Philippine Culture 101, More than 300 years of Spanish influence Options

[malay_ako]

Learn about the other culture of Asia: (Austronesian) which the Filipino Malay is a part of...

Oh, so your mainly interested in Northeast Asian culture? Well, that’s cool. I personally like the Southeast Asian culture (particularly Insular Asia.) it is more diverse in so many aspects I believe, for example all major and animistic religious lifestyles can be found there. I admit though that the people may not be as uniform in culture as Japan but it is relatively homogeneous in my eyes in terms of the ethnic Malay who constitute the vast majority of the inhabitants of Insular Asia and their respective aboriginal Austronesian culture which has merely been mixed with various later induced foreign influences consequently diversifying the Malay people and their culture. But nevertheless it is still as great as any other culture of the World and very influential in Global transcontinental history and interaction as I will explain much later. There are many kingdoms in Mainland and Insular Southeast Asia such as the Angkor Wat of Cambodia and the Buddhist - Hindu - Islamic kingdoms of Java and their respective temples such as Buddhist Borobudur and Hindu Prambanan throughout Javanese history. (Just to name a few.) But today the majority of *surviving* Pre-European colonial kingdoms of the Malay Archipelago are recent Moslem sultanates such as the Sultanate of Brunei or the Sultanate of Sulu in the Philippines among others. But as for true Aboriginal Austronesian culture and civilization, that is a much more universal and unifying influence of the Malay people in the Malay archipelago, which is an area comprising the regions of (Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, and The Philippines) aka Insular Asia. And also further territories of our ancient Austronesian expansion and migration such as the South Pacific; parts of Mainland Southeast Asia; and the Indian ocean (mainly on the island of Madagascar.)

I think the greatest significant example of Native Austronesian cultural integration with late Foreign culture can best be presented through the MINANGKABAU tribe of Sumatra. This Malay tribe is the largest matriarchal society of the World which is due in part to the native Austronesian culture which has always been strong in matriarchal lifestyles as portrayed in various other Malay cultures stron throughout the Indian Oceans and Pacific oceans such as the Polynesians and throughout to the island of Madagascar (By the way, this is the territorial extent of Malay people and their culture: Easter island to Madagascar) Also other facets of the MINANGKABAU such as their customs, dress, distinct building architecture, and language show traces of this truly aboriginal culture. An example of foreign influence to the tribe is that they are strongly a Muslim society. I find this very fascinating since Islam has been quite distorted by perspective Middle Eastern parishioners to be a faith restricting towards women. And how Native Austronesian culture of the Malay has transformed the face and perspective of Islam. Whereas native, local middle eastern culture mixed with the religion of Islam can be presented through the history of the hijab which was originally a local practice of veiling of the Syrian people unrelated to the Islamic faith that was gradually absorbed into the faith and established as a religious norm of Islam of parishioners throughout the world. And today, you can also see the differences in the significance of this hijab practice in the Middle East and Indonesia or other parts of the Islamic influenced Malay World (which is mainly the Malay Archipelago) The Middle Eastern tends to strictly adhere to this custom, whereas the Indonesian and other Malay Muslims are relatively lax on the practice. I would like to say that Indonesia along with the rest of Malay World is in fact the largest Muslim “community” of the World in terms of population of believers and that Islam is just as much the Malay`s religion as it is the Arabian‘s. I hope that this realization sets in with respect to the sign of the times. Malay Muslims (which is made up of Chams, Malaysians, Indonesians, Philippine, and Bruneian parishioners) do not necessarily need to adhere to Islam exactly as middle easterners do to be considered truly “Muslim,” and I believe the Malay and our aboriginal Austronesian culture has much to offer to the Islamic lifestyle.

Lastly, I would like to share with you the overall territorial extent and historic origins of the Malay people and our Austronesian culture. But I will share this with you at a later time so you can get first accustomed with this information. THANKS for your interest in the Malay’s indigenous AUSTRONESIAN Culture and People!!!! And if you are confused by any of this information so far, feel free to ask or note me questions!!!

SALAMAT PAALAM

Thank you and goodbye = )

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[part 1]

Now I would like to share with you the overall territorial extent of the Malay people. As I have already hinted, the Austronesian culture is a singular culture practiced by Malay stron throughout the Indian and Pacific oceans and wherever else they immigrated and settled to through a means of ocean sea-faring navigation. And as such, this singular culture must have its origins. It is widely believed that the island of Taiwan is in fact this Austronesian homeland. But there are also other contenders as to the homeland of the Austronesian people and culture and they are:

1) Taiwan
2) Melanesia
3) A Malay Archipelago island origin such as (MINANGKABAU)
4) Coastal Vietnam
5) Southern China

Now there are various reasons to why each is considered the “true Austronesian homeland” but I will not explain any of these theories and leave that up to you to discover.

I personally believe the Taiwanese homeland as the forbearer to the Austronesian culture and Malay-Polynesian People where present aboriginal Malay tribes can be still found, though quite oppressed by recent Han Chinese immigrants to the region who began migrating around the 16th century. Even though the Chinese culture and ethnicity presently overshadows the island, it does not erase the historical presence of Taiwan’s first inhabitants who are Malay tribes and whose Austronesian culture has been in existence for 6,000 years. Gradually the inhabitants of this island ventured southwards and out to populate the islands and regions of the Indian and Pacific oceans. I would like to take a moment now to give you this quote explaining the Philippine’s specific contribution to the distribution of aboriginal Austronesian culture and its position in the absorption of foreign adopted cultures.

“The Philippines is situated at the far northeastern end of the [Malay] Archipelago. They were involved in the very earliest stages of the Austronesian expansion. By the same geography, they were the last to receive the civilizational influences [BUDDHIST-HINDU-ISLAMIC] emanating from mainland Asia.”

So Whereas the Philippines plays a prominent role with linking the aboriginal Austronesian culture to the Malay who has since diverged and diversified their perspective cultures through foreign adaptations, it is among the last areas to receive the foreign cultures of India and the Middle east. (Several links are presented between the Taiwanese aboriginals and the Philippine Malays as in the specific cultural and linguistic links between the Yami Taiwanese Malay aboriginal and the Philippine Ivatan Malay tribes of Batanes islands of the Philippines.)

Titles of Philippine Rulers showing the foreign influence in our culture:

DATU - Bornean derived term for Chief (such as Datu Puti)

TUAN - Malay derived honorific title (such as Tuan Mahamud)

SRI - Indian derived honorific title (such as SRI-Lanka or SRI-Vijaya or Sri Humabon)

RAJAH - Indian derived term for Chief (such as Rajah Lapu Lapu)

SULTAN - Arabian derived term for Chief (such as Sultan Kudarat)

Now I would like to acknowledge that when the Malay first ventured out from their homeland they at most times came to find aboriginal people already inhabiting the area. And these people were the black skinned races: the “Negrito” and the Melanesian who had so long ago transversed from unknown origins and at a most ancient time were once scattered all across Mainland Asia and Insular Asia. Yet their motive of transportation or settlement was through pre-existing land bridges as they were hunters and gatherers following animal game and were ultimately stranded or isolated on various islands and areas when the water levels eventually rose after the last ice age being that they were and to some extent remain a “primitive” Neolithic people. Yet there are theories that these same black skinned peoples were also in fact influential in the early foundations and beginnings of various civilizations throughout Asia such as the first dynasties of China (Xia) and the first kingdom (Funan) in South East Asia which lead to the eventual Cambodian civilization. These places were said to have held the presence of black skinned populations or “citizens” within their perspective kingdoms.

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[part 2]

Anyway, the Malay transversed through sea-faring ingenuity from Taiwan around 6,000 years ago on a southerly route consolidating in the Malay archipelago and eventually branching out east and west:

Some of the Malay sailed west and eventually reached Madagascar and Aboriginally settled the island where they established prominent kindoms such as the Kingdom of Imerina which was founded by a Malay tribe called Merina. These people also influenced the island by establishing a universal language which is still used today as the National Language of the country. It is called Malagasy and is a part of the Western Branch of the Austronesian or (Malay Polynesian Language Family) And these Malays survive to this day as the Central Highland tribes of Madagascar and still hold their distinctly Asian Identity/heritage and Merina or Hova Identity amongst other malay tribes called different names. The Malays of Madagascar have always held a promient and influencial role in the History of Madagascar island. Much of the agriculture, culture, and of course language is said to be a fusion of Asian and African. since Africans would ultimately settle the island after the Malays being that the island is merely 200 miles off the coast of Africa.

Some Malay sailed east and initially took a “pit-stop” on the coasts of Papua New Guinea where they found the Melanesian and these two distinct peoples and cultures both had a time of integration supposedly a more prominent racial mixing than a cultural/linguistic exchange before again venturing further east to settle all the uninhabited little islands of the pacific ocean. So the Polynesian as the peoples of the south pacific are collectively referred are said to be a Malay/Melanesian mix. Malay being predominant in the culture and language of the Polynesian and the Melanesian being prominent in racial make-up.

I think it is only fair to also note the “savage” or “barbaric” practices of these two peoples. Malays who practice the Austronesian culture also have a strong headhunting tradition. and Melanesians are said to practice cannibalism. The latter cultural trait was adopted by the Polynesian people. Though I doubt it was a result of limited food availability but more of a Melanesian concept of “you are what you eat” and if you eat your enemy you become “endowed” with their strength, power, and bravery.

It is interesting to note that on the island of Madagascar, which is the western extent of Austronesian migration, neither tradition had been adhered to by the inhabitants who are said to be Indonesian/Filipino Malay and possibly Melanesian descendents of sea-farers who were the first to settle the island an expanse of 6,000 nautical miles from Insular Asia as compared to 200 from the African continent.

Anyway, Some Malay also established "colonies" or settlements on the coast of what is now present day Vietnam... The “Cham” are theMalay who settled in this area. The “Cham” then settled on the island of Hainan sometime when their Hindu influenced kingdom was being attacked by other developing kingdoms of the Khmer, Viet, etc of the SE Asian peninsula.

But regardless of where each Malay migrated to, We are still linked to each other by our ORIGINAL NATIVE AUSTRONESIAN CULTURE as presented through our strong matriarchal societies, strong communial ties, love of sea-faring lifestyles, along with other respective “savage-like” practices, and our similar languages (which is grouped together as the AUSTRONESIAN LANGUAGE FAMILY). All these aspects of the Austronesian culture help TIE us together to help us remember our ORIGINS and similar BROTHERHOOD.

So these basic foundations of our original Austronesian culture have merely been mixed with incoming foreign cultures which were individually adopted by various Malays. Like the Malay who migrated to what is now the present day Vietnamese coast mixed the introduction of Hindu culture with the already native Austronesian culture and created something uniquely "CHAM." Islam then followed and further consolidated the Cham’s culture and Islam also influenced other Malay who were living in MALAYSIA, INDONESIA, and eventually THE SOUTHERN PHILIPPINES. (I would like to note that the area known today as Vietnam is basically land stolen by the Vietnamese ethnicity from other peoples and kingdoms who existed in the area long before eventual Vietnamese conquest: So the Kingdom of Champa once ruled the central coast of present day Vietnam and Cambodians once ruled present day southern Vietnam which they still refer to as KAMPUCHEA KROM or (Cambodia below.)

And so, to summarize, Malay are not strangers but BROTHERS. And even though we are on different islands and spread out over a vast expanse of ocean it doesn`t mean we are different people. We are one ethnic group that has merely scattered amongst the many islands of the Indian and Pacific oceans and mixed our aboriginal Austronesian culture withforeign ones..

It’s like the Chinese who settled on Taiwan. They are still Chinese in ethnicity and culture, but they also have their own unique Taiwanese identity, which is more of a nationalistic identity rather than a cultural and racial distinctiveness.

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[part 3]

If you are confused take a look at these sites that better define what I’m trying to say:

1) Definition of "MALAY PEOPLE"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malay_people

2) Definition of "AUSTRONESIAN LANGUAGES"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austronesian

3) Definition of "TAIWANESE ABORIGINES"

http://en2.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwanese_aborigine

4) A really cool site showing the similarities between languages in the Austronesian language family

http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/8908/firemo...stroframes.html

And lastly, here is an excellent example of the linguistic affinity between all the Malay across the Indian and Pacific Oceans:

The word for the number 5 in these various Austronesian (Malayo-Polynesian) languages has been left unchanged or resulted in a tiny deviation from its original form “LIMA”

Bahasa Indonesian: lima
Javanese: lima, Gangsal
Balinese: lima, Panca
Sundanese: lima
Madurese: lema`
Sawu: lami
Toraja: lima
Acehnese: limong
Tetun: lima
Tagalog (Philippines): lima
Hiligaynon: lima
Maori: rima
Fijian: lima
Hawaiian: lima
Malagasy (Madagascar): dimy
Rapanui (Easter Island): rima

***

1) A COMPREHENSIVE LISTING OF THE ANCIENT KINGDOMS OF THE MALAY ARCHIPELAGO AND THEIR RULERS:

http://ellone-loire.net/obsidian/seasiaisl.html

2) HISTORICAL TIMELINE OF THE ROYAL SULTANATE OF SULU:

http://home.netcom.com/~okonw/Jolo25a.html

3) OTHER MORO (ISLAMIC) SULTANATES OF THE PHILIPPINES:

http://jamalabbas.virtualave.net/sultanates.htm
http://jamalabbas.virtualave.net/

4) A PRE-COLONIAL HISTORY OF THE INDONESIAN ARCHIPELAGO:

http://www.gimonca.com/sejarah/sejarah01.shtml
http://www.coprod.com/artjava/history.htm

5) A PRE-COLONIAL HISTORY OF THE MALAY PENINSULA:

http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Flats/3795/malays.htm

***
THE END

This post has been edited by malay_ako: Jan 6 2004, 12:16 AM

[rae24]

bravo malay ako!!!!! I couldnt have said it better, im also proud to have come from the malay race. A lot of people especially those from the western hemisphere and some asians think that when you say the word "Asian" it only refers to the Japanese, Korean or the chinese but what about those from the malay race like the Filipinos, Thais, Malaysians and Indonesians, there is also the Indians, Pakistanis, Sri Lankans and the likes.

[malay_ako]

Please check out my website that explains more about the Philippine Connection to Austronesian Culture.

http://my.asiantown.net/page.aspx?id=sugbuhanon

[morena]

wow I thought I knew everything about Filipino culture, tnx malay ako for the infos.

[Ek-ek]

bravo malay ako!!!!! I couldnt have said it better, im also proud to have come from the malay race. A lot of people especially those from the western hemisphere and some asians think that when you say the word "Asian" it only refers to the Japanese, Korean or the chinese but what about those from the malay race like the Filipinos, Thais, Malaysians and Indonesians, there is also the Indians, Pakistanis, Sri Lankans and the likes.

(IMG:http://www.asiafinest.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/embarassedlaugh.gif) Big Cheer and Welcome to this forum ! Malay Ko!


Hits the Bull's eye!

[malay_ako]

The Malay ethnic group is among the Greatest and most Ancient people of the Southeast Asian World. We are also among the first peoples to inhabit Southeast Asia (after the negriod population) migrating from the taiwan region around the first millennium B.C by use of the outrigger canoe where we left remnants of our great ancient civilization, the Dong Son culture which is found in present day Vietnam and all across se asia. Our ancestors also transformed the mountain ranges of luzon philippines into towering rice terraces known today as the Banaue. Our culture was also the only original and self-concieved of all South East Asia established long before the conception of borrowed civilizations from India and the Middle East by later Asian immigrants to the region. By 700 B.C. Dongson culture had reached new guinea indicating that we had already colonized areas beyond the mainland to places that we live today. Eventually different ethnicities migrated to south east asia displacing the malay people. These people are the ancestors of the present mons, khmer, thai and others ethnciites present in that region today. Today the Malay is predominantly found in insular Asia, the vast stretching islands of the Asian-Pacific Rim known as the independent nations of Indonesia, the Philippines, and also the Malaysian peninsula. Yet the Malay is not only limited to these areas because our ancestors were also the greatest seafarers in ancient history. Our ancestors navigated and explored the immense Indian and Pacific oceans long before any other people or culture had learned to wade in their own waters. And thus, the Malay were able to be the first to settle islands as far flung as Madagascar off the south coast of Africa where we then established great kingdoms and ultimately helped birth the beautiful fusion of Asian and African cultures when the black race finally migrated out to sea a mere distance of 200 miles to join us centuries later. And the Malay also sailed farther East where we settled the island of Rapi Nui (or Easter Island) off the West coast of South America where we again left our ingenious mark by constructing seemingly impossible huge and mysterious edifices through unknown means..

The Malay kingdom stretches far and wide over half the circumference of the Earth. And yet today we are still linked to one another by our preservation of language. The Malay-Polynesian or Austronesian language family is a prominent link to these Indian and Pacific islander’s ancient, yet similar beginnings. Also we have retained similar cultural traits which only affirms these ties between one islander to another. One of the most distinct and honorable characteristics of the Malay-Polynesian is our high esteem for women which we have proudly articulated in our long histories of matriarchal societies and lifestyles. Kingdoms as far away as Polynesia, the Ancient Champa, the Minang kabau of Indonesia, and Madagascar authenticate this beautiful Malay feature. This trait has even weathered and survived foreign influences such as the comming of Hinduism and Islam where we merely integrated the element into these lifestyles and made them uniquely ours, whereas other people have done quite the opposite by construing these religions to be contrastingly harsh and restricting towards women. And still today, this legacy survives and can be seen in the strong political power of women in the philippines and other malay nations.


So if you are representative of any of these things that i have written about then you are a descendent of the great Malay-Polynesian. A people who have accomplished among the greatest of achievements in Humanity. A legacy which has been allowed to be fragmented due to the imposed territorial limits and international boundaries put up by younger nations and peoples, yet these modern divisions do not and should not apply to us for we are aboriginal and not limited to any one specific region of the World. In this website I have presented the stories of themost unknown "Nusantarians" forgotten tribes whom we as a Malay-Polynesian people can learn from. Learn from the Mergui islander’s disregard for territorial limits as he willfully crosses international boarders to the islands he has done so for countless generations. Learn from the Madagascar native who longs to be reunited with his South East Asian heritage and brethren. Learn from the Nusantarian Cham who established as equally great Hindu empires as any of her Asian neighbors on the mainland yet uniquely transformed hers to fit the beauty of our Malay matriarchal customs and speech. Redefine your identity to accurately potray who and what you are. You are not merely a native of a specific island remote in the Pacific or Indian oceans, but a descendent of ancient and great Malay sea-farers whose family has grown to become Malay-Polynesian, whose homeland is still in one’s heart, and whose kingdom is known as Nusantaria.

HTTP://MEMBERS.ASIANAVENUE.COM/NUSANTARIAN

Malay_ako

[Ek-ek]

We are also part of an empire which is legendary called"Lemuria"

[I_YaH]

sorry pero tamad akong magbasa hehe but im aware of that (IMG:http://www.asiafinest.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/cool30.gif)

[Ek-ek]

Lemuria is some sort of "Atlantis"myth!

[WhoAmI]

Interesting stuff.

Lemuria is some sort of "Atlantis"myth!

Ek-ek, tell us about it. (IMG:http://www.asiafinest.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/icon_smile.gif)

[Ek-ek]

Interesting stuff.

Lemuria is some sort of "Atlantis"myth!

Ek-ek, tell us about it. (IMG:http://www.asiafinest.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/icon_smile.gif)

Lemuria,MU and Pacifica are "Myths" or legends that some lands in Asia like India, Philippines and Pacific Islands are connected before Similar to" Atlantis "several thousands of years ago .

It tells the origin of faith healings, spirits and shaman beliefs in that area.


http://www.crystalinks.com/lemuria.html
http://www.thule.org/lemuria.html
http://www.lemuria.net/

[WhoAmI]

^ Wow. Thats some interesting stuff. i havent read all of it but it looks bigger than atlantis myth. thanks for sharing.

[Ek-ek]

That is virtually unkown to many.........

Historians believe that India,Indonesia,Philippines,China and some parts of Africa are part of the "Mythical Kingdom"

[malay_ako]

That is virtually unkown to many.........

Historians believe that India,Indonesia,Philippines,China and some parts of Africa are part of the "Mythical Kingdom"

OK THE "HISTORY" YOU ARE PRESENTING IS HAZY. I DO NOT BELIEVE OUR DIRECT ANCESTORS WHO ARE MALAYS WERE INFLUENCTIAL WITH THIS PLACE AS NEGRITOS WERE PRESENT LONG BEFORE THE "MONGOLIOD" MALAY PEOPLES SEAFARED TO THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. SO IF INDEED THIS PLACE EVER EXISTED I WOULD POSULATE THAT THE INHABITANTS WOULD HAVE TO BE "NEGRITOS" OF THE MELANESIAN RACE NOT MONGOIOLD WHOSE STOCK THE MALAY IS ULTIMATELY DERIEVED FROM. OUR ANCESTORS CAME TO THE PHILIPPINES BY WAY OF SEA-FARING ENGINUITY FROM TAIWAN AFTER THE LAST ICE AGE WHEN THE PRE-EXISTING LAND BRIDGES CONNECTING VARIOUS ISLANDS AND PARTS OF THE CONTINENT HAD BECOME SUBMERGED. OUR MIGRATION STARTED 6,000 OR SO YEARS AGO. NEGRITOS AND MELANESIANS ON THE OTHER HAD COME LONG BEFORE BY TRANSVERING THESE PRE-EXISTING LAND BRIDGES WHEN THEY WERE STILL ABOVE SEA LEVEL. THESE PEOPLE WERE HUNTERS AND GATHERS FOLLOWING ANIMALS. WHEN THE WATER LEVELS ROSE THESE MELANESIANS BECAME STRANDED AS THEIR WAY OF LIFE WAS SAID TO BE VERY PRIMITIVE AND NEOLITHIC AND LACKING IN THE SEA-FARING ENGINUTITY THE MONGOLOID MALAY POSSESED WHICH ALLOWED HIM TO TRAVEL FROM ISLAND TO ISLAND WHICH THE LAND HAD BECOME, MERELY SUMMITS OF THE HIGHEST MOUNTAINS RISING ABOUVE THE WATER.

ALSO THIS FORUM THAT I CREATED IS MAINLY FOR THE DISCUSSION OF AUSTRONESIAN CULTURE. IT WOULD ONLY LEAD TO CONFUSION IF YOU WERE TO ADD THIS HAZY LEMURIA THEORY AS IT IS CURRENTLY NOW UNFOUNDED AND VERY CONTRAVERSIAL WHEREAS THE INFORMATION I AM PRESENTING IS SCIENTIFCALLY PROVEN AND SUPPORTED MATERIAL.

I AM PRESENTING HISTORY THAT IS MORE DIRECTLY RELATED TO THE PRESNT FILIPINO MALAYS.

[Ek-ek]

Sorry, if I have added the "Lemuria" or "Mu" myth in our history
Anyway we are tracing our rich cultural history

And part of our history are myths and legends

Well after all some of the basis of our history are myths too....

[BatangDamo]

hmmmm,, i dunno

[ejay1]

hmmmm,, i dunno

He is an Malay supremist he wants Indonesia,Malaysia, and the Philippines to join together as one big muslim state. (IMG:http://www.asiafinest.com/forum/style_emoticons/default/embarassedlaugh.gif)

[BatangDamo]

muslim state? i dont like that idea

[ejay1]

muslim state? i dont like that idea

Me neither Im catholic and I don't want to be an minority in my own homeland.

[BatangDamo]

Same here, Catholic.