sausages (used in pancit or fried rice), empanadas, mais (corn), mani (roasted peanuts), paksiw (fish or pork, cooked in vinegar and water with some spices like garlic and pepper), pan de sal (salted bread rolls), pescado (fried or grilled fish), and torta (omelette). Indigenous Filipino and regional cuisines include: dinuguan, kare-kare (ox-tail stew), kilawen, pinakbet (vegetable stew), pinapaitan, and sinigang (tamarind soup with a variety of pork, fish or shrimp). Some delicacies eaten by the Filipino people but which may seem unappetizing to the western palate include balut (boiled egg with a fertilized duckling inside); longanisa (a sweet sausage); and dinuguan (black soup made with animal blood).
Popular snacks and desserts indulged are chicharon (deep fried pork or chicken skin), halo-halo (crushed ice with condensed milk, flan, and sliced tropical fruits), puto (little white rice cakes), bibingka (rice cake with butter or margarine and salted eggs), ensaymada (sweet roll with grated cheese on top), polvoron (powder candy), and tsokolate (chocolate) are eaten outside the three main meals. Local liquors such as lambanog, tuba, and basi are served on cup.
Martial Arts
Filipino martial arts (FMA) is an umbrella term used to describe the numerous martial art forms that originated in the Philippines, similar to how Silat describes the martial arts practiced throughout the Malay Archipelago. Filipino martial arts include Panantukan (empty-handed techniques), Eskrima/Kali/Arnis de Máno (blade and stick fighting) and Pananjakman (kicking).
Filipinos have made significant sacrifices to develop their arts. Throughout the ages multi-cultural, multi-national invaders of the Philippines imposed new dynamics for human conflict and combat. FMA, the “system-of-systems” transformed itself as a direct result of an appreciation of their ever changing environment and circumstances. The Filipinos' intrinsic need for self-preservation was the evolutionary genesis of these systems. They learned often out of necessity how to prioritize, allocate and utilize common resources in combative situations. Filipinos have been heavily influenced by the phenomenon of cultural and language mixture. The multitude of languages spoken in the 7,107 islands have not only diverged into dialects, but they have been constantly mixing with one another on all levels: vocabulary, grammar, syntax, and usage (see Languages of the Philippines). As a result, Filipino martial arts and its homogeneous systems comprise a vocabulary of heterogeneous terms. Change is the norm. Some of the specific mechanisms responsible for cultural and martial change extend from phenomena such as war, political systems, social systems, technology and trade.
Indigenous Crafts
Weaving is popular with the northern mountain Filipinos. Pottery was also common in pre-Hispanic societies. Ornate carvings are found in the southern Philippine islands. Similarly, wooden art is also quite popular and is displayed in various parts of the home.
Education in the Philippines
Education in the Philippines has similar features to that of the United States.
Filipino children enter public school at about age four, starting from Nursery up to Kindergarten. At about seven years of age, children enter a primary school (6 to 7 years). This is followed by secondary school (4 years). Students then sit for the College Entrance Examinations (CEE), after which they enter collegiate school (3 to 5 years). Other types of schools do exist, such as Private schools, Preparatory schools, International schools, Laboratory High Schools and Science High Schools. Also, several nationalities, such as the Chinese, British, Americans, and the Japanese also have their own schools.
The school year in the Philippines starts in June of one year and ends in March of the next, with a two-month summer break for April and May, one week of semestral break (the last week of October), and a week or two of Christmas break.
In 2005, the Philippines spent only about US$138 per pupil compared to US$1,582 in Singapore, US$3,728 in Japan, and US$852 in Thailand.
Sports in the Philippines
Sipa is the national sport in the Philippines. Other popular recreational sports include boxing, patintero, billiards, basketball, chess, ten-pin bowling, and football (soccer). Boxing, billiards, basketball, and soccer are popular among Filipinos. The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) was founded in 1975. Dodge ball, or mistakenly called "touch ball", is also a favorite sport of those who play in schools during break time.
Sports where Filipinos have gained international successes are boxing, billiards, ten-pin bowling, chess, and football (soccer). Notable champions include Paulino Alcántara, Francisco Pancho Villa, Manny Pacquiao, Mansueto Velasco, Flash Elorde, Efren Reyes, Francisco Bustamante, Rafael Nepomuceno, and Eugene Torre.
The Palarong Pambansa, a national sports festival, has its roots in an annual sporting meet of public schools that started in 1948. Private schools and universities eventually joined the national event, which became known as the Palarong Pambansa in 1976. It serves as a national Olympics for students, with victors from competitions at the school, province, and regional level emerging to participate. The year 2002 event included soccer, golf, archery, badminton, baseball, chess, gymnastics, tennis, softball, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo, track and field, and volleyball.
There are also many styles of traditional Filipino Martial Arts known under various names over the years. Filipino Martial Arts traditionally center on the use of bladed weapons--specifically on the knife and the sword--while also including training in empty-hand attack and defense, including striking and grappling. There are a number of different styles of the martial arts in the Philippines; divided, in general, by geographic region and occasionally by ethnic group. Much debate has arisen in terms of the "proper" name, or names, for the Filipino Martial Arts, and these terms have evolved through recent decades, corresponding with the growth of popularity of the arts around the world. "Arnis," "Escrima," and "Kali" have been interchangeably used, depending (again) on region, ethnic group, organization, individual, and even publication. In the eighties and nineties, the use of the term, "Kali" has become popularized by various teachers and martial arts organizations.
It should be noted that while individual teachers or regions may have used the term "Kali" for decades or longer to describe their own specific practices,the claim of the word "Kali" as a proto-term for an ancient, umbrella, "mother" Filipino Martial Art has little historical proof. It is difficult to ascertain a single originating or Filipino martial art due to the lack of written historical record. There is considerable controversy on this subject. However, in general it can be said that evolution of native fighting techniques--which could vary considerably from one region to the next--were influenced by various cultural migrations/exchanges to the Philippine Islands; including Indian, Indonesian, mainland Southeast Asian, and perhaps most notably, Chinese and Spanish.
The distinguishing characteristic of martial arts originating from the Philippines is most commonly the emphasis in curriculum of teaching weapons before or simultaneously with the empty-hand forms and also for the curriculum concept of angles of attack.
Native toys and games
Pusoy dos is described as a variant where one tries to get rid of all his cards by choosing poker hands wisely. Pusoy originally came from Chinese pai gow, blended with poker, while pusoy dos came from coastal China around 1980.
Filipinos also play sungka, a board game using small sea shells in which players try to take all shells but the winner is determined by who has the most shells at the point when all small pits become empty.
Filipinos are creative in that they have made toys using insects such as tying a beetle to string and sweeping it circular rotation to make an interesting sound. Salagubang gong is a toy described by Harvard entomologist Charles Brtjes in his trip to Negros illustrating a toy using beetles to create a periodic gong effect on a kerosene can as the beetle rotates above the contraption.
Filipino games also include piko, patintero, jack-en-poy, bang!, bahay-kubo, nanay-tatay, and many more.
Many children enjoy these games.
The yo-yo is often credited as having been invented in the Philippines centuries ago. The name yo-yo may have been derived from the Filipino word 'tayoyo' which means to spin.
Tribal groups
The indigenous peoples of the Philippines consist of a large number of varied groups across the country. They are the 12 million descendants of the original inhabitants of the archipelago who have somehow managed to resist centuries of colonization and in the process have retained their own customs, traditions and life ways.
In 1990 the more than 100 upland tribal groups constituted approximately 3% of the population. As lowland Filipinos, both Muslim and Christian, grew in numbers and expanded into the interiors of Luzon, Mindoro, Mindanao, and other islands, they isolated upland tribal communities in pockets. Over the centuries, these isolated tribes developed their own special identities. The folk art of these groups was, in a sense, the last remnant of an indigenous tradition that flourished throughout the Philippines before Islamic and Spanish contact.
Technically, the upland tribal groups were a blend in ethnic origin like other Filipinos, although they did not, as a rule, have as much contact with the outside world. They displayed great variety in social organization, cultural expression, and artistic skills. They showed a high degree of creativity, usually employed to embellish utilitarian objects, such as bowls, baskets, clothing, weapons, and even spoons. Technologically, these groups ranged from the highly sophisticated Bontocs and Ifugaos, who engineered the extraordinary Rice Terracess, to more primitive groups. They also covered a wide spectrum in terms of their integration and acculturation with lowland Christian Filipinos. Some, like the Bukidnons of Mindanao, had intermarried with lowlanders for almost a century, whereas others, like the Kalingas on Luzon, remained more isolated from lowland influences.
The Philippine Diaspora
An Overseas Filipino is a person of Philippine origin who lives outside of the Philippines. This term is applied to people of Filipino ancestry who are citizens or residents of a different country and to those Filipino citizens abroad on a more temporary status. .
Often, these Filipinos are referred to as "Overseas Filipino Workers".
There are more than 11 million overseas Filipinos living worldwide, equivalent to about 11% of the total population of the Philippines.
Each year, more than a million Filipinos migrate to work abroad through overseas employment agencies, and other programs. Others emigrate and become permanent residents of other countries. Overseas Filipinos often work as doctors, nurses, accountants, IT professionals, engineers, architects, entertainers, technicians, teachers, military servicemen, students, caregivers, domestic helpers and household maids.
The exodus includes an increasing number of skilled workers taking on unskilled work overseas, resulting in what has been referred to as brain drain, particularly in the health and education sectors. Also, the exodus can result in underemployment, for example, in cases where doctors undergo retraining to become nurses.
Celebrations
Regular holiday
- January 1 - New Year’s Day
- March or April - Holy Week (Semana Santa)
- April 9 - Araw ng Kagitingan (Bataan, and Corregidor Day)
- May 1 - Labor Day
- June 12 - Independence Day
- August - National Heroes Day
- November 30 - Bonifacio Day
- December 25 - Christmas Day
- December 30 - Rizal Day
Nationwide holiday
- August 21 - Ninoy Aquino Day
- November 1 to November 2 - Day of the Dead
- December 31 - New Year's Eve
Native holiday
- January 9 - The Black Nazarene procession in Quiapo and Manila.
- Third Sunday of January (date varies) - The Fiesta del Santo Niño de Cebu (Festival of the Child Jesus of Cebu); Sinulog in Cebu; Ati-Atihan Festival in Kalibo, Aklan.
- Last Sunday of January (date varies)- The Dinagyang Festival in Iloilo. This is a fun-filled activity were Ilonggos (native of Iloilo) organized tribes and painted in dark brown, along with colorful and uniquely designed costumes, dance in the city streets in the celebration of Senior Santo Niño's Feast.
- Lent; March or April (date varies) - Semana Santa (Holy Week).
- May - Flores de Mayo. Summer-starting festivities when the rain starts pouring back, after a blistering hot summer that begins around mid March, these festivities may have been rooted to the celebrations of the farmers as they welcome back the fertile season. Celebrations around towns showcase crops, food and delicacies. One famous festivity is the "Pahiyas", a colorful celebration in Lucban, Quezon where houses are decorated mainly with dried rice papers in different shapes and colors. Crops also accentuate these houses in artful shapes and styles.
- Third Saturday and Sunday of September (date varies) - The Peñafrancia Festival in Naga City, Camarines Sur, Bicol Region. During the festivities, people attend church services, followed by parades on the streets, fireworks, and feasting in honor of the Roman Catholic faith and native culture, and are attended by hundreds of thousands of Filipinos each year. The Peñafrancia Festival is also highlighted by a fluvial procession in the Bicol River.
- October 31 to November 2 - "Araw ng mga Patay", "Día de los Muertos" (Day of the Dead, All Saints Day and All Souls Day). Also known as "Undas", taken from the fact it is held on November 1. During All Saints, and Souls Day, it's traditional to visit the cemeteries, and pay homage to their dearly departed. The usually solemn cemetery takes on a party atmosphere, with much merry-making rather than a solemn celebration.
- December 24 - Noche Buena (Christmas Eve).
- December 25 - Araw ng Pasko, Navidad (Christmas).
- January 1 - Bagong Taon, Año Nuevo (New Year).
Other cultural realm
Homosexuality
The homosexual subculture was a product of the 1960s. Gay people express themselves in occupations such as barbershops or beauty professions or in clothing design. They also have their own style of linguistic communication. Homosexuality in the Philippines is widely accepted and viewed as part of normal life, though it is still met with some discrimination because of the nation's dominant macho population. However, due to the country's strong Roman Catholic affiliation, gay marriage and civil unions are prohibited.
See also
External links
- — This test covers mannerisms and peculiarities of the Filipino people.
- — Covers subgroups of Filipinos in the point of view of a Filipino-American
- — This site covers interesting peculiarities and widely held cultural properties from the point of view of Filipino-American people.
-
-
- — An extensive catalog of music videos, TV show clips, movie trailers, news stories etc.
Films of interest
- The Debut — Movie exhibiting a gamut of Filipino cultural values and conflicts between Filipino traditions and American cultural values from the perspective of Filipino-Americans.
- Pangarap ko ang ibigin ka (2003) Ignacio L., Dir.: Viva Films, Philippines. — Sharon Cuneta film exhibiting some courtship customs between pinoy and pinay.
- (1994) Award-winning documentary that captures the social & historical significance of the Filipino boxers as well as all Filipino immigrants to the U.S. from the early 1900s through World War II. Corky Pasquil, Writer/Producer
|
| |
|
|
