Mythologies of the Alangan Tribe

The Alangan tribe is one of the indigenous peoples (IPs) residing in the provinces of Oriental and Occidental Mindoro. They are mostly situated at the base of Mount Halcon, with their homes close to the Alangan River. According to the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), the Alangan tribe’s ancestral domains cover the municipalities of Sablayan and Sta. Cruz in Occidental Mindoro and Victoria in Oriental Mindoro. There are also Alangan communities in the municipalities of Naujan, Baco, and San Teodoro. The Alangan Mangyan tribe is known for their traditional clothing, with women wearing a ‘lingeb’ skirt made of woven nito of forest vines, an abayen skirt made of the barokan tree bark, and an ulango upper covering made from the wild buri palm leaf. The men, on the other hand, wear an abay or breechcloth made of tree bark and a pisawte knife used for chewing betel nut or gathering food in the forest. Their way of life revolves around upland farming, where they plant crops like rice, corn, bananas, and other root crops. They also rely on fishing and hunting for additional sustenance. The Alangan tribe’s traditional homes, called Balaylakoy, are large bamboo houses divided into sections that house around 20 to 50 families. They are led by a Kuyay or an elderly person, and the highest authority is the Tanungan, followed by the Nayon and Bokal. Despite their isolated way of living, many Alangan Mangyan have adapted to the modern lifestyle and can be seen wearing modern clothes and using cellular phones. Many young Alangans are also enrolled in college, particularly in education, to become teachers in their community. Through their unique culture and way of life, the Alangan Mangyan tribe remains an integral part of Oriental and Occidental Mindoro’s rich history and heritage.

The Alangan tribe is one of the eight Mangyan tribes of the island of Mindoro, each with a completely distinctive culture and language. In the earlier days, the Mangyan Alangans were known to live in these great houses where up to 20 families, usually of the same ancestry, share one living space. The word balaylakoy literally translates to “malaking bahay” or “big house”. The word balay meaning “house” and lakoy meaning “big”. The traditional balaylakoy provides more than a home and protection for the Alangans. It is also a sacred place where rituals and gatherings are conducted. Each year, during harvest season, the Alangans have a celebration called the pamago. Each family residing in the balaylakoy contributes some of their harvest and together they pound rice to remove the husk in the palangganan, the center of the balaylakoy. Residents, visitors from other balaylakoys, even outsiders are welcome to feast on their harvests. “Pinakamasayang panahon sa balaylakoy ang pamago (The pamago is the happiest time in the balaylakoy),” Vicente Sara, more fondly called “Ka Beting”, cheerfully recounts. This much awaited festivity is the Alangans’ thanksgiving for the bountiful harvest and their way of praying for the promise of the continuous richness of their lands. And it is just one of the ceremonies and rituals that are led by their greatly respected elder and healer known as the aplaki. Aside from rituals, the Alangans also gather around the fire that usually burns continuously every day in the palangganan, to resolve conflicts, plan for activities of their community and more importantly to bond with their family. Through sharing stories and just enjoying each other’s company through ambahans which can be chanting rhymes similar to poetry or alternately singing songs, the Alangans preserved their culture and lived in harmony. And because the Alangans lived together, almost all of the adults are able to work on their kaingin or farm and all the children can be left with a guardian.

Nestled within the provinces of Oriental and Occidental Mindoro, a unique group of Indigenous Peoples thrives—the Alangan Tribe. Their abode rests predominantly at the base of the majestic Mt. Halcon, a setting that adds to the mystique of their existence. According to the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP), the Alangans have cultivated a close bond with the Alangan River, residing near its flowing banks, shaping their lifestyle and traditions around its presence. The term ‘Alangan’ finds its roots in the river that demarcates the interplay between the rugged terrains of Oriental and Occidental Mindoro. In essence, historians have aptly interpreted the name Alangan to signify ‘in between,’ reflecting their unique position between these two landforms. In the present day, the ancestral domains of the Alangan stretch across the municipalities of Sablayan and Sta. Cruz in Occidental Mindoro, as well as Victoria in Oriental Mindoro. Shaped by diverse environmental factors, the Alangan community has also expanded into the municipalities of Naujan, Baco, and San Teodoro. A distinctive feature of the Alangan Mangyan identity is their traditional clothing, a tangible expression of their heritage. Women don ‘lingeb,’ a skirt fashioned from interwoven nito vines harvested from the forest. This ‘lingeb’ drapes gracefully around their abdomen, serving as an undergarment. Accompanying this is the ‘abayen,’ a skirt often crafted from the bark of the Barokan tree, and the ‘ulango,’ an upper covering skillfully made from the leaves of the wild buri palm. On the male front, the Alangan men don the ‘abay,’ a breechcloth hewn from the bark of trees, which is meticulously processed, washed, and sun-dried. To enhance their attire, a cloth with fringes adorns the front, while a nito-based knot is tied around their waist. A knife is commonly carried, proving indispensable during the consumption of betel nuts or foraging in the forest for sustenance.

One of the eight tribal groups under the umbrella term Mangyan is the tribe of Alangan who are known for their unity, which is especially displayed by their balaylakoy or a house they share with up to 20 families. They can be found mostly in Mount Halcon in northern Mindoro Island, while some Alangans reside in the Lantuyan and Paitan settlements. The term Alangan was coined after the mountain slopes and river in the upper Alangan valley. The Alangan people reside in the municipalities of Sablayan in Mindoro Occidental Province, as well as Naujan, Baco, San Teodoro, and Victoria in Mindoro Oriental Province. There are roughly 2,150 speakers of the Alangan language. The dialect Ayan Bekeg is spoken by people on the northeast slopes of Mount Halcon, as well as in Casague in Santa Cruz, and Kulasisi in Sablayan, both in Occidental Mindoro. The Alangan people are described as having medium build, dark complexion, and straight and long hair. Their faces are round, with their teeth stained deep red to black from chewing betel nuts. This practice of chewing said nuts is done by all Mangyan groups. An Alangan woman will usually be seen wearing lingeb, a skirt made of long strips of woven nito or forest vines and is twisted at the abdomen, and a g-string called abayen. Their upper body is covered by ulango, which is made from the leaf of the wild buri palm, and sometimes limbutong, a red kerchief, is worn over it. Men, on the other hand, wear g-strings that have trimmings in front. The Alangans are mostly agriculturists of upland or the kaingin system, which is a slash-and-burn method of farming. This swidden farming is composed of eleven stages, two of which are the agait or firebreak-making and the agpagamas or fallowing.

The Alangan ethnolinguistic group is one of the cultural and language communities collectively referred to as the Mangyan, along with the Iraya, the Tadyawan, the Batangan, the Buhid, the Hanunoo, the Ratagnon and the Tawbuid. The traditional territory of the Alangan is located in the inner highlands of the island of Mindoro in the municipalities of Naujan, Baco, San Teodoro, and Victoria in Oriental Mindoro, and in the municipality of Sablayan in Occidental Mindoro. Mindoro's lowlands are mainly populated by non-Mangyan groups, including members of the Tagalog, Visayan and Ilocano peoples. Relations between the highlander Alangan and the lowlanders have improved in recent years; however, in the past, much prejudice has existed toward the Alangan, even to the point where some believed that these people had tails. There are different theories regarding the origin of the name Alangan. One possible meaning is 'group of people with an unrefined culture' (based on the Tagalog term alangan, which means 'precariousness,' 'uncertainty' or 'inadequate'). The more likely origin is the name of a river and some mountain slopes in the upper Alangan Valley. The women traditionally wear a skirt called lingeb, made of long strips of woven nito (forest vines) and wound around the abdomen. This skirt is worn together with a g-string called abayen. The upper covering is called ulango and is made from the leaf of the wild buri palm. Sometimes a red kerchief called limbutong is worn over the ulango. The men wear g-strings with fringes in front. Today, western attire is common, with men wearing pants or shorts and sometimes a shirt, while the women wear skirts and blouses. Except for Batangan and Buhid, the languages that make up the Mangyan group are not particularly alike. The territory in which Alangan is spoken borders with regions corresponding to Iraya, Tagalog, Tadyawan and Batangan. The forest has provided the Alangan with all they need. Rattan and bamboo are used to twine useful plates, baskets, and carrying sacks. Traditionally they also make clothing from the bark and plants they find in the forest. Hunting for boar and forest birds provides meat. Several rivers with chilly, crystal-clear water run through the lush jungle. Alangan harvest wild rice, but they eat a variety of indigenous and locally introduced plants and hunt for wild game. They practice swidden or slash-and-burn farming and grow sweet potatoes, manioc, beans and a series of fruits in rotation on their shifting-cultivation farms. The Alangan Mangyans practice swidden farming, which consists of eleven stages. Two of them are the firebreak-making (agait) and the fallowing (agpagamas). A firebreak is made so that the fire will not go beyond the swidden site where the vegetation is thoroughly dry and ready for burning. Two years after clearing, cultivation of the swidden normally ceases, and the site is allowed to revert to forest.

The Alangan Mangyans live in the municipalities of Naujan, Baco, San Teodoro, and Victoria in Oriental Mindoro, and in the municipality of Sablayan in Occidental Mindoro. The name Alangan was derived from the name of a river and mountain slopes in the upper Alangan Valley [Leykamm, 1979]. The women traditionally wear a skirt called lingeb. This is made of long strips of woven nito (forest vines), and is wound around the abdomen. This is worn together with the g-string called abayen. The upper covering is called ulango, made from the leaf of the wild buri palm. Sometimes a red kerchief called limbutong is worn over the ulango. The men wear g-strings with fringes in front. The Alangan Mangyans practise swidden farming, which consists of eleven stages. Two of them are the firebreak-making (agait) and the fallowing (agpagamas). A firebreak is made so the fire will not go beyond the swidden site where the vegetation is thoroughly dry and ready for burning. Two years after clearing, cultivation of the swidden is normally ceased and the site is allowed to revert back to forest. Betel nut chewing is also noted among the Alangans, like all other Mangyan tribes. This they chew with great fervor from morning to night, saying that they don't feel hunger as long as they chew betel nut [Leykamm, 1979]. Nonetheless, betel chewing has a social dimension. Exchange of betel chew ingredients signifies social acceptance.