Lesson 1

• Mindanao, referred to as the Land of Promise, known for being the second largest southernmost island in the Philippines
• B'laan is an ethnolinguistic group that inhabit some parts of South Cotabato, North Cotabato and Davao del Sur.
• B'laan is a combination of 2 words, "bila" which means "house" and "an" which means people.
• B'laan women wear heavy brass belts with numerous of tiny bells that hang around their waistline.
• B'laan's first known process of abaca weaving is called mabal.
• Mabal is a process of weaving abaca fibers to create a traditional tubular skirt for women called Tabih.
• The designs of B'laan's indigenous textiles come from natural dyes of endemic plant species.
• Ikat is a process of dyeing the fabric where the yarns are tightly wrapped with the stringes and dyed before weaving.
• The Bagobos are a group of people that live in Davao.
• Bagobo comes from the words "bago" which means "new' and "obo" which means "growth".
• Bagobos are known for their ceremonial cloth called Inabal.
• Inabal is a special textile woven from deep, brown abaca fibers.
• Bagobos also use the ikat process to obtain intricate designs for their textiles.
• The hero or warrior of Bagobos is called the bagani.
• Baganis wear red-blooded clothes and a headkerchief called tangkulu.
• The weaving tradition of Bagobos is usually tied to the magandi, a dominant warrior class that is recognized through a red color of their clothing.
• T'boli are another popular ethnolinguistic group that come from South Cotabato, particularly Sebu.
• T'boli's are famous for their complicated beadwork, wonderful woven fabrics, and beautiful brass ornaments.
• T'boli's are known in using t'nalak. Occasions like traditional wedding rituals usually involve the exchange of t'nalak textile.
• T'boli weavers believe that they are visitied by their ancestors and gods in their dreams to teach them weaving designs and patterns.
• The most famous T'boli dream weaver is Lang Dulay, who recieved the National Living Treasures - Gawad Manlilihikha ng Bayan awarded by NCCA.
• T'bolis believe that the fiber they weave will easily break once the weaver fails to follow the rule of abstinence during weaving process.
• The Maranao is the biggest group of Muslims living in Mindanao.
• Maranaos are known to be the "People of the Lake".
• The Maranao people are popularly known for their malong. A traditional hand woven tube skirt that is made using a backstrap loom.
• The malong measures at least 165x165cm. It is usually worn by Maranao women.
• The Malong a andon is considered as the most expensive and rarest of the three types. Andon refers to "patola" motif or a double ikat woven sari made from silk.
• The Malong a landap is chatacterize by "langkit", or decorative strips of profuse geometric designs. It is considered as the most popular.
• The Malong a ampik is characterized by a pattern with geometrical shapes colored with black and white, and combination of contrasting primary colors.
• The Yakan is an indigenous tribe native to the island of Basilian.
• The Seputangan is a square cloth used by the Yakan women as a head cover or belt.
• The sawal is a traditional tight fitting trousers made of yakan fabric characterized by its vertical stripes.
• The Badjulapi is a tight blouse with long sleeves. It is ornamented with gold, silver, or bronze buttons.
• The Pinalantupan is a type of skirt layered over the trousers made from a mix of pineapple and bamboo fibers.