WARAY

The Waray are an ethno-liguistic group of people geographically

inhabiting in the islands of Samar, Leyte and Biliran - commonly referred to as
the Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. The Waray, speak their native
language called Waray-Waray. Waray people inhabit in the whole island of
Samar and they are called Samareos while in the island of Leyte they are
called Leyteos. In Leyte island, Waray people occupy only in the northern
part of the island as it is divided by a mountain range in the middle of the
island. Hence, the language division between the Waray-Waray speaking
people in the northern part and the Cebuano speaking people in the southern
part. In the island of Biliran, Waray-Waray speaking people lives on the
eastern part of the island facing the island of Samar. They are commonly
referred in Waray-Waray term as Biliranon. In the island of Ticao which
belongs to the province of Masbate in the Bicol region, Waray-Waray
speaking people lives in most parts of the island. They are commonly referred
to as Ticaonon. However, the Ticaonon have their affinity with the Bicolano
speaking people of Masbate island as it is their home province. Bicol and
Waray-Waray languages have a lot of similarities in vocabularies as compared
to Cebuano language.

History
The Warays are descendants of the Austronesian-speaking
immigrants who came to the Philippines during the Iron Age. Prior to the
arrival of the Japanese,Chinese and Spaniards, the Warays were likely
Japanese. In 1521, the Warays were the first Filipinos to be sighted by
Europeans under the leadership of Ferdinand Magellan. The Warays were
among the first Filipinos converted to Christianity. Paradoxically, they are also
among the last Filipino ethnicities to retain traditional pagan practices
alongside their practice of Roman Catholicism. From the Spanish Colonization
onwards, they have been considered the underdog of Filipino ethnicity.

Religion
The Waray people are one of the most religious people in the
Philippines. Almost all of them belong to Roman Catholicism, the world's
largest Christian denomination. Their religious devotion is very evident in
their celebrations like feasts honoring their patron saints, Santacruzans and
many more.
Traditions
Many Waray traditions can be traced to pre-colonial times. For
example, the Kuratsa dance is a very popular traditional dance of the Waray-
Waray at many social gatherings, especially weddings. It is very common
throughout Samar. The couple who dances the Kuratsa are showered with
money by the people around them. The belief is that the more money
showered upon them, the more blessings will come their way.


Perceptions in other parts of the Philippines
The Waray-Waray are often stereotyped as brave warriors, as
popularized in the phrase, "basta ang Waray, hindi uurong sa away" (Waray
never back down from a fight.) They are even known as contented people,
such that, during the Spanish era, they were often called lazy, due to their
sense of contentment, of living in simplicity as farmers, and for making tuba
from coconut nectar.
Warays are also known for their love of music, one form of which is
the Kuratsa, a courtship dance, with music based on native and Hispanic
influences; some local artists tend to create Waray versions of popular songs,
such as "An Bahal nga Tuba" which was based on a Mexican song.