Unusual Visayan features?

[Bangkaya]

Hello,
In regards to your question, migueldiaz, it is a matter of perspective. The list that you have provided is a list in the Ilonggo dialect. Only one of the examples above (the first one posted by Spunjer) is an Ilonggo example. The rest are either from Akean (Aklan) or Capiz where they both speak different dialects. If you show a certain sword from Panay to 4 different people of the island from the 4 major ethnolinguistic groups living there (one from Antique, Aklan, Capiz, and Iloilo) you will get 4 different answers...and they would all be correct.

In some regions of Panay, certain words are shared between the ethnolinguistic groups, but can mean different things to certain people. For example and one that particularly pertains to this group is the term SANDUKO. In Capiz the sanduko is their particular sword they are mostly associated with. However, in Aklan, the sanduko is a short-broad utility knife mostly used in the kitchen similar to what the Ilonggos call a plamenko. According to your list, what the Ilonggos would call a sanduko is a long bolo with a curved point. If you showed an Akeanon a sanduko from Capiz, he would say it was just a talibung with a shorter, broader bakatong blade. It's all semantics. Another example would be the ginunting. To the Ilonggos the ginunting is a particular fighting binangon. But in Aklan, the ginunting is just one particular blade style of a talibung. However, both groups would recognize their swords as ginuntings. Furthermore, the word binangon is not recognized in Aklan, but it is I believe either in Antique or Capiz.

So in general, one should not be too hung up on particular nomenclature for these swords. They all fall under the general bisayan term of sundang. It is even safer to just call them bolos since it would be recognized as such throughout the Philippines. But if you wish to be more specific, it is safe to call any sword from Antique or Aklan a talibung, a sword from Capiz a sanduko, and a sword from Iloilo either a binangon or talibong.

Only when we can identify a particular sword to a specific region or ethnolinguistic group should we call the sword by its proper name in the respective dialect. However, it's the identifying part that will prove most challenging. For example, the highland Akeanon talibung is often mistaken for a sanduko from Capiz. They are almost identical and some would argue that they are just the same sword only separated by ethnolinguistic groups or physical boundaries such as a river or mountain range. And this holds true in the central highlands where the various bukidnon tribes don't recognize any geopolitical boundaries and can inhabit areas in Capiz, Aklan, and Iloilo. Only an experienced eye can spot the minuscule esoteric differences amongst the swords of Panay. Most of them look the same, but it's these small stylistic differences that define the sword and the people who carry them.

But that is another subject entirely....

Best regards,
Bangkaya

[migueldiaz]

Originally Posted by Bangkaya

Hello,
In regards to your question, migueldiaz, it is a matter of perspective. The list that you have provided is a list in the Ilonggo dialect. Only one of the examples above (the first one posted by Spunjer) is an Ilonggo example. The rest are either from Akean (Aklan) or Capiz where they both speak different dialects. If you show a certain sword from Panay to 4 different people of the island from the 4 major ethnolinguistic groups living there (one from Antique, Aklan, Capiz, and Iloilo) you will get 4 different answers...and they would all be correct ...

Bangkaya, your knowledge about these matters is truly wonderful! Thank you very much indeed for sharing these things.

On a related matter, the swords above have all been generically called tinegre. Is the term used in Capiz and Aklan also? Because what is common knowledge here in the forum is that it's a Panay Island term, i.e., the term is not only confined to Iloilo, but is prevalent over the entire island. On the other hand, we can also see from the 1930s Ilonggo dictionary excerpted above that the term may not be an original Ilonggo word after all.

Hope you can comment on this, too. And thanks in advance.

Best wishes.

[Bangkaya]

The term tinegre/tenegre is confusing indeed. It usually is associated with swords from Panay, but I believe it is a termed coined by outsiders not indigenous to the island. Throughout my travels in Antique, Aklan, and Capiz I have yet to meet someone that knows what a tinegre/tenegre is. I've visited many panday forges, palengke stalls, fishermen, farmers, etc. and most would look at me with bit of confusion. When shown a photo of a tinegre/tenegre, most would say, "oh...talibung!" Or "sanduko" in a few places in Capiz. In Iloilo, the response would be the same or "binangon." In Madurriao, Iloilo I was able to find one old panday that actually knew the term tinegre/tenegre. He was very specific saying that it was just a fighting talibung or binangon with the traditionally carved bakunawa pommel, at which point he started pointing at the teeth. When asked if it was an Ilonggo term, he said he believes it's a name that "outsiders call our swords."

Which brings us to the etymology of the word "tinegre." The root word is tigre which is tiger in tagalog, cebuano, and ilonggo. "Tinegre" is "as a tiger" or "tiger-like." This explains why the the old panday pointed to the teeth on the bakunawa face on the pommel since the teeth look very much like those on a tiger.

This was also explained to me by an old escrimador (who is no longer with us) that was not from the island of Panay. He said that was what they called the bolos of the Ilonggos. But he couldn't remember if it was because the pommel was like the face of a tiger or that the blade was like a tiger's tooth.

Hopefully, this clarifies things. I still use the term "tinegre" when referring to Ilonggo swords with the bakunawa pommel, whether it is binangon, talibong, pinuti, ginunting, etc. But then again, I'm not Ilonggo so I consider myself an outsider as well.

Regards,
Bankaya

[migueldiaz]

Thanks again for the additional info! Much appreciated as usual

[Spunjer]

He was very specific saying that it was just a fighting talibung or binangon

^^^ this. same explanation i got from one of the old timers, not necessarily a specific blade profile, but rather the intention of what it was for.


welcome datu!