Friday, September 7, 2018

Pictures and Descriptions of Kalinga Costumes


Igorot costumes are similar to Kalinga costumes; however, there are certain differences that an observant could notice.

Let’s discuss them in detail.



Kalinga Ginamat



 In Kalinga, the ginamat is a rectangular woven material that usually measures 4 to 5 feet long and 3 to 3.5 inches wide.

This is for women and is worn as a skirt by winding it around the waist and hooking it up at the ends. Unlike the Bontocs, the ginamats for Kalingas don’t have an accompanying ‘tail’ or ginamat back extensions.




There may be beads incorporated into the colorful ginamat’s design but no belts or additional appendages. This is one of the Kalinga native costumes that have intricate designs.

During the olden times, women wore only the ginamat without any upper clothing. Thus, women are topless, especially married and old women.

The clothing is entirely hand woven, done by ingenious women, who patiently created art through their woven materials.

Up to this day, back in the provinces, ginamats are still hand woven. However, in the big cities, some machines were built to facilitate the procedure of weaving the ginamat.

Kalinga G-string



This Kalinga native costume is worn by men to hide their lower private parts. It’s similar to the ginamat but narrower and longer.









It usually measures more than 5 feet in length but is only around ¾ foot in width. It’s worn by winding the woven material on the waist and the lower private parts to secure the G-string.

Typically, the cheeks of the buttocks are not covered but only the anal and penile areas. There’s also no upper clothing for men - just the G-string.

For other Cordillera regions the G-strings are the same, except perhaps with the designs. Nowadays, The G-strings are wider to be able to cover most of the buttocks.

But still, briefs are not worn, but only the G-string. And yes, the Kalingas are now wearing trendy clothes, just like their urban counterparts.

Ginamats and G-strings are only worn during cultural festivities and special occasions.


Kalinga Accessories Worn with the Ginamat



Kalinga Bongor.



The bongor is a string of beads worn like a necklace. The beads are genuine gems and are valuable.

Kalinga women who had bongors are usually the affluent and people who have high positions in the village. The bigger the beads are, the richer the person is.





Often, one piece of these genuine beads is worth 1 carabao. And the carabao is an expensive animal because it’s used as a work animal.

Hence, you can just imagine how expensive the beads are. Perhaps, comparing to the present price of carabaos, it could cost around 7 thousand to 10 thousand pesos.

The present generation has created native beads that could be worn on top of the head on the wrist (bracelet) and feet (anklet).

Kalinga Headdress



Aside from women wearing headdresses, men can also wear them. Sometimes, the “crown” is adorned with feathers and natural items.



Presently, Kalingas have become more ingenious, creating beautiful headdresses.

Tattoo,



Although this is not an accessory in the true meaning of the word, it’s considered as one because people with tattoos were highly respected.

Tattoos are indications of bravery and high prestige. The younger Kalinga generation; however, are not so keen in having themselves tattooed because they may be discriminated on.

This is understandable as tattoos are prohibited in most schools, in blood donation, and in other significant events and institutions.

Almost all of the elders are tattooed, and they are proud of their ethnicity.

These are the basic Kalinga costumes worn during the olden days.

Of course, with the passage of time, the native Kalinga costume underwent some changes.

Nowadays, Kalinga women wear blouses during cultural presentations.




But take note that there was a time when women were topless, and people in the village didn’t find anything malicious with it; they were not embarrassed at all.

Only the men remain topless and semi-nude.

So, there you go, these are the descriptions of the basic Kalinga costumes.

You can view the images to have an idea how they look like.

Ciao!

Thursday, July 5, 2018

Watch Kalinga in Pictures

Kalinga is famous for its rolling, verdant mountains and lush vegetation. Watch these pictures and see for yourself. All these beautiful pictures of Lubuagan, Kalinga belong to the photographer Jun Ilacad Ysmael. Thanks, Jun.
These pictures of Taloctoc, Tanudan, Kalinga depict the beauty of nature, and the natural resources of Kalinga...all photos are courtesy of Virgo Evergreen. Thanks.

Tuesday, May 1, 2018

Beautiful Memories When I was a Kid in Taloctoc, Tanudan, Kalinga

Sometimes memories can bring tears in your eyes or a smile on your lips. Whatever emotions they provoke, poignant memories are luxuries enjoyed by aged people, while there are still neurons that can recall momentous events in their lives.

These memories are like jewels coming to their brilliance when the physical body can no longer venture to the outside world, but the mind is still alive and kicking.

Photo credit to the Photographer


For me, my beautiful memories when I was a kid in Taloctoc, Tanudan in the Hinterlands of Kalinga are my most precious jewels. And even in my dreams, they keep recurring, like a long-playing record, never wanting to end.

Let me share these memories with you.

Water is precious 

During my time, there was still no running water in this little paradise. We have to fetch water from a well that was dug in the riverbank. You may not believe it when I say that the water has a distinct sweet taste that I have never tasted from other water sources.

You can understand what I mean, if you have drank from a river-well too. I was only 7 years old then, but I have to balance a big pot on my head from the river to our modest house. It was around 2 km away, and a little uphill.

Plus, I had to fill our water container until it was full. It was hard work, but it introduced me to the notion that to be able to drink, you have to endure the hardships.

The supernatural exists 

There was also a big tamarind tree in our backyard that used to visit me in my dreams, even up to this day. The tree was as tall as a three-story building, and it was robustly thriving all year through, with an abundance of fruits.

We never took care of it, but there it was proudly standing high, waving its evergreen leaves at the sky –defiantly – seeming to proclaim that no matter what – it will survive on its own. I’m assuming that the tree is where those eerie shadows emanated from.

During night time there were shadows that I had encountered that suddenly disappears when I spoke. One time, I thought the shadow was my younger brother, so I called out to him, but it disappeared right before my very eyes. It was scary, and at my young age, I have considered it a common occurrence in my village.

Firebirds 

I have witnessed firebirds perched atop the rooftop of a soon-to-be-deceased person. Having a firebird visit your house when you’re sick is a death sentence. “Matoy sinsinna e algaw.” (He may die today.)

The bird had feathers that glow red during the night and produced a loud cooing that was heard a mile away; the sound seeming to call the dying person into the afterlife. However, today, I don’t think the strange bird survived the onslaught of development.

Summer paradise 

During summer, after working in the fields the whole day, we spend our late afternoons in the Chico River swimming and diving, filling our ravenous stomachs with wild berries and sweet guavas that grew abundantly in the riverbank.

We also went fishing using our bare hands. It was easy catching the small school of fishes as the water was shallow and all we did was to dry up the water bed. When it starts to get dark, we finally went home, exhausted but beaming with childhood glee.

Oh, yes of course, we swim in the nude. Everyone was naked but no one saw malice in it. I could go on and on, talking about my childhood days in Taloctoc, Tanudan, Kalinga, but the space for this post won’t suffice. So, let’s do it on installment basis.

While you're here, you may want to read more of my experiences in these posts:

This post is about Lubuagan, Kalinga and Its Poignant Memories

I would like to invite you to my village –Taloctoc, the paradise I had known as a child; the tranquil verdant mountains, the clear, rambling Chico river, and the unadulterated air in the atmosphere. Intakkon od Taloctoc, Kalinga! (Let’s visit Taloctoc, Kalinga!)

More stories next time folks. Let me share first this video of a Taloctoc – Ilocano chant we had usually recited when we were young:

Dong dong kawayan
Kawayan pinanggayan
Pinanggayan de olay
Olay e pagay uppay
Pagay uppay e dogway
Dogway e namillapil
Namillapil nang ngasil
Nang-ngasil dala-upa
Dala-upa kataba
Kataba pagiyokan
Dali-dali-itan
Ipos ti kabayo
a napiko-piko
Alam ta kanem.

Here's the video:



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