'Asian Cultural Heritage\r'

'ASIAN CULTURAL hereditary pattern The popular and widely known Asian â€Å"Migration conjecture” of professor H. Otley Beyer about the prehistoric peopling of the Philippines is now considered unwarranted by modern scholars. They questione the manner by which the system was formulated because of the absence of historical or archaeological proofs to support it. The Asian texture of Filipino culture from the prehistoric Spanish times, therefore, could be traced to evolutionary factors, the continous migrations of heap and the archeozoic contacts with other Asian civilizations. INDIAN INFLUENCESIndian influences were traceable in the languages, religious belief, literature, customs and traditions of betimes Filipinos. The ultimate God of the ancient Tagalog was Bathala, which came from the Sanskrit word B’hattara (gr expel Lord) Among the pre-Islamic natives of Sulu, Indra Battara was the approximately prominent deity, Indra, being the sky god. The other gods t he natives believed were of Indian or Vedic in origin much(prenominal) as Agni (fire god) and Surya (sun god). The epics of the early Filipinos such as the Biag ni Lam-Ang of the ilocanos, Mahabharata, the Indian epic.Some Filipino superstitious beliefs that originated from India were: 1. A comet is a bad sign; it brings war, famine and other calamities. 2. A pregnant woman must not eat twin bananas for she will give birth to twins. The putong (headgear) of the early Filipino male was Indian origin. So was the sarong (Indian sari), the cut p cheat of the clothing of pre-Spanish women. Indian influences on Filipino culture are clearly manifested by the aim of Sanskrit words in Tagalog language. Dr. T. H. Pardo de Tavera mentions 340 Sanskrit words. Examples are: SanskritTagalog . Atawaasawa (spouse) 2. Amaama (father) 3. Raharaha (king) 4. Harihari (king) 5. Kottakuta (fort) 6. Gandaganda (beauty) 7. Bhattarabathala (god) 8. Mutyamutya (pearl) 9. Inaina (mother) MALAYAN INFLUENCES The Maragtas For inadequacy of historical or archeological data, the Maragtas or the prominent tale about the Ten Bornean Datus who came to Panay may be part-history and part-fiction. According to this great story, at around 1250 AD, ten dollar bill datus and their families left Borneo to escape the repressive rule of grand Turk Makatunaw and to establish new homes across the seas.Led by Datu Puti, the Malays land in Panay Island where they negotiated with Marikudo, the Negrito king for the barter of the lowlands. The agreed expenditure was one granden salakot for the Ati king and one gold necklace for Maniwangtiwang, Marikudo’s wife. The barter of Panay was sealed by an cartel of friendship between the Atis and the Malays. The Negritos, after performing their rattling(a) songs and dances, retreated to the mountains. There are some enkindle coincidences, however, between the legend of Maragtas and Panay customs and traditions.To this day, the ati-atihan, a colorful song and dance festival is celebrated in Aklan. This is to re-enact the warm welcome accorded to the Malays by the Atis, which resulted to the purchase of Panay. W. H. Scott, the American missionary, in his doctoral dissertation (1968) comments: â€Å"There is no reason to doubt that this legend (Maragtas) preserves the computer memory of an actual event, but it is not possible to get a line the event itself, or to decide which of the details ar historical facts, and which are the embellishments of generations of oral transmission. CHINESE INFLUENCES The Chinese, who came to the Philippines, whether as traders or settlers, were primarily interested in trade, so their influences on Filipino life were mainly economic and social. The early Filipinos learned from the Chinese the art of metallurgy, the reconstruct of gunpowder, mining methods and the use of porcelain, gongs, umbrellas, lead and kites. From the Chinese originated the dishes lumpia, mami, okoy, pansit, bihon, whirlyb ird suey and siopao. Sauces like toyo, and tawsi alike came from the Chinese.Some Chinese customs were ultimately adopted by the Filipinos. The arrangement of marriage of children by parents, the use of go-between in negotiating marriage, the use of unclouded clothes or dress during the period of lamentation and the filial respect for elders accorded by the children were examples of practices borrowed from the Chinese. About a thousand words are found in the Filipino language. Among them are the following: ChineseFilipino 1 Inkongingkong 2 Hebihibi 3 A-chiate 4 Bi-koebiko 5 Dikiamdikiam Pin-topinto 7 Sosisusi 8 Mikimiki 9 Bakkiahbakya 10 Pansitpansit JAPANESE RELATIONS The Filipinos had been handicraft with the Nipponese long before the coming of the Spaniards. Nipponese bahan (merchants) and wakos (pirates) sailed the South China Sea seeking for vocal and Yuan wares buried in Philippines graves, iron and woolens for Filipino gold and wax. The Japanese immigrants who came to the Philippines during the pre-Spanish times settled at the mouth of the Cagayan River, the Lingayen Gulf area, and Manila.The first recorded bechance between the Japanese and the Spaniards was in 1572 when Juan de Salcedo, while piloting from Manila to Ilocos, fought take out three Japanese junks off the coast of Pangasinan. The Japanese pirates sailed away, after fierce fighting. In 1582, an expedition led by Captain Juan Pablo Carreon assaulted a Japanese colony founded by the pirate Tayfusa at the mouth of Cagayan River. The Japanese were forced to leave the place. The early Japanese merchants besides traded with Agoo, a town in the Lingayen Gulf area.They brought with them utensils, assorted weapons, salted meats and other Japanese were better treated and nodiscrimatory decrees were made against them. The Spaniards respected and feared them. Arabic INFLUENCES Arabia’s most enduring legacy to the peoples of Sulu and Mindanao is Islam. The Arabs also introduced the sul tanate form of government, Arabic art and literature; the Arabic alphabet; the Koranic Law; the mosque; the art of warfare- lantaka(cannon), vinta(warboat) and the kuta(fort).The Luwaran, a code of laws and compilation of the customs and traditions of the early Muslims, was written in Arabic. The Maranao’s Darangan (epic poetry), Maguindanao’s Indarapatra and Sulayman and Sulu’s Parang Sabil were deep inspired by Islam. Arabic influence is also clearly seen in the decorative and ornamental art of the maranaos, who are the best â€known wood carvers and painters of the region. Arabic words are also found in the Filipino language. Examples are: surat(letter), apu(old man), akma (appropriate), arak (wine), alamat (legend), maalem (knowing), pirate (scar) and salam (thanks).\r\n'