WHAT IS IT IN OUR CULTURE THAT WE WANT TO PASS ON TO THE NEXT GENERATION?

AGENDA
WHAT IS CULTURE ANYWAY? THE CULTURE MODEL THE CULTURE OF OUR ANCESTORS CONCEPT & APPLICABILITY to Present Generation WHAT MUST WE PASS ON?

What is Culture, Anyway?

Culture in the Anthropological sense is defined in the following statements: 1. Culture refers to the entire way a group of people lives and is organized. A set of rules, standards, or manners shared within a human group that describes a range of behaviors and beliefs that are proper, acceptable, and valid. These rules promote the survival of the group. These rules govern all aspects of behavior within the human group and provide for repercussions when the rules are violated. These rules also govern relationships to other human groups and the environment. These rules arent necessarily written down. They are, in fact handed down from generation to generation through tradition. 3

What is Culture, Anyway?

Examples of Cultural Rules & Traits: What must a person do when a member of a family dies? The proper use of clothing Who must lead a peace pact and what must this leader do? What must a woman do when she delivers a baby? How do we name a child? Marriage customs Myths, legends and histories The Appropriate thing to say or eat at certain times 2. No culture stays the same. Every culture is constantly changing. The change either comes from inside the culture or from outside the culture through acculturation. 4

The Culture Model

The Culture of a people may be grouped into 4 MAJOR COMPONENTS : (What disguishes one culture from another) Beliefs - ideas, customs, values, norms, traditions Social

Institutions - family, religion, education,

government, economics

Humanities - attitudes, music & art, language, recreation Technology - Methods, Tools, Machinery, Skills

The Culture of Our Ancestors

Belief in supernatural powers/spirits. See narrative on Childhood experiences with Beliefs a men sip-ok. Ideas Respect for the elders. Values According to Bishop Claver, the deepest part of a culture is its Morals values because these, he says, make up one's identity, ''not dress, Customs not dance, and not even language.' To Bishop Claver, the old Traditions Igorot ways of honest and open dealings with one another in
See narrative on Childhood experience with elders.

their social, economic and political life are worth looking into & is in fact, worth passing on to the younger generation.

Tayan - a common piece of land for members of a clan to cultivate. The concept is so that none in the clan will go hungry. Tayan is not for sale. See
narrative for Childhood experience here.)

Marriages, feasts; deaths, offerings

Peace Pacts

Naming conventions - children named after a relative because parents want child to inherit good traits of the relative; named after physical attributes of the child, etc. (Fowangan - aw-ai niyanak ay chak-chakowag nan puto na!) 6

The Culture of Our Ancestors (contd)

Social Institutions Family
Religion Education Government Economics

The Igorot family has always been patriarchal and fiercely protective in nature. Considered ritualistic pagans. Schooled on their own rules of survival. Ruled by the elders of the ili. Exist and live by taking only what they need from day to day.

There are merits to these institutional traits - solidarity, discipline, loyalty, organized decision making process, and non-wastefulness.

The Culture of Our Ancestors (contd)

Humanities
Attitudes Music & Art Language Recreation TATTOOS - In the early years, young men and women in the Cordillera were usually tattooed by an elder who occupied a high position in the community. The men who returned from war with their enemy's head, however, were allowed to get their tattoos by a maingal (warrior). The women would mostly get their tattoos at a young age to make them more attractive, while the men saw tattoos as a mark of manhood.

BAG-BAG-TO - a recreation - the bigger your wound,

the more your harvest.

Language of the Igorot is very descriptive of where the tribe comes from - hence, the Bontocs are known to be rough and direct; Kalingas, rather bold-shy; Ifugaos, pilosopos; Benguets, shy mango; and Apayaons, malumay. 8

The Culture of Our Ancestors (contd) Music & Art Songs, dances, chants - for different occasions definitely follow certain rules.

There are different dances for different occasions. Each dance has a story and a message.

10 The art of beating gongs requires spiritualty and a skilled sense of harmony and coordination. Beating the gongs while dancing at the same time, is a skill that only comes with enculturation and acculturation. It does not happen overnight. For some, its a spiritual experience.

Igorot dances are better appreciated when performed in the native attire. The designs on the tapis and wanes also tell a story and reflect the beliefs, myths, and legends of a culture.

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The Culture of Our Ancestors (contd)

Technology
Methods Tools Machinery Skills

Rice terraces technology.

Crop rotation 9

Planting rice is never fun, bent from morn till the set of sun - to the Igorots, it is a family activity, it has its time, it has its season, it is an art that requires extreme coordination with Mother Nature. 13

Rice Processing

Rice processing is such a painstaking activity that our people have learned to process just enough as needed. Consequently, its fresher and more nutritious. There is little waste. Its a process that provides a time to chat. It requiresGag-get, time, patience.

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TECHNOLOGY Contd

Pottery. Basket weaving. Wood carving - agar-aramid

ti tao ken dad-duma pai.

Inasin (Ham) meat salting preservation methods Rice Wine making. Jewelry - ahling, beads, etc. 15

TECHNOLOGY Contd

Weaving - a family creativity resulting in a material that reflects the symbols, story and thoughts of a people. It does not happen overnight. It requires concentration, patience, and knowledge of the culture.

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SO WHAT IS IT THAT WE WANT TO PASS ON? Cant wear tapis to work or the wanes in NY city streets. Cant afford to feed the whole town at your wedding Cant butcher as many pigs in your house during death Dont have the time to plant, pound, winnow rice for food. Are the dances and songs all thats left? 17

VALUES learned from customs & traditions We must continue to hold our children close to us and teach them the values of close knit families from childhood.

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We must teach the Symbolic meaning of our woven fabric designs

There is a time, and a season under the heavens - and when

we do wear our native attire, we wear it with pride and a degree of solemnity because we know what went into its creation.

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Every culture trait of the four aspects of the Igorot culture from beliefs, to institutional make-up, to humanities and to technology have the following basic values common to them: Concept of strength, patience, ingenuity in Technology one-ness with nature Respect for the elderly, rules & the memory of a relative who moves on to the other world. Sharing with the community in times of joy, as well as sadness. Simple living - taking only that which you need and ensuring enough for others. Cultivation of strong family ties. This is our peoples story- make it yours?. 20