A Link Between Taiwanese Aborigines and Certain Tribes in the Philippines

Back in my student days, I remembered having been a stranger to Chinese culture. One song was called "高山青 (read as Gāo Shān Qīng)" which literally means "High Green Mountain". The dancers wore the costumes used for traditional Ifugao dances. My interest in this topic came back because of a local tea company called Alishan Tea. Before that, other tea shops offered tea from Mt. Alishan. Chatime also promoted tea from Taiwan which was grown from Mt. Alishan. I'm afraid that the cultural revolution of Mao Zedong could've destroyed them if Chiang Kai Shek didn't split Taiwan from China. Hopefully, Taiwan's desire for independence would be granted if China becomes a democratic country.

I remembered being told that a trip to Taiwan's Mt. Alishan might remind one of Baguio or Nueva Ecija. It turns out that the Banaue Rice Terraces, as marvelous as it is, may not be so unique. I love the Banaue Rice Terraces and they should be preserved. Countries with terraces should preserve theirs as well. It turns out that Taiwan and the Philippines do have some common tribes. Settlers tend to move here and there.

I found this interesting note from the Indigenous Welfare Research Institute National Center of Excellence. This is about the common links between Taiwan and the Philippines since both are members of ASEAN and are very close to each other:

The diversity of Taiwanese languages strongly suggests that Austronesian peoples have inhabited Taiwan for 8,000 years. Population growth contributed to out-migration from Taiwan to the Philippines starting 6,000 – 7,000 years ago, and thence to mainland Southeast Asia and the islands of Indonesia. From maritime SE Asia, Austronesians fanned eastward to the islands of the South Pacific between 1200 B.C. and 1280 A.D., when New Zealand became the last major island group to be settled. Austronesians fanned westward into the Indian Ocean and landed in Madagascar by 500 A.D.

Did a couple of Taiwanese aborigines end up introducing terracing to the Philippines? It would be very hard to determine that. If there are rice terraces for raising food (Taiwan has the Xinshe rice terraces and Yehang terraces to name a few. Did the people of Banaue and Cordillera descend from Taiwanese aborigines? That means a couple of indigenous Filipinos are descendants of Taiwanese natives.

The Inquirer even shares this amazing piece of information about Taiwanese indigenous folks:

TAIPEI—In communities of the indigenous Amis tribe across Taiwan, locals say lima for five, pito for seven and mata for eye, just like Filipinos. In southern Taiwan’s Alishan mountain, the Tsou tribe calls the community’s meeting hut a kuba, strikingly similar in design to the Philippines’ kubo.
Whether in language, architecture or way of life, links among indigenous peoples of the Philippines and Taiwan are undeniable, with both sides tracing their ancestry to the Austronesian migrations across the Pacific Islands thousands of years ago.

Ying Xuan Zhuang

Above is a photo of the Taiwanese tea terraces. Talk about another marvel to behold. I guess it's no wonder why a visit to Mt. Alishan is comparable to visiting the Banaue and Cordillera region. You may get to see indigenous people dance for you in their native costumes. The costumes worn by Filipino aborigines are very similar to the Taiwanese aborigines. Did native Taiwanese decide to make the best of what they found in Banaue and the Cordillera regions? I can't be certain. With that in mind, I really feel ties between Taiwan and the Philippines need to be strengthened.

The Late Lee Kuan Yew Called the Philippines' Press RAMBUNCTIOUS

The Straits Times As April Fool's Day draws near, I intend to write on something the late Lee Kuan Yew said in his book From Third World to First . It was once wrongly said that he said the Philippine presses as masters of intrigue . It was made by a certain Jesus Satorre Jr. who wrongly called Lee Kuan Yew, president . That alone deserves to be fact-checked . It was even funny how a certain someone called Mahathir Mohamad a president when he criticized former president Rodrigo R. Duterte. However, there was a quote from the book concerning the Philippines about the Philippine press: Ramos knew well the difficulties of trying to govern with strict American-style separation of powers. The senate had already defeated Mrs. Aquino's proposal to retain the American bases. The Philippines had a rambunctious press but it did not check corruption. Individual press reporters could be bought, as could many judges . I'm afraid that it's very easy to quote what Lee said about the...

Pepsi Paloma's Alleged Rape

The late Pepsi Paloma (Delia Dueñas Smith) is one death I only knew about decades later. Delia died at only 18 years old in 1985. It would be 40 years since it happened and it's still a mystery. Right now, I feel that Daryl Yap's film The Rapists of Pepsi Paloma is simply there for box office tickets. Is it me or are exploitation films that claim to be based on the truth, really a fad? Some of the exploitation films are probably just meant for box office receipts. For example, Animal (2004) was a fictional film based on the Chiong Sisters Case. Later, the film Jacqueline Comes Home (read my review here ) was supposedly based on what happened to the Chiong Sisters. Like the Chiong Sisters, it seems that nobody will really know what led Pepsi to end her life at only 18 years old. Manila Bulletin The Manila Bulletin also shows this: Pepsi also appeared in other sexy films, such as Virgin People and Naked Island released in 1984. In 1982, Pepsi and fellow sexy star Guada Guar...

Still One of My Favorite Politicians, the Late Miriam Palma Defensor-Santiago

It's been some time since Miriam Palma Defensor-Santiago died. True, she can be temperamental but she really has a lot of good reasons to be angry. The impeachment of the late Renato Corona was one example. I could remember seething in anger seeing Atty. Vitaliano N. Aguirre II when he covered his ears. Some say she went overboard. Maybe, she did and I think Aguire II didn't deserve to be detained in contrast to instant admonition. I believe that no caucus was needed and making Aguire II get out of the courtroom was more than enough punishment for minor disrespect . She may have clashed with the late Fidel V. Ramos but I can't get enough of her feisty behavior--something I feel the Philippines needs to become a truly disciplined country. Some may say that MDS is very maldita or a very mean woman. I did pass through a teacher who was like her. Sure, I didn't get good grades, she could go overboard, but I'm still thankful to that economics teacher. I'd say I...

Remembering My Humanities Summer Classes' Field Trips

I decided to feel nostalgic by remembering my college days at the University of San Carlos. I remembered taking summer classes immediately after finishing my two-year computer course. I was more than glad that I wasn't accepted for Information Technology since it's not my line. I took basic marketing, statistics, and humanities. It would be around 2004 and it's almost 20 years since that experience. Facebook The mandatory field trip was going to the four historical Catholic churches in Summer Class 2004 (April-May under the old curriculum). If my memory serves me right, the places were Carcar, Bolhoon, Dalaguete, and Argao. I already forgot the route of the long humanities trip back in 2004. I could remember waking up early, we were told to be well-rested, I still had a camera with negatives back then, and it was a time for me to be extra attentive. Yes, I can be very inattentive. At that time, I still didn't have an active lifestyle though I tried to do some exercise ...

The Paternity of Sergio Osmeña Sr.

More than 10 years ago while I was a college student, I remembered one of the topics raised was who in the world was the father of the late Sergio Osmeña Sr.? I remembered my Humanities subject while I studied at the University of San Carlos (USC) during my summer classes. I immediately took summer classes after I finished my associate's degree and proceeded to take my bachelor's degree in business administration. We had a field trip at Casa Gorordo in Cebu where one of the curators said, "Just who was his father?" There was a wild guess it was the late Pedro Lee Singson Gotiaoco. The Freeman I heard from someone, back in college, that neither Tomas Osmeña nor the late John Gokongwei Jr. admits to being related to each other. Gokongwei Jr. is a great-grandson of Gotiaoco. A Sunstar article about Juana Osmeña mentions this one about the past 145 years ago which may verify their mutual claims: SCIENCE has settled almost a century-and-a-half-old mystery -- history and g...

Did the Director and Producer of "Give Up Tomorrow" Manage to Interview the Late Federico "Toto" Natividad Jr.?

I guess the fascination with the broken justice system can never end, right? After watching Give Up Tomorrow , my entire world was shattered. I never realized that, all along, the act done by the 35 (or more) witnesses for Juan Francisco G. Larrañaga aka Paco. Paco was in Quezon City in Manila during the night of the crime. Manila was 300 kilometers away from Cebu City, where the crime happened. One of my memories in high school was that a film based on the Chiong Sisters was being produced. The film was originally named Butakal meaning "male pig". Later, the film was renamed Animal in 2004--the same year Paco was wrongfully on death row. There was a sense of urgency in making the film. Fortunately, Paco and his co-accused were spared. The film presented the case of how eight people were wrongfully tagged. Yes, I believe that Davidson V. Rusia was innocent regarding the crime. The documentary did show that Davidson was tortured repeatedly. What we saw was only what was incl...

Learn the Facts, Not Gossip, from Reading Lee Kuan Yew's "From Third World to First"

The Straits Times I could remember ordering the book From Third World to First ( sometime after electricity and Internet connection got restored) in January. I wanted a copy of the book but it's that hard to secure. So, I used Shoppee to order the book shipped from Indonesia . There's so much misinformation that I read on Facebook about Singapore. No, I'm not just talking about using the late Flor Contemplacion as an excuse. Instead, it's all about Singapore's development. I felt that my best "Christmas Gift" (it was bought with my savings, not given) was having a copy of this book. It was written by none other than the great statesman, the late Lee Kuan Yew, the father of Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. There are a lot of misconceptions about Singapore's progress. Some people have written on Facebook gossip about Singapore's progress. These are the following gossips I could read on Facebook such as: Singapore only opened to foreign di...

Martial Law Under the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines

September 21 paints a grim picture, especially for what's often called the martial law victims. I remember panicking back when I was 11 years old. It was possible that the late Fidel V. Ramos may declare martial law at any time. However, researching the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines can help. It can help Filipinos determine what needs to be revised to fit the current times. Article VII Section 18 says the following about martial law: SECTION 18. The President shall be the Commander-in-Chief of all armed forces of the Philippines and whenever it becomes necessary, he may call out such armed forces to prevent or suppress lawless violence, invasion or rebellion. In case of invasion or rebellion, when the public safety requires it, he may, for a period not exceeding sixty days, suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus or place the Philippines or any part thereof under martial law. Within forty-eight hours from the proclamation of martial law or the suspension of the p...

Why I Think Banning the Mention of Hitler on Facebook is STUPID

Getty Images It's crazy how reporting a comment with the word "Hitler" can get anyone banned. For example, this is what I found on Quora : They should be allowed. there are quotes of his that are not in praise of hitler but showing how he thought so that people are critical of their current leaders . For example, here’s a quote by him “ How fortunate for governments that the people they administer don't think.” This is a perfect example of why Hitler quotes should be allowed; to show how dictators think and how people should be critical. Yes, he started a giant war and murdered people but censoring what he said will only help the next dictator start more wars and murder more people because people forgot about Hitler . This is why the First Amendment is so important: it’s about communication and freedom so that we all make better decisions in the future. I just told someone that Adolf Hitler seized the means of production and I got a strike. Like what? I wonder what ...

Cooking Mud Crabs: Why the Color Changes

Above is a GIF I created. After writing on crab mentality and the Filipino First Policy , I decided to write about why mud crabs change color. Mud crab dishes are one of my favorite foods in Surigao City. The color is dark but when it's cooked, it goes red. The Tavern Hotel is among the best places to get a mud crab dish. Now, it's time to do science as a daily hobby. Sure, I'm no chemist or biochemist. However, researching and studying science as a hobby is sure fun. Here's an explanation from The Conversation : A crustacean’s exoskeletons contain several chemicals called pigments, which give the crabs and prawns their colour. One of these is an orange-ey pigment called “astaxanthin”. This is a member of the family of pigments that is responsible for colouring many of the yellow, orange and red animals. When the crustaceans are alive, the astaxanthin is tightly wrapped up and trapped by a special protein called “crustacyanin”. This is why live crabs and prawns usually...

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