THE ITNEG PEOPLE OF NORTHERN LUZON, PHILIPPINES

The Itnegs are an ethno-linguistic group occupying the land of Abra on the northwestern portion of the Cordillera Mountains of Northern Luzon and their territory extends to the slopes of the Malaya mountain range that traverses the Ilukano country (i.e. Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte).

“According to various writers, these people are descended from Chinese, Japanese, or Arabs; are typical Malay; are identical with the Igorot...” (Cole, 1922). In terms of language, their tongue has a big similarity with the prevailing lingua franca of the other tribes who dwell in Muntanyusa, in Apayao, and in Kalinga. In fact, the Maeng dialect may be considered as a variant of the tongues spoken by the Aplays and/or the I-Fontoks of Muntanyusa, and the Banaw and Masadiit dialects closely resemble those spoken in Lubuagan and Balbalan in Kalinga. Muntanyusa is how the Itnegs call the land of the Igorots towards the south of Tingguianlandia.

Province of ABRA: the heart of Itneglandia.
SOURCE: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/Ph_locator_map_abra.png

In his book “Tingguian Ethnohistory: 1930-2005,” Reverend Mariano B. Laory (2006) forwards these assertions:
There are two terms given to the Tingguian tribe, Tingguian and Itneg, which refer interchangeably to the tribe. The word “Tingguian” was... used by the Spaniards to refer to all mountain dwellers. Later, the word was used exclusively for the tribe of Abra.

Etymology of the term “Tingguian.”
The indigenous peoples of Abra are collectively known as Tingguians but they prefer to call themselves “Itneg.” The term “Tingguian” might have been derived from the ancient Malay word “tunggi” meaning “mountain,” according to de los Reyes & de los Reyes (1987). Alternatively, the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), as published in its official website, claims that “Tingguian” is derived from the term “tingue” meaning “mountaineers” (http://www.ncip.gov.ph/resources/ethno_detail.php?ethnoid=105). Hence, as an online article forwards, “Tingguian” refers to “The People of the Mountains” (http://library.thinkquest.org/C003235/tingguian.html).
De los Reyes & de los Reyes continue: The term “Tingguians” was originally used to refer to all mountain dwellers in the Philippines.... The term... was earlier used by the Spaniards to refer to all mountain or hill dwellers, such as those in Zambales, Bohol, Basilan and Mindanao. Later, however, the name was exclusively applied to the inhabitants of Abra and the mountains of Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte. The people, though, refer to themselves as “Itneg” (198).


Etymology of the term “Itneg.”
The word “Itneg” is derived, according to an online article (http://www.geocities.com/lppsec/pp/abra.htm?200721), from “i-tineg,” which literally means people living near the Tineg River. “I-tineg” is a combined form of the prefix “i-” that indicates a place of origin, and the name of one Itneg municipality and major river system in Abra – “Tineg”. Additionally, according to an interpretation by Velasco (no date), the word is derived from ”iti uneg,” (http://litera1no4.tripod.com/tinguian_frame.html) which literally means “the interior”. Also, the NCIP forwards that Itneg is what the Tingguians are known in the Samtoy (http://www.ncip.gov.ph/resources/ethno_detail.php?ethnoid=105) (Ilocano) dialect.

The Itneg Tribes
The Tingguians are composed of sub-groups known as the Itneg Tribes. These tribal groupings are the Adasen, Balatok, Banaw, Belwang, Binungan, Gubang, Inlaud, Mabaka, Maeng, Masadiit, and Muyadan/Ammutan.

ITNEG TRIBES & THEIR PLACES OF SETTLEMENT:
1. Adasen [Lagayan, San Juan, Tineg]
2. Banaw [Daguioman & Malibcong, and Balbalan (in Kalinga)]
3. Binungan [Baay-Licuan, Lacub]
4. Balatok [Villages of Amti, Kilong-olaw, & Danak (all in Boliney)]
5. Belwang [Dao-angan village (in Boliney)]
6. Gubang [Malibcong]
7. Inlaud [Lagangilang & Peñarrubia, Lumaba village (in Villaviciosa), Villages of Abang & Patoc(in Bucay), Langiden, San Isidro, San Quintin, Danglas, parts of Nueva Era (in Ilocos Norte)]
8. Mabaka [Lacub, Malibcong]
9. Maeng [Luba, Tubo, & Villaviciosa, and San Emilio, Banayoyo, & other Ilocos Sur towns]
10. Masadiit [Sallapadan & Bucloc, Sitio Sapdaan (in Manabo), Western Boliney (barangays poblasyon, bawiyan, and dumagas)]
11. Ammutan, a.k.a. Muyadan Tribe [Manabo]


De los Reyes and de los Reyes (1987) declare that the Tingguian sub-groups have their respective dialects and cultural practices... The territory they occupy comprises nearly 80% of Abra’s total land area. Fay-Cooper Cole, (http://bullfinch.englishatheist.org/Tingguian.html#d0e144) in his stay with the Tingguians in the period 1907-1908, noted the difference, for purposes of classification, between the lowland Tingguians and the upland Tingguians.
The lowland Tingguians, primarily the Inlauds and Ammutans, mainly inhabit the valley areas of Abra while the rest of the tribes compose the highlanders. More often than not, the lowlanders thrive on wet rice agriculture while those in the uplands are engaged in slash-and-burn agriculture and swidden farming.


REFERENCES:
Laory, M. B. (2006). Tingguian ethnohistory: 1930-2005. Laoag City, Philippines: Crown Printers.

Cole, F. C. (1922). The tinguian: social, religious, and economic life of a philippine tribe [Online]. Available at http://www.gutenberg.org/files/12849/12849-8.txt [2007, June 7].

Cole, F. C. (1915). Traditions of the tinguian: a study in philippine folk-lore [Online]. Available at http://bullfinch.englishatheist.org/Tinguian.html#d0e144 [2007, April 27].

De los Reyes, A. J., & de los Reyes, A. M. (Ed.). (1987). Igorot: a people who daily touch the earth and the sky. Baguio City: Cordillera Schools Group

National Commission on Indigenous Peoples. (No date). The tingguian [Online]. Available at http://www.ncip.gov.ph/resources/ethno_detail.php?ethnoid=105 [2007, April 21].

Velasco, F. (No date). Tinguian [Online]. Available at http://litera1no4.tripod.com/tinguian_frame.html [2007, April 26].

_______. (No date). Tingguian [Online]. Available at http://library.thinkquest.org/C003235/tingguian.html [2007, April 21].

_______. (No date). Abra: provincial profile [Online]. Available at http://www.geocities.com/lppsec/pp/abra.htm [2007, April 21].

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This article is an excerpt from my thesis entitled The Indigenous Peace Process of the Masadiit Itnegs of Abra. This treatise was defended in September 2008 at the University of Baguio.