"Bikidnon- KAAMULAN FESTIVAL" Bukidnon by glengyl_iligan

Hundreds of visitors including local, foreign tourists and media will troop anew to Malaybalay City in Bukidnon on February 24, this year to witness the best of the yearly celebration of the well renowned Kaamulan Festival dubbed as the most authentic ethnic festival in the country.
The local government of Malaybalay City is optimistic that this year’s celebration of the Kaamulan Festival in time for the Visit Philippines 2003 campaign will double the increase of their local tourism.
The best feature of this spectacular annual festivity is the gathering of the seven hilltribes namely Tala-andig, Higa-onon, Umayamnoon, Manobo, Tigwahanon, Matigsalug and Bukidnon featuring their traditional songs, dances, sports, crafts and rituals clad in their traditional vibrant costumes and heirloom jewelry.
To the hilltribes, “Kaamulan” heralded the symbolic breakthrough of their long quest for meaning and identity. Above all, it provides an interesting ground for the unification of the many tribes of Northern Mindanao and the Filipinos as a whole.
But for the highlanders in the region, “Kaamulan” signifies a gathering for a purpose. It may mean a datuship ritual, a wedding ceremony, a thanksgiving festival at harvest season and many others.
Meanwhile, other highlights of the 15-day festivities are agro-trade fair featuring exotic plants, array of delicacies, ethnic dance clinic, rodeo, horse show, off-road competition set against pine covered mountains of Bukidnon. The public will also have a chance to observe the ritual known as “Pamuhat” during the highlight of the festivities.
The much awaited street dancing on March 1, will start along Fortich Street and culminates at the Capitol Grounds.
Kaamulan was first presented as a festival at the Pines View Park in Malaybalay City in Bukidnon on Nov. 25-27, 1977 and was received enthusiastically by thousands of guests and tourists. For several years, the festival was held every September but was later moved to March to commemorate the creation of Bukidnon as a province on March 10, 1917.
Aside from the merry festivities of Kaamulan, tourists may have the options to visit other tourists atrractions in Misamis Oriental. Among which were the natural tourist spot of Matin-ao and Nasuli Spring, the ethnic structure of sleeping quarters known as “Tulugan” of our indigenous people at the back of the Provincial Capitol, the Mt. Kitanglad for mountain climbers and nature lovers, the Monastery of Transfiguration at Barangay San Jose, where the Benedictine Monks spend their entire life in prayer, the Pines View Park best suited for camping and rodeo activities, the attractive and unique rock formation of Mount Capistrano, and the Bird Watch Tower at Barangay Dalwangan for a glimpse of beautiful bird species in the city.
Other attractions in Misamis includes, the Impalutao Project for nature lovers and environmentalists where tourists can take a dip at Dila and Gantungan Falls. While, the famous Del Monte Philippines Pineapple Plantation and Golf Club in Manolo Fortich is the biggest single pineapple plantation in the Far East with an 18-hole classic golf course. On the other hand, another tourists attraction to visit is the Menzi Farm which is a model site for agro-tourism. " Kaamulan is an indigenous Binukid term which literally means "gathering together for a purpose". It is a festival that carries you to another world and another era.

Graced by cultural groups whose ways have remained unchanged through the centuries, tribal groups trek down from traditional mountain dwellings to gather in unity.

The hill tribes wear intricately woven costumes studded with trinkets, anklets, earrings, necklaces, headdresses and amulets. They dance, chant, compete in indigenous sports and perform ancient rituals with each activity having a meaningful ceremony that reflects the richness and diversity in their culture.

Manobo

by: Lydia Mary De Leon

"Manobo" or "Manuvu" means "person" or "people"; it may also have been originally "Mansuba" from man (person or people) and suba (river), hence meaning "river people." A third derivation is from "Banobo," the name of a creek that presently flows to Pulangi River about 2 km below Cotabato City. A fourth is from "man" meaning "first, aboriginal" and "tuvu" meaning "grow, growth." Manobo " is the hispanized form.
The Manobo Belong to the original stock of proto-Philippine or proto-Austronesian people who came from South China thousands of years ago, earlier than the Ifugao and other terrace-building peoples of the northern Luzon. Ethnolinguist Richard Elkins(1966)coined the term "Proto-Manobo" to designate this stock of aboriginal non-Negritoid people of Mindanao. The first Manobo settlers lived in northern Mindanao: Camiguin, Cagayan, and some areas of Bukidnon and Misamis Oriental. Subgroups are: Agusan-Surigao, Ata, Bagobo, Banwaon, Blit, Bukidnon, Cotabato(which include the Arumanen, Kirintekan, and Livunganen), Dibabawon, Higaonon, Ilianon, Kulamanen, Manuvu, Matigsalug, Rajah Kabungsuan, Sarangani, Tboli, Tagabawa, Tigwa, Ubo, Umayamnon, and western Bukidnon. Manobo languages representative of these groups are Agusanon, Banwaon, Binukid of Mindanao, Cagayano of Cagayancillo Island, Cotabato Manobo, Dibabawon Manobo, Eatern Davao Manobo, Ilianon Manobo, Kidapawan, Kinamigin of Camiguin Island, Livunganen, Magahat, Sarangani Manobo, Southern Cotabato and Davao Manobo, Tasaday, Tagabawa, Tigwa Manobo,, Ubo of the Mt Apo region in Davao, western Bukidnon Manobo, and western Cotabato Manobo (Elkins 1966; Olson 1967).

The Manobo have for their neighbors the Talaandig of Bukidnon, the Matigsalug of the middle Davao River area, the Attaw or Jangan of the midland area which is now within the jurisdiction of Davao City, the Tahavawa and Bilaan in the south and southeast, and the Ilianon along the Pulangi river basin . This was the site of barter dealings with the Muslim traders who travelled upriver into the hinterlands.

Talaandig Women During The Float Parade

Manobo Talaandig is the result of the inter-marriages between the Manobo and the Talandig aborigines and the Indonesians during the Majapahit Empire; also the succeeding mixed marriages of the natives with the Malay River people during the Sri Visayan Empire upon their eastward migration and the Chinese traders who came to Agusan in the 11th and 12th Century. The coming of the Spaniards brought forth another contribution to the web of inter-racial and cultural marriages which composes the genetic fiber of what we know as the Manobo people. The name "Manobo", is traceable to the influence of the Malay River people. These people are called "Mansuba" from the word "suba", the Malayan word for river, which means people living near or in the river (mostly in their floating houses). Later, Mansuba was shortened to Manuba which eventually took its masculine gender to become what we now know as Manobo. It is surprising to realize that even indigenous peoples themselves continually reinvent their own culture. A prominent example of this is the Manobo Talaandig tribe of Lantapan, Bukidnon.

The most common lifestyle of the Manobo is o­ne of rural agriculture. Unfortunately, their farming methods are very primitive. Some of the farmers have incorporated plowing techniques, while others have continued to use the "slash-and-burn" method. Social life for the Manobo is patriarchal, or male-dominated. The head of the family is the husband. Polygyny (having more than o­ne wife at a time) is common, and is allowed according to a man's wealth. However, among the Bukidnon, most marriages are monogamous. The o­nly exception is that of the powerful datus, or headmen. The political structures of the Manobo groups are all quite similar. A ruler, called a sultan, is the head of the group. Beneath him are the royal and non-royal classes. o­nly those people belonging to the royal classes can aspire to the throne. Those belonging to the non-royal classes are under the power and authority of the royal classes. Each class is interdependent o­n the others. The political aspects of life are often integrated with the social aspects. For example, many social events, such as weddings, require political leaders. Whenever there is a negotiation for marriage, both the bride and the groom must use the local datu (headman) to make all of the arrangements. There is a wide range in the populations of the eight Manobo groups. Many of the groups are struggling with a changing world. Outside pressures have greatly affected their respective cultures.

The religious beliefs of the Manobo are revolved around the concept that there are many unseen spirits who interfere in the lives of humans. They believe that these spirits can intrude o­n human activities to accomplish their desires. The spirits are also believed to have human characteristics. They are both good and evil in nature and can be evoked to both anger and pleasure. While the religious practices of the Manobo vary slightly, there seems to be at least o­ne common thread linking them together. Each culture believes in o­ne "great spirit." This "great spirit" is usually viewed as the creator figure. As the various Manobo groups have been separated, the religious beliefs of other peoples have influenced them somewhat. However, the Manobo have often incorporated these new practices into their belief system, rather than abandoning their practices and being converted to new religions.

• Pros:The place is nice especially the Wporld calss Pineapple
• Cons:Hav'nt seen anything bad.
• In a nutshell:People, Pines, and The Pineapple