Region I
Ilocos region
Location
It is located in the nortwestern
portion of Luzon. It is bounded
on the north by the Babuyan
Channel, on the south by Central
Luzon, on the west by South
China Sea and on the east by the
Cordillera Mountain Range.
Climate
The region has a long dry season
because of the Cordillera
Mountains that block the wind
from the Pacific Ocean. It has
two distinct seasons:
Dry from December to May and
wet from June to November.
Language
Ilocano
Pangasinense
Tagalog (Filipino)
The Ilocos Region has a
total land area of 12, 840
2
km . It is composed of
four provinces situated
along the seacoast.
Provinces
Ilocos Norte
Capital: Laoag City
It is situated in Northwest
Luzon. It is bounded on the
north and west by South
China Sea, on the east by
Cagayan and Kalinga Apayao,
on the southeast by Abra and
on the southwest by Ilocos
Sur.
Landmarks
Cape Bojeador Lighthouse
Balay Til Ili
Paoay Church
Home of Juan Luna and
Ferdinand Marcos
Ilocos Sur
Capital: Vigan City
It is bounded on the north
by Ilocos Norte, on the
south by Benguet and La
Union, on the west by the
South China Sea and on the
east by Abra and Mountain
Province.
Landmarks
Pinsal Falls
Sulvec Beach in Narvacan
Home province of Gabriela
Silang, Fr. Jose Burgos and
Elpidio Quirino
La Union
Capital: San Fernando City
It is located in the southwestern
part of Ilocos Region. It is a hilly
province but the western part is a
coastal plain and on the east are
hills covering a wide portion of
the province.
It is famous for its
white and gray sand
beaches and
Marcos Bust.
Home of Diego Silang
Pangasinan
Capital: Lingayen
It lies on the western coast of
Luzon. It is bounded on the
north by Lingayen Gulf, La
Union and Benguet; on the
norteast by Nueva Viscaya; on
the east and southeast by
Nueva Ecija; on the south by
Tarlac and Zambales and on
the west by South China Sea.
The name of the
province literally means
“the place where salt is
made”
Landmarks
Hundred Islands in Alaminos
Shrine of Nuestra Senora de Manaoag
Region I –Literature
Pre-colonial Iloko literature were
composed of folk songs, riddles,
proverbs, lamentations called dungaw, and epic stories in written or oral
form. Ancient Ilokano poets
expressed themselves in folk and war
songs as well as the dallot, an
improvised, versified and at times
impromptu long poem delivered in a
sing-song manner.
Iloko Poetry in Spanish Era
The earliest known written Iloko poems were the
romances translated from Spanish by Francisco
Lopez, an Augustinian friar who, in 1621,
published his own Iloko translation of the
Doctrina Cristiana by Cardinal Bellarmine, the
first book to be printed in Iloko.
A study of Iloko poetry could be found in the
Gramatica Ilokana, published in 1895, based on
Lopez's Arte de la Lengua Iloca, earlier published
in 1627, but was probably written before 1606.
Pedro
Bukaneg
Father of
Ilokano Poetry
and Literature
Pedro Bukaneg was said to have
been thrown by his parents down
the Abra River while still an infant
because he was blind. A woman
who found him gave him away to
an Augustinian priest. He was
christened Pedro Bukaneg. He was
cared for, and sent to school until
he became proficient in Spanish
and Samtoy (Ilokano dialect).
Summary of Biag ni Lam-ang
Don Juan and his wife Namongan lived in Nalbuan, now part of La Union in
the northern part of the Philippines. They had a son named Lam-ang. Before
Lam-ang was born, Don Juan went to the mountains in order to punish a
group of their Igorot enemies. While he was away, his son Lam-ang was born.
It took four people to help Namongan give birth. As soon as the baby boy
popped out, he spoke and asked that he be given the name Lam-ang. He also
chose his godparents and asked where his father was.
After nine months of waiting for his father to return, Lam-ang decided he
would go look for him. Namongan thought Lam-ang was up to the challenge
but she was sad to let him go. During his exhausting journey, he decided to
rest for awhile. He fell asleep and had a dream about his father's head being
stuck on a pole by the Igorot. Lam-ang was furious when he learned what had
happened to his father. He rushed to their village and killed them all, except
for one whom he let go so that he could tell other people about Lam-ang's
greatness.
Upon returning to Nalbuan in triumph, he was bathed by women in the
Amburayan river. All the fish died because of the dirt and odor from Lamang's body.
There was a young woman named Ines Kannoyan whom Lam-ang wanted
to woo. She lived in Calanutian and he brought along his white rooster and
gray dog to visit her. On the way, Lam-ang met his enemy Sumarang,
another suitor of Ines whom he fought and readily defeated.
Lam-ang found the house of Ines surrounded by many suitors all of whom
were trying to catch her attention. He had his rooster crow, which caused a
nearby house to fall. This made Ines look out. He had his dog bark and in
an instant the fallen house rose up again. The girl's parents witnessed this
and called for him. The rooster expressed the love of Lam-ang. The parents
agreed to a marriage with their daughter if Lam-ang would give them a
dowry valued at double their wealth. Lam-ang had no problem fulfilling
this condition and he and Ines were married.
It was a tradition to have a newly married man swim in the river for the
rarang fish. Unfortunately, Lam-ang dove straight into the mouth of the
water monster Berkakan. Ines had Marcos get his bones, which she covered
with a piece of cloth. His rooster crowed and his dog barked and slowly the
bones started to move. Back alive, Lam-ang and his wife lived happily ever
after with his white rooster and gray dog.
Leona
Florentino
National
Poetess of the
Philippines
Born to a wealthy and prominent family in
Vigan, Ilocos Sur, Florentino began to write
her first verses in Ilocano at a young age.
Despite her potential, she was not allowed
to receive a university education because of
her gender. Florentino was instead tutored
by her mother, and then a series of private
teachers. An educated Ilocano priest taught
her advanced Spanish and encouraged her
to develop her voice in poetry.
Due to the feminist nature of her writings, Florentino
was shunned by her husband and son, and so was forced
to live alone in exile and separately from her family.
Florentino married a politician named Elias de los Reyes
at the age of 14, and they had five children, including
Isabelo de los Reyes, who would later become a Filipino
writer, activist and senator. She died at the age of 35.
Her poems appear to the modern reader as being too
syrupy for comfort, too sentimental to the point of
mawkishness, and utterly devoid of form.
Moro-moro and
Zarzuela in the
th
19 century
What is Moro-moro?
Like the Cenaculo, the Moro-moro is
presented also on a special stage. This is
performed during town fiestas to
entertain the people and to remind them
of their Christian religion.
What is Zarzuela?
It is a musical comedy or melodrama
in three acts which dealt with man's
passions and emotions like love, hate,
revenge, cruelty or some social or
political problems.
Folk Songs
*dallot - versified exchange of wit
between a man and a woman
*badeng - love song
*dung-aw - the death chant
Manang Biday
Manang Biday is a popular Ilocano folk
song which is all about courtship. The
lyrics illustrate the courtship of a guy to
a lady who happens to be older than the
former. The lyrics mostly decribe the
lady’s reaction to the courtship.
MANANG BIDAY
Manang Biday, ilukatmo man
‘Ta bintana ikalumbabam
Ta kitaem ‘toy kinayawan
Ay, matayakon no dinak kaasian
Siasinnoka nga aglabaslabas
Ditoy hardinko pagay-ayamak
Ammom ngarud a balasangak
Sabong ti lirio, di pay nagukrad
Denggem, ading, ta bilinenka
Ta inkanto ‘diay sadi daya
Agalakanto’t bunga’t mangga
Lulukisen ken adu a kita
No nangato, dika sukdalen
No nababa, dimo gaw-aten
No naregreg, dika piduten
Ngem labaslabasamto met
laeng
Daytoy paniok no maregregko
Ti makapidut isublinanto
Ta nagmarka iti naganko
Nabordaan pay ti sinanpuso
Alaem dayta kutsilio
Ta abriem ‘toy barukongko
Tapno maipapasmo ti guram
Kaniak ken sentimiento