A Business Graduate's Reviewing History Blog

One look and one may think this is from the Bangsamoro Region. Instead, this is an Indonesian dance from Sumatra. A study of Filipino history reveals that Indonesians were among the settlers in the Philippines. That would explain why Muslim Mindanao would be like Malaysia and Indonesia in their culture. As I look at the gestures, I'm reminded of my high school Buwan ng Wika (Month of the Language) programs. Several Filipino dances in Mindanao are similar to those of Malaysia and Indonesia. After all, most Filipinos share the same direct ancestry as Malaysians and Indonesians.  As a Chinese Filipino, it's hard for me not to think of the Itik Itik dance. The two dances are similar yet different. 

Here's a video of an old man dancing to the Taiwanese folk song "High Green Mountain". This is one of my favorite versions. The song ends with an aboriginal chant--something that sounds like an Ifugao beat from Nueva Ecija. 

Here's another Taiwanese aboriginal song called 我們都是一家人 (Wǒmen dōu shì yījiā rén). The song above mixes Taiwanese Mandarin and aboriginal language. The song means "We are family". This would be another Amis Tribe song in Taiwan.  Above is a version written in the Amis language. This would sound more authentic than the mixed language or the ones written in Mandarin.  Enjoy!

There's really something so beautiful about aboriginal language songs. Some versions of the song "Girl of Mt. Alisan" featured an aboriginal language chant. Landing into the aboriginal songs in Taiwan gives me a sense of awe. This is another random song that came out in my recommendations! Enjoy!

Here's another Taiwanese indigenous song that never got out of my head. Searching these kinds of songs caused me to land on the Indonesian song Tolu Sahundalan which is "Three It Will Be Alright". The lyrics are purely sung in an Aboriginal language. The dance steps are, as always, similar to Malaysian aborigines and Filipino aborigines. The DNA of the Ami tribe is closest to Malaysian .  Here's a more lively of the Ami Welcome Dance. Sure, the first version is good but I think I like this version better. 

Another song that gave me an earworm is the Ami Tribe song "Song of the Ocean" (海洋之歌). Not surprisingly, the Amis Tribe has its members near the ocean. This excerpt from Vice gives some information on the Amis Tribe: The Amis tribe in Taiwan is the largest aboriginal group on the island. They are known for their connection to the sea, and it is for that reason that every April they host an Ocean Festival, where the community gathers at the beach and pay respect to the god of the ocean . In Chinese, the ceremony is called Hai Ji (海祭), which directly translates to the Ocean Festival. In the Amis language, it is romanized to Pafafoi, which means to sacrifice a pig. The word pafafoi almost sounds like the Filipino word for pig, meaning baboy. The Malaysian word is babi. The words are rather close. The song has a very unusual jingle. I remember enjoying the Ifugao and Mindanao drum beats during a Buwan ng Wika program back in high school. 

  While looking for an Aborigine song that gave me an earworm--I found this interesting aboriginal song. By looking at this video, I suspect that this song is actually a love song between a man and a woman,. It does sound very Ifugao-like as well. 

I'm trying to find some other Taiwanese aborigine songs. I think this is a song by the Amis tribe or the sea people. I believe the Amis are descended from the seafaring Indonesians and Malaysians. The song's aboriginal song and melody are rather enchanting. Maybe, an Ifugao or an Igorot scholar would be able to decode this wonderful song. If only the Philippines would show more respect to the indigenous tribes. It's a sad fact that Ifugaos would need to go to Taiwan to learn their weaving culture (read here ). These natives (who I believe are Malay and Indos) get more appreciation than the Filipino indigenous people.

Here's another indigenous musical instrument from Taiwan. It's called the Truku mouth harp. It's very similar to the Filipino jaw harp called the kubing which is also seen below... Below is a demonstration of the kubing. The concepts are very similar.   Right now, I feel the urge to go to Museo Subgo! 

In the quest to study Filipino ancestral heritage, one may point to Taiwan's natives. What can't be ignored are the Indonesians and Malaysians. This dance resembles to the dances from the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).  The dance patterns are similar yet different to the Pangalay in Mindanao. The more I seek to understand Filipino culture's development--I feel that Tealive should invest next in the Bangsamoro regions. The Bangsamoro region might be the next best bet for a Malaysian tea company after all. 

This is another fun tribal dance video. I guess my obsession with Taiwanese milk tea (and the tea leaves are grown from Mt. Alishan) got me into this. Also, the tea brand Tealive (which is a Malaysian brand) got me more interested in this video.  Using Google translate, the song title "部落情懷" (Bùluò qínghuái) means "Tribal Feelings". It's a good thing to have Google translate these days especially when one is trying to learn the Chinese language. 

Here's another of the Amis culture in Taiwan. This is almost a sight that one can behold among the aborigines in Nueva Ecija or Baguio. Just looking at the resemblance between the Taiwanese natives and Filipino natives makes me think, "Filipino culture isn't too unique."  With my stand that the Taiwanese natives are actually of Malay origin - I'm not surprised at the similarity here and there. 

While I was looking for Taiwanese tribal dances and Filipino tribal dances--I got this in my recommendations. I hardly knew anything about Indonesia then I got introduced to this cool old song. There are words similar to that found in Mindanao. After all, the language here is the Sinama language. Once again, I'm convinced that Dayang Dayang's origins will be much harder to find. I wrote about the curious case of Dayang Dayang . If I'm not wrong, the popularized version of Dayang Dayang is written in the Sinama language. Some people from the Bangsamoro claim that the song is theirs. Others claim that it's from Indonesia or Malaysia. Since I'm no linguist, I really can't really figure things out. The traditional outfits of Indonesia and Malaysia really match that of the Muslim regions of the Philippines.  It's not surprising that Tealive has opened in Indonesia as well . Culturally, Indonesia and Malaysia are very alike aside from being Muslim countries. Hopef...

There are many versions of the song "Gāo Shān Qīng" (高山青) which literally means "High Green Mountain". The Taiwan Panorama website also shares this detail of the anthem of Mt. Alishan : Though the Tsou don't actually live within the Alishan Forest Recreation Area, the CFDO had little choice but to build a cultural scene for Alishan on the basis of the old song Gao Shan Qing to satisfy visitors' imagined expectations of Alishan . The Tsou folk singing and dancing had stopped during the recent tourism downturn, but the Alishan National Scenic Area Administration held tryouts in 2008, for which the winning troupe won the opportunity to perform at the Alishan Forest Recreation Area entrance. "Tall green mountains, deep blue waters; the girls of Alishan are lovely as the waters; the men of Alishan are strong as the mountains...": Gao Shan Qing has pretty much become the anthem of Alishan. Gao Shan Qing was the theme song for the 1950 film Happenings in ...

I may not be going to Taiwan or the Mountain Province any time soon. However, I'm still fascinated by the performances done by both groups. It's no surprise that the DNA tests done would reveal common ancestry between Malaysian, Indonesian, Filipino, and the ethnic groups in Taiwan. The words sound to be very similar to an Ifugao song. Similar yet different. The dances of the Taiwanese tribes in Taiwan share similaritites with the other ethnic groups in Asia. Above is an Ifugao dance demonstration.

It may no longer be Buwan ng Wika. Too bad I wasn't able to go yet to Museo Sugbo before the event ended. This is a video I found on YouTube with some DNA test results. It's no surprise that the DNA test result of the Ami people is similar to Indonesians, Malaysians, and Filipinos. Yes, I just mentioned Filipinos before some of my countrymen try to brag about their so-called "Filipino uniqueness".  An Inquirer article years ago talked about the possible links . Here's an excerpt I shared from a previous article that I wrote : 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 t...

I guess drinking Tealive and getting an interest in Southeast Asian culture is something. As the Austronesian tribes move, it's safe to say that most Filipinos are of Malaysian and Indonesian descent. The natives of Taiwan have the same ancestors as Filipinos. The song "Dayang Dayang" is sung in the Sinama language (read here )--a language commonly spoken in Indonesia and Malaysia. The dance is still very similar to Ifugao and Igorot.  The lyrics I found on YouTube really show a lot of language similar to several Filipino languages: Pakarongay kako Tosaay ko safaw no mihecaan Makecay to fonos ato tafoan Pakaen sa to kolong a tayra sa i lotok Kalicen ako i koror nira Maolahay a mi ngarngar sa to rengos Paladiw i han ako Sangowe'ngowe'sanay Pakarongay kako Tosaay ko safaw no mihecaan Makecay to tafoan ato fonos  Pakaen sa to kolong a tayra sa i lotok Kalicen ako i koror nira Maolahay a mi ngarngar sa to rengos Paladiw i han ako Sangowe'ngowe'sanay   Pakarong...

It's Buwan ng Wika or Month of the Language. One of the songs that's often sung in the Buwan ng Wika program is "Ako'y Isang Pinoy" or "I'm Filipino" in English. I remembered this song was sung in the Filipino language class. I did hate the Filipino language, especially as an ethnic Chinese growing up in the Philippines. Examining the lyrics The lyrics go like this with English translation: I am a Filipino Ako'y isang pinoy In heart and soul Sa puso't diwa Filipino born Pinoy na isinilang In our country Sa ating bansa I am not good at foreign languages Ako'y hindi sanay sa wikang mga banyaga I am a Filipino who has my own language Ako'y pinoy na mayroong sariling wika Gat Jose Rizal then spoke Si Gat Jose Rizal nooy nagwika He preached in our country Sya ay nagpangaral sa ating bansa It is said to not love one's own language Ang 'di raw magmahal sa sariling wika The smell is more than stinky fish Ay higit pa ang amoy sa mabaho...

Looking at this dances, I'm more than convinced that the aborigine tribes in Taiwan and the Philippines are indeed descended from Indonesians and Malaysians. I wrote about Malaysians and the link to aborigines in Southeast Asia . This dance by the aborigine natives are divided into several dances that have very ethnic names like Tayal dance and Saisiyat dance.  As I was watching these dances, they really remind me of the cultural heritage of indigenous Filipinos. The rhythmic movements would resemble to the Ifugaos and the Igorots to name a few. The different dances would similar to these... Yes, I'm referring to the common links between Filipino aborigines and Taiwanese aborigines. 

This is another bamboo dance done by what I believe are Atayal dancers. The dance steps are very similar to what one might find in Nueva Ecija or any indigenous region of the Philippines. What makes it more appealing to me is the absence of Taiwanese Mandarin in the lyrics. Instead, it's lyrics that would sound like the chanting of Filipino indigenous dancers. There are similar yet different movements between Taiwanese aborigines and Filipino aborigines. The Malaysians and Indonesians have settled in several places. The dance movements between Taiwanese aborigines and Filipino aborigines are too similar to be ignored. Even the indigenous language might be very similar.