Aeta
Aeta
By: Dominick Wee
"Aeta," "Ayta," "Agta," "Atta (Ata)," "Ati," and "Ita"- these probably derive from the root word "it," which in various Philippine languages means "black" as inferred from the Tagalog term itim and the Visayan term itom. "Negrito" or "little black one" is a Spanish term coined from the word "negro." The Aeta are a mountain people who are dark skinned, short, small of frame, kinky haired, snub nosed, and with big black eyes.
The Aeta have different names which may refer to their history, their geographical situation, or their relationship with their neighbors. Various Aeta groups have been differentiated in curious ways. For example, one group in northern Luzon is known as "Pugut" or "Pugot," a name designated by their Ilocano-speaking neighbors, and which is the colloquial term for anyone with dark skin. In Ilocano, the word also means "goblin" or "forest spirit."
An Aeta group may resent a name designated by non-Aeta groups or neighbors, especially when they consider the given names deprecating. Because the majority of Filipinos look down on their dark color, some groups resent being called "Ita."
On the other hand, the term "baluga" is acceptable to some Aeta groups since it means "hybrid," akin to the positive connotation of "mestizo" for lowlanders. But relativity, it seems, is the rule of thumb. The word "Baluga", for instance, is also considered insulting by other Aeta groups since it means "brackish, half-salt and half-fresh."
History
The history of the Aeta continues to confound anthropologists and archaeologists. One theory suggests that the Aeta are the descendants of the original inhabitants of the Philippines who arrived through land bridges that linked the country with the Asian mainland some 30,000 years ago. These migrations may have occurred when the Malay peninsula was still connected with Sumatra and other Sunda Islands. At that time, the islands of what is now the
By: Dominick Wee
"Aeta," "Ayta," "Agta," "Atta (Ata)," "Ati," and "Ita"- these probably derive from the root word "it," which in various Philippine languages means "black" as inferred from the Tagalog term itim and the Visayan term itom. "Negrito" or "little black one" is a Spanish term coined from the word "negro." The Aeta are a mountain people who are dark skinned, short, small of frame, kinky haired, snub nosed, and with big black eyes.
The Aeta have different names which may refer to their history, their geographical situation, or their relationship with their neighbors. Various Aeta groups have been differentiated in curious ways. For example, one group in northern Luzon is known as "Pugut" or "Pugot," a name designated by their Ilocano-speaking neighbors, and which is the colloquial term for anyone with dark skin. In Ilocano, the word also means "goblin" or "forest spirit."
An Aeta group may resent a name designated by non-Aeta groups or neighbors, especially when they consider the given names deprecating. Because the majority of Filipinos look down on their dark color, some groups resent being called "Ita."
On the other hand, the term "baluga" is acceptable to some Aeta groups since it means "hybrid," akin to the positive connotation of "mestizo" for lowlanders. But relativity, it seems, is the rule of thumb. The word "Baluga", for instance, is also considered insulting by other Aeta groups since it means "brackish, half-salt and half-fresh."
History
The history of the Aeta continues to confound anthropologists and archaeologists. One theory suggests that the Aeta are the descendants of the original inhabitants of the Philippines who arrived through land bridges that linked the country with the Asian mainland some 30,000 years ago. These migrations may have occurred when the Malay peninsula was still connected with Sumatra and other Sunda Islands. At that time, the islands of what is now the