Culture of Basilan - Yakan

Yakan

The island is the homeland of the Yakans, a Filipino tribe widely regarded as having been descended from Orang Dampuans (Orang Dyaks, Tagihamas) of the Kingdom of Champa and Eastern Indonesia, and recognized for their colorful costume.

The Yakan have designs or motifs used repeatedly in all their visual arts and crafts. The pussuk labbung is a sawtooth design used for cloth baskets and the native sword called kris. The bunga sama, used for table runners, monuments for the dead and on trunks, is a symmetrical design made of rectangular-shaped figures. The kabban buddi is a set of triangles, squares, and other geometric shapes used for cushions, pillows, casings, mats, and hats. The baggang kettan combines incised triangles and rectangles, and is used to decorate the kris. The ukil lagbas consists of a combination of various lines - wavy, crossed-wavy, and straight - used on shirts, windows of houses, and boats (Sherfan 1976:210-211).

Weapons such as knives and swords are part of the Yakan's visual arts. The punnyal is a small knife, which can be hidden within one's clothing. The barong is carried with pride since it is a symbol of strength and is also acceptable as bride wealth. The taming is the traditional shield used along with two types of spears, the budjak and the sankil, now used only in war dances. The bangkung is another type of bolo seldom used nowadays. The pira is a traditional weapon used by little boys when going on a long journey. The barong and the kris, although popular, are less valuable or admired among the Yakan (Sherfan 1976:156-160).

Yakan visual arts includes Yakan kitchen utensils and household implements. Metal ware includes the talam, a beautifully decorated bronze tray, and the sanduk or ladle used for special occasions. Yakan basketry is both colorful and functional. The tutop is a food cover made of bamboo leaves. The peliyuk is a clay jar with cover used for cooking. The baling is a decorative clay jar treasured as heirloom. The kombo is a lidded container for rice storage. A lakal is a bamboo frame used to hold the cooking gadget when placed on the ground. The tempipih is a big basket carried on the back. A conical basket called the saan is used as a liquid strainer.

Baskets are also used to measure and weigh. The gantang is bigger than the government ganta. The batil measures nine gantang. The laga is 10 gantang. The ilug is 30 gantang. The lukung is equivalent to 100 gantang. An example of Yakan pottery is the poga, a covered clay jar used as water container (Sherfan 1976:201-204).

Yakan women are excellent weavers, and are famous for their beautifully woven traditional costumes of cotton and pineapple cloth. The basic garment for men and women consists of a tight-fitting upper garment with tight-fitting trousers called sawal. The shirt is open in front from lapel down to the waist, using up to 40 sequined or golden buttons. To close the shirt, a long string is crisscrossed from one button to the other so that when tightly drawn, the shirt closes from top to bottom. Usually the shirt remains open since the string is often lost. Over the shirt, male and female wear a tight-fitting jacket, which is exquisitely embroidered in the front and back, with cuffs decorated with multicolored sequins.

The difference in male and female apparel lies in accessories. Men wear a hand woven pis (head cloth) and a 15m-long kandit (belt or sash) made of red cloth called gilim. The pis serves as "protection" from spears and knives during combat, and may be fastened around the trousers. The women wear a short skirt over the trousers, around which a rectangular, hand woven cloth is tied. This cloth is the most expensive part of their costume because it is woven in a tedious manner. Men and women wear the saruk, the Yakan hat worn to make one look more attractive and elegant. Some wear the hat over the turban and use it as a purse for betel nuts, tobacco, and money. Yakan warriors wear a bulletproof shirt prepared by hadjis and imams who write Arabic script all over the shirt (Sherfan 1976:160, 205-207).

Ornaments such as necklaces may be worn as charms. A crocodile tooth polished with a hole at the base is believed to bring good luck when worn as a necklace. The Yakan also wear amulets against bullets. These contain unreadable symbols, are wrapped in black cloth, sewn in triangular form, and tied around the neck. Belts made of snake bones are strung together to protect them against bodily pain. One charm that protects them from sicknesses due to evil spirits is the manik tegiyas - a necklace or bracelet made of the fruits of a flower beaded together. The manik sembulan is made of a bamboo stem cut into short pieces, strung together either as a necklace or bracelet, and serving as added protection against sickness inflicted by evil spirits. To gain more strength against evil spirits, men and women wear the anting-anting. This consists of a string with a piece of cloth containing beads as pendant (Sherfan 1976:143-147).

The Yakan also wear functional gadgets. The pegupaan is a bamboo container for all the paraphernalia for chewing betel nut. The lutuan, a small bronze box with engravings carried at the waist, has a similar function (Sherfan 1976:203).

A unique form of visual arts is the facial make-up done on brides and grooms. After creating a foundation of white powder, the make-up artists proceed to paint dots and lines in various patterns on the faces, creating the effect of formal and elaborate masks which match the ornate costumes of the celebrants.

The Yakan have a rich musical tradition, which may be broadly divided into instrumental and vocal. Yakan musical instruments are made of bamboo, wood, and metal. Their musical instruments also demonstrate the influence of the traditional cycle of rice production in their lives. Several instruments are used in each stage of rice production. The daluppak is a digging stick with a bamboo clapper. The kopak-kopak is a bamboo clapper on a stick. The Kwintangan Kayu is percussion instrument consisting of wooden beams laid after the planting season, to enhance plant growth. The wooden tuntungan is a percussion plank with jar resonators, also played during the harvest season for thanksgiving.

The gabbang is a bamboo split into five, and arranged like a xylophone. Small children near the fields played it in order to guard the crops against prying animals. The kwintangan batakan is an earlier form of gabbang which has six, seven, or nine bamboo pieces. The suling is a bamboo mouth flute used by the men in courting women. Another bamboo instrument used by the men in expressing love or admiration is the kulaing. The Kulintangan or kwintangan consists of several bronze gongs arranged according to size, and used during celebrations such as weddings and graduations. Any individual played it in the home and after work, for self-expression and relaxation. The agong is a percussion instrument used to announce marriage or for tolling the dead. The jabujabu (djabu-djabu) is a type of drum that summons the people to prayer (Nicolas 1977: 100-108; Sherfan 1976:195-199).

There are three main types of Yakan vocal music: the lugu and other melodies used in reading the Quran and other religious books; the kalangan or songs which may be further reclassified into Jamiluddin and Lunsey; and the katakata, nahana, yaya, lembukayu, and sa-il, among others. The kalangan, jamiluddin, katakata, nahana, and yaya are sung solo, while the lunsey, sa-il, meglubulebu seputangen, and lembukayu involves singers from two groups singing solo as they answer each other. The kalangan, jamiluddin, lunsey, and lembukayu are courting songs. The katakata, jamiluddin, and nahana may also narrate the history of the Yakan people. The katakata is a long traditional song narrating the lives, loves, and historical backgrounds of people who lived during early times. The Yakan believed that such stories originated from people who lived in another world. The katakata is sung only at night, at a big gathering with food served by the host or hostess. The singing, in episodes, may last for several nights. The singer lies on a mat, the back supported by several pillows. The audience, either sit or lie around the singer. The jamiluddin relates love stories. At present, it is also sung when families discuss marriage engagements. Both the katakata and jamiluddin are sung by wise men and women of the tribe.

The sa-il and lunsey are sung during a wedding ceremony, with messages revolving around good advice regarding married life. Another type of sa-il is sung during the magtammat or Quranic graduation. During social gatherings, the maglebu-lebu seputangan is sung, by a group of men answering a group of women. Each group has a soloist who sings the kalangan, expressed in metaphors. The yaya is a lullaby. The magsambag is a method of studying the Quran in which a Murid or student follows the Quranic singing of the teacher. The student and teacher are not allowed to sing together.

Then there are the songs, which the Yakan sing during daily activities. In keeping watch over rice fields, they sing some forms of the jamiluddin and kalangan. While resting at home, they also leisurely sing the katakata, jamiluddin, and nahana. Children at play imitate the adults in singing the kalangan, jamiluddin, lembukayu, and lugu (Nicolas 1977:97-100). One popular Yakan dance adopted from the Tausugs Pangalay is called mangalay. The dance is accompanied by the kunlintangan kayu and played by three people. In the Yakan "bumblebee" mimetic dance usually performed by a male dancer, a searcher successfully finds honey with the aid of a torch. He overeats, and the result is a stomachache (Orosa-Goquingco 1980:175). Another example of a mimetic dance is the tahing baila, which imitates the movement of a fish (Tiongson 1991:236). At weddings, the tumahik or war dance is to be performed by the groom as well as male relatives of both the groom and the bride. Dressed in Yakan finery, the dancer uses a spear and a shield to fight an imaginary enemy to the music of the kulintangan. - R. Matilac