As
one strolls around Mabalacat City, one may still observe the prevalence of
volcanic ashes on its grounds. Also scattered around are stones and pebbles of
volcanic origin such as granite, basalt, pumice and tuff. All these are mute
remnants of thousands of years of active and oftentimes violent volcanic
activities in the region. Looming at the background is the culprit, the mighty
Mt. Pinatubo while on the southern side peacefully rests the legendary Mt.
Arayat.
Geologic studies revealed that thousands of years ago, Zambales was once an island separated from the island of Luzon by a narrow strait. On the eastern shores of ancient Zambales island laid the area which eventually became the territory of Mabalacat. The narrow strait was connected to Manila bay.
A series of volcanic eruptions dramatically changed the landscape. Some 35,000 years ago, Mt. Pinatubo of the Zambales island erupted and deposited more than 100 meters of pumice and ash flows on all sides. Some 17,000 years ago, another eruption took place which produced two debris flow deposits now visible on the banks of the Sacobia River. Other eruptions which contributed to the dramatic change of the landscape included the Pasbul eruptive period which occurred 9,000 years ago, Crow Valley eruptions 6,000-5,000 years ago and Maraunot eruptions occurred from about 3,900 to 2,300 years ago. These volcanic eruptions reclaimed the ancient narrow strait and effectively sutured the islands of Zambales and Luzon. This former narrow strait became the bedrock of what are now the territories of the provinces of Bulacan, Pampanga, Tarlac and Pangasinan.
The territory of Mabalacat east of Zambales became landlocked. The islets that once dotted the strait became hills and small mountains. After its last major eruption in the 13th century, Mt. Pinatubo rested for hundreds of years. The endemic forests slowly claimed the region. Lush endemic flora covered the area. Among the endemic trees, was the Balacat (Ziziphus talanai Blanco) from which Mabalacat derived its name. Forest animals like boar, deer, carabaos also abound. With this abundance, the region attracted the nomadic Pinatubo Aeta, who after journeying since time immemorial, have found a place which would become their ancestral home.
The Early Culture
and Society of Mabalacat
According to Fr. Andres de San Fulgencio, the region of what is now the present territory of Mabalacat was inhabited by the natives who were ‘so savage and barbarous whose innate inclination is bow and arrow and the taking of lives, of cutting heads, having magnatos and feasts, drinking in skulls…’[1] Albeit brief, the description provided a glimpse of the early culture and society of Mabalacat.
The Pinatubo Aetas were the first inhabitants of Mabalacat. Physically, they possessed dark complexion, curly hairs and small body stature. With this racial phenotype, they belong to the Negroid race. The Spaniards called them negritos taking into account their black skin tone and small stature. The natives referred to themselves as Aetas.[2] Early Spanish accounts confirmed their reputations of ferocity and notoriety not only among the Spaniards but also among the neighboring Kapampangans and Ilocanos.
Primarily, Pinatubo Aetas lived by hunting and gathering forests products for family consumption and for trading with its neighbor, the Zambals. As such, they mastered the forests and sharpened their skills in bows and arrows. They combed the mountains and valleys for honey, fruits, edible roots and other forest products. They hunted wild animals such as boars, deer and carabaos.[3]
As hunters and gatherers, the Pinatubo Aetas were nomadic. They did not live in permanent settlements. They wander in bands according to seasons through the rough countryside and mountains. Accustomed to this nomadic life, they preferred to live in the mountains for their subsistence and livelihood. Thus, being resettled in the lowlands by Christian missionaries means food insecurity and hunger.
The constant and long standing trade between the Pinatubo Aetas and the Zambals resulted to many shared cultural practices among the two cultures. These included magnatos (religious rituals), ambas (chants), mangaw (head taking), among others.
Magnatos were religious rituals performed during celebrations, assemblies, marriages, feasts and healing the sick. These were facilitated by high priests called Bayoc. The rituals included a repertoire of chants, dances and non-stop drinking. The enemies’ skulls, accumulated during mangaw, were dried out and polished and fashioned into drinking cups and were used during these ceremonies.
Ambas were the songs and chants sung and recited during magnatos and during celebrations of victory over enemies. These songs and chants detail their exploits as they present cut heads of their enemies. The heads were displayed in their houses to flaunt their valor. Other terms of similar import are gamba and alaula – to sing of, or celebrate a victory after cutting off heads. The enemies’ heads, treated as war trophies, were known among the Kapampangans, the perennial victims, as dangin. [4]
Mangaw were headhunting expeditions to attack and cut off heads of enemies and intruders. The Pinatubo Aeta and Zambals always kept with them a long pointed blade called bararao. This weapon was sharp enough to cut off human head with one stroke. During the mangaw, brave Pinatubo Aetas hid themselves behind thick vegetation along travelers’ route awaiting ambush. When an unfortunate passer by traverse the ‘dangerous passage’ (cabalingan) or the ‘scary place’ (pipacdayan), the Pinatubo Aetas began to scream (buyao) and stage the heinous attack. If by miracle, traveler escaped, then he was just ‘scared away’ (mabuyao), [5] if not, then his head became ‘war booty’ (dangin). [6]
This was the cultural landscape of Mabalacat during the times the Spaniards started to explore and attempted to colonize Pampanga.
[1]Andres de San Fulgencio, to
Father Provincial, Mabalacat, September 3, 1717, Archivo General de Indias,
Indice 31, Doc. 94.
[2]Stefan Seitz, The Aeta at
the Mt. Pinatubo, Philippines: A Minority Group Coping with Disaster (Quezon
City: New Day Publisher, 2003), 3.
[4] Dangin - Fray Diego
Bergaño, Vocabulario de Pampango en Romance,
y Diccionario de Romance en Pampango.
Translated by Fr. Venancio Q. Samson (Angeles City: The Juan D. Nepomuceno
Center for Kapampangan Studies, Holy Angel University, 2007), p. 146.
[5] Buyao - Fray Diego Bergaño,
Vocabulario de Pampango en Romance, y Diccionario
de Romance en Pampango. Translated
by Fr. Venancio Q. Samson (Angeles City: The Juan D. Nepomuceno Center for
Kapampangan Studies, Holy Angel University, 2007), p. 91.
[6] Dangin - Fray Diego
Bergaño, Vocabulario de Pampango en
Romance, y Diccionario de Romance en Pampango. Translated by Fr. Venancio Q. Samson (Angeles City: The Juan D.
Nepomuceno Center for Kapampangan Studies, Holy Angel University, 2007), p.
146.
