“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.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4rLlNLvQ65ipObEyCf60W2bjX1f6aBaHwy-pM8-BXEIl5_C5mCearZRUl0r2k8fXk0AnsEsx_KTHAarjNQ3MAD_DjHC9GtmD3fWZfdByVhibWc73YpFD6Uwqr5VmvVPMddrGKjBW_Ry3l/s320/abra,+philippines.png)
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 & PeƱarrubia, 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.
I am writing an article about Tinguian blanketss. Do you know of any people in your area of Abra who are still
ReplyDeleteweaving traditional textiles?I have visited the Easter Weaving School already.
travlinweaver@yahoo.com
hello Travlin Weaver...
ReplyDeleteof course there are still weavers in our place in Abra... and i personally some of them... i'll email you. and thanks for dropping by. ^_^
I do thesis about Itneg's textile design. I want to know the exact locations where i can buy textiles in Abra. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteermadianne@gmail.com
hi! my grandfather is from the itneg tribe. i just want to ask if it's true that the itneg tribe originated from southern china? because that's what they tell me. is it true?
ReplyDeleteHi meryl, thanks for dropping by. Though there is a possibility that itnegs came from china, as of this time we have no hard fact to prove that our trail as a people is traced from china. anthropologists do not have a single agreed-upon understanding of the origin of the itnegs or our neighbors. Though our music have a lot of resemblances with those of mainland music.
DeleteHi there! Thanks for this information. I have been going back and forth to Abra to understand these tribes and meet them. Thanks for compiling, it helps a lot! Wish you will continue blogging about your culturally diverse beautiful province of Abra :)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, do you have much knowledge about the Itneg music and Uggayam? Hope you could share it more :)
Edmar | www.edmaration.com
Hi Edmaration, thanks for visiting this sole blog entry of mine. and thanks for your interest in my homeland and my people.
Deletesurely, i know our tribal music (though i am not deeply knowledgeable as yet). uggayam is one chant i cannot yet perform but i am most interested in. i emailed you for this matter. keep in touch.
Hi! Thanks for this blog. I'm currently having my thesis but my concern is on health. DO you perhaps know if there are traditional birth attendants on the Itneg tribe? Thank you very much
DeleteHi andrea, thanks for reading the article...
Deleteyes, there are traditional birth attendants in the Itneg tribes...
hi i'm writing a paper about tinguian colors and numbers; do you know the terms used in their own language? please thank you
ReplyDeletehi azra, i'm an itneg... you can ask me regarding the colors and numbers...
Deletethanks for reading my blog :)
hi farland, this is great blog kabsat , im at the process of digging deeper of my roots, this work of yours gave me a lot to start with.
ReplyDeletethanks, lavine dee... please do find your way back to your roots.. if you are also an itneg like me, the more that you should learn about our culture. happy finding ur roots kabsat! :)
DeleteHi Farland Valera thanks for this blog. My grandmother who's name is Emelda Ola, came from her original at Abra. If you don't mind sir, I need your help. I'm looking an tribe of itneg that have relation to my grandmother. this is my contact # 09268505669 emailadd: bulanmichael26@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteHi Farland! I have a lot of Tinguian friends and batchmates from highschool. I am very interested and would like to learn the Inlaud dialect. Any suggestions? Thank you!
ReplyDeletethis really help me to understand different literature thanks for sharing your knowledge
ReplyDeletefarland...im becoming more interested with our tinguian products that leads me to search more about our history... mayat naoy inammaam ay research mabalin icopy?... thanks!
ReplyDeletefarland...im becoming more interested with our tinguian products that leads me to search more about our history... mayat naoy inammaam ay research mabalin icopy?... thanks!
ReplyDeletehi to all
ReplyDeletei am tingguian itneg tribes
(issa nga, nga tinguian tribo nga itnog)
Mariano B. Laory is the brotherof my Granfather
(e maliano nga Lawwo k0t kabsat ne ammang ko nga lakay)
It was very interesting for me to read that blog. Thanks the author for it. I like such topics and everything that is connected to them. I would like to read more soon Sakit.info
ReplyDeleteHai i just want to ask about itneg tribe... What is the customary law of itneg tribe ??
ReplyDelete