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''Datu'' is a title which denotes the rulers (variously described in historical accounts as chiefs, sovereign princes, and monarchs) of numerous indigenous peoples throughout the
Philippine archipelago
The islands of the Philippines, also known as the Philippine Archipelago, comprises about 7,641 islands, of which only about 2,000 are inhabited.[Mindanao
Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...](_bla ...<br></span></div>.<ref name=note1/> The title is still used today, especially in <div class=)
,
Sulu
Sulu (), officially the Province of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Wilāya sin Lupa' Sūg''; tl, Lalawigan ng Sulu), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines in the Sulu Archipelago and part of the Bangsamoro, Bangsamor ...
and
Palawan
Palawan (), officially the Province of Palawan ( cyo, Probinsya i'ang Palawan; tl, Lalawigan ng Palawan), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in ...
, but it was used much more extensively in early Philippine history, particularly in the regions of Central and Southern
Luzon
Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...
, the
Visayas
The Visayas ( ), or the Visayan Islands (Bisayan languages, Visayan: ''Kabisay-an'', ; tl, Kabisayaan ), are one of the three Island groups of the Philippines, principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Luzon and Mindanao ...
and Mindanao.
[ It is a cognate of the title '']ratu
''Ratu'' () is an Austronesian title used by male Fijians of chiefly rank. An equivalent title, ''adi'' (pronounced ), is used by females of chiefly rank. In the Malay language, the title ''ratu'' is also the traditional honorific title to re ...
'' in several other Austronesian languages.
Overview
In early Philippine history, datus and a small group of their close relatives formed the "apex stratum" of the traditional three-tier social hierarchy of lowland Philippine societies. Only a member of this birthright aristocracy (called "''maginoo''", "''nobleza''", "''maharlika''", or "''timagua''" by various early chroniclers) could become a datu; members of this elite could hope to become a datu by demonstrating prowess in war or exceptional leadership.
In large coastal polities such as those in Maynila
Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...
, Tondo, Pangasinan
Pangasinan, officially the Province of Pangasinan ( pag, Luyag/Probinsia na Pangasinan, ; ilo, Probinsia ti Pangasinan; tl, Lalawigan ng Pangasinan), is a coastal province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region of Luzon. Its capit ...
, Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 ...
, Panay
Panay is the sixth-largest and fourth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of and has a total population of 4,542,926 as of 2020 census. Panay comprises 4.4 percent of the entire population of the country. The City o ...
, Bohol, Butuan
Butuan (pronounced ), officially the City of Butuan ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Butuan; Butuanon: ''Dakbayan hong Butuan''; fil, Lungsod ng Butuan), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the region of Caraga, Philippines. It is the ''de facto'' ca ...
, Cotabato
Cotabato or North Cotabato ( hil, Aminhan Cotabato; ceb, Amihanang Cotabato; Maguindanaon: ''Pangutaran Kutawatu'', Jawi: ڤڠوترن كوتاواتو; fil, Hilagang Cotabato), officially the Province of Cotabato, is a landlocked province in ...
, Lanao, and Sulu
Sulu (), officially the Province of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Wilāya sin Lupa' Sūg''; tl, Lalawigan ng Sulu), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines in the Sulu Archipelago and part of the Bangsamoro, Bangsamor ...
, several datus brought their loyalty-groups, referred to as "barangays" or "''dulohan''", into compact settlements which allowed greater degrees of cooperation and economic specialization. In such cases, datus of these barangays would then select the most senior or most respected among them to serve as what scholars referred to as a "paramount leader" or "paramount datu". The titles used by such paramount datu changed from case to case, but some of the most prominent examples were: ''sultan
Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...
'' in the most Islamized areas of Mindanao; ''lakan
In early Philippine history, the rank of ''lakan'' denoted a "paramount ruler" (or more specifically, "''paramount datu''") of one of the large coastal barangays (known as a "bayan") on the central and southern regions of the island of Luzon.
...
'' among the Tagalog people; ''thimuay
''Thimuay'' (also spelled ''thimuway'', ''timuay'', and ''thimuway'', among other variations) is the name of the most senior ancestral leader among the Subanon people of the Zamboanga Peninsula in the Philippines. Less senior ancestral leaders are ...
'' among the Subanen people; ''rajah
''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia.
The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested fr ...
'' in polities which traded extensively with Indonesia and Malaysia; or simply ''datu'' in some areas of Mindanao and the Visayas.
Proofs of Filipino royalty and nobility (''dugóng bugháw'') can be demonstrated only by clear blood descent from ancient native royal blood, and in some cases adoption into a royal family.
Terminology
''Datu'' (Baybayin
(, ''pre-kudlít'': , ''virama-krus-kudlít'': , ''virama-pamudpod'': ; also formerly commonly incorrectly known as alibata) is a Philippine script. The script is an abugida belonging to the family of the Brahmic scripts. Geographically, it ...
: ) is the title for chiefs, sovereign princes, and monarchs throughout the Philippine archipelago.[For more information about the social system of the Indigenous Philippine society before the Spanish colonization see ''Barangay'' in ''Enciclopedia Universal Ilustrada Europea-Americana'', Madrid: Espasa-Calpe, S. A., 1991, Vol. VII, p.624: ''Los nobles de un barangay eran los más ricos ó los más fuertes, formándose por este sistema los dattos ó maguinoos, ]principes
''Principes'' (Singular: ''princeps'') were spearmen, and later swordsmen, in the armies of the early Roman Republic. They were men in the prime of their lives who were fairly wealthy, and could afford decent equipment. They were the heavier in ...
á quienes heredaban los hijos mayores, las hijas á falta de éstos, ó los parientes más próximos si no tenían descendencia directa; pero siempre teniendo en cuenta las condiciones de fuerza ó de dinero. The title is still used today, especially in Mindanao
Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...
, Sulu
Sulu (), officially the Province of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Wilāya sin Lupa' Sūg''; tl, Lalawigan ng Sulu), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines in the Sulu Archipelago and part of the Bangsamoro, Bangsamor ...
and Palawan
Palawan (), officially the Province of Palawan ( cyo, Probinsya i'ang Palawan; tl, Lalawigan ng Palawan), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in ...
, but it was used much more extensively in early Philippine history, particularly in the regions of central and southern Luzon
Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...
, the Visayas
The Visayas ( ), or the Visayan Islands (Bisayan languages, Visayan: ''Kabisay-an'', ; tl, Kabisayaan ), are one of the three Island groups of the Philippines, principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Luzon and Mindanao ...
and Mindanao.[''Por otra parte, mientras en las Indias la cultura precolombiana había alcanzado un alto nivel, en Filipinas la civilización isleña continuaba manifestándose en sus estados más primitivos. Sin embargo, esas sociedades primitivas, independientes totalmente las unas de las otras, estaban en cierta manera estructuradas y se apreciaba en ellas una organización jerárquica embrionaria y local, pero era digna de ser atendida. Precisamente en esa organización local es, como siempre, de donde nace la nobleza. El indio aborigen, jefe de tribu, es reconocido como noble y las pruebas irrefutables de su nobleza se encuentran principalmente en las Hojas de Servicios de los militares de origen filipino que abrazaron la carrera de las Armas, cuando para hacerlo necesariamente era preciso demostrar el origen nobiliario del individuo.'' (On the other hand, while in the Indies pre-Columbian culture had reached a high level, in the Philippines the island civilization continued to manifest itself in its most primitive states. However, these primitive societies, totally independent of each other, were in some way structured and had an embryonic and local hierarchical organization in them, but it was worthy of being attended to. Precisely in that local organization is, as always, where the nobility is born. The Aboriginal Indian, chief of tribe, is recognized as noble and the irrefutable proofs of his nobility are found mainly in the Service Records of militarymen of the Filipino origin who embraced military career, when in order to do so it was necessary to prove the noble lineage of the individual.) de Caidenas y Vicent, Vicente, ''Las Pruebas de Nobleza y Genealogia en Filipinas y Los Archivios en Donde se Pueden Encontrar Antecedentes de Ellas'' in ''Heraldica, Genealogia y Nobleza en los Editoriales de Hidalguia, (1953–1993: 40 años de un pensamiento)''. Madrid: 1993, HIDALGUIA, p. 232.][''"También fundó convento el Padre Fray Martin de Rada en Araut- que ahora se llama el convento de Dumangas- con la advocación de nuestro Padre San Agustín...Está fundado este pueblo casi a los fines del río de Halaur, que naciendo en unos altos montes en el centro de esta isla (Panay)...Es el pueblo muy hermoso, ameno y muy lleno de palmares de cocos. Antiguamente era el emporio y corte de la más lucida nobleza de toda aquella isla...Hay en dicho pueblo algunos buenos cristianos...Las visitas que tiene son ocho: tres en el monte, dos en el río y tres en el mar...Las que están al mar son: Santa Ana de Anilao, San Juan Evangelista de Bobog, y otra visita más en el monte, entitulada Santa Rosa de Hapitan."'' Gaspar de San Agustin, O.S.A., ''Conquistas de las Islas Filipinas (1565–1615)'', Manuel Merino, O.S.A., ed., Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas: Madrid 1975, pp. 374–375.] Other titles still used today are ''lakan
In early Philippine history, the rank of ''lakan'' denoted a "paramount ruler" (or more specifically, "''paramount datu''") of one of the large coastal barangays (known as a "bayan") on the central and southern regions of the island of Luzon.
...
'' in Luzon, ''apo'' in central and northern Luzon, and ''sultan'' and ''rajah'', especially in Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan.[In Mindanao, there have been several sultanates. The ]Sultanate of Maguindanao
The Sultanate of Maguindanao ( Maguindanaon: ''Kasultanan nu Magindanaw''; Old Maguindanaon: كاسولتانن نو ماڬينداناو; Jawi: کسلطانن ماڬيندناو; Iranun: ''Kesultanan a Magindanao''; ms, Kesultanan Magindana ...
, Sultanate of Sulu
The Sultanate of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Kasultanan sin Sūg'', كاسولتانن سين سوڬ; malay language, Malay: ''Kesultanan Sulu''; fil, Sultanato ng Sulu; Chavacano: ''Sultanato de Sulu/Joló''; ar, سلطنة سولك) ...
, and Confederation of Sultanates in Lanao are among those more known in history. Cf. Depending upon the prestige of the sovereign royal family, the title of ''datu'' could be equated to royal princes, European duke
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...
s, marquess
A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman wi ...
es and count
Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...
s. In large ancient barangay
In early Philippine history, Barangay is the term historically used by scholars to describe the complex sociopolitical units which were the dominant organizational pattern among the various peoples of the Philippine archipelago , . in the per ...
s, which had contacts with other Southeast Asian cultures through trade, some datus took the title of ''rajah'' or ''sultan''.
The oldest historical records mentioning the title ''datu'' are the 7th century Srivijaya
Srivijaya ( id, Sriwijaya) was a Buddhist thalassocratic empire based on the island of Sumatra (in modern-day Indonesia), which influenced much of Southeast Asia. Srivijaya was an important centre for the expansion of Buddhism from the 7th t ...
n inscriptions such as Telaga Batu to describe lesser kings or vassalized kings. The word ''datu'' is a cognate
In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymology, etymological ancestor in a proto-language, common parent language. Because language c ...
of the Malay
Malay may refer to:
Languages
* Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore
** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century
** Indonesi ...
terms ''dato'' or ''datuk
Datuk (or its variant Dato or Datu) is a Malay title commonly used in Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia, as well as a traditional title by Minangkabau people in West Sumatra, Indonesia.
The title of the wife of Datuk is Datin.
Origin
The oldest ...
'' and to the Fiji
Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
an chiefly title of ''ratu
''Ratu'' () is an Austronesian title used by male Fijians of chiefly rank. An equivalent title, ''adi'' (pronounced ), is used by females of chiefly rank. In the Malay language, the title ''ratu'' is also the traditional honorific title to re ...
''.
Indigenous concepts, models, and terminology concerning nobility and rulership among the peoples of the Philippine archipelago differed from one culture to the other, but lowland communities typically had a three-tier social structure aristocracy. In many of these societies, the word "''datu''" meant the ruler of a particular social group, known as a ''barangay'', ''dulohan'', or ''kedatuan''.
History
In pre-Islamic times, the political leadership office was vested in a rajahship in Manila and a datuship elsewhere in the Philippines.
''Datu'' in Moro and Lumad societies in Mindanao
In the later part of the 1500s, the Spaniards took possession of most of Luzon and the Visayas, converting the lowland population to Christianity from their local indigenous religion. However, although Spain eventually established footholds in northern and eastern Mindanao and the Zamboanga Peninsula
Zamboanga Peninsula ( tl, Tangway ng Zamboanga; cbk, Peninsula de Zamboanga; ceb, Lawis sa Zamboanga) is an administrative region in the Philippines, designated as Region IX. It consists of three provinces (Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga Sibu ...
, its armies failed to colonize the rest of Mindanao. This area was populated by Islamized peoples ("Moros
In Greek mythology, Moros /ˈmɔːrɒs/ or Morus /ˈmɔːrəs/ (Ancient Greek: Μόρος means 'doom, fate') is the 'hateful' personified spirit of impending doom, who drives mortals to their deadly fate. It was also said that Moros gave peop ...
" to the Spaniards) and by many non-Muslim indigenous groups now known as Lumad peoples
The Lumad are a group of Austronesian indigenous people in the southern Philippines. It is a Cebuano term meaning "native" or "indigenous". The term is short for Katawhang Lumad (Literally: "indigenous people"), the autonym officially adopt ...
.[Mindanao Land of Promise](_blank)
(archived fro
on October 28, 2008)
The Moro societies of Mindanao and Sulu
In the traditional structure of Moro societies, the sultans were the highest authority followed by the datus or rajah, with their rule being sanctioned by the Quran
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
. The titles ''datu'' and ''rajah'', however, predate the coming of Islam. These titles were assimilated into the new structure under Islam. Datus were supported by their tribes. In return for tribute and labor, the datu provided aid in emergencies and advocacy in disputes with other communities and warfare through the ''Agama'' and ''Maratabat'' laws.
The Lumad societies of Mindanao
At the beginning of the 20th century, the Lumad peoples controlled an area that now covers 17 of Mindanao's 24 provinces – but by the 1980 census, they constituted less than 6% of the population of Mindanao and Sulu. Heavy migration to Mindanao of Visayans, who have been settling in the Island for centuries, spurred by government-sponsored resettlement programmes, turned the Lumads into minorities. The Bukidnon province population grew from 63,470 in 1948 to 194,368 in 1960 and 414,762 in 1970, with the proportion of indigenous Bukidnons falling from 64% to 33% to 14%.
There are 18 Lumad ethnolinguistic groups: Ata people, Bagobo, Banwaon, B'laan, Bukidnon, Dibabawon, Higaonon, Mamanwa
The Lumad are a group of Austronesian indigenous people in the southern Philippines. It is a Cebuano term meaning "native" or "indigenous". The term is short for Katawhang Lumad (Literally: "indigenous people"), the autonym officially adopte ...
, Mandaya
The Lumad are a group of Austronesian indigenous people in the southern Philippines. It is a Cebuano term meaning "native" or "indigenous". The term is short for Katawhang Lumad (Literally: "indigenous people"), the autonym officially adopte ...
, Manguwangan, Manobo
The Lumad are a group of Austronesian indigenous people in the southern Philippines. It is a Cebuano term meaning "native" or "indigenous". The term is short for Katawhang Lumad (Literally: "indigenous people"), the autonym officially adopte ...
, Mansaka
The Lumad are a group of Austronesian indigenous people in the southern Philippines. It is a Cebuano term meaning "native" or "indigenous". The term is short for Katawhang Lumad (Literally: "indigenous people"), the autonym officially adopte ...
, Subanon, Tagakaolo, Tasaday
The Tasaday () are a Philippine indigenous people of the Lake Sebu area in Mindanao. They are considered to belong to the Lumad group, along with the other indigenous groups on the island. They attracted widespread media attention in 1971, when ...
, Tboli, Teduray and Ubo.
Lumad datus have involved themselves in protecting their homeland forests from illegal loggers during the past decades. Some have joined the New People's Army
The New People's Army ( fil, Bagong Hukbong Bayan), abbreviated NPA or BHB, is the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), based primarily in the Philippine countryside. It acts as the CPP's principal organization, aimi ...
(NPA), a communist rebel group in the country, for the cause of their people. Others have resisted joining the Moro and Communist separatist movements.
A datu is still basic to the smooth functioning of Lumad and Moro societies today. They have continued to act as the community leaders in their respective tribes among a variety of Indigenous
Indigenous may refer to:
*Indigenous peoples
*Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention
*Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band
*Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...
peoples in Mindanao. Moros, Lumads and Visayans now share with new settlers a homeland in Mindanao.
''Datu'' in pre-colonial principalities in the Visayas
In more affluent and powerful territorial jurisdictions
Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels.
Jur ...
and principalities
A principality (or sometimes princedom) can either be a monarchical feudatory or a sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a regnant-monarch with the title of prince and/or princess, or by a monarch with another title considered to fall under ...
in the Visayas, e.g., Panay[Cf. William Henry Scott, ''Cracks in the Parchment Curtain'', Quezon City: 1998, pp. 127–147.] Cebu and Leyte(which were never conquered by Spain but were accomplished as vassals using pacts, peace treaties, and reciprocal alliances), the "''datu''" class was at the top of a divinely sanctioned and stable social order in a ''sakop'' or ''kinadatuan'' (''kadatuan'' in ancient Malay; ''kedaton'' in Javanese; and ''kedatuan
''Kedatuan'' (ancient or Sundanese spelling: ''kadatuan''; Javanese romanization: ''kedaton'') were historical semi-independent city-states or principalities throughout ancient Maritime Southeast Asia in present-day Indonesia, Malaysia, and the ...
'' in many parts of modern Southeast Asia), which is elsewhere commonly referred to also as ''barangay''. This social order was divided into three classes. The ''Kadatuan'' (members of the Visayan
Visayans (Visayan: ''mga Bisaya''; ) or Visayan people are a Philippine ethnolinguistic group or metaethnicity native to the Visayas, the southernmost islands of Luzon and a significant portion of Mindanao. When taken as a single ethnic group, ...
datu class) were compared by the Boxer Codex
The ''Boxer Codex'' is a late sixteenth century Spanish manuscript that was produced in the Philippines. The document contains seventy-five colored illustrations of the peoples of China, the Philippines, Java, the Moluccas, the Ladrones, and Sia ...
to the titled lords (''señores de titulo'') in Spain. As ''agalon'' or ''amo'' (lords), the datus enjoyed an ascribed right to respect, obedience, and support from their ''"oripun"'' (commoner) or followers belonging to the third order. These datus had acquired rights to the same advantages from their legal ''"Timawa"'' or vassals (second-order), who bind themselves to the datu as his seafaring warriors. ''"Timawa
The ''Timawa'' were the feudal warrior class of the ancient Visayan societies of the Philippines. They were regarded as higher than the ''uripon'' (commoners, serfs, and slaves) but below the ''Tumao'' (royal nobility) in the Visayan social hie ...
s"'' paid no tribute, and rendered no agricultural labor. They had a portion of the datu's blood in their veins. The above-mentioned Boxer Codex calls these "''timawas''": knight
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...
s and '' hidalgos''. The Spanish conquistador, Miguel de Loarca, described them as ''"free men, neither chiefs nor slaves"''. In the late 1600s, the Spanish Jesuit priest Fr. Francisco Ignatio Alcina, classified them as ''the third rank of nobility'' (nobleza).
To maintain the purity of bloodline, datus marry only among their kind, often seeking high ranking brides in other Barangays, abducting them, or contracting brideprices in gold, slaves and jewelry. Meanwhile, the datus keep their marriageable daughters secluded for protection and prestige. These well-guarded and protected highborn women were called ''"binokot"'', the datus of pure descent (four generations) were called ''"potli nga datu"'' or ''"lubus nga datu"'', while a woman of noble lineage (especially the elderly) are addressed by the inhabitants of Panay
Panay is the sixth-largest and fourth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of and has a total population of 4,542,926 as of 2020 census. Panay comprises 4.4 percent of the entire population of the country. The City o ...
as ''"uray"'' (meaning: pure as gold), e.g., ''uray hilway''.
''Datu'' in pre-colonial principalities in the Tagalog region
The different type of culture prevalent in Luzon gave a less stable and more complex social structure to the pre-colonial Tagalog barangays of Manila, Pampanga and Laguna. Enjoying a more extensive commerce than those in Visayas, having the influence of Bornean political contacts, and engaging in farming wet rice for a living, the Tagalogs were described by the Spanish Augustinian Friar Martin de Rada as more traders than warriors.
The more complex social structure of the Tagalogs was less stable during the arrival of the Spaniards because it was still in a process of differentiating. In this society, the term ''datu'' or ''lakan'', or ''apo'' refers to the chief, but the noble class (to which the ''datu'' belonged, or could come from) was the ''maginoo
The Tagalog ''maginoo'', the Kapampangan ''ginu'', and the Visayan ''tumao'' were the nobility social class among various cultures of the pre-colonial Philippines. Among the Visayans, the ''tumao'' were further distinguished from the immediate r ...
'' class. One could be born a ''maginoo'', but could become a 'datu' by personal achievement.[Cf. William Henry Scott, Cracks in the Parchment Curtain, Quezon City: 1998, p. 125.]
''Datu'' during the Spanish period
The ''datu'' class (first estate) of the four echelons of Filipino society at the time of contact with the Europeans (as described by Fr. Juan de Plasencia
Miguel Juan de Plasencia () was a Spanish friar of the Franciscan Order. He was among the first group of Franciscan missionaries who arrived in the Philippines on 2 July 1578.
He spent most of his missionary life in the Philippines, where he fou ...
- a pioneer Franciscan missionary in the Philippines), was referred to by the Spaniards as the ''principalía
The ''principalía'' or noble class was the ruling and usually educated upper class in the ''pueblos'' of Spanish Philippines, comprising the ''gobernadorcillo'' (later called the c''apitán municipal'' and had functions similar to a town mayo ...
''. Loarca, and the canon lawyer Antonio de Morga
Antonio de Morga Sánchez Garay (29 November 1559 – 21 July 1636) was a Spanish soldier, lawyer and a high-ranking colonial official for 43 years, in the Philippines (1594 to 1604), New Spain and Peru, where he was president of the Real Audienc ...
, who classified the society into three estates (ruler, ruled, slave), also affirmed the usage of this term and also spoke about the preeminence of the ''principales''.[Cf. William Henry Scott, Cracks in the Parchment Curtain, Quezon City: 1998, p. 99.] All members of this datu class were ''principales'', whether they ruled or not. San Buenaventura's 1613 Dictionary of the Tagalog Language defines three terms that clarify the concept of this ''principalía'':
#''Poón'' or ''punò'' (chief, leader) – principal or head of a lineage.
#''Ginoó'' – a noble by lineage and parentage, family and descent.
#''Maginoo'' – principal in lineage or parentage.
The Spanish term ''seňor'' (lord) is equated with all these three terms, which are distinguished from the ''nouveau riche'' imitators scornfully called ''maygintao'' (man with gold or ''hidalgo'' by gold, and not by lineage).[Cf. William Henry Scott, Cracks in the Parchment Curtain, Quezon City: 1998, p. 100.]
Upon the Christianization
Christianization ( or Christianisation) is to make Christian; to imbue with Christian principles; to become Christian. It can apply to the conversion of an individual, a practice, a place or a whole society. It began in the Roman Empire, conti ...
of most parts of the Philippine archipelago, the datus retained their right to govern their territory under the Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...
.[''L'institution des chefs de barangay a été empruntée aux Indiens chez qui on l a trouvée établie lors de la conquête des Philippines; ils formaient, à cette époque une espèce de noblesse héréditaire. L'hérédité leur a été conservée aujourd hui: quand une de ces places devient vacante, la nomination du successeur est faite par le surintendant des finances dans les pueblos qui environnent la capitale, et, dans les provinces éloignées, par l alcalde, sur la proposition du gobernadorcillo et la présentation des autres membres du barangay; il en est de même pour les nouvelles créations que nécessite de temps à autre l augmentation de la population. Le cabeza, sa femme et l aîné de ses enfants sont exempts du tributo; après trois ans de service bien fait, on leur accorde le titre de "don" et celui de "pasado"; et ils demeurent exempts de tout service personnel; ils peuvent être élus gobernadorcillos. Les votes sont pris au scrutin secret et la moindre infraction aux règlements entraîne la nullité de l'élection.'' (The institution of the Chefs de Barangay was borrowed from the Indians with whom it was found established during the conquest of the Philippines; At that time they formed a kind of hereditary nobility. Heredity has been preserved to them to-day; when one of these places becomes vacant, the appointment of the successor is made by the superintendent of finance in the pueblos which surround the capital, and in the distant provinces by the alcalde, The proposal of the gobernadorcillo and the presentation of the other members of the barangay; It is the same for the new creations that the population needs from time to time. The cabeza, his wife and the eldest of his children are exempt from tributo. After three years of good service, they are granted the title of "don" and that of "pasado"; and they remain free from any personal service; they can be elected gobernadorcillos. Votes are taken by secret ballot and the slightest violation of the regulations results in the nullity of the election.) MALLAT de BASSILAU, Jean (1846). Les Philippines: Histoire, géographie, moeurs. Agriculture, industrie et commerce des Colonies espagnoles dans l'Océanie (2 vols) (in French). Paris: Arthus Bertrand Éd. . OCLC 23424678, p. 356..] King Philip II of Spain
Philip II) in Spain, while in Portugal and his Italian kingdoms he ruled as Philip I ( pt, Filipe I). (21 May 152713 September 1598), also known as Philip the Prudent ( es, Felipe el Prudente), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from ...
, in a law signed June 11, 1594, commanded the Spanish colonial officials in the archipelago that these native royalties and nobilities be given the same respect, and privileges that they had enjoyed before their conversion. Their domains became self-ruled tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...
barangays of the Spanish Empire.
The Filipino royals and nobles formed part of the exclusive, and elite ruling class, called the ''principalía'' (noble class) of the Philippines. The ''principalía'' was the class that constituted a birthright aristocracy with claims to respect, obedience, and support from those of subordinate status.
With the recognition of the Spanish monarchs came the privilege of being addressed as ''Don
Don, don or DON and variants may refer to:
Places
*County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON
*Don (river), a river in European Russia
*Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name
*Don, Benin, a town in Benin
*Don, Dang, a vill ...
'' or ''Doña
Don (; ; pt, Dom, links=no ; all from Latin ', roughly 'Lord'), abbreviated as D., is an honorific prefix primarily used in Spain and Hispanic America, and with different connotations also in Italy, Portugal and its former colonies, and Croatia ...
''.[''Cf''. Emma Helen Blair and James Alexander Robertson, ''The Philippine Islands (1493–1898)'', Cleveland: The A.H. Clark Company, 1903, Vol. XL, p. 218.] – a mark of esteem and distinction in Europe reserved for a person of noble or royal status during the colonial period. Other honors and high regard were also accorded to the Christianized datus by the Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...
. For example, the ''gobernadorcillo
The ''gobernadorcillo'' (, literally "little governor") was a municipal judge or governor in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial period, who carried out in a town the combined charges or responsibilities of leadership, economic, and judic ...
s'' (elected leader of the '' cabezas de barangay'' or the Christianized datus) and Filipino officials of justice received the greatest consideration from the Spanish Crown officials. The colonial officials were under obligation to show them the honor corresponding to their respective duties. They were allowed to sit in the houses of the Spanish provincial governors, and in any other places. They were not left to remain standing. It was not permitted for Spanish parish priests to treat these Filipino nobles with less consideration.
The ''gobernadorcillos'' exercised the command of the towns. They were port captains in coastal towns. Their office corresponds to that of the ''alcalde
Alcalde (; ) is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An ''alcalde'' was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian '' cabildo'' (the municipal council) a ...
s'' and municipal judges of the Iberian Peninsula. They performed at once the functions of judges and even of notaries with defined powers.[Cf. Emma Helen Blair and James Alexander Robertson, The Philippine Islands (1493–1898), Cleveland: The A.H. Clark Company, 1903, Vol. XVII, p. 329.] They also had the rights and powers to elect assistants and several lieutenants and ''alguacil
Alguacil (in Spanish), aguazil or guazil (in Portuguese) is the title for a number of governmental office-holders.
Origin
The term ''alguacil'' is derived from the Arabic term (''wazir''), meaning Vizier. The first known use of the term dates ba ...
es'', proportionate in number to the inhabitants of the town.
By the end of the 16th century, any claim to Filipino royalty
Royalty may refer to:
* Any individual monarch, such as a king, queen, emperor, empress, etc.
* Royal family, the immediate family of a king or queen regnant, and sometimes his or her extended family
* Royalty payment for use of such things as int ...
, nobility
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below Royal family, royalty. Nobility has often been an Estates of the realm, estate of the realm with many e ...
, or '' hidalguía'' had disappeared into a homogenized, hispanized and Christianized nobility – the ''principalía''. This remnant of the pre-colonial royal and noble families continued to rule their traditional domain until the end of the Spanish regime. However, there were cases when succession in leadership was also done through election of new leaders (i.e., ''cabezas de barangay''), especially in provinces near the central colonial government in Manila where the ancient ruling families lost their prestige and role. Perhaps proximity to the central power diminished their significance. However, in distant territories, where the central authority had less control and where order could be maintained without using coercive measures, hereditary succession was still enforced until Spain lost the archipelago to the Americans. These distant territories remained patriarchal societies, where people retained great respect for the ''principalía''.[
The ''principalía'' was larger and more influential than the pre-conquest indigenous nobility. It helped create and perpetuate an ]oligarchic
Oligarchy (; ) is a conceptual form of power structure in which power rests with a small number of people. These people may or may not be distinguished by one or several characteristics, such as nobility, fame, wealth, education, or corporate, r ...
system in the Spanish colony for more than three hundred years. The Spanish colonial government's prohibition for foreigners to own land in the Philippines contributed to the evolution of this form of oligarchy. In some provinces of the Philippines, many Spaniards and foreign merchants intermarried with the rich and landed Austronesian local nobilities. From these unions, a new cultural group was formed, the ''mestizo
(; ; fem. ) is a term used for racial classification to refer to a person of mixed Ethnic groups in Europe, European and Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous American ancestry. In certain regions such as Latin America, it may also r ...
'' class. Their descendants emerged later to become an influential part of the government, and the ''principalía''.
.
Political functions
Anthropologist Laura Lee Junker's comparative analysis of historical accounts from cultures throughout the archipelago, depicts Datus functioning as:
*primary political authorities,
*war leaders,
*legal adjudicators,
*the ''de facto'' owners of agricultural products and sea resources within a district,
*the primary supporters of attached craft specialists,
*the overseers of intra-district and external trade, and
*the pivotal centers of regional resource mobilization systems.
Anthropologists like F. Landa Jocano and Laura Lee Junker and historians and historiographers like William Henry Scott make a careful distinction between the nobility and aristocratic nature of the datus vis a vis the exercise of sovereign political authority
In political philosophy and ethics, political authority describes any of the moral principles legitimizing differences between individuals' rights and duties by virtue of their relationship with the state. Political authority grants members of ...
. Although the datus and paramount datus of early Philippine polities were a "''birthright
Birthright is the concept of things being due to a person upon or by fact of their birth, or due to the order of their birth. These may include rights of citizenship based on the place where the person was born or the citizenship of their paren ...
aristocracy''" and were widely recognized "aristocratic" or "noble", comparable to the nobles and royals of the Spanish colonizers, the nature of their relationship with the members of their Barangay was less asymmetrical than in a monarchic political systems in other parts of the world.[McCoy, Alfred W. (1983) An Anarchy of Families: State and Family in the Philippines.][Anderson,Benedict. (1983) Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism.] Their control over territory was a function of their leadership of the Barangay and, in some local pre-colonial societies (mostly in Luzon), the concept of ruling was not that of "divine right." Furthermore, their position was dependent on the common consent of the members of the barangay's aristocratic Maginoo
The Tagalog ''maginoo'', the Kapampangan ''ginu'', and the Visayan ''tumao'' were the nobility social class among various cultures of the pre-colonial Philippines. Among the Visayans, the ''tumao'' were further distinguished from the immediate r ...
-class. Although the position of datu could be inherited, the Maginoo could decide to choose someone else to follow within their own class, if that other person proved a more capable war leader or political administrator. Even "paramount datus" such as lakans or rajahs exercised only a limited degree of influence over the less-senior datus they led, which did not include claims over the barangays and territories of these less-senior datus. Antonio de Morga, in his work ''Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas'', expounds on the degree to which early Philippine datus could exercise their authority:
Paramount datus
The term ''paramount datu'' or ''paramount ruler
{{Use American English, date=December 2018
The term paramount ruler, or sometimes paramount king, is a generic description, though occasionally also used as an actual title, for a number of rulers' position in relative terms, as the summit of a fe ...
'' is a term applied by historians to describe the highest ranking political authorities in the largest lowland polities
A polity is an identifiable political entity – a group of people with a collective identity, who are organized by some form of institutionalized social relations, and have a capacity to mobilize resources. A polity can be any other group of p ...
(''see: Barangay state
In early Philippine history, Barangay is the term historically used by scholars to describe the complex sociopolitical units which were the dominant organizational pattern among the various peoples of the Philippine archipelago , . in the peri ...
'') or inter-polity alliance groups in early Philippine history, most notably those in Maynila
Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...
, Tondo, the Confederation of Madja-as
The Confederation of Madya-as was a legendary pre-colonial supra-baranganic polity on the island of Panay in the Philippines. It was mentioned in Pedro Monteclaro's book titled Maragtas. It was supposedly created by Datu Sumakwel to exerci ...
in Panay, Pangasinan, Cebu, Bohol, Butuan, Cotabato, and Sulu.
Different cultures of the Philippine archipelago referred to the most senior datu or leader of the "barangay state
In early Philippine history, Barangay is the term historically used by scholars to describe the complex sociopolitical units which were the dominant organizational pattern among the various peoples of the Philippine archipelago , . in the peri ...
" or "bayan" using different titles. In Muslim polities such as Sulu and Cotabato, the paramount ruler was called a sultan
Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...
. In Tagalog communities, the equivalent title was that of ''lakan''. In communities which historically had strong political or trade connections with Indianized polities in Indonesia and Malaysia, the paramount ruler was called a rajah
''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia.
The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested fr ...
. Among the Subanon people
The Subanon (also spelled Subanen or Subanun) is an indigenous group to the Zamboanga peninsula area, particularly living in the mountainous areas of Zamboanga del Sur and Misamis Occidental, Mindanao Island, Philippines. The Subanon people spea ...
of the Zamboanga Peninsula
Zamboanga Peninsula ( tl, Tangway ng Zamboanga; cbk, Peninsula de Zamboanga; ceb, Lawis sa Zamboanga) is an administrative region in the Philippines, designated as Region IX. It consists of three provinces (Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga Sibu ...
, the most senior ''thimuay'' is referred to as the "''thimuay labi
''Thimuay'' (also spelled ''thimuway'', ''timuay'', and ''thimuway'', among other variations) is the name of the most senior ancestral leader among the Subanon people of the Zamboanga Peninsula in the Philippines. Less senior ancestral leaders are ...
''", or as ''sulotan'' in more Islamized Subanon communities. In some other portions of the Visayas and Mindanao, there was no separate name for the most senior ruler, so the paramount ruler was simply called a ''datu'', although one datu was identifiable as the most senior.
''Confer also: Non-sovereign monarchy
A non-sovereign monarchy or constituent monarchy is one in which the head of the monarchical polity (whether a geographic territory or an ethnic group), and the polity itself, are subject to a temporal authority higher than their own. The consti ...
.''
Nobility
The noble or aristocratic nature of datus and their relatives is asserted in folk origin myths,[William Henry Scott, ''Cracks in the Parchment Curtain'', Quezon City: 1998, pp. 112- 118.] was widely acknowledged by foreigners who visited the Philippine archipelago, and is upheld by modern scholarship. Succession to the position of datu was often (although not always) hereditary, and datus derived their mandate to lead from their membership in an aristocratic class
The aristocracy is historically associated with "hereditary" or "ruling" social class. In many states, the aristocracy included the upper class of people (aristocrats) with hereditary rank and titles. In some, such as ancient Greece, ancient Ro ...
. Records of Chinese traders and Spanish colonizers describe datus or paramount datus as sovereign princes and principals. Travellers who came to the Philippine archipelago from kingdoms or empires such as Song and Ming dynasty China, or 16th Century Spain, even initially referred to datus or paramount datus as "kings", even though they later discovered that datus did not exercise absolute sovereignty over the members of their barangays.
Indigenous conceptions of nobility and aristocracy
Both now and in early Philippine history, Filipino worldview had a conception of the self or individual being deeply and holistically connected to a larger community, expressed in the language of Filipino psychology as " kapwa." This indigenous conception of self strongly defined the roles and obligations played by individuals within their society.
This differentiation of roles and obligations is also more broadly characteristic of Malayo-Polynesian and Austronesian cultures where, as Mulder explains:
This "''essential inequality of individuals and their mutual obligations to each other''" informed the reciprocal relationships (expressed in the Filipino value of "utang na loob
''Utang na loob'' (Visayan: ''utang kabubut-un'') is a Filipino cultural trait which, when translated literally, means "a debt of one's inner self (''loob'')."
Charles Kaut translated the term in 1961 as a "debt of gratitude," while Tomas An ...
") that defined the three-tiered social structure typical among early Philippine peoples.
These settlements were characterized by a three-tier social structure
In the social sciences, social structure is the aggregate of patterned social arrangements in society that are both emergent from and determinant of the actions of individuals. Likewise, society is believed to be grouped into structurally rel ...
, which, while slightly different between different cultures and polities, generally included a slave
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
class (alipin
The ''alipin'' refers to the lowest social class among the various cultures of the Philippines before the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th and 17th centuries. In the Visayan languages, the equivalent social classes were known as the ''oripun'' ...
/oripun), a class of commoners
A commoner, also known as the ''common man'', ''commoners'', the ''common people'' or the ''masses'', was in earlier use an ordinary person in a community or nation who did not have any significant social status, especially a member of neither ...
(timawa
The ''Timawa'' were the feudal warrior class of the ancient Visayan societies of the Philippines. They were regarded as higher than the ''uripon'' (commoners, serfs, and slaves) but below the ''Tumao'' (royal nobility) in the Visayan social hie ...
), and at the apex
The apex is the highest point of something. The word may also refer to:
Arts and media Fictional entities
* Apex (comics), a teenaged super villainess in the Marvel Universe
* Ape-X, a super-intelligent ape in the Squadron Supreme universe
*Apex ...
, an aristocratic or "noble
A noble is a member of the nobility.
Noble may also refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Noble Glacier, King George Island
* Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land
* Noble Peak, Wiencke Island
* Noble Rocks, Graham Land
Australia
* Noble Island, Great B ...
" class. The noble class was exclusive, and its members were not allowed to marry outside of the aristocracy. Only members of this cognatically defined social class could rise to the position of ''datu''.
In some cases, such as the more developed ''sakop'' or ''kinadatuan'' in the Visayas (e.g., Panay, Bohol and Cebu), origin myths and other folk narratives firmly placed the datu and the aristocratic class at the top
A spinning top, or simply a top, is a toy with a squat body and a sharp point at the bottom, designed to be spun on its vertical axis, balancing on the tip due to the gyroscopic effect.
Once set in motion, a top will usually wobble for a few ...
of a divinely sanctioned and stable social order. These folk narratives portrayed the ancestors of datus and other nobles as being created by an almighty deity, just like other human beings. But the behavior of these creations determined the social position of their descendants.
This conception of social organization even continues to shape Philippine society today despite the introduction of western, externally democratic structures. This has led some sociologists and political scientists to describe the Philippines' political structure as a cacique democracy
Cacique democracy is a term that has been used to describe what has been observed as the feudal political system of the Philippines, where in many parts of the country local leaders remain very strong, with warlord-like powers. The term was origina ...
.
Membership in the aristocratic class
The "authority, power, and influence" of the datu (''adjali'') emanated primarily from his recognized status within the noble class.
Noble birth was not the only factor that determined a datu's political legitimacy, however. Success as a datu was dependent on one's " personal charisma, prowess in war, and wealth
Wealth is the abundance of Value (economics), valuable financial assets or property, physical possessions which can be converted into a form that can be used for financial transaction, transactions. This includes the core meaning as held in the ...
."
Hereditary succession
The office of ''datu'' was normally passed on through heredity, and even in cases where it was not passed on through direct descent, only a fellow member of the aristocratic class could ascend to the position. In large settlements (called ''bayan'' among the Tagalogs) in which several datus and their barangays lived in close proximity, paramount datus were chosen by datus from amongst themselves in a more democratic way, but even this position as most senior among datus was often passed on through heredity.
Antonio de Morga, in his work ''Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas'', expounded on this succession through heredity, noting:
Material affluence
Since the culture of the pre-colonial societies in the Visayas, northern Mindanao, and Luzon were largely influenced by Hindu and Buddhist cultures, the datus who ruled these principalities (such as Butuan Calinan, Ranau Gandamatu, Maguindanao Polangi, Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 ...
, Bohol, Panay
Panay is the sixth-largest and fourth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of and has a total population of 4,542,926 as of 2020 census. Panay comprises 4.4 percent of the entire population of the country. The City o ...
, Mindoro and Manila
Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...
) also share the many customs of royalties and nobles in Southeast Asian territories (with Hindu and Buddhist cultures), especially in the way they used to dress and adorn themselves with gold and silk. The Boxer Codex
The ''Boxer Codex'' is a late sixteenth century Spanish manuscript that was produced in the Philippines. The document contains seventy-five colored illustrations of the peoples of China, the Philippines, Java, the Moluccas, the Ladrones, and Sia ...
bears testimony to this fact. The measure of the prince's possession of gold and slaves was proportionate to his greatness and nobility. The first Westerners, who came to the archipelago, observed that there was hardly any "Indian" who did not possess chains and other articles of gold.
Foreign recognition of nobility
The Spanish colonizers who came in the 1500s acknowledged the nobility
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy (class), aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below Royal family, royalty. Nobility has often been an Estates of the realm, estate of the realm with many e ...
of the aristocratic class
The aristocracy is historically associated with "hereditary" or "ruling" social class. In many states, the aristocracy included the upper class of people (aristocrats) with hereditary rank and titles. In some, such as ancient Greece, ancient Ro ...
within early Philippine societies.[ Morga, for example, referred to them as "]principalities
A principality (or sometimes princedom) can either be a monarchical feudatory or a sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a regnant-monarch with the title of prince and/or princess, or by a monarch with another title considered to fall under ...
".[''Esta institucion (Cabecería de Barangay), mucho más antigua que la sujecion de las islas al Gobierno, ha merecido siempre las mayores atencion. En un principio eran las cabecerías hereditarias, y constituian la verdadera hidalguía del país; mas del dia, si bien en algunas provincias todavía se tramiten por sucesion hereditaria, las hay tambien eleccion, particularmente en las provincias más inmediatas á Manila, en donde han perdido su prestigio y son una verdadera carga. En las provincias distantes todavía se hacen respetar, y allí es precisamente en donde la autoridad tiene ménos que hacer, y el órden se conserva sin necesidad de medidas coercitivas; porque todavía existe en ellas el gobierno patriarcal, por el gran respeto que la plebe conserva aún á lo que llaman aquí principalía.'' (This institution (Cabecería de Barangay), much older than the subjection of the islands to the Government, has always deserved the greatest attention. In the beginning were the hereditary headings, and constituted the true hidalguía of the country; But in the provinces, although they are still processed by hereditary succession, there are also elections, particularly in the provinces closest to Manila, where they have lost their prestige and are a real burden. In the distant provinces they are still respected, and that is precisely where authority has less to do, and the order is preserved without the need for coercive measures; Because the patriarchal government still exists in them, because of the great respect which the plebs still hold to what they call here "principal") FERRANDO, Fr Juan & FONSECA OSA, Fr Joaquin (1870–1872). Historia de los PP. Dominicos en las Islas Filipinas y en las Misiones del Japon, China, Tung-kin y Formosa (Vol. 1 of 6 vols) (in Spanish). Madrid: Imprenta y esteriotipia de M Rivadeneyra. OCLC 9362749.]
Once the Spanish colonial government had been established, the Spanish continued to recognize the descendants of pre-colonial datus as nobles, assigning them positions such as Cabeza de Barangay.[ Spanish monarchs recognized their noble nature and origin.
]
Popular portrayal as "monarchs"
Early misidentifications of pre-colonial polities in Luzon
When travelers – whether traders or colonizers – came to the Philippines from cultures which were under a sovereign monarch, these travelers often initially referred to the rulers of Philippine polities as "monarchs", implying recognition of their powers as sovereigns.
Some early examples were the Song dynasty traders who came to the Philippines and referred to the ruler of Ma-i as a "huang", meaning "king" – an appellation later adopted by the Ming dynasty courts when dealing with the Philippine archipelago cultures of their own time, such as Botuan and Luzon.
Later, the Spanish expeditions of Ferdinand Magellan
Ferdinand Magellan ( or ; pt, Fernão de Magalhães, ; es, link=no, Fernando de Magallanes, ; 4 February 1480 – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer. He is best known for having planned and led the 1519 Spanish expedition to the East ...
(in the 1520s) and Miguel López de Legazpi
Miguel López de Legazpi (12 June 1502 – 20 August 1572), also known as '' El Adelantado'' and ''El Viejo'' (The Elder), was a Spaniard who, from the age of 26, lived and built a career in Mexico (then the Viceroyalty of New Spain) and, i ...
(in the 1570s) initially referred to paramount datus (lakans, rajahs, sultans, etc.) as "kings", although the Spanish stopped using this term when the Spanish under the command of Martin de Goiti Martin may refer to:
Places
* Martin City (disambiguation)
* Martin County (disambiguation)
* Martin Township (disambiguation)
Antarctica
* Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land
* Port Martin, Adelie Land
* Point Martin, South Orkney Islands
Aust ...
first forayed out towards the polities in Bulacan and Pampanga in late 1571 and realized that these Kapampanan datus had a choice not to obey the wishes of the paramount datus of Tondo (Lakandula) and Maynila (Rajahs Matanda and Sulayman), leading Lakandula and Sulayman to explain that there was "no single king over these lands", and that the influence of Tondo and Maynila over the Kapampangan polities did not include either territorial claim or absolute command.
Junker and Scott note that this misconception was natural, because both the Chinese and the Spanish came from cultures which had autocratic and imperial political structures. It was a function of language, since their respective sinocentric
Sinocentrism refers to the worldview that China is the cultural, political, or economic center of the world. It may be considered analogous to Eurocentrism.
Overview and context
Depending on the historical context, Sinocentrism can refer to ...
and hispanocentric vocabularies were organized around worldviews which asserted the divine right of monarchs. As a result, they tended to project their beliefs into the peoples they encountered during trade and conquest.
The concept of a sovereign monarchy was not unknown among the various early polities of the Philippine archipelago, since many of these settlements had rich maritime cultures and traditions, and traveled widely as sailors and traders. The Tagalogs, for example had the word "hari" to describe a monarch. As noted by ''Fray'' San Buenaventura (1613, as cited by Junker, 1990 and Scott, 1994), however, the Tagalogs only applied ''hari'' (king) to foreign monarchs, such as those of the Javanese Madjapahit kingdoms, rather than to their own leaders. "Datu", "rajah", "lakan", etc., were distinct unique words to describe the powers and privilege of indigenous or local rulers and paramount rulers.
Reappropriation of "royalty" in popular literature
Although early Philippine datus, lakans, rajahs, sultans, etc., were not sovereign in the political or military sense, they later came to be referred to as such due to the introduction of European literature during the Spanish colonial period.[Rafael, Vicente L. (2005) The Promise of the Foreign: Nationalism and the Technics of Translation in the Spanish Philippines.]
Because of the cultural and political discontinuities that came with colonization, playwrights of Spanish-era Philippine literature such as '' comedias'' and ''zarzuelas
() is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular songs, as well as dance. The etymology of the name is uncertain, but some propose it may derive from the name of ...
'' did not have precise terminologies to describe former Philippine rulership structures, and began appropriating European concepts, such as "king" or "queen" to describe them. Because most Filipinos, even during precolonial times, related with political power
In social science and politics, power is the social production of an effect that determines the capacities, actions, beliefs, or conduct of actors. Power does not exclusively refer to the threat or use of force (coercion) by one actor against ...
structures as outsiders, this new interpretation of "royalty" was accepted in the broadest sense, and the distinction between monarchy as a political structure Political structure is a commonly used term in political science. In a general sense, it refers to institutions or even groups and their relations to each other, their patterns of interaction within political systems and to political regulations, l ...
vis a vis membership in a hereditary noble line or dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...
, was lost.
This much-broader popular conception of monarchy, built on Filipino experiences of "great men" being socially separate from ordinary people rather than the hierarchical
A hierarchy (from Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy is an important ...
technicalities of monarchies in the political sense, persists today. Common Filipino experience does not usually draw distinctions between aristocracy and nobility vis a vis sovereignty and monarchy. Datus, lakans, rajahs, sultans, etc., are thus referred to as kings or monarchs in this non-technical sense, particularly in 20th century Philippine textbooks.
The technical distinction between these concepts have only recently been highlighted again, by ethnohistorians, historiographers and anthropologists belonging to the critical scholarship tradition, since their concern is to capture indigenous meanings in the most accurate way possible.
Still this assessment of the nature of pre-colonial polities has to be viewed in the context of plurality of pre-colonial social structures existing in the archipelago. It is obvious that those which existed in Luzon, vary from those that existed in the Visayas and Mindanao.
Also, the views of the various authors have to be assessed taking into consideration the background of social constructs, from which they assess the local pre-colonial polities. The historical, politico-cultural and chronological distance of these authors from actual events in the lives of the Filipino pre-colonials has to be taken into consideration. The view of an author living in the 20th century democratic country has a lot of difference from those who came from monarchic societies, who had actual contact with the pre-colonials, and who tried to qualify and approximate the conventions used in local hierarchical structures using the constructs of their time and context, in order to understand their actual experience of contact with what existed in the archipelago during the 16th century.
Honorary datus
The title of "Honorary Datu" has also been conferred to certain foreigners and non-tribe members by the heads of local tribes and Principalities of ancient origin. During the colonial period, some of these titles carried with them immense legal privileges. For example, on January 22, 1878, Sultan Jamalul A'Lam of Sulu appointed the Baron de Overbeck (an Austrian who was then the Austro-Hungarian Empire
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
's consul-general in Hong Kong) as Datu Bendahara and as rajah of Sandakan, with the fullest power of life and death over all the inhabitants. On the other hand, in the Philippines, the Spaniards did not practice the granting of honorary titles. Instead, they created nobiliary titles over conquered territories in the archipelago, in order to reward high Spanish colonial officials. These nobiiary titles are still used in Spain until now by the descendants of the original holders, e.g., Count of Jolo. At present, arrangements such as this can no longer carry similar legal bearing under the Philippine laws.
The various tribes and claimants to the royal titles of certain indigenous peoples in the Philippines have their own particular or personal customs in conferring local honorary titles, which correspond to the specific and traditional social structures of some indigenous peoples in the country.
(N.B. In unhispanized, unchristianized and unislamized parts of the Philippines, there exist other structures of society, which do not have hierarchical classes.)
Present-day datus
The present-day claimants of the precolonial royal/noble title and rank of ''datu'' are of two types. The descendants of rulers of Islamic precolonial polities in Mindanao, and the descendants of the Christianized datus. This second group are those that live in the predominantly Catholic mainstream Filipino society. They are:
# The descendants of datus and sultans of historical and influential precolonial polities that were not totally subjected to Spanish rule, e.g., the Sultanate of Jolo, Sultanate of Maguindnao, who still claim at least the titles of their ancestors.
# The descendants of the ''principalía'' or the Christianized precolonial datus and rajahs, whose status and prerogatives as nobles and former sovereigns were recognized and confirmed by the Spanish Empire. (e.g., descendants of the Christianized last datus of the Cuyunin tribes of Palawan and the precolonial Datus of Panay, Samar, Leyte, Mindoro, Pampanga, Bulacan, Laguna, Bicol Region, etc.; descendants of the Christianized rajahs of Cebu, Butuan and Manila; descendants of Christianized chiefs of precolonial tribes of the Cordilleras and northern Luzon.)
Heirs to the precolonial rank of ''datu'' in the Catholic parts of the Philippines
In the mainstream Philippine society that is overwhelmingly Catholic, the descendants of the ''principalía'' are the rightful claimants of the ancient sovereign royal and noble ranks of the pre-conquest kingdoms, principalities, and barangays of their ancestors (e.g., the realm of the Christianized last datu of the Cuyunin tribes). These descendants of the ancient ruling class are now among the landed aristocracy, intellectual elite, merchants, and politicians in the contemporary Filipino society. These people have had ancestors holding the titles of "''Don''" or "''Doña''", which were also used by Spanish royalties and nobilities during the Spanish colonial period, and still use at present.
Philippine Constitution and the Law on Indigenous Minorities on the contemporary usage of the title ''datu''
Article VI, Section 31 of the 1987 Constitution
The Constitution of the Philippines (Filipino: ''Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas'' or ''Konstitusyon ng Pilipinas'', Spanish: ''Constitución de la República de Filipinas'') is the constitution or the supreme law of the Republic of the Philippines ...
explicitly forbids the creation, granting, and use of new royal or noble titles. Titles of "Honorary Datu" conferred by various ethnic groups to certain foreigners and non-tribe members by local chieftains are only forms of local award or appreciation for some goods or services done to a local tribe or to the person of the chieftain, and are not legally binding. Any contrary claim is otherwise unconstitutional under Philippine law.[Philippine Constitution, Article VI, Section 31.](_blank)
/ref>
However, through the Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act of 1997
The Indigenous People's Rights Act of 1997 (IPRA), officially designated as Republic Act No. 8371, is a Philippine law that recognizes and promotes the rights of indigenous cultural communities and indigenous peoples in the Philippines.
History ...
, the republic also protects the peculiar situation of tribal minorities and their traditional indigenous social structures. This special law allows members of indigenous minority tribes to be conferred with traditional leadership titles, including the title ''datu'', in a manner specified under the law's implementing rules and guidelines (Administrative Order No. 1, Series of 1998, of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples specifically under Rule IV, Part I, Section 2, a-c), which reads:
:a) Right to Confer Leadership Titles. The ICCs/IPs concerned, in accordance with their customary laws and practices, indigenous peoples shall have the sole right to vest titles of leadership such as, but not limited to, Bae, Datu, Baylan, Timuay, Likid and such other titles to their members.
:b) Recognition of Leadership Titles. To forestall undue conferment of leadership titles and misrepresentations, the ICCs/IPs concerned, may, at their option, submit a list of their recognized traditional socio-political leaders with their corresponding titles to the NCIP. The NCIP through its field offices, shall conduct a field validation of said list and shall maintain a national directory thereof.
:c) Issuance of Certificates of Tribal Membership. Only the recognized registered leaders are authorized to issue certificates of tribal membership to their members. Such certificates shall be confirmed by the NCIP based on its census and records and shall have effect only for the purpose for which it was issued.
From the above-mentioned ordinance of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples, the current usage of the title ''datu'' for newly created offices of leadership of tribal minorities does not accord nobility, which is forbidden by the Constitution of the republican state.
Precolonial polities and ''fons honorum''
The ''fons honorum The fount of honour ( la, fons honorum) is a person, who, by virtue of his or her official position, has the exclusive right of conferring legitimate titles of nobility and orders of chivalry on other persons.
Origin
During the High Middle Ages, ...
'' (source of honor) in the modern Philippine
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
state is the sovereign Filipino people, who are equal in dignity under a democratic form of government.[Philippine Constitution.](_blank)
/ref> The Philippine government grants state honors and decorations, and through the system of awards and decorations of its Armed Forces of the Philippines
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) ( fil, Sandatahang Lakas ng Pilipinas) are the military forces of the Philippines. It consists of three main service branches; the Army, the Air Force, and the Navy (including the Marine Corps). The P ...
and the Philippine National Police
The Philippine National Police ( fil, Pambansang Pulisya ng Pilipinas, acronymed as PNP) is the armed national police force in the Philippines. Its national headquarters is located at Camp Crame in Bagong Lipunan ng Crame, Quezon City. Current ...
. These honors do not grant or create titles of royalty or nobility, in accordance with the Constitution.
Deducing from the theory of Jean Bodin
Jean Bodin (; c. 1530 – 1596) was a French jurist and political philosopher, member of the Parlement of Paris and professor of law in Toulouse. He is known for his theory of sovereignty. He was also an influential writer on demonology.
Bodin l ...
(1530–1596), a French jurist and political philosopher, it could be said that ancient Filipino royalties, who never relinquished their sovereign rights by voluntary means (according to opinions of some historians), of whom the sovereign powers over their territories (''de facto
''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...
'' sovereignty) passed on to the Spanish ''jura regalia'' through some disputed means, retain their "''fons honorum''" as part of their ''de jure
In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legally ...
'' sovereignty. Therefore, as long as the blood is alive in the veins of these royal houses, ''de jure'' sovereignty is alive as well – which means they can still bestow titles of nobility. However, the practical implications of this claim is unclear, e.g., in the case of usurpation of titles by other members of the bloodline.
Heads of dynasties (even the deposed ones) belong to one of the three kinds of sovereignty that has been existing in human society. The other two are heads of states
A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...
(of all forms of government, e.g., monarchy, republican, communist, etc.) and traditional heads of the Church (both Roman Catholic and Orthodox). The authority that emanates from this last type is transmitted through an authentic apostolic succession
Apostolic succession is the method whereby the ministry of the Christian Church is held to be derived from the apostles by a continuous succession, which has usually been associated with a claim that the succession is through a series of bish ...
,[Cf. also Paulo Bonavides, ''Political Sciences (Ciência Política)'', p. 126.] i.e., direct lineage of ordination and succession of office from the Apostles (from St. Peter, in case of the supreme pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church – the pope
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
).
These sovereign authorities exercise the following sovereign rights and powers: ''ius imperii'' (the right to command and rule a territory or a juridical entity), ''ius gladii'' (the right to impose obedience through command and also control armies), ''ius majestatis'' (the right to be honored and respected according to one's title), and ''ius honorum'' (the right to award titles, merits and rights). Considering the theory of Jean Bodin, that "''Sovereignty is one and indivisible, it cannot be delegated, sovereignty us irrevocable, sovereignty is perpetual, sovereignty is a supreme power''", one can argue about the rights of deposed dynasties, also as ''fons honorum''. It can be said that their ''ius honorum'' depends on their rights as a family, and does not depend on the authority of the "de facto" government of a state. This is their ''de jure'' right. Even though it is not a ''de facto'' right, it is still a right.
But again, in case of conflict of norms on ''fons honorum'' in actual situations, the legislations of the ''de facto'' sovereign authority have precedence. All others are abrogated, unless otherwise recognized under the terms of such ''de facto'' authority.
This is the view to reconsider when we study sovereignty based on the political impact of the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
to the some polities that have been existing since the pre-colonial period, e.g., the Sultanate of Sulu and the Sultanate of Maguindanao.
See also
* Barangay
A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolitan ...
* Barangay state
In early Philippine history, Barangay is the term historically used by scholars to describe the complex sociopolitical units which were the dominant organizational pattern among the various peoples of the Philippine archipelago , . in the peri ...
* Confederation of Madya-as
* Datuk (Minangkabau) Datuk (or Datuak) is a traditional, honorary title bestowed on a person by the agreement of a people or tribe in the Minangkabau language, spoken by the Minangkabau people of Indonesia and Malaysia.Navis A.A., (1984), ''Layar Terkembang Jadi Guru: ...
* Hinduism in the Philippines
Recent archaeological and other evidence suggests Hinduism has had some cultural, economic, political and religious influence in the Philippines. Among these is the 9th century Laguna Copperplate Inscription found in 1989, deciphered in 1992 to b ...
* History of the Philippines (before 1521)
Earliest hominin activity in the Philippine archipelago is dated back to at least 709,000 years ago. ''Homo luzonensis'', a species of archaic humans, was present on the island of Luzon at least 67,000 years ago. The earliest known anatomically ...
* Rajahnate of Maynila
In early Philippine history, the Tagalog Bayan ("country" or "city-state") of Maynila ( tl, Bayan ng Maynila; Pre-virama Baybayin: ) was a major Tagalog city-state on the southern part of the Pasig River delta, where the district of Intr ...
* Namayan
Namayan (Baybayin: Pre-Kudlit: or (''Sapa''), Post-Kudlit: ), also called Sapa,Locsin, Leandro V. and Cecilia Y. Locsin. 1967. ''Oriental Ceramics Discovered in the Philippines.'' Vermont: Charles E. Tuttle Company. Maysapan or Nasapan, an ...
* Tondo (historical polity)
In History of the Philippines (900–1521), early Philippine history, the Tagalog people, Tagalog settlement at Tondo (; Baybayin: ) was a major trade hub located on the northern part of the List of islands in the Greater Manila Area, Pasig R ...
* Malay styles and titles
The Malay language has a complex system of Style (manner of address), styles, titles and honorifics which are used extensively in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and the southern Philippines.
Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and several Pro ...
* Rajahnate of Butuan
Butuan also called the Butan Rajanate and the Kingdom of Butuan (; Butuanon: ; ; ) was a precolonial Philippine polity centred on the northern Mindanao island in the modern city of Butuan in what is now the southern Philippines. It was known f ...
* Rajahnate of Cebu
Cebu, or Sugbu, also called the Cebu Rajanate, was an Indianized raja (monarchical) mandala (polity) on the island of Cebu in the Philippines prior to the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors. It is known in ancient Chinese records as the nat ...
* Recorded list of Datus in the Philippines
The datu have ruled over portions of the islands that are now the Philippines before Spanish colonization in the 16th century. This article lists the pre-colonial leaders of individual kingdoms and polities in Philippine history.
Etymologyc ...
* Sultanate of Maguindanao
The Sultanate of Maguindanao ( Maguindanaon: ''Kasultanan nu Magindanaw''; Old Maguindanaon: كاسولتانن نو ماڬينداناو; Jawi: کسلطانن ماڬيندناو; Iranun: ''Kesultanan a Magindanao''; ms, Kesultanan Magindana ...
* Sultanate of Sulu
The Sultanate of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Kasultanan sin Sūg'', كاسولتانن سين سوڬ; malay language, Malay: ''Kesultanan Sulu''; fil, Sultanato ng Sulu; Chavacano: ''Sultanato de Sulu/Joló''; ar, سلطنة سولك) ...
* Taytay, Palawan
Taytay, officially the Municipality of Taytay ( tgl, Bayan ng Taytay ), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Palawan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 83,357 people.
Since 2002, its Cathedral of St ...
* Non-sovereign monarchy
A non-sovereign monarchy or constituent monarchy is one in which the head of the monarchical polity (whether a geographic territory or an ethnic group), and the polity itself, are subject to a temporal authority higher than their own. The consti ...
* Federal monarchy
A federal monarchy, in the strict sense, is a federation of Country, states with a single monarch as overall head of the federation, but retaining Non-sovereign monarchy, different monarchs, or having a non-monarchical system of government, in ...
* Principalía
The ''principalía'' or noble class was the ruling and usually educated upper class in the ''pueblos'' of Spanish Philippines, comprising the ''gobernadorcillo'' (later called the c''apitán municipal'' and had functions similar to a town mayo ...
* Maginoo
The Tagalog ''maginoo'', the Kapampangan ''ginu'', and the Visayan ''tumao'' were the nobility social class among various cultures of the pre-colonial Philippines. Among the Visayans, the ''tumao'' were further distinguished from the immediate r ...
* Philippine shamans
Filipino shamans, commonly known as (also ''Balian'' or , among many other names), were shamans of the various ethnic groups of the pre-colonial Philippine islands. These shamans specialized in communicating, appeasing, or harnessing the spi ...
* Lakan
In early Philippine history, the rank of ''lakan'' denoted a "paramount ruler" (or more specifically, "''paramount datu''") of one of the large coastal barangays (known as a "bayan") on the central and southern regions of the island of Luzon.
...
* Timawa
The ''Timawa'' were the feudal warrior class of the ancient Visayan societies of the Philippines. They were regarded as higher than the ''uripon'' (commoners, serfs, and slaves) but below the ''Tumao'' (royal nobility) in the Visayan social hie ...
* Maharlika
The ''Maharlika'' (meaning freeman or freedman) were the feudal warrior class in ancient Tagalog society in Luzon, the Philippines. They belonged to the lower nobility class similar to the ''Timawa'' of the Visayan people. In modern Filipino, h ...
* Bagani
Bagani or magani refers to the class of warrior-leaders of various Lumad ethnic groups of the island of Mindanao, Philippines. Bagani were most notably integral to the traditional society and government of the Mandaya, Mansaka, Manobo, and Bagobo ...
References
External links
Impact of Spanish Colonialization in the Philippines
Encyclopædia Britannica – Datu (Filipino chieftain)
The official website of the Royal Sultanate of Sulu
{{India-related topics in Philippines
Titles of national or ethnic leadership
Noble titles
Royal titles
Feudalism in Asia
History of the Philippines (900–1565)
Filipino royalty
Filipino nobility
Social class in the Philippines