fully utilized.

The manufacture of pottery was made possible by a

process called kilning, which makes use of fire. Fire eventually
changed the lifestyle of the people, particularly in the preparation
of their meals. Thus, the inhabitants could already grill or boil their
food. The slash-and-burn agriculture practiced by the early settlers
also caused them to search for new land.

Jars as burial coffins for secondary burial were also made.

Bones of the departed were enclosed in these vessels after being
buried underground for a period of time. Closely related with burial
practices was bone washing and bone painting or dipping with
materials like sappan wood or red dyewood (Caesalpinia sappan)
and hematite (iron ore) for protection from decay.

In El Nido Cave, Palawan, painted bones were placed in small

niches inside the cave. In some areas of the archipelago, corpses
were interred directly into the ground in reclining or bent positions.

In all kinds of burial, funerary offerings or pabaon were

included such as clothes, food and weapons. Many indigenous
groups in the interior mountains and coastal areas still practice this
tradition in the belief that the dead will use these materials when
he sojourns towards the "soul world." Others cover the faces of the
dead with thin sheaths of gold to prevent bad spirits from entering
the body.

The Manunggul jar, an example of funerary vessel is now

considered a National Cultural Treasure of the Philippines. The
upper portion of the jar has curvilinear incised scroll designs,
painted with red hematitite (iron oxide). On the lid cover is a form
of a boat with two human figures. The figure at the back is a
boatman steering the "ship of the dead." The figure in front is the
passenger whose hands are folded over his chest. This represents
the soul of the person whose bones were placed in the jar.

Philippine pottery shows a variety of shapes and decorative

techniques, such as incision, stippling, applique, and impression
by rope and mat. Their designs were usually geometric.
Subsequently, pottery became more functional like the palayok for
cooking, the banga and tapayan for storing liquids. In Ilocos, the
making of burnay pottery lives on.

The Early Metal Age (500 B.C.) refers to the time in the
 development of human culture where tools and weapons were made of metal which gradually
replaced stone tools. The metal implements at this stage were crudely fashioned.

The first metal to be widely used was copper. Raw copper was then pounded into ornaments and
to some extent into tools. Bronze, made of imported tin and other metals like copper, emerged
simultaneously with copper as a result of inter island movements of people. Although bronze had
entered the Philippines, it did not constitute a major technological phase in the development of
Metal Age in the country because of the preference of early inhabitants to iron ore in tool making
(200 B.C.).

Jewelry during the early phase of the Metal Age consists mainly of beads. There were beads
made of jade, stones, glass, shells, seeds, twigs and stems, especially reeds of plants created into
necklaces and other ornaments. Only the beads made of semi precious stones endured decay in
the graveyards and habitation sites.

Jewelry as an ancient art began as amulets and charms to ward off bad spirits or to give
supernatural powers to the wearer. In particular tribes like the T'boli, they wore body ornaments
to please the gods and to signify the status of the wearer. It was only later when personal
adornments became purely decorative.

Ornaments of different kinds and designs (ranging from earrings to necklaces and bracelets)were
buried with basic metal tools in various sites throughout the archipelago. There were personal
adornments made of materials like nephrite and carnelian beads, which were available only
through [Link] indicates that the economic resourses of the community had fairly advanced.
Jewelry at this period indicates the emergence of some kind of social stratification.

The appearance and utilization of improved iron tools as the major technological device for
exploiting the environment constitute the Developed Iron Age. As the use of iron became
widespread, community specialization emerged as shown by the advances in tin-smithing,
jewelry making and in the utilization of resources.

Iron tools were recovered in Luzon (particularly in the Bulacan, Batangas, and Rizal areas). Tool
specimens were also dug up in Palawan and Masbate. The early Filipinos made metal implements
like knives (from simple to elaborate ones), the sumpak (blowguns), the kalikot for pounding
betel nuts into powder, and gongs to mark the hours of the day and night. Scholars contend that
during this age important industries were metalworking, pottery making, glassmaking and tie-
and-dye weaving. Cloth weaving replaced the bark cloth beaters for fashioning dress and other
apparel. It is believed that the backloom similar to that of the Ifugaos, Bontoks, and other
Mindanao groups was utilized. Fabrics and blankets were not only used for everyday living but
also for important rituals.

About the turn of the Millennium A.D., some families from surrounding island kingdoms set sail
in boats and established their communities along riverbanks or on deltas. Filipino contacts with
other countries became intensified. The development of a relatively efficient maritime
transportation became the major impetus for inter-island contacts and commerce especially with
Asians. This phase of Filipino prehistory is known to the anthropologists as the Age of Contact
(500-1400 A.D.), which is the period of trading relations with neighboring islands, mostly by Asian
traders.

Community life throughout the archipelago was dominantly founded on trade and by increasing
specialization in craftsmanship. The common sharing of cultural orientation like religion and
writing was facilitated by intensive internal trade, principally between riverine and coastal
communities. The people of Southeast Asia became highly nomadic because of water
transportation.

For the natives to succeed in engaging maritime trade with their Asian neighbors, they had to
improve their seamanship and boat-building skill. These early wooden watercrafts in the country
were called balangay. The balangay was basically a plank boat. It was driven either by a sail or by
paddling.

The discovery of balangay boats in Butuan, Agusan del Norte in the late 1970s served as pieces of
evidence to further prove the technical know-how of the early Filipinos. The first boat, now
preserved and displayed in a site museum in Libertad, Butuan City had a carbon-date of 320.
While the second boat, which was dated 1250 A.D., has been transferred to the National
Museum in Manila.

Malay was the principal language of Southeast Asian commerce during those times. It is not
surprising that a number of Malay loan words to Philippine languages pertain to commerce.
These include talaro (scales), upa (payment), lako (peddle), gusali (hall), tunay (real) means "hard
cash," and biyaya (grace) means "disbursement." Still other words illustrate the impact of
commerce on culture like atsara"

"(pickles), patis (brine), puto (native cake), kalan (stove), pinggan (plate), aral (learning), and
pagsamba (adoration).

At the height of the Sri Vijaya power (which originated in Palembang, Sumatra in the 7th century)
around 1000 A.D., the Sri Vijayan merchants conducted extensive trade with China and India. In
the 12th century, the Sumatra-based kingdom of Sri Vijaya had also expanded its influence in the
Philippine archipelago.

According to Sulu tradition, between 900 and 1200 A.D., immigrants from Champa, an Indianized
kingdom in Indochina, established a trading colony with the Buranuns of Sulu. The men of
Champa were called Orang Dampuan's, who were then vassals of the Sri Vijaya Empire. The
Orang Dampuan's settled in Taguima (now Basilan). They became the ancestors of the Yakans.

Years later, immigrants from Bandjarmasin, Borneo (another Sri Vijaya dependency) settled in
Sulu. They were the Orang Bandjar (Men of Bandjarmasin). They engaged actively in the rich
pearl trade. To establish goodwill with the Buranuns, they brought with them a beautiful princess
and offered her as bride to the native ruler. This state marriage resulted to deeper relations
between Sulu and Borneo. Like the Dampuan's, the Orang Bandjar introduced Indian culture in
Sulu.

Centuries of direct contact with these Indianized traders left vivid traces on Filipino history and
culture. The Indian influences were clearly noticeable in the religious beliefs, language, literature,
and customs of the ancient Filipinos. Bathala, the name of the chief god of the pre-Christian
Tagalogs, came from a Sanskrit term Bhattaru, meaning "Great Lord."

Also of Hindu origin was the belief of the early natives that the universe is filled with good and
bad spirits. They offered religious sacrifices and prayers to these spirits for help and protection.

Many Filipino fables were linked to Indian literature. Included here are the story of the monkey
and the turtle, the tale of the race between the deer and the snail, and the Visayan anecdote of
the hawk and the hen. Filipino folk literature was also to some extent, influenced by Indian
literature. Popular epics including Darangan of Lanao, Lam-ang of Ilokandia, Ibalon of Bicolandia,
and the Alim and the Hudhud of the Mountain Province, were inspired by the Mahabharata
(Sanskrit, "Great Story") and Ramayana (Sanskrit," Story of Rama") which likely begun in the 3rd
century B.C. These epics were ritually recited.

The early Filipinos had already developed a system of syllabic writing, with each symbol
representing a syllable. The Tagalog script was called baybayin, sometimes erroneously called
alibata. It consisted of three vowels and fourteen consonants, with a total of 17 letters. The
writing system was horizontal, from left to right. The writing instrument used was a sharp pointed
iron locally known as sipol. With this iron instrument, the natives engraved words on bamboo
shafts, wooden boards, leaves of plants, pottery, and metal. Remaining evidence of pre-colonial
writing are so rare. Only three had been previously found: the 14th - 15th century Butuan silver
strip, the 10th century Butuan ivory seal, and the 15th century Calatagan jar.

The first artifact of pre-Hispanic origin that had writing on copper material dates back to 900 A.D.
The script inscribed on it was written in Kavi (Old Javanese writing system), which does not look
similar to the ancient baybayin. The text was in a language similar to four languages, namely:
Sanskrit, Old Tagalog, Old Javanese and Old Malay. The copper object is now called Laguna
Copperplate Inscription (LCI). It was found near the mouth of the Lumbang River of Laguna
province in 1990. The thin copper plate measure 20 by 30 centimeters in size.

Antoon Postma, a Dutch national who has lived with the Mangyans for a long time and the
director of the Mangyan Assistance and Research Center in Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro, was able
to unlock the message on the copper material.

The LCI is an official record imprinted in the Saka year 822 in the month of March-April on the 4th
day of the dark half of the moon on a Monday. This document was issued to Lady Angkatan
together with her relative Bukah (child of His Honor Namwran) clearing Namwran, his family, and
 all their descendants of a debt equivalent to 1 kati and 8 suwarnas of gold from the Chief of
Dewata (Diwata, a town near Butuan). The pardon was issued by the chief of Tundun (Tundo),
represented by the leader of Pailah Jayadewa.

Others who witnessed the document include the leader of Puliran (Pulilan); Ganaskati,
representing the leader of Paila (Norzagaray); Bisruta, representing the leader of Binwangan
(Obando); and the Chief of Medang.
was consistent with its indicated date and that the correctness of the languages and words used
would have been very hard for forgers to produce.

Both oral and written literature had already flourished in the country prior to the coming of the
Spaniards. This consists of bugtong (riddles), awit (songs), salawikain (proverbs), legends, myths,
and poems. Some of the folk epics of the early times include: the Ilocano Lam-ang, the Ifugao
Alim and Hudhud, the Kalinga Ullalim, the Bicol Handiong, the Maranao Bantugan, and the
Maguindanao Indarapatra and Sulayman. The customs and traditions of the early Filipinos bear
Hindu influence. Among them were as follows: the placing of a fresh flower garland around the
neck of a visitor; the giving of bigaykaya (dowry) and rendering of personal services in the house
of the bride's parents by the groom before the wedding; the throwing of rice grains to the
newlyweds after the matrimonial ceremony by the guests; and the offering of buyo (mixture of
betelnut, ikmo leaf, and lime) to a guest as an expression of hospitality.

There were early superstitions in the country that came from Indianized migrants. Until today,
many believe that a girl, who sings in front of the stove while cooking will marry a widower and
that a cat cleaning its face indicates the coming of a visitor. Likewise, eating twin bananas would
cause a mother to give birth to twins.

The mode of dressing of pre-Spanish Philippines shows Indian influences. The putong (turban) of
the early Filipino men and the sarong (lower garment) of the early Filipino women resemble the
Indian putees and sari.

The archaeological relics excavated in the Philippines further indicate Indian influences. Some of
these are the following: the gold image of Agusan, which was excavated on the left bank of Wawa
River near the town of Esperanza, Agusan Province in 1917 (now preserved at the Gem Room of
the Chicago Museum of Natural History); the copper image of Ganesha, elephant god of the
Hindus which was also found in Mactan in 1843; and the god Garuda pendant of Palawan found
at Brooke's Point in 1961. The garuda is a mythical bird that Hindu god Vishnu used as vehicle.

Certain industries in the country are of Indian origin, notably boat building, weaving of cotton
clothes, and metal work. Decorative arts were also influenced as shown in the design of gold
necklaces and bolo handles. The manufacturing of some musical instruments like the kudyapi
(guitar) and the planting of some species of flowers like sampaguita and champaka; fruits
including mango and nangka; and vegetables such as ampalaya, patola, and malunggay came
from Indianized sojourners.
According to paleographical experts, the ancient Filipino writing originated from India. According
to Dr. T.H. Pardo de Tavera, there are more than 340 Sanskrit words found in the Tagalog
language. Dr. Jose Villa Panganiban, former Director of the Institute of National Language, gives a
longer list of 375 Sanskrit loan words in the Filipino national language which is basically Tagalog.
These include the Filipino words ama (father), nanay (mother), asawa (spouse), halaga (price),
kalapati (dove), kuta (fort), sutla (silk), saksi (witness), tala (star), raha (king), sandata (weapon),
maharlika (noble) to name a few.

Historically speaking, Sino-Philippine relations began in the 10th century A.D. The earliest known
authentic date of these relations was 982 A.D., when several traders from Ma-yi (believed to
include Mindoro, Batangas, Manila, and Pampanga) arrived in Canton board on an Arab ship and
sold their valuable merchandise. Ma-Tuan-lin, a Chinese chronicler, included this detail in his Wen
Shiann Tung Kao (General Investigation on the Chinese Cultural Sources).

China during those times, having refined many of its developments in the fields of historical
writing, painting, calligraphy, and hard-glazed porcelain, was beginning to expand its maritime
activities in Nanyang (Southeast Asian world) especially during the Southern Sung (1127-1280),
Yuan (1280-1368), and Ming (1268-1614) dynasties. Chinese merchants on board their junks left
Chuanchow, Canton and other ports in China and traded with the people of Lingayen, Manila,
Mindoro, and Sulu.

In 1225, Chau Ju-kua, a Chinese Superintendent of Foreign Trade described China's trade with
Ma-i in his book Chu-fan-chi (Reports on the South Sea Barbarians). This narrative pointed out
the honesty of the early Filipinos in their business transactions with the Chinese traders. This was
confirmed by another Chinese writer, Wang Ta-yuan.

Wang Ta-yuan's description of medieval Filipino life appears in his Tao-i-chih-lio (Summary
Notices of the Barbarians of the Isles), which was written in 1349. Both Chu-fan-chi and the Tao-i-
chih-lio have sections about a barbarous place called P'i-she-ya, which is presumably Visayas.
Wang Ta-yuan describes the natives of P'i-she-ya as being tattooed up to the neck.

During the reign of Zhu Di (Chu Ti), the Yung-lo Emperor in 1403 to 1423 when China was
expanding the boundaries of its domain, he induced the countries visited by his missions to pay
tributes to the Ming court. The native rulers of the Philippines, Borneo, Java, Sumatra, Malay
Peninsula, Indochina and other Southeast Asian countries sent regular tribute embassies to the
Imperial court of the Ming emperor. According to the Ming Shih (Annals of the Ming Dynasty),
Record of Luzon, Record of Cami-lig, and the Record of Sulu, the Philippines sent eight tribute
embassies to Beijing between 1372 to 1424.

China's greatest maritime explorer, Admiral Zheng He, also known as Cheng Ho, (1371-1435), led
seven expeditions from 1405 to 1433 in the south seas and reached the Philippines, Borneo,
Malay Peninsula, Singapore, Indochina, India, and Ceylon (Sri Lanka). It is said that Cheng-Ho's
first expedition, which consisted of 62 ships, landed in the Philippines in December 1405.
 While in Jolo, one of his men, Pei-Pon-Tao (also known as Pun Tao King) died and was buried in
Jatti Tunggal, Jolo. Annually, on December 26, the Chinese of Jolo until these days visit the tomb
of Pei-Pon-Tao to pay homage to the forerunners of Sino-Philippine relations.

Centuries of trade and personal relations with the Chinese inevitably led to the enrichment of
Filipino life and culture. Decorated enameled ceramics painted in traditional patterns were
exported in the Philippines. The blue-and-white pieces of Chinese porcelain had their origins in
the Ming period.

The manufacture of gunpowder, the art of metallurgy, the use of porcelain, gongs, lead, silver, tin,
and certain occupations like blacksmithing and goldsmithing in the country were learned from
the Chinese. The Filipinos practiced a form of duck culture around Pateros and Taguig in Rizal that
resembled the Chinese, which includes the method of artificial incubation of eggs. They also
taught the Filipinos kite-flying and other games including various forms of gambling like jueteng,
kuwaho, and pangginggi.

The Chinese improved the culinary art of the early Filipinos. From them, the natives learned the
roasting of pigs, the brewing of tea for drinking and the cooking of dishes like pancit, lumpia,
chop suey, and okoy. The Chinese also taught the Filipinos the use of seasonings like toyo (soy
sauce) and tahuri, and plant vegetables like bataw, petsay and upo.

During the early times, the Filipino manner of dressing bore Chinese traces. The sleeved jackets
(kangan) of the Filipino males, the loose trousers of the Muslim women of Mindanao, and the
use of slippers, wooden shoes (bakya), fans and umbrellas were of Chinese origin.

The social customs of the early Filipinos showed Chinese influence. Among them were the
arrangement of marriage by the parents of the boy and the girl, the hiring of a go-between in
marital negotiations, the honoring of departed ancestors and the employment of professional
mourners during the funeral.

Certain existing social customs bear indications of Chinese origin like the blasting of firecrackers
on New Year's Eve, the beating of gongs to celebrate a feast, and the collection of tong
(percentage fee) by owner of a gambling joint. Haggling between the merchant and the customer
to arrive at a price for a commodity is another practice that the natives have learned from them.

The linguistic influence of China on the Filipino language is quite exceptional. About 1,500
Chinese loan words are included in the present vocabulary of the Filipinos. These words usually
pertain to kinship and family relations, clothes, ornaments, food and drinks, agriculture and
commerce, tools and occupations, and abstract ideas. Among these are as follows: ate (older
sister), sanse (third older sister), kuya (older brother), diko (second older brother), sangko (third
older brother), suki (friend), gunting (scissors), hiya (shame), pakyaw (wholesale), and susi (key).

In the 13th century, Japan was said to have traded with the Philippines based from the early
historical records in Ryukyu. Japanese wakos (pirate-traders) sailed the Orient waters, and many
 of them were able to reach the Philippine archipelago. The Japanese made some early
contributions to Filipino culture and economy. They taught our people some industries such as
the manufacture of arms and tools and the tanning of deerskins.

In the middle of the 14th century, the Muslim traders from Malaysia brought Islam (in Arabic
means "submission to the will of God") to the Philippines. It spread through the southern parts of
the islands. Historians say Tuan Masha'ika brought the Islamic faith in Sulu. He was mentioned to
have established the first Muslim (means "one who surrenders to God") community in the
archipelago.

Karim ul Makhdum is the next mentioned in the Tarsilas (records). He was a noted judge and
scholar from Mecca. After converting the sultan and the people of Malacca, he went to Sulu
(1380 A.D.) and began missionary work. He built a house for religious worship (a mosque) at
Tubig-Indagan on the island of Simunul and won many converts, particularly at Buansa (ancient
capital of Sulu).

About 1390, Rajah Baginda a Muslim prince from Menangkabau, Sumatra, landed at Buansa. He
overpowered native resistance because his warriors fought with firearms, the first to be used in
combat on Philippine soil.

The stage of the makhdumin, an era of receptivity to Islam, resulted to conversions to the Islamic
faith with the arrival of missionaries in Sulu, an event contemporaneous with the work of other
missionaries in Java, Indonesia.

In 1450 A.D., Sharif ul-Hashim (popularly known as Sayid Abu Bakr), an Arab authority on Islamic
religion and law arrived in Buansa, Sulu from Johore, Malacca. He married Princess Paramisuli,
the beautiful daughter of Raha Baginda (from Sumatra).

Abu Bakr founded the Sulu sultanate in the same year, after his father-in-law's death. He
organized the government patterned after that of the Arabian caliphate and promulgated the first
Sulu code of law. He later transformed he Muslim Tausugs into a powerful army.

Abu Bakr was said to have unified the coastal and the hill dwellers (Buranun) of Sulu. He adapted
the local traditions to the Qu'ran (bible). He received the title of Sultan Sarif. After reigning for 30
years, he died in 1480. All sultans of Sulu until the present day trace their ancestry from him.

In the first quarter of the 16th century, more Muslims migrated into the archipelago. The Islamic
conquest of Mindanao was attributed to the legendary Sharif Muhammad Kabungsuwan, a
Johore Muslim. In 1475, he arrived in the Malabang area in Cotabato (Maguindanao) with an
invading force of Islamized Samals. The pagan natives ferociously opposed him but his Samal
warriors subdued them.

After conquering the Cotabato Valley (Maguindanao), Kabungsuwan married a native princess in
the place. He converted the overpowered inhabitants to Islam. Those who refused to accept the
new faith fled to the mountains. They became the present-day Bilaans, Manobos, Subanuns and
other pagan Filipinos. Kabungsuwan founded the sultanate of Maguindanao sometime in 1515.
Years after, several sultanates were also established in the region.

Other Muslim missionaries entered the Philippines subsequently. Shortly before Magellan's
arrival in 1521, Muslim traders from Borneo actively disseminated the teachings of Islam in
Mindoro, Batangas, Manila, and Pampanga. One of them was Siat Saen, who introduced Islam in
the town of Balayan, Batangas. Through their efforts, the spread of Islam was accelerated.

The last recorded Muslim missionary to bring the Islamic faith into the country was Alawe
Balpake, an Arab Sharif from Sarawak, Borneo. During the early years of the 17th century, he
introduced Islam in Northern Mindanao and the Lanao Lake region, after which, he moved to the
island of Basilan and became its first Muslim sultan. In 1956, his grave was discovered in Taguima,
Basilan.

Islam, which professes monotheism, or in the belief of a single God, teaches that Muhammad
was the last and the most important in a series of prophets. Furthermore, it advocates that all
Muslims belong to one community, the umma, regardless of ethnic background.

The five pillars of Islam are as follows: first, the profession of faith (shahada): "There is no God
but Allah, and Muhammad is the Messenger of God" which is a prerequisite for membership in
the Muslim community; second, the ritual prayer (salat) wherein the adult Muslim has to implore
the Almighty five times a day facing Mecca, i.e., before daybreak, at noontime, in mid-afternoon,
at sunset, and anytime after sunset, before sleeping preceded by ritual cleansing; third, the
almsgiving (zakat) which is the obligatory giving of one fortieth of one's income to the needy or
religious cause to purify one's wealth and attain salvation; fourth, the pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj)
which is a mandatory once-in-a-lifetime trip to the House of God (the Kaaba) where the title of
hadji shall be given to a Muslim who has performed this pilgrimage; and fifth, fasting (sawm),
which is done during the lunar month of Ramadan (the ninth month of the Arabic calendar).

Ramadan commemorates the Holy Qur'an's revelation (Chapter II, Verse 185) to Prophet
Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi Wassalam. During the period of fasting, all Muslims must refrain
from eating, drinking, and sexual intercourse from daybreak to sunset. The sick, travelers, and
menstruating women are exempted from fasting but they have to make up the days they skipped
at a later date. Islam celebrates Eid ul-Fitr or the Festival of Breaking the Fast, after the sighting of
the crescent moon at the end of Ramadan. (Republic Act 9177 declared Eid ul-Fitr a national
holiday in the Philippines to be observed not only by Muslims but also by Christians.) This is a day
on which the Muslims are called upon to visit one another and exchange greetings among
themselves.

Considered the sixth pillar of Islam by some Muslims is the jihad, which in Arabic means "to
struggle" or "to exhaust one's effort" in order to please God. Within the belief of Islam, jihad
refers to living a virtuous life, helping other Muslims and preaching Islam. It has lately evolved to
holy war, which focused on the militant interpretation of the jihad.
Islam had left her lasting impression on the life and culture of the Muslim Filipinos, which include
the Maranaos of Lanao, Maguindanaons of Cotabato, Samals of Zamboanga, Yakans of Basilan,
and Tausugs of Sulu. The mosque is their special place of worship and point of convergence for
social activity. It was built as a link to Mecca.

With Islam, came the sultanate form of government, together with the title of political
dignitaries, such as sultan (supreme ruler) raja muda (heir apparent), dayang (princess), and kali
(judge); the Arabic alphabet, Islamic holidays, and the Arabic arts.

Singkil (a Maranao word for "getting a leg or foot entangled in an object") originated from Lanao
del Sur. The dancers, with solemn faces and dignified pose, dressed in elegant Muslim costumes
begin dancing in a slow pace, which soon progresses to a faster tempo to the rhythmic clapping
of crisscrossed bamboos. The ladies gracefully wave big fans while the men glide with brightly
colored handkerchiefs.

When performed by ladies of the royalty of Lanao, the dance is usually ushered by a waiting lady,
who holds an exquisitely embellished umbrella over the Princess' head wherever she goes.
Legend has it that singkil originated from the time the diwatas (nymphs or fairies) played a joke
on Princess Gandingan as she was on a stroll. The diwatas caused the trees to tremble and the
rocks to roll; however, the princess skipped nimbly from place to place unharmed.

In their artworks, the Maranaos used the okir or okkil design, a curvilinear floral design. The
different types of okkil design appear as border decoration on the cover and in the pages of the
Qu'ran. They are also replicated in furniture, boats, farm implements, silverware, brassware,
jewelry, and ceramics. Similar okir designs were also made on ancestral houses called torogan.

The indigenous bird motif, the sarimanok, is also said to have been developed by the Maranaos.
It is decorative in nature, having the appearance of a bird or rooster holding a fish in its claws or
beak.

Another artistic expression by the Muslims is the Tausug kris. This is a zigzag type of sword. These
swords were not only used as weapons but also considered as great works of arts, at times inlaid
with silver and gold or pearls. One fearsome weapon was the lantaka (swivel gun) placed on
flexible beams that allowed the gunner to pursue a moving target.

The people in a society collectively create and preserve culture. The Filipino people culturally
evolved because they were able to exchange their thoughts with others through communication,
The transmission of ideas and skills was made possible through interaction since the early
Filipinos no longer lived in complete isolation.

The ancient Filipinos prior to the coming of Spaniards have already possessed a distinctive culture
as proven by the material remains of past societies. They were not uncivilized but intrinsically
endowed with abilities to stand as equal to people elsewhere in the world.