The Psychology of the Filipino

Title

Creator

Romualdez, Norberto

Language

English

Year

1924

Subject

Identity (Psychology)

Social conditions

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

40 The Psychology of the Filipino By Hon. Norberto Romualdez Associate Justice of the ¡Supreme Court of the Philippine Islands (Continuation) d). Social and Political Condi tions. There is no doubt that among the Malays and Indonesians who oc cupied, and still occupy, the Archi pelago, there is racial unity. As Fr. Zuniga said, everything shows that the Filipinos belong to one and the same race. Our physical appearance confirms this conclusion. Here is a picture showing Filipinos from different re gions, including Mohammedans, Christians, and Pagans. This picture was obtained through the courtesy of the Director of Non-Christian Tribes, Mr. Sanvictores: Of the girls of this group, 5 are Christians, 3 Mohammedans, and 2 Pagans. Of the boys, 7 are Chris tians, 8 Mohammedans, and 2 Pa gans. The picture was taken in the inner court of the Normal Hall, Manila, on Nov. 25, 1923. The ancient division of the Fili pinos into groups is due to their having come in different boats call ed baJagay. 41 Each of these groups occupied and cultivated a certain area of land. As the members of each group were relatives, they recognized the oldest man among them as their chief, who was called hadyé (Malay term for ¡king), or radya (Indonesian word for king). or datu (Malay name of chief or noble), or matando sa nayon (old man or chief of the place), ac cording to the importance of each group. The words sultan (emperor), and paglima (chief of five divisions. because paglima is a derivative of limó which means five), must have been brought many centuries after, when Islamism was introduced here after the 14th century. Rizal had reason to believe that there may have existed a confedera tion, since we know from the early Spaniards who settled here, that the ruler in Manila, in the year 1570, was Radya Matando, who had ju risdiction over the territory from the northern banks of the Pasig river northwards, and was the uncle of Radya Solimán who had jurisdic tion over the territory from the southern banks of the Pasig river southwards. Professor Blumentritt, in an arti cle entitled “De los Estados indí genas existentes en Filipinas en tiem po de la Conquista española (‘‘Re vista Contemporánea”, year 12, vols. 63, 64) tells us of the follow ing prominent men: Gat-DakU,lord of San Pablo, Laguna; Gat-Bulintag, lord of Pagdayaan, Batangas; Gat-Sdlukáb^ lord of Lumot; Gatu gayan, lord of Makupa; GatMaytan, lord ofBulakan; Gat-Salyan. lord of Malolos; Gat-Dulá, lord of Hagunoy. The term gat represented a nation al or social prominence and title, given to a person in consideration to his learning, wealth, power, or per sonal courage. There was another title, of a more strictly official character, applied to persons exercising some jurisdiction and authority, such as the title of lakán, probably derived from laki (big or greatness). Such was the title of the Chief of Tondo in 1570, called Lakán-Dulá. This name was kept after the arrival of the Span iards, and was used as a surname of the descendants of that chief of Ton do. So, the first Filipino who en tered a Catholic Religious Order, was Martin Lakandula, probably a son of said Chief, a member of the Augustinian Order, who died in Manila in the year 1590 (See “In dicaciones Bibliográficas” of Retana in his edition of Morga’s “Sucesos de Filipinas”, p. 543.) We use at present this word lakán very frequently, not isolated, but in a composition. I refer to the name Malakanyan, the place where the palace of the Governor-Generals of the Philippines is situated. This word Malakanyan, as explained by Mr. Jose Sevilla, a notable Tagalog writer, is a compound of ma which is a Filipino particle used to express abundance, lakán which, as I have said, means chief, and iyán, a Taga log demonstrative pronoun equiva lent to that or that place. So, Ma42 lakdn-iydn, means the place of the Governor-Generals. You will pardon me for indulging in the explanation of native words, tracing their etymology. I do it, for I believe that much more light and interest are thus thrown on the subject. The Filipino society was based on the family as a social unit. The family relations were, and still are, so close, that they are not limited to> the parents and children, but are extended to remote relatives. The society was divided into three main classes, the nobles, the free men, and the slaves. It must be noted that slavery was much more humane in the Philippines, than in Greece and Rome. This was pro bably due to the fact that the immi grants who settled in these Islands were imbued with sentiments of li berty ; they were a people forced to leave their native land because of the tyranny of some of their kings. It may be said, therefore, that Providence prepared our forefathers for Christianity, which they did, in fact, receive most willingly, and which taught and teaches equality of men, and that a person, by the mere fact of being a member of the human-kind, is endowed with, and possessed of, all the natural rights common to all men, because of their common nature, origin, and destiny. The Filipinos had their economic, military and political government. The government, as Fr. San An tonio tells us, was not monarchical, for they had no absolute king; nor was it democratic, but it was an aristocracy, in accordance with their traditions. Each group or state was called balagay, which was similar to the districts of Rome. We have already indicated that balagay was each group of immigrant© coming in the same boat. These groupings were kept by them, and afterwards found by the Spaniards who adopt ed them as divisions for purposes of personal taxation, the head of each group being called cabeza de baran gay (head of a balagay}. The highest chief of each political group was vested with legislative, executive and judicial powers. He made laws, by and with the advice and consent of the datus and eldermen, who also acted as delegates, especially in the judiciary, where they performed the functions of judges. The litigants could appoint a referee. The groups maintained interstate relations. e.) Laws. Besides their traditions and cus toms, they had positive laws, act ually made, promulgated and pub lished, as Loarca indicates, and as shown by a Penal Code written in the year 1433 by Kalantiaw, the third chief of Panay, of which I shall speak later. There were laws as to marriage, but there was only one kind of cere mony, the religious one. The cere mony was more or less solemn, de pending on the rank of the contract ing parties. According to Morga, the wife was on the same level with 43 her husband, not only in her person but also in regard to property. The wife was supposed to be the boss of the house. Thus, among the Tagalogs, the wife is called .may-bahay (the owner, the chief of the house). The solemnity of the marriage is maintained in many places up to the present time, but, of course, some what influenced by the Spanish cus toms. Of course, distinction was drawn between legitimate and illegitimate children; there was a procedure of legitimation, and of acknowledg ment, and adoption of children. There were laws on property, suc cession, wills, betterments, obliga tions and contracts, partnership, loans, court procedure, etc. Naturally, upon the establish ment of the Spanish sovereignty, the Spanish laws were put in force, and some of these Spanish laws are still laws in these Islands. There are in force up to the pre sent time some native customary laws, such as some rules among the Moros of Mindanaw, and some Fili pino contracts, like the Tagalog sanla, which is called prenda in Bisayan, which is very similar to the old Roman contract called fiducia, when said sanla or prenda refers to real property. There are also some special partnerships of agricultural or commercial character, and even in the fishing industry. (To be continued) BE KIND, SPEAK GENTLY Speak gently; it is better far To rule by LOVE than FEAR. Speak gently, let no harsh word mar The good we might do here. Speak gently to the little child, Its love be sure to gain; Teach it in accents soft and inild, It may not long remain. Speak gently to the aged one; Grieve not the careworn heart: The sands of life are nearly run, Let such in peace depart. Speak gently kindly to the poor; Let no harsh tone be heard; They have enough they must endure, Without an unkind word. Speak gently to the erring; know They must have toiled in vain; Perhaps unkindness made them so. Oh! win them back again. Speak kindly: ’tis a little thing Dropped in the heart’s deep well; The good, the joy which it may bring Eternity shall tell. ----------------------------------------------In the man whose childhood has known caresses and kindness, there is always a fibre of memory that can be touched to gentle influences.

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