“Pangasinan” comes from the word asin meaning salt, and translates into “a place

where salt is made.” It refers to a province at the northern end of the Central Luzon
plain. Its shores form a lap for Lingayen Gulf and its borders extend west-southwest
to Zambales, south to Tarlac, southeast to Nueva Ecija, and northeast to Nueva
Vizcaya, Benguet, and La Union.

“Pangasinan” also refers to the language which is spoken along the central part in
such towns as Alaminos, Mabini, Sual, Labrador, Lingayen, Bugallon, Aguilar,
Mangatarem, Urbiztondo, Binmaley, Dagupan, Calasiao, Santa Barbara, Basista,
Bayambang, Malasiqui, San Fabian, Mangaldan, San Jacinto, Pozorrubio, and
Mapandan. Ilocano is the predominant language in the western towns of Anda,
Bani, Agno, Burgos, Dasol, and Infanta, and in the eastern parts, such as Laoac, San
Nicolas, Sison, Binalonan, Tayug, Natividad, San Quintin, Umingan, San Manuel,
Asingan, Santa Maria, Balungao, Villasis, Alcala, Rosales, and Urdaneta. Towns such
as Manaoag, Santo Tomas, and Bautista are generally bilingual (Pangasinan and Ilocano).
Bolinao is spoken in the town of that name.

“Pangasinense” or “Pangasinan” refers to the people of Pangasinan. In the Census of

1980, their number stood at 1,636,057. The same census reveals that there are
158,666 households which speak Pangasinan, 60,085 of which, or roughly 40 percent,
are urban.

History

There are no conclusive data about the origins of the Pangasinense. One theory hints
of Java as a possible point of origin as the techniques of salt making in the northern
coast of Java closely resemble those of the Pangasinense. These techniques were to
make Pangasinan the source of the finest salt in the Philippines (Cortes 1974:24-25).

Other similarities with Java are seen in the tools and methods of cultivation such as
the use of the bamboo harrow and the peculiarly shaped scythe for reaping rice. The
manner of venerating the dead finds parallels in Java. The burial sites in Calatagan were
evidently refurbished regularly. In Java, a yearly festival is celebrated by the living
to honor the dead; the day is passed in devotion on the burial grounds which are
strewn with flowers (Cortes 1974:38).

No written records of pre-Spanish Pangasinan have been unearthed. The chronicles

of the Berber traveller Ibn Batuta speak of a Princess Urduja governing a kingdom
called Tawalisi which, theorized Rizal, was probably Pangasinan. This assertion was
taken up by subsequent pre-World War II historians. Recent research, however,
tends to indicate that she was Indo-Chinese. Some writers point out that Sulu could
also be the probable location of Urduja’s realm of Tawalisi.

There is no doubt, however, that Pangasinan has had contact with ancient travellers,
most especially the Chinese. In Agoo, now La Union but formerly Pangasinan,
evidence of extensive commercial intercourse with the Chinese and the Japanese
abound (Cortes 1974).

Pangasinan is one of the biggest provinces in the Philippines and accounts for more
than half the population of the Ilocos region. It is also one of the oldest and, during
Spanish times, was called “Caboloan,” which derives from bolo, a type of bamboo, and
literally means “a place where bolo grows.”

In May 1572, Juan de Salcedo was ordered by his grandfather Miguel Lopez de
Legazpi to explore and pacify the northern part of Luzon. Sailing up the Zambales
coast and rounding Cape Bolinao, Salcedo was well received by natives along the
coast, an experience that he did not encounter when he went inland. Later, another
expedition headed by Martin de Goiti was launched, to consolidate Salcedo’s gains.
Following a brutal campaign where thousands of houses and hundreds of natives
were killed, de Goiti set a pattern for subsequent conquistadores of extracting tribute
to the maximum without rendering equivalent services in return. In 1582 Pangasinan
was partitioned into six encomiendas, foremost of which was that of the Spanish
King based in Lingayen. Assigned to the task of proselytizing Pangasinan were the
missionaries from the Dominican Order who were based in Binalatongan (now San
Carlos City).

For most of the Spanish period, Pangasinan encompassed not only its present
boundaries but extended down to Subic in Zambales, Gerona in Tarlac, and up to
Bacnotan in La Union. In the latter years of the colonial regime, the territory of
Pangasinan was much reduced after the creation of the provinces of Zambales, La
Union, and Tarlac which included within their boundaries towns which were once
under the province of Pangasinan. Traces of Pangasinan cultural influence can still
be found in such places as Camiling, Tarlac, although the more peripatetic Ilocano
have left a more lasting lingual and cultural imprint on the areas once under the
territory of Pangasinan.

The pivotal role of the anacbanua or native elite in the political and social life of
Pangasinan forced them into acting as buffers between the ordinary people and the
civil and ecclesiastical authorities. When the colonial impositions grew too harsh,
the anacbanua were caught in a vise, unable to resist the exactions of the Spaniards,
yet reluctant to impose burdens on the people under their patronage, to whom they
were bound by kinship from time immemorial. It was inevitable therefore that even
in the revolts that arose in Pangasinan, from Andres Malong in 1660-1661 to the
Katipunan in 1897, it was the anacbanua who provided the leadership.

The Malong Revolt of 1660-1661 was a sequel to the Maniago Revolt in Pampanga
earlier that year. Malong, the maestre del campo (the Spanish alcalde mayor’s right
hand in dealing with the natives) for Pangasinan, responded to the people’s wish to
be free of Spanish authority. Exploiting the confusion resulting from the Maniago
Revolt, Malong consolidated the leadership of Pangasinan under himself, assuming
the title “King of Pangasinan.” The rebels’ adherence to Catholicism led them to
spare the parish priests. While sympathetic to Malong, the Catholic hierarchy
worked at convincing the Pangasinense to reembrace Spanish colonial supremacy.
Malong was eventually tried and sentenced to die by musketry.

Subsequent rebellions like that of another Andres Malong and of Juan Caragay in
1718 and that of Juan de la Cruz Palaris in 1762-1764 all arose from the imposition
of tribute. Although these and other leaders such as Phalarez, Colet, Juan de Vera
Oncantin, and Fernando and Melchor Hidalgo were timaua (freeborn), the Spaniards
had to appoint an anacbanua, Don Andres Lopez, as maestre del campo for
Pangasinan to legitimize their rule. Again, the Catholicism of the rebels eventually
served to stem the tide of rebellion as the parish priests were instrumental in
bringing the rebels back to the Spanish fold.

Revolutionary proselytization by the Katipunan in Pangasinan was not extensive,

limited as it was to the circle of the juez de paz (justice of the peace) of Santa
Barbara, Daniel Maramba, a relative of Valentin Diaz, a founding member of the
Katipunan. In the first phase of the Revolution, Pangasinan was a quiet corner
untouched by the rebellion in the Tagalog provinces. In the aftermath of the Pact
of Biak-na-Bato, the Katipunan organization in Pangasinan went into high gear
under the leadership of General Francisco Makabulos. Aside from Maramba, the
other revolutionary leaders were Vicente del Prado of San Jacinto and Juan Quesada
of Dagupan. On 7 March 1898 Maramba made Santa Barbara the first “liberated”
town in Pangasinan. Maramba expanded his operations to Malasiqui, Urdaneta, and
Mapandan, while del Prado and Quesada launched operations in the western part of
the province. On 30 June 1898 the Spaniards evacuated all their forces to Dagupan.
The Guardia de Honor, local counterrevolutionary units organized by the Spaniards,
went wholesale to the revolutionary forces. On 22 July 1898 Dagupan fell, marking
the liberation of Pangasinan from Spanish rule. Six days later, a provincial assembly
was convened in Dagupan and the Proclamation of Independence, first read in Kawit,
Cavite the previous month, was recognized (Cortes 1990a).

The Philippine-American War came to Pangasinan when the Americans landed in San
Fabian on 7 November 1899. Naval artillery drove the Pangasinense out of their
entrenchments, forcing them to retreat to San jacinto. On the llth, some 1,200 to
1,600 Pangasinense troops under General Tinio fought a desperate pitched battle only
to succumb to superior American firepower.

Meanwhile, an American column pushing north from San Fernando, Pampanga,

forced Aguinaldo to transfer the fledgling Republic’s capital from Tarlac to
Bayambang in southern Pangasinan. There, in an extraordinary council of war,
Aguinaldo and his military leaders decided to disband the regular forces and engage
in guerilla warfare. Aguinaldo packed up and, keeping just a step ahead of the
Americans, worked his way north to La Union, passing through Calasiao, Santa
Barbara, Manaoag, Pozorrubio, Alava (now Sison), thence to La Union.
Aguinaldo’s wife and child were captured by the Americans in Pozorrubio. With
two columns covering his retreat, he was able to escape to Isabela.
Underground organizing in Pangasinan followed soon after, with the establishment of
the Katipunan shadow governments in most of the towns. The guerrillas continued
harassing Americans and collaborating officials. Ultimately, the American policy of
winning civilian officials over to their side and imposing the death penalty on all those
who would not toe the American line eventually succeeded in breaking down
resistance in Pangasinan. One of the first revolutionary leaders, Vicente del Prado,
was betrayed to the Americans and was subsequently hanged like a bandit.

After the surrender or capture of the prominent leaders of the Malolos Republic, the
Pangasinense were divided into those who favored peace and conciliation with the
Americans, and those who wanted to fight for independence. The Federal Party was
organized on 23 December 1900 by those who had compromised with the American
government. The main object of the party was the incorporation of the Philippines
to the United States. Prominent members included T.H. Pardo de Tavera, Cayetano
Arellano, Florentino Torres, Ambrosio Flores, Jose Nor, and Tomas G. del Rosario,
all of whom converted many Pangasinense to the idea of “benevolent assimilation”
(Cortes 1990b:11).

The Americans encouraged political participation, taking care not to isolate local
leaders. Even before the civil government, General Order No. 43, Series of 1899, and
General Order No. 40, Series of 1900, provided for the creation of municipal
governments staffed and chaired by Filipinos. The Civil Commission headed by
Judge William H. Taft arrived in Dagupan on 15 February 1901, and after
consultation with the local elite, established civil rule over Pangasinan. At first,
suffrage was limited to the elite, but by 1916, when the legislative body was
Filipinized, 54.1 percent of the male population were qualified (Cortes 1990b:12,
15-16,25-29).

The Public School System was introduced with emphasis placed on civic education.
Well-attended, these schools oriented the youth to American ideals. English was made
the language of instruction. In September 1902 Pangasinan’s first secondary school
took in its first students. In 1906 the first vocational school opened in Lingayen; in
1916 an agricultural school in San Carlos. Private institutions, both secular and
religious, helped relieve the demand for secondary education. In general, the
American-instituted educational system raised literary levels as it developed,
especially among the elite, an admiration for the American lifestyle (Cortes 1990b:
44-53).

Aside from education, the Americans also promoted health and sanitation, commerce
and industry, agriculture and public works in Pangasinan. In 1905 immunization
against smallpox was introduced, which resulted in the disappearance of the disease
by 1911. The Americans encouraged the cultivation of diverse agricultural products,
although rice production remained dominant. In 1909 the province had 75 kilometers
of first-class roads; by 1913 the number grew to 169 kilometers. By 1916 it ranked
first in the number of first-class roads. Other infrastructure included bridges, school
and municipal buildings, public markets, dams, and irrigation works (Cortes 1990b:
54-69).

Pangasinan was not spared the agrarian ferment that spread over Central Luzon in the
1920s and 1930s. Nowhere was the unrest more felt than in the eastern part of the
province where the presence of large landed estates in such towns as Tayug, Rosales,
San Quintin, Santa Maria, and Umingan, and absentee landlordism combined to upset
the old patronage system based on amicable landlord-tenant relation.

In Tayug, Pedro Calosa formed the Philippine National Association (PNA), an

underground movement that preached independence, equitable distribution of wealth,
and the primacy of the Philippine Independent Church.

By 1930, most of the peasants in Tayug, Santa Maria, San Nicolas, and San Quintin
had joined the PNA. On the evening of 9 January 1931, the PNA, led by Calosa and
Cesario Abe, assembled in the barrio of San Roque in San Nicolas, and launched a
short-lived rebellion that led to the capture of Tayug. The rebels burned the
presidencia or town hall where the land records were kept in the municipal treasurer’s
office.

The rebellion, which was supposed to spark widespread uprisings in the neighboring
towns, was easily contained by constabulary reinforcements from Dagupan and
Manila. The expected support from the countryside did not materialize. By 11
January the rebels had surrendered and Calosa was captured.

But the military failure of the rebellion brought political dividends by bringing to
national consciousness the plight of the Central Luzon peasant. Sympathy for the
defendants in the criminal trials following the uprising reached the highest levels of
government. The Manila press played up rural usury, unfair crop sharing,
constabulary abuses, the perfidy of the rich, the cruelty of the municipal tax
collections, and landgrabbing as the roots of the unrest. Calosa and other PNA
leaders were defended by the best lawyers, foremost of whom was Senator
Alejo Mabanag of the Democrata Party. Eventually, light sentences were given to
most of the participants in the rebellion. Only Calosa and Abe received life
sentences. Calosa was eventually released in the late 1940s (Cortes 1990b:73-79).

The Philippines entered into war with Japan on 8 December 1941 after the attack on
Clark Air Field. Fourteen days later, on 22 December 1941, Pangasinan was dragged
into the war when the Japanese landed their forces on the beaches of Damortis and
Agoo in La Union. Until the end of 1941, northeastern Pangasinan was the site of
battles between United States Armed Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) and the
Japanese army. Through the Japanese Military Administration (JMA), the
Japanese Imperial Army governed the country with the cooperation of prominent
Filipino leaders. Teofilo Sison of Pangasinan became the auditor general and budget
director under the new administration. Governor Santiago Estrada, who was at first
reluctant to serve under the Japanese, was later persuaded by Sison to cooperate
(Cortes 1990b:109-113).

On 14 October 1943, the Japanese-backed Philippine Republic was established.

Jose P. Laurel was the president. In Pangasinan, Estrada remained governor. Except
for the deteriorating economic conditions, little changes came about with the new
republic. Guerrilla forces were organized by American officers who had not been
captured or had escaped. Some of these organizations were the East Central Luzon
Guerrilla Area (ELGA), the LAPHAM guerrillas (North Central Luzon Sector), and
some unrecognized units such as the 32nd Infantry Regiment and 155th Infantry
Regiment of Miguel R. Acosta (Cortes 1990b:117-122).

On 9 January 1945, American landings on the beaches of Lingayen, Mangaldan, and

San Fabian began Pangasinan’s liberation, which lasted until 7 February when
Japanese troops were pushed out from the province. Rather than face the
Americans, the Japanese forces under General Yamashita Tomoyuki retreated to
the mountain fastnesses of the Cordillera, there to prolong the fight to the end of the
war. On 28 February the Commonwealth Government was reinstated; one of the
first acts of the administration was to round up suspected “collaborators.” Teofilo
Sison was the first to be tried, convicted, and given amnesty (Cortes 1990b:123-136).

The Republic of the Philippines was proclaimed on 4 July 1946 with national and
congressional elections held two months earlier. Manuel Roxas from the Liberal Party
won over Nacionalista Sergio Osmeña. In Pangasinan, the count was in favor of Roxas.

From the 1950s to the present, the political scene in Pangasinan has been dominated
by the “elite,” which in the early years of the republic included Enrique

Braganza, Agapito Braganza, Pedro Braganza, Eugenio Perez, Juan G. Rodriguez,

Cipriano Primicias, his son, Cipriano (Tito) Primicias Jr, Aguedo F. Agbayani, Amadeo
Perez, Angel B. Fernandez, Laureano Jack Soriano, and Jose de Venecia (Cortes 1990b:
145-150).

During the Martial Law Period, Pangasinan opposition was weak, and its leadership
was generally affiliated with the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan (New Society Movement),
an umbrella organization set up by Ferdinand Marcos in early 1978. It was only a
year after Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino’s assassination that Pangasinan witnessed its
first rally demonstration in Dagupan City. In the parliamentary elections of 1984,
two opposition candidates won. During the 1986 “Snap” elections, central Pangasinan
gave 50 percent to the Aquino-Laurel ticket, but eastern Pangasinan remained Marcos
territory (Cortes 1990b:222-248). In the 1992 presidential elections, Fidel V. Ramos
of Asingan, Pangasinan, became the 10th president of the Philippine Republic, while
Jose de Venecia was elected as Speaker of the House of Representatives.Economy

Rice is Pangasinan’s principal crop. In the east and central areas which are watered by
the Agno, Angalacan, and Toboy-Tolong rivers, two or three harvests can be achieved
in a year. In the mountainous and rainfed western part, one rice crop annually is the
norm. Other crops grown are tobacco, corn, vegetables such as tomatoes and onions,
and fruits such as watermelons and cantaloupes.

Fishing, the other major livelihood, is being threatened by the rampant use of the
dynamite and cyanide methods in Lingayen Bay. The boom in fish farms along the
coastal areas has lessened the crisis a bit, but this has not significantly increased the
employment opportunities for fisherfolk. The recent phenomenon of converting
fishponds into prawn farms has also created a certain degree of dependence on the
export market. Nevertheless, Pangasinan remains famous for its fishery products.
Bonuan, a Dagupan barrio, is identified with bangus or milkfish. Lingayen’s bagoong
or fish paste remains a national delicacy. The demand for it cannot be adequately met
by fish caught in Lingayen Bay, and has to be supplemented by fish coming from as
far away as Bataan and Bicol.

Commercial development is evident in Dagupan City, the economic capital of

Pangasinan. The 1990 earthquake, however, destroyed many structures, including one
major bridge in Dagupan, and created a shift in investment to the eastern towns,
especially those lying along the McArthur Highway, such as Urdaneta and Rosales.

Political System

Precolonial Pangasinan society was stratified into the pangolo or anacbanua, the
timaua or freeborn, and the aripuen or slave, a pattern similar to the Tagalog and the
Visayan social structure. Cortes argues that the structure given by Juan de Plasencia
of Tagalog society may apply to Pangasinan, with the kasamak of Pangasinan
corresponding to the aliping namamahay of the Tagalog. Slavery for reasons of
captivity or debt peonage also existed among the ancient Pangasinense. The
pangolo presided over communities governed by naugalian or custom law. Customs
regulated property relations, trading, interpersonal relations, and land and resource
use (Cortes 1974).

With the help of the anacbanua, the friars were able to convert the cailianes or
followers of the pangolo. The anacbanua were later coopted by the Spanish to serve
as their administrative surrogate and they formed the core of the native elite or
principalia. Efforts by the Dominican missionaries to centralize the population into
the poblaciones or towns did not attract the majority of the people of Pangasinan as
the latter preferred to stay close to their sources of livelihood: the rice fields, forests,
rivers, streams, and the seashore. Only the anacbanua could afford to live bajo de las
campanas or under the bells, because only they had the surplus wealth from their
shares of the harvest to construct houses, and maintain themselves without having
to rely on their day-to-day subsistence on the land or water.

Pangasinan plays an important part in the politics of the Ilocos because its population
comprises half of the region. There have been attempts in the postwar history of
Pangasinan to separate the predominantly Ilocano eastern part from the Pangasinan
central and western districts of the province, but so far none has prospered. One
reason is that leadership in the province has shifted among politicians in both east
and west, with Ilocano-speaking governors needing the support of the western districts
which have large populations, and Pangasinan-speaking governors needing the revenues
from the more agriculturally productive eastern districts.

The present-day political structure of Pangasinan reflects the national system of

governance down to the barangay level. Leadership, however, is fought over by
scions of families traditionally looked upon as leaders within their communities and
descendants of the ancient anacbanua. However, the increase in commerce and the
emergence of a larger middle class in the province has opened the door for new
names in the political arena. The last war also created opportunities for nonmembers
of the landed elite, especially those who served with distinction in the various guerrilla
units, to carve out political careers. Recently, a new pool of political leaders drawn
from among the student leaders and young professionals who were in the forefront
of the anti-Marcos struggle has emerged to challenge the hold of the traditional elite.

With the aggressive increase of Ilocano migration into the province, fears of an
eventual decline of the Pangasinan language have been expressed. In many towns, a
social pattern emerges: traditional families, notably those of anacbanua origins
continue to speak Pangasinan while the immigrant families speak Ilocano.

Social Organization and Customs

The precolonial maiden was the subject of much negotiations between her parents and
the parents of the prospective groom. The negotiations were handled by
intermediaries called the albahiyas who mutually determined by way of poetical joust
the fair amount of dasel (bride-price). Dasel might consist of rice, farm tools, and
draught animals. Aside from dasel, the bridegroom also had to render a period of
service in the house of his future parents-in-law, to test his qualifications as a
husband for their daughter.

After this period of service, the groom’s parents performed the seguep, the ritual
asking for the girl’s hand in marriage. The parents would bring 12 different viands
on bigao (round, flat baskets) to the house of the girl’s parents. The marriage
ceremony was climaxed by the handing over of the dasel to the bride’s parents.
Feasting, drinking, dancing, and general merrymaking followed.

The institutions of dasel and albahiyas did not disappear with the arrival of the
Spaniards and have in fact survived until fairly recently. With the progress of the
cash economy, dasel consisted more and more of cash funds and residential lands, and
less and less of farmland and draught animals.

Traditionally there was a feast on the eve of the wedding and another on the day
itself, held in the bride’s home. This feast was followed by the pagatin at the house
of the groom, where relatives from both sides contribute to the newlyweds’ starting
capital, usually by pinning money on the couple’s clothes as they perform a wedding
dance (Cortes 1990b:94).

Divorce was easily obtained in precolonial Pangasinan, e.g., on such grounds as the
absence of offspring. The bride-price remained with the bride’s parents. Should a
husband want to resume conjugal relations with his ex-wife, the parents could
demand a new bride-price.

The precolonial Pangasinense placed material possessions such as food, clothes,

anointing oils, and gold with the dead for their use in the afterlife. The gold was to
pay for the boatman who would ferry the dead over a river to the spirit world.
Slaves of important persons were beheaded and sent to serve their masters in the
next world. While in mourning, relatives fasted and abstained from rice, wine, meat,
and fish, partaking only of roots, fruit, and water. The bereaved also wore mourning
clothes and a gold chain or a piece of rattan around the neck. The end of the
mourning period was marked by a great banquet with much feasting and drinking.

Religious Beliefs and Practices

The ancient Pangasinense had an animistic religion which had Ama-Gaoley (also
known as Apo Laki) as the chief deity. Lesser spirits or anito were responsible for a
host of phenomena relating to the weather, plant growth, and good health, as well as
to protection of rivers, trees, and other sites. Illness was deemed as punishment for
offending the anito. These spirits were held in respect and deference.

There was extensive use of charms for varied purposes, from warding off evil spirits
to bringing good luck. Rituals were presided over by managanito, priestesses who
invoked oracles and idols, interpreted dreams and omens, and divined propitious
times for endeavors.

Despite initial difficulties in evangelizing the Pangasinense, the Dominicans

eventually secured a foothold for Catholicism in the province. Today, Pangasinan
is a bastion of Catholicism in the country. Revolts against Spanish authorities
invariably spared the priests and other religious, proof of the religiosity of the
Pangasinense. Other sects such as the Philippine Independent Church, the Iglesia ni
Kristo, and the various Protestant denominations have their adherents among
residents of Ilocano descent, but rarely among those of Pangasinense descent.

The religiosity of the Pangasinense is attributed by many to the Nuestra Señora del
Santissimo Rosario de Manaoag or Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary of Manaoag,
to whom the Dominican missionaries consecrated the whole province. Hence, since
Spanish times, Pangasinan has been the great redoubt of Marian devotion in the
Philippines. One Spanish priest observed that from childhood, men and women
wear a rosary. When they die, a rosary is part of the funerary accoutrements
buried with them. In practically all homes, whether rich or poor, images of Our Lady
of Manaoag occupy a prominent place in the house. All Pangasinan churches have
an altar dedicated to the Virgin and most towns have confradias del rosario (Magno
1992:35).

In the whole country, Our Lady of Manaoag is probably the most spectacular drawer
of devotees not only from Pangasinan but also from the rest of the country. Many
tales form part of the Manaoag legend. One gozo (religious song) chronicles the
miracles attributed to the image, such as the healing of the sick and the lame, the
resurrection of the dead, the putting out of fires, the driving away of pests, and the
image’s own refusal to have her dress changed.

Another important Marian image is the Virgen Dolorosa of Mangatarem, which is

housed in a private home. The Virgin is believed to have protected the townspeople
from the vicissitudes of war. The sash of the Virgin is also borrowed from time to
time by pregnant women who wear it on their last week of pregnancy to ensure safe
delivery (Magno 1992:39-40).

Another popular image is that of the crucified Christ or the Divino Tesoro of Calasiao.
The image is said to have enabled the cart that carried it to pass through the narrow
door of the schoolroom. It was also believed to have helped a woman give birth after
the latter experienced three days of labor; helped free a cuadrillero or prison guard
charged with negligence when the prisoner who escaped from him returned to the
fold of the law; and intervened in favor of a condemned man to receive a pardon from
the King of Spain. Stories of hearings attributed to the image have increased its
following among devotees who flock to Calasiao during the image’s fiesta from 24
April to 2 May (Magno 1992:38-39).

Architecture and Community Planning

Precolonial Pangasinan dwellings differed little from the ones found in other coastal
areas in the Philippines. They were of bamboo and nipa and were described in one
Dominican tract as “small” and “narrow.” They were set on stilts with low roofs of
nipa. The space beneath the house, which could be enclosed, sheltered animals for
domestic consumption, and oftentimes served as an activity center, where household
chores like winnowing and rice milling were done. Some houses had ladders for the
living room and the batalan. These ladders were drawn up at night as a precaution
against thieves, burglars, and wild animals. The layout of the villages tended to follow
the coastline and the riverbanks, with many of the houses built directly over the water.

During the Spanish period, most Pangasinan towns were laid out in the time-honored
pattern of plaza-church-cabildo complex with roads radiating at right angles to the
plaza. Most pueblos were built on existing centers, but others were established after
Spanish roads were built.

Majority of Pangasinan churches are Romanesque in style. However, the Cathedral

of St. John the Evangelist in Dagupan City is European Baroque. In contrast, the
Church of San Pedro y San Pablo in Calasiao is Philippine Baroque, less ornate, with
the gold leaf less burnished than St. John’s. The Calasiao Church is built of brick and
has three naves.

Most Pangasinan church altars are replete with angel motifs. Even churches that begin
as Gothic end up as baroque, like the Mangatarem Church. The Gothic style is
popular only with the Iglesia ni Kristo temples.

The Church of the Purification in Binmaley is the largest church in Pangasinan,

measuring more than 90 meters long. The church is made of brick with a wooden apse
and a spacious nave. Two tiers of windows provide adequate lighting. Graceful
capitals support the wooden cornices, and wooden pilasters are symmetrically
arranged. The tall, slender, and elevated dome is flanked by four big windows, and is
supported by eight elegant wooden columns. There are five beautiful altars, not
including the baptistry, which is a pretty chapel with an iron grill. The main altar is
baroque. The floor of the presbytery and the dome is of Chinese marble tiles.

The Cathedral of Manaoag has a cruciform layout and has murals depicting stories
related to the Lady of Manaoag. Behind the altar is a staircase which leads to the
sacristy where a door opens to the niche of the image of the Virgin. Devotees climb
this to be able to touch the garment of the image through an opening in the door.

The American colonial period saw the appearance of new types of buildings. One of
the most important is the Gabaldon-type school building, whose archetype is the
Pangasinan Normal School in Bayambang with its wide circular columns and Roman
arches. Capiz shell shutters are still evident in some schools although the offices and
libraries have long since transformed their windows into glass jalousies with wooden
or iron grills. The Sison Auditorium in Lingayen, another archetypal Gabaldon
structure, is now being remodelled along more modern, but less elegant, lines.

The Lingayen provincial capitol is an impressive example of a kapitolyo built along

neoclassic lines during the American period. Erected during the gubernatorial term of
Daniel Maramba, it was the centerpiece of a larger town plan for Lingayen, which
was staked out into the following: the provincial government center, the municipal
government center, the commercial district, and the residential areas. The provincial
government center was located near the beach and included the provincial capitol, the
provincial high school, the provincial trade school, and the governor’s mansion. A
four-lane boulevard divided by a garden-park replete with fountains connected the
provincial government center with the main highway and the municipal center at the
old town plaza. The old poblacion was designated as the residential area, while the
commercial district was placed at the main highway, covering the approach to the
kapitolyo.

The Castillo house in Rosales, while essentially following the bahay-na-bato form
prevalent in many areas in the Philippines, reveals the liberalization of social mores in
the introduction of art nouveau caryatids depicting female nudes on its facade.

Two buildings which betray some Chinese influence are the Urduja House or
Governor’s Mansion in Lingayen and the Limahong marker in Lucap, Alaminos.

Visual Arts and Crafts

Pangasinan abounds in handicrafts and is famous for bamboo and rattan artifacts.
There are also handicrafts made of marsh grasses. A familiar sight down Central
Luzon after harvest time are the bullock caravans originating from Pangasinan laden
with bamboo, rattan, and grass crafts, including chairs, tables, hampers, baskets,
lamps, mats, and household bric-a-brac. Binalatongan (now San Carlos City) and
Calasiao are known for bamboocraft that have been exported abroad.

Village artists have also made six murals in the Manaoag Cathedral depicting the legend
of the Virgin of Manaoag, from her first appearance to a farmer to the various
miraculous events that followed the visitation, such as the time when the Manaoag
Church burned down and the image remained unscathed.

Pangasinan has had its share of prominent visual artists, the most accomplished of
whom is the late Victorio C. Edades, who was instrumental in pioneerng modernism
in Philippine art. In 1976, Edades became a National Artist for having changed the
direction of Philippine painting (Cortes 1990b:165-166).

Literary Arts

The most popular forms of indigenous poetry in Pangasinan which continue to be

used today are the pabitla/bonikew (riddles) and the diparan (proverbs).

Riddles, which are usually after-dinner diversions, usually come in rhyming couplets,
but may extend to three, four or more lines. Verses usually have assonantal rhyme in
different combinations, and use metaphors to refer to the object of the riddle. The
following is an example (Nelmida 1980:90):

Pusoy balolaki,
Gatas na marikit,
Payak na andirit,
No sikaray manlaktip,
Saksakey so pansumpalan da. (Gagalen)

Heart of a young man,

Milk of a maiden,
Wing of a dragonfly,
When they join together,
Would become just one. (Betel chew)
Some riddles are puns on the answer such as (Nelmida 1980:87):

Ay salo, ay ama, ay agi! (Salomagi)

Oh, my goodness, oh, father, oh, brother! (Tamarind)

Objects of riddles include animals, like the carabaos, turtles, octopusses, birds; and
plants, like the bamboo, coconut, rice, and corn. Abundant in Pangasinan, the bamboo
is the object of this riddle (Nelmida 1980:88):

Olnos lan olnos

Sanga lan sanga
Ag balet mambunga. (Kawayan)

Always bearing shoots

Always branching out
Yet bears no fruit. (Bamboo)

The activities of a rural community such as farming, fishing, coconut gathering, also
become the objects of riddles. Farming is a common theme, as in the following
(Nelmida 1980:89):

Ulo to ayep
Say kabalgan to kiew
Say ikol to too. (Toon manbabaka)

Its head is an animal

Its body is a tree,
Its tail is a person. (Man plowing with a carabao)

Nonrural or urban themes include objects like slippers and urbanized costumes, as well
as the Western forms of writing and the sermons of priests in church. The last two are
exemplified by the following riddles (Nelmida 1980:90-9l):

Dalin ya amputi
Binin andeket
Intanem na lima
Inani sangi tan mata.
(Papel tan lapis, insulat tan binasa)

White soil
Black seed,
Sown by the hand,
Reaped by mouth and eyes.
(Paper and pencil, writing and reading)

Walay sakey ya kiew ya

Masalsalompapak
Kinalab na sakey ya makabat
 Mataltalag so makasampat
Na rosas ton mapalagapag.
(Pari ya mansersermon ed pulpito)

There is an overspreading tree

Climbed by a wise man
Very few could catch
The flowers falling from it.
(Priest delivering a sermon from the pulpit)

Riddles are occasionally revived because they reflect the tastes of the people of their
time. They also act as indicators of the stage of a people’s economic development,
as a showcase of their folk ethos, and as a mechanism for coping with major
experiences, like that of colonization.

There are probably close to 300 dimaran/diparan or proverbs known in Pangasinan.

These usually have two, three, or more lines and assonantal rhyme in various
combinations. The following is a couplet with an a-a rhyme scheme (Nelmida 1980:85):

Agmo nibagan aralem so danum

No agmo ni atokor.

Say not that the water is deep

If you have not plunged its depth.

Many of the images employed in Pangasinan proverbs are the commonplace objects
seen and found in the field, farm, or village. Large feet, for example, are singa karyo
(like shovels), while big, bulging eyes are matan singa bisokol (eyes as big as a snail).
A pregnant woman’s heavy and shapeless body is singa inpakesneg a lasong (like a
mortar set on the ground) while the slow-moving person is singa tataleman a belas
(like rice soaked in water).

Pangasinan proverbs are generally didactic, underscoring the importance of fair play,
truthfulness, prudence, honor, kindness, humility, industry, and condemning the
opposites of these virtues. The following riddle counsels prudence (Nelmida 1980:81):

No agmo labay so nadangdang,

Agka onaasinger ed apuy.

If you don’t want to get singed

Don’t go near the fire.

The art of composing poetry was developed early, and poetical fencing was a regular
feature of prenuptial negotiations. A poet for the groom, for example, recites a verse
about a butterfly in search of a flower, to which the poet for the bride replies that
their flower cannot be tasted by just any butterfly. It is in these metaphors that the
verbal joust is couched and continued until an agreement has been reached.

The Spanish-Christian influence on Pangasinan poetry is seen in the gozos, the

impanbilay, and the pasyon. Usually found in the novenas to various saints, the gozos
are verses of praise for and supplication to the saint in whose honor the novena is
being held. Most famous are the gozos to the Lady of Manaoag.

The impanbilay, literally “life,” is the Pangasinan counterpart of the Ilocano panagbiag
and the Tagalog awit or buhay. Usually set in the dodecasyllabic quatrains, the
impanbilay narrates the lives and exploits of heroes and characters in kingdoms set in
Medieval Europe. Some of the more famous impanbilay include: the Impanbilay nen
Florante tan Laura ed Nanariay Albania (Life of Florante and Laura in the Kingdom
of Albania), 1925, a translation by Miguel Gumawil of Francisco Baltazar ’s awit; the
Impanbilay day Pitoran Sanaagui ya Infantes de Lara ed Nanariay España tan si
Principe Morada Gonzalo ed Nanariay Turquia ya aguirad sananey a ina (Life of the
Seven Children of Lara in the Kingdom of Spain and the Prince Morada Gonzalo
in the Kingdom of Turkey who is their half brother), 1930; the Impanbilay nen
Esmenio ya malamang ed ateng to tan anac na saray masimpit a sanasawan Agustin
tan Aduana ed villa Espeleta tan sacup na ciudad na Roma (The Life of Esmenio in
the town of Espeleta of the Kingdom of Rome), 1961 edition; the Impanbilay nen
Padre Juan tan Beata Maria ed ciudad na Roma (Life of Father Juan and Blessed
Mary in the city of Rome), 1961 edition; and the Impanbilay nen Princesa Estela ya
anac nen Ari D. Felix tan Reyna Beatriz ed Nanariay Napoles (Life of Princess Estela,
Daughter of King Felix and Queen Beatrice in the Kingdom of Naples),1961 edition.
Other narratives which use the awit form but are about other topics are Impanbilay na
Manoc a Tortola (Life of the Chicken as a Turtledove), 1935; and Pedro Sison’s Bilay
Daray Sira ed Dalem na Danum (Life of the Fishes in the Water), 1939.

The pasyon or narrative of Jesus Christ has a few versions in Pangasinan. One in
manuscript form, is titled Passio Domini Nostri lesu Cristi, whose text in Pangasinan
was copied by Juan de Montimayor in 1849 from a work probably written by the
Dominican Fray Gonzalez. The second is the most popular, the Pasion na Cataoan
tin Jesucristo ya Dinemuet ed Saray Masantos a Evangelio tan Pinaliman na Saray
Daquel a Incalingo ya Oalad Saray Arum a Pasion a Impluima (The Complete
Passion of Jesus Christ Taken from the Holy Gospeland Purged of the Many
Mistakes Found in Other Written Passion). Originally published in 1855, this
pasyon covers events from the Creation of the World to the Resurrection of Jesus.
Like the Tagalog Casaysayan nang Pasiong Mahal ni Jesucristong Panginoon Natin
na Sucat Ipag-alab nang Puso nang Sinomang Babasa, 1814, of which it is the very
first translation into another native language, the Pasion uses the quintilla verse and
has lessons at the end of major episodes (Javellana 1988). The third pasyon, as
recorded by W.E. Retana, forms part of the Gozos a Pangguiaalang ed Santa Cruz a
inateyay cataoan tin Jesucristo: tan Gozos ed Santos Angel a Bantay tan Pantaotaoag
day Camareroad Purgatorio tan Gozos ed San Roque (Hymns of Praise to the Holy
Cross of Jesus Christ: and Praises to the Guardian Angel and Lamentations to the
Souls of Purgatory and Praises to Saint Roche), 1861.

During the American colonial period, many poets wrote poems to be declaimed or
sung. Among them was Pablo Mejia, considered the “Prince of Pangasinan Poets.”
Mejia wrote Bilay Tan Kalkalar nen Rizal (Life and Teachings of Rizal) in metered
verse and classical Pangasinan. Other poets of the 20th century were Pedro Sison,
Onofre Abalos, Miguel Acosta, Gabriel Braganza, Zoilo Cendaña, Onofre Sison,
Francisco Untalan, and Jose Oliveros Valerio. Most of their poems were published
in Lioaoa, a weekly in Pangasinan and Ilocano published from 1915 to 1932; in
Tonung, a weekly in Pangasinan edited by Mejia from 1928 to 1935; in Silew, a
monthly magazine published from 1934 to 1943; and in other publications like the
Mafa, Palaris, The Pangasinan News, The Agno River Times, The Pangasinan
Courier, and after World War II, The Pioneer Herald and The Sunday Punch (the last
was founded by Ermin Garcia in 1954).

Pangasinan fiction begins with the folktales which form part of the oral tradition
spanning different periods in Pangasinan history. Three favorite uliran or folktales
have to do with the origin of the Hundred Islands, the naming of the Angalacan
River, and the founding of the Manaoag Church.

The Hundred Islands are said to be the bodies of slain warriors who defended the land
of Raha Masebeg from invaders across the sea. Fighting to the last man, the warriors
led by the Raha’s son, Datu Mabiskeg, succeeded in annihilating the invading force
before they touched land. The gods were said to have immortalized the warriors so
that they could watch over their homeland forever.

Along the Angalacan, a mysterious lady frequently appeared to fishers, strolling along
the riverbank during moonlit nights. During those nights, the fishers’ catch was
plentiful. One day, a fisher caught a huge fish. Refusing to heed the people’s pleas to
release it, the fisher brought the fish home and cooked it for supper. The fisher was
subsequently found dead in the morning. After this, the lady no longer appeared
on moonlit nights and fishers found their catch diminished; whenever a person
drowns in the river, the people attribute it to the mermaid’s revenge and they whisper,
“Angalaca la met!” (You’ve got one again!).

In Manaoag, a peasant was going home one evening from the farm when he heard
somebody calling him. Turning, he saw a lady on top of a hill. The lady turned out
to be the Blessed Virgin who asked that a church be built for her on that site. The
Virgin was then referred to as the managtaoag (She who calls), later shortened to
manaoag.

In the novenas, religious literary forms such as calar have been composed to venerate
Our Lady of Manaoag and to celebrate the feasts of patron saints and All Saints’ Day.
The calar is a narrative illustrating the powers and effectivity of certain devotions or
religious practices. For All Souls’ Day, one calar explains that souls can be saved
from purgatory if people can forgive those who have done them wrong. Following
the narration of the calar is the omameng, a reflective or meditative discussion of the
calar’s story.

Pangasinan popular fiction flourished best in the first half of the 20th century.
Some of the notable fictionists who published short stories in the Silew and Sandiy
Silew were Juan Villamil, Leonarda Carrera, Nena Mata, Francisco Rosario, and
Maria Magsano.

Of the novelists in Pangasinan, many consider Maria Magsano is considered by many

as one of the most important. Although she started serializing her works in Silew
before World War II, her novels were not published as books until after the war.
Her first novel, Colegiala Dolores (Convent-bred Dolores), 1952, is about a wealthy
heiress who chooses to marry the schoolteacher Mario. The Padre Cura, who is
interested in Dolores, has Mario jailed for being a katipunero or revolutionary and
creates other misunderstandings to separate the two. In the end, the two are finally
reconciled. Another novel, Samban ag Nabenegan (My Sacred Oath), 1954, is about
the whirlwind courtship between Evangeline Lopez, only child of Iloilo landowners,
and Dr. Rudolfo Villamin, son of Pangasinan peasants. A conflict arises because
Evangeline has to compete with Rudolfo’s profession for his time and attention. A
third novel, Bales na Kalamangan (Price of Infidelity), is the story of Rosalinda,
who was abandoned by her wealthy lover, Don Alejandro, by whom she has several
children. Alone, Rosalinda rears her children, who all eventually succeed in their
professions. When Don Alejandro’s wife dies, his adopted son take steps to reunite
his father with Rosalinda.

Another important novelist was Juan C. Villamil, whose novels include Ampait a
Pagbabawi (Bitter Repentance), 1950; Amis na Kapalaran (The Smile of Fate);
Pinisag ya Puso (A Broken Heart); Dyad Tapew day Daluyon (On the Crest of the
Waves); Sika tan Siak (You and Me); and Pakseb na Kapalaran (Decree of Fate).
Also significant was Serapio Doria Fernandez, who published in the news magazine
Tonung; and Miguel Acosta who wrote Marco Merlin, 1930, a novel that underscores
the importance of education to an individual who wants to succeed in life.

Performing Arts

Pangasinan songs may be associated with certain seasons of the Catholic calendar
such as Christmas or Lent; with particular occupations or activities such as fishing
or farming; and with stages in the life cycle such as courtship or weddings.

The Pangasinan aligando may be the longest Christmas carol in the Philippines.
Probably a corruption of the Spanish word for gift, aguinaldo, the aligando consists
of 142 quatrains. The singing takes about one-and-a-half hours. The aligando is
sung either in the traditional or modern way. The traditional aligando has a
four-quatrain introduction consisting of 13 to 15 syllables per line. The aligando
proper has 8 to 9 syllables per line and focuses on the story of the Magi. The
singing of the aligando is held in the evenings after supper during the period
encompassed by the Feast of the Epiphany and the Feast of the Presentation in the
Temple. It is sung by women in the first voice and men in the second. The aligando
carollers kneel during the portion corresponding to the Adoration of the Magi of the
Christ Child. This is a 32-line passage rendered in a slower tempo than the rest of
the song. The story ends with the Holy Family’s Flight into Egypt.

The modern aligando or the galikin, from the Pangasinan word galicayon (literally,
“come, all of you . . .”), is also known as the short aligando because it drops some
stanzas of the original and modifies its language. It has also added a refrain with a
catchy tune, the first words of which are “Galikin, galikin . . .” the Pangasinan
equivalent of “Adeste Fidelis.”

During the Holy Week, the pabasa or chanting of the pasyon lasts for three nights
from Holy Wednesday through Good Friday. Nowadays, however, the chanting is
shortened to only one night if the cantores or singers sing until dawn. Like its other
counterparts, the Pangasinan pasyon is a comprehensive narration which starts from
the story of the Creation to Christ’s passion, resurrection, and last days on earth.

In May the Santa Cruz de Mayo in Pangasinan remains a wholesome entertainment at

summertime especially for young children and students on vacation. In the past, the
procession was held daily. The choristers, composed of old ladies, sing most stanzas
of the song while the young ones sing the refrain, which goes this way:

Lawas sikay galgalangen

Santa Cruz sikay anapen.

Always you will be venerated

Holy Cross we will look for you.

The biggest fun, however, is in the eating of plain cookies called galletas with coffee
such that the devotion is sometimes called Lawas si/Galletas tan cafe (Always Cookies
and Coffee).

In October the Maria Dayat na Kasantosan (Mary, Sea of Holiness) is a special

devotion to the Lady of Manaoag. This is celebrated through the long gozos capping
the daily prayers during the nine-day prayer or novena. This singing is not necessarily
done in the church itself.

During the Feast of All Saints, the pantaotaoag is sung. The song is primarily a lament
for the souls in purgatory. It has two introductory stanzas of two lines each, 13
stanzas of two lines each and another 13 stanzas of six lines each. The latter has 9 to
11 syllables per line and are rhymed in an a-a-a-a-b-b pattern.

When a child reaches the age of seven, the parents prepare a ceremony called
pangcorona (crowning). The seven-year-old child is garbed in festive attire and is
made to stand in the middle of the hall on a dais. Participants in this ceremony are
the youthful celebrant, the parents, the godparents, and the invited guests. In the
ceremony, the pangcorona song is sung, accompanied by clapping and hugging.

Pangasinan ballads have a humorous bent to them. “Dalem na Dayat” (In the Depths
of the Sea) is a song about a man who lived under the sea for three months, and who,
having eaten his fill of seafood, could not find water to drink. “Duaran Mamarikit”
(Two Spinsters) is a satire on choosy women who fear the onset of old maidenhood
and would settle for even a toothless old man. “Linaway Tawen” (It’s Heaven’s
Will) is a light song about the disabled doing what they are supposed to be incapable
of doing: the dumb singing, the deaf hearing, the blind watching, the toothless
grinning, and the armless playing the guitar, the harelipped playing the flute, the
paralytics clapping, and so on. “Pito, Pito Combibe!” (Whistle, Whistle, Halt!) is
sung with a lot of body movements, and is about a man who, while searching for his
lost love, is stopped by a police officer at a checkpoint. “Kansioy Bulangero”
(Cockfighter’s Song) is a humorous song devoted to cockfighting, a favorite sport in
Pangasinan. In this song, the cockfighter realizes the folly of his vice and he sings it
as some kind of farewell to cockfighting.

Not surprisingly, Pangasinan work songs are about farming and fishing, the two
primary livelihoods of the Pangasinense. “Cansioy Dumaralos” (Song of the Farmer)
is full of praise and pride for the farmer without whom people would go hungry.
“Pinalapa” (A Clearing) chronicles the hardships of maintaining a clearing in the
mountain, but it nevertheless has a lively tune and is sung with many n-dmetic
gestures. “Cansioy Sun-tisigay” (Song of the Fisher) speaks of the joy of fishing in
calm seas and the peace and egalitarian values engendered by fishing-related activities.
“Diman Ed Mangabol” (Over in Mangabol) glorifies the life of the fisher, where
“hunger is unknown.” These work songs are expressed in four-line verses, consisting
of eight or nine syllable lines, and in monorhyming pattern.

Love songs in Pangasinan range from courtship songs to serenades that speak of the
simple joy of loving or of frustration and despair. There are also nuptial songs sung
before or after the marriage ceremony, which include reflections of the bride-to-be and
songs from the parents-in-law.

“No Siak So Mangaro” (When I love) is a favorite tune and is usually chosen for
community singing at conferences and seminars in Pangasinan. In the song, the lovesick
swain proclaims his undying love and care for his paramour, a devotion that must be
matched by his rivals for the beloved’s affection. He will “cover with a handkerchief
the floor you walk upon.” He imagines his lady as a “lemon candy” he “rolls
playfully” on the tip of his tongue. He would neither chew nor swallow her, but let
her stay there and “enjoy” her. He adds that should he die, he would live again if she
would only look at him.

“No Siak So Mangasawa” (When I Marry) tells of how the would-be husband is going
to take care of the would-be wife as if she were a baby. He would “spoonfeed” her at
mealtime, prepare her milk upon waking up, “drive away the mosquitoes” at bedtime,
bathe her, comb her, and massage her tired muscles. All of these he will do in the hope
that she “will never forget” him.

“Malinak Lay Labi” (Clear is the Night) is a petek or serenade. Popularized by Linda
Magno over the airlanes, it has a haunting melody, whose lyrics describe how the
lover is awakened in a quiet evening from a dream of his ladylove whose beauty is
“a joy to behold.”

“Andi Bali, Rosing” (It’s Alright, Rosing) is one of the oldest known serenades where
the lover expresses fears that his sweetheart might forget him.

“Panterter Na Luak Mansalmak” (My Heart Cries) is another standard in the repertoire
of serenades. Here the lover is in the depths of despair and if he continues to be in
such a state because of the way his sweetheart treats him, he would prefer to “take
poison that takes away life.”

“Say Pusok So Mannangnangis” (My Heart Cries) is another soul-stirring song of

despair which apparently originated in the town of Bayambang, where it is quite
well-known. The lover complains of the way his beloved treats him. He writes her
but she drops him “only a few lines” folded in a tiny piece of paper. He longs for
her and he asks the wind to blow so that he may waft his “longing” to her who is an
“extension” of his life.

“Matalag Ya Ngarem” (It’s a Rare Afternoon) is a song about a lover sighing and
pining for his loved one. The lover fails to see her one afternoon. His “head aches”
and his “body is spiritless”. Anything he eats “hardens (like cement) in the chest”
and the water he drinks “curdles in the throat.” It’s a “rare afternoon” and a “rare
week” that he doesn’t “count the days” until they are “together again.”

“Say Onloob Ed Estado” (One Who Enters the Married State) is a wedding song
sung by a girl engaged to be married, while she ponders her fate. She says it is
“difficult to enter the married state” because one will have to leave” the side of her
parents. She, therefore, calls on “the plants and the weeds” to “shed off” their leaves
because she is now “leaving the parental abode.”

“Abeten Koy Manugang Ko” (I’m Going to Meet my Daughter-in-Law) is sung by

the groom’s mother after the wedding reception held in the bride’s house. The bridal
party goes to the groom’s house where a simpler reception called pagatin (stepping in)
awaits them. To the gathering which is usually smaller and consists only of immediate
relatives and close friends, the groom’s mother sings a joyful welcome song as she
goes out to meet her daughter-in-law. She says she is “going to dance the
kindo-kindo,” and will ask the bride to sit by her side. She then sings of “two hearts
united beating as one,” and of her fond hope that “no marital spats would mar their
conjugal life” so that they will “lead a prosperous life.” After the song, a boisterous
ceremony called the paketketan follows. The well-wishers shower money or attach
bills to the bodice and shirt of the newlyweds and the family of the two parties
sometimes vie with each other in their generosity.

“Say Anak Liglioay Ateng” (A Child is the Joy of Her Parents) is sung when parents
reminisce over the years when their child, now a bride, was still a baby and of how
she was a “balm to banish all cares and sorrow,” how she grew into adulthood, and
eventually looked for a rooster. As the young couple listen to this song, they are
reminded that within the foreseeable future, they too will have their own child, to
whom they will sing lullabies, and who, when grown, will also look for her mate.

In Pangasinan, dancing is a necessary social skill, whether one endeavors to pay court
to a lady or to hobnob with political leaders and their wives. Fiestas and affairs are
capped with dancing in the plaza. Small wonder then that Pangasinan has a wide
array of dances.

The imunan (jealousy) is a courtship dance from San Jacinto depicting a love triangle
involving two girls and a boy. The boy tries to please the girls who are trying their
best to get his attention and favor. He lavishes attention on the girls, flirts with them,
and dances with each one. The attempt is successful, and at the end of the dance all is
sweetness and harmony among the three dancers. The girls wear balintawak with
tapis or overskirt, camisa or blouse with long wide sleeves, soft panyo,or kerchief
over one shoulder or around the neck, and corcho or chinelas or slippers for footwear.
The first girl has a fan hanging at the right side of the waist and the second girl hangs
her fan on her left. The boy wears the barong tagalog or long-sleeved shirt buttoned
in front, white trousers, and chinelas (Reyes-Aquino 1960:4, 9-13).

From Bayambang comes the binasuan (literally “with glass”) which is performed by
a girl or several girls, and requires extraordinary grace and dexterity. Dancing to the
tune of “Pitoy Oras” at three counts to the measure, the girl balances a glass on her
head and one on each palm. The glasses are half-filled with water and the dancer
must execute continuous fast turns, then kneel or roll on the floor without spilling
the water or dropping the glasses (Reyes-Aquino 1960:1-4).

Similarly, the courtship dance kumakaret makes use of glasses half-filled with wine
or tuba (fermented coconut water). It originated from the kumakaret or wine makers.
The girl wears a siesgo or tailless long skirt with tapis, kimona or blouse with short
sleeves, and soft panyo on her left shoulder. The boy wears camisa de chino, a
collarless loose, long-sleeved shirt, and colored trousers. The partners, both barefoot,
face each other two meters apart. The girl stands at the right side of the boy when
facing the audience, and has a glass on top of her head and on each palm (Reyes-Aquino
1960:43-48).

The tanobong is a dance named after a kind of grass used for making brooms. In the
coastal towns of Pangasinan, people gather tanobong flowers when not engaged in
fishing. The dance depicts the different steps in broom making. Each dancer is dressed
in any working costume and is provided with a wooden bolo or any similar instrument
for cutting, a wooden hammer or pounder, and a chopping board. Stools or chairs are
placed at the back of the room, one for each dancer (Reyes-Aquino 1960:103-106).

The sayaw ed tapew na bangko (dance on top of a bench) comes from Lingayen and
is another demonstration of grace, dexterity, and agility. It is danced atop a bench
about 2-3 meters long, 15 centimeters wide, and 60 centimeters high. The girl wears
a skirt with a long tail tucked at the right side of the waist, a camisa, and a soft panyo
around the neck. The boy wears a camisa de chino and colored trousers. Both
dancers are barefoot. The bench is placed horizontally in the center of the room or
stage. Partners stand in front of the bench 60 centimeters apart from each other,
facing the audience, with the girl at the boy’s right side. They execute their steps in
2/4 time then change to 3/4 time, moving backward and forward, hopping, and
making lateral cuts with the foot, and bowing to each other (Reyes-Aquino 1960:78-82).

The pastora (shepherdess) is a courtship dance popular in many towns of Pangasinan,

especially in Bugallon, Bayambang, Malasiqui, and San Carlos. The girl wears a
maskota skirt, camisa, and soft panyo folded in a triangle over the left shoulder with
the two ends tied together down at the right side of the waist. A handkerchief hangs
at the left side of her waist. The boy wears a camisa de chino and white trousers. A
handkerchief is kept in his pocket. The partners stand opposite each other two meters
apart. The girl is at the right when facing the audience.

Pangasinan is also rich in theater forms, from rituals of prehispanic origins such as the
gaton (offering) and the pantaotaoag (to call upon), to the genres developed during the
Spanish period to modern forms.

The gaton is a ritual where food is offered to the spirits to appease them for whatever
transgressions human beings may have committed against them, such as acapuldac or
unintentionally scalding a spirit by throwing boiling water on the latter’s abode, and
acapasakit or unconsciously harming a spirit while toting firewood or doing farm
work. The gaton is best done at dusk when spirits are abroad, or noon when the
underworld communes with humankind (Nelmida 1982).

The pantaotaoag is performed by a managtaoag or medium as an augury for an

afflicted person who may have caught a spirit’s mischievous fancy, a condition called
abanbanuan. In so doing, the managtaoag throws ilik or unhusked rice grains on a
plate of water while reciting incantations. The formation which the ilik will take will
be the managtaoag’s basis for interpretation. Another form of augury is breaking the
shell of an egg over a glassful of water and looking at how the yolk will separate from
the albumen (Nelmida 1982).

Religious observances, especially during Lent, have given birth to some theater forms
that Pangasinan shares with other Christianized groups in the Philippines.

On Easter morning, the abet-abet is performed before daybreak. An arch with a black
streamer around it is erected near the church. Devotees wearing the habiliments of
the Mater Dolorosa line up towards the arch. An angel approaches the Blessed
Virgin, takes off the latter’s black veil, and announces that Christ is risen. The
Blessed Mother is now dressed in her customary blue and white as she faces her Son
clad in radiant white. Somewhere in the patio, an effigy of Judas is burned (Nelmida
1982).
In some towns of Pangasinan, the sinakulo is held on the street during Holy Week.
Characters are costumed the way holy images of Lenten processions are dressed,
with Christ in the robes of the Nazarene complete with wig and rays, and the Virgin
Mary in traditional blue veil and white gown. The dialogue in Pangasinan is amplified
by a loudspeaker that towers on a jeep behind the cast. This sinakulo is usually held
in the daytime.

Catalino Palisoc of Lingayen is acknowledged to be the “Father of the Pangasinan

sarswela,” primarily because he wrote and produced in 1901 the first sarswela
written in Pangasinan, entitled Say Liman Ag Naketket, Pampinsioan (The Hand that
Cannot be Bitten, Must be Kissed). It enjoyed repeated seasons on stage for more
than 25 years until the death of the author. An admirer of Rizal, Palisoc was deeply
influenced by the antifriar tone of Rizal’s Noli me tangere (Touch Me Not) and El
filibusterismo (Subversion). The play’s villain, a friar, smears the reputation of Luis,
lover of Filipinas, who is coveted by the friar’s servant. The friar also maneuvers to
have his servant win the position of capitan mayor over Luis’ father, who is more
deserving. All these machinations are attempts to mask the friar’s own desire for
Filipinas. Luis and Filipinas elope to Manila where Luis joins the revolutionary
movement Katipunan and later returns to his hometown to save his and Filipinas’
families from the friar’s ire (Magno 1954).

Palisoc was primarily a propagandist and educator who sought to deliver telling
messages and pointed questions about social ills, using his sarswela as platforms.
The other plays of Palisoc which survive are: Sakit na Baley (Disease of the Country)
1905; Say Abangonan (Old Customs) and Say Mangasi Singa Kinalab na Balita (One
Who Shows Charity is Like a Tree Smothered by the Balete), 1906; Natilak So Inaral
ag Natilak so Natural (Learning is Sooner Shed Off than One’s Nature), 1907;
Nanariay Ambugan (Kingdom of Braggarts), 1908; Say Mabibyang (The Meddlers),
1912; Pacayariy Pilac (The Power of Silver), 1913; Politicay Tilaan (Political
Bluffing), 1914; Manliket Ka Baley Ko (Rejoice, My Country), 1919; and
Talonggaring na Seseg (The Advantage of Diligence), 1920. In these, he raises
issues such as the deterioration of the Pangasinan tongue, the value of education, the
women’s right to suffrage, the people’s colonial mentality, the bias against manual
labor, social inequality, and the insincerity inherent in politics. In emphasizing the
message rather than dwelling on the nuances of the medium, Palisoc has been
criticized for his aesthetic and structural shortcomings (Magno 1954).

Another sarswelista of Pangasinan was prolific Pablo Mejia who injects meaningful
lessons and raises valid social issues through his plays. His first sarswela, Say Aron
Ginmalet (Ingrained Love) poked fun at the “deeply rooted false values and bad
habits,” such as judging people by what they owned, preferring foreign-made over
local products, and looking down on honest work (Magno 1992:109-110).

Basingkawel (Election Campaign), a two-act sarswela completed in 1911, parodies

the gimmicks and machinations of politicians and their ilk during elections. The
popular Manuk ya Ibubulang (Fighting Cock), otherwise titled Silib na Tubonbalo
(Cleverness of Youth), 1914, depicts the misadventures of two youthful lovers who
resort to various tricks to circumvent the obstacles put in their way by the girl’s
parents. A song from this sarswela, “Say Liglioay Ateng” (The Joy of Parents),
has since been elevated to the status of a Pangasinan folk song.

Panaun Aman (The Past Era) was written by Mejia in 1915 and is considered to be
the longest sarswela in Pangasinan. First presented in Calasiao on 9 July 1916, it
bears thematic similarities with Palisoc’s Say Liman. The father of the heroine Ilalo
prevents her from marrying the rebel Nanoy, because he does not want to displease
the friar. He has plans of running for the position of capitan or mayor. The friar
casts covetous eyes upon the heroine, who manages to flee from him. Nanoy
and Ilalo are secretly married. The revolution breaks out. Nanoy is captured and
exiled, and returns only upon the arrival of the Americans. Nanoy leads the
revolutionary forces into town, captures the friar and the guardias civiles, (rural
policemen) but frees them over the objections of the people, saying that the revolution
was fought to correct the injustices of those in power and not for revenge. The
families are reunited and the sarswela ends happily with the passing of tyranny and
the dawn of peace and tranquility.

Panaun departs from Mejia’s other plays in that the comic phrases and interludes
that characterize them are absent. While it follows Say Liman’s revolutionary and
antifriar theme, Panaun’s characters have more depth and its language more quiet
and “real” (Legasto 1976).

The following year Mejia wrote Dosay Liput (Treachery’s Punishment), a short
sarswela about a man trying to avenge his friend’s betrayal. This was followed by
Divorcio released the same year, which presents the pros and cons of divorce. In the
end, the issue remains unsettled, and the spectator is left to decide for himself about
the desirability of divorce.

Other than Palisoc and Mejia, other Pangasinan sarswelistas are: Pablo Bermechea of
Dagupan; Juan Biason of Mangaldan; Francisco Cruz, Juan Cruz, Jose Santos, Sergio
Ferrer, and Mike Ventanilla of Lingayen; Basilio Dalope of Urdaneta; Alejandro
Mendoza of San Carlos; Andres Tamayo of Santa Barbara; Gregorio Venezuela of
Pozorrubio; Pablo Vicente of Asingan; Jose T. Pecson, Vicente Quintana, Francisco
Reynoso, Antonio M . Sison, Juan Villamil, Felix Zamora, Juan Santos, Julian Zulueta,
Jose Mejia, and Nicolas Mejia (Magno 1954:218).

Favorite themes among Pangasinan sarswelista include Spanish tyranny, as seen in

Sergio Ferrer’s Baclao ya Gulong-gulong (Chain Around the Neck), Mejia’s Say
Panaun, and Francisco Cruz’s Taloran Pasak na Filipinas (Three Nails Piercing the
Philippines); the local elections, as presented in Palisoc’s Politicay Tilaan, Mejia’s
Basingkawel, and Juan Santos’ Say Karamilay Basingkawel (Election Campaign
Practices) in 1935; and the value of education, as shown in Palisoc’s Nanariay
Ambugan and Mejia’s Ginmalet. In using the sarswela as a tool for exposing social
ills, Palisoc established a norm where “the dramatists and the audience had come to
agree that a zarzuela which did not preach a moral was not worth its salt” (Magno
1954:19).

One sarswelista, Juan T. Biason, made family relations the focus of his works, such
as Marocsan Mansiomang (The Unkind Stepmother), Malamang ya Anak (The
Ungrateful Daughter), Maaron Anak (The Loving Child), and Say Biin Maarod
Asawa to (The Woman Who Loves Her Husband). Pangasinan audiences were
scandalized with his Say Biin Maagap a Oalna (A Virtuous Woman), which depicted
the life of an adulteress (Magno 1954:19).

The sarswela has since declined, superseded by the movies. The skill and quality of
the sarswelista, who have since relied more on prepared tunes to accompany their
songs, have also declined. The sarswela has also lost its didactic character with
postwar sarswela being increasingly focused on love (Magno 1954:20). Although
there still are minor performances, the sarswela are now usually adjuncts to a variety
presentation which includes cancionan (literally “singing session”), comedy skits,
acrobatics, and other features.

Poetical fencing found its full flower in the cancionan, a debate in verse and music,
pitting a man against a woman. The cancionan verses vary from 4 to 8 lines per
stanza and are usually set to known tunes. In the old days, the cancionista used the
ponto natural which allows the voice to be prolonged and well controlled. Cancionan
used to last from at least three hours to as long as 6 to 8 hours, but the demands of
present-day audiences in the age of the soundbyte have prompted the development
of cancionan which has been pared down to 1 to 2 hours for stage performances and
30 to 45 minutes for radio performances.

According to Magno (1992:91-92) the traditional cancionan has five parts: the
pasantabi or introduction; the panangarapan, where the female cancionista grills the
man on his pedigree and other personal circumstances; the panagkabatan, where the
male cancionista reveals his intention to court his female counterpart, to which the
latter puts verbal obstacles, riddles, Bible trivia, even superhuman tasks, liberally
dishing out puns, mimicry, and other witticisms; the cupido, where the man tries
to impress the woman with his verbal and musical skills, accompanying his oral
argumentation with an instrument, oftentimes a guitar; and the balitang, where the
woman rejects the man’s suit by refusing to let him come onstage with him, or
accepts him by inviting him up the stage (Magno 1992: 91-91).

A famous cancionista couple in the 1930s, Alejandro Mendoza and his wife,
conducted their cancionan in the town plazas. Their battles lasted well into dawn
and dealt usually with courtship themes.

The foremost cancionista in Pangasinan today is Lorenzo Morante of Dagupan,

better known as Tasong-taso. In the 1960s Morante introduced a twist to the
cancionan by adding a third person in the debate. With his wife, Gregoria Diaz, and
Benedicta Bandung of Urbiztondo, Morante popularized this cancionan form, later to
be known as imunan (De Asis 1984).

Morante was also instrumental in developing the shortened cancionan and adapting it
for the radio, where he has his own program, Cancionan on the Air, over Dagupan
radio station DWDW. The abbreviated cancionan dispenses with the pasantabi, the
panangarapan, and the panagkabatan, to go straight to the meat of the debate. The
singing debaters dispute such topics as “Siopay Maong ya Manangkaili: Say
Mayaman odino say Pobre?” (Who is More Hospitable: The Rich or the Poor?).
Diaz and Bandung have since retired and Morante teams up with Fely Manuel.
Another cancionista of note is Rosie Evangelista of Sison (Magno 1992).

Among the theater groups that have emerged in Pangasinan in recent years are the
Pangasinan Cenaculo, the Kankanti Ensemble, and the Ala-Uli Theater Group. The
first, which was later to be known as the Tonton Dramatic Guild after the Lingayen
barangay where their first sinakulo was staged, started as a club, organized by
Leocadio Villanueva to present sinakulo patterned after the world-famous
Oberammergau passion play in Germany. From its humble beginnings, the guild has
staged its plays in diverse locations in Pangasinan and as far as Baguio City.

The Kankanti, named after the Pangasinan word for butterfly, was organized in the
1970s by Ricardo (Rex) Catubig, then Philippine Educational Theater Association
(PETA) regional director for Central Luzon. The group makes extensive use of
Pangasinan folk literature themes. In the plays Talintao, Bambano Laki Bai, and
Sigsilew, the Kankanti combines traditional rituals with new techniques. Catubig also
organized the Ala-Uli Theater Group, which also looks to Pangasinan folklore for its
themes. • P. Nelmida, M. Nelmida, D. Javier, with N.G.Tiongson/ Reviewed by
R.M. Cortes

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