This week, I will be reading the Bisayan chapter in The Boxer Codex. This manuscript written circa 1590, details written accounts on various people from what is now known as the Philippines as well as our neighbors in the East. Included in this manuscript are illustrations that depict the people mentioned in these chapters. No one knows exactly who compiled these accounts and illustrated the manuscript. However, its importance is essential to knowing our past and should be read by anyone who has an interest in our precolonial culture and history.
While I won’t go too in depth in the Boxer Codex just yet, I will be covering all the chapters related to the groups mentioned from the Philippines over the course of several weeks. The book that I will be using is my copy of the English translation and transcription of The Boxer Codex by Souza and Turley.
If you have a copy of this book or another English translation of the manuscript, feel free to join in these studies. If you don’t however, I will be transcribing the passages so you can follow along.
Because there is so much material to cover, I will be breaking down the entire chapter into several parts. Today we are going to be looking at Part 1 where we will discuss how the early Bisayans looked like and what they wore.
↳ How Did They Look?
It is the custom of the Visayans to tattoo their bodies with very elegant figures. These are made with red-hot brass irons by highly-trained artisans who are masters at their art. The figures are drawn with such order, symmetry and coordination that they elicit admiration from those who see them. They are done in the manner of decorations. The men tattoo their bodies all over, including their chests, stomachs, legs, arms, thighs—some men even tattoo their faces. The women tattoo only their hands, and do so most elegantly. For the men these tattoos function as clothing, giving them an acceptable appearance, even though they are generally naked, wearing nothing more than a cotton cloth two fathoms long, or a bit more, and three-fourths of a fathom wide, which with a few expert turns they wrap around their waists and between their legs so as to cover their privates and posteriors, the rest of their body being exposed. This cloth is called a bahag in their tongue, and in this way their tattoos look as fine as if they were dressed very elegantly. They have another kind of apparel, which consists of cotton cloth which they fashion into something like house robes, closed at the front. The men wear very fine headdresses of many colors, which call to mind a sort of Turkish turban. They call these podong in their language, and they are certainly delightful and elegant. The young men look very refined in them, complete with their numerous strips of gold.
We begin by looking at this first paragraph. The author of this anonymous account starts with what the early Bisayans were known for to the Spaniards, their tattoos. The islands that make up the Bisayas have had several names termed for them by the Spaniards. One prominent name was “Las islas de los Pintados“, or “the islands of the painted ones”.
Were they actually painted? No, they weren’t. At least I don’t think. What the Spaniards meant however, was that the people they saw when they arrived on the islands such as Leyte, Samar, Panay, and Cebu to name a few, was that they were covered in black, permanent markings which we know as tattoos.
Now I’ve been tattooed, both by machine and by traditional handtapping, and I can say without a doubt, it hurts way less with the traditional way. Just like how my tattoos, or batok, on my arm represents several meanings to me, our ancestors wore these markings with pride. I will cover the topic of traditional tattoos another day, but for now lets’s look at what the author of this account says.
“The men tattoo their bodies all over, including their chests, stomachs, legs, arms, thighs—some men even tattoo their faces. The women tattoo only their hands, and do so most elegantly. For the men these tattoos function as clothing…”
Can you just picture this Bisayan warrior getting ready for battle and his enemies see this head to toe warrior marked with tattoos? Better yet, what about one who had facial tattoos? It would have been very intimidating to say the least. But, that was the point. They wore their batok not because it looked “cool”,even though they probably did, but because they were earned. With each battle, each slain warrior they killed, their batok signified their strength and status. For women on the other hand, the batok was for beauty and protection, as some motifs symbolize animals that represent their ancestors watching over them. For the Bisayans, their tattoos were worn with so much pride that they acted as their clothing. Why would they cover themselves up when their marks acted as both symbols of valor and beauty? If you have a tattoo, whether it’s traditional or an illustrated art piece, do you hide it? Unless it’s for work and professional purposes, I don’t think you do. Hell, I surely don’t.
We can actually see some of these tattoo motifs in some of our textiles today. For example, let’s look at the Panay Bukidnon, or the Sulod Panay, from the island of Panay. Their traditional textiles, especially on their clothing, are reminiscent of the tattoos found on the illustration in The Boxer Codex.
An embroidered blouse from the Panay-Bukidnon. Photo from Salimbago. 
Notice the embroidery on the blouse? Now look at the illustration from the Boxer Codex of two tattooed Bisayans. See any similarities?
While the art of tattooing may have been lost in the Bisayas and from other groups throughout the Philippines, these motifs can be still found in our textiles and pottery.
“For the men these tattoos function as clothing, giving them an acceptable appearance, even though they are generally naked, wearing nothing more than a cotton cloth two fathoms long, or a bit more, and three-fourths of a fathom wide, which with a few expert turns they wrap around their waists and between their legs so as to cover their privates and posteriors, the rest of their body being exposed. This cloth is called a bahag in their tongue, and in this way their tattoos look as fine as if they were dressed very elegantly.“
Now we know what a bahag is right? I’m assuming most of you do, but for those of you who don’t a bahag is exactly what is described here. After more than 400 years, that definitely hasn’t changed. The term is pretty consistent for the same type of clothing worn by men throughout the archipelago. If you have ever seen Pilipino dance troupes or attended Pilipino Cultural Night at a school or college, you have most likely seen it. These cloths are essentially, loincloths. They look something like this.
“They have another kind of apparel, which consists of cotton cloth which they fashion into something like house robes, closed at the front. The men wear very fine headdresses of many colors, which call to mind a sort of Turkish turban. They call these podong in their language, and they are certainly delightful and elegant. The young men look very refined in them, complete with their numerous strips of gold.”
Now I don’t recall seeing anything like the cotton robes mentioned in this passage and what is shown in the illustration in The Boxer Codex that has survived today. It could probably still be found somewhere in one of the other ethnic groups, which I can’t think of at the top of my head. I will have to look into that. My question is though, what was the purpose of these robes? After all, if they wore their tattoos like with pride and like clothing, why would they cover them up? Could it have been when dealing with foreign traders? For specific events? Or did they just wear it as another part of fashion? What do you think?
The third piece of clothing mentioned here, just like the bahag, is still around. This headdress, the pudong, you can actually see in the photo above as well. It wrapped around the head of men in 2 different styles which are pictured below.
Now for my fellow Pinays, let’s look at what the early Bisayan women wore shall we?
The dress and garments of Visayan women consist of brightly-colored striped cotton fabric, though others are made from one of their plants from which they fashion these garments. And some of the women wear plain taffeta and damask from China. All of these garments are made by sewing a cloth on both sides to form what looks like a big wheat sack with two openings. As they slip it on, they insert their heads through one of the openings and turn the fabric down to their waists with both openings falling below. They then cinch a knot in it above the waist; the fabric is loose-fitting enough to make this possible. The garment hugs their bodies, the knot off to one side in a very elegant manner and the dress looking like they are wearing two petticoats, one longer than the other because of the fold they make, resulting in the dress I have just described. They accompany this with a bodice or doublet with ruffled half sleeves that reach down to the elbows, although some are full sleeved. They are close fitting and collarless and have no neckline; they fasten in front with braids or cords or silk. And many of the women wear a lot of gold jewelry which they use as fasteners; these have small gold herring-bone chains attached to them, each woman according to her means. It is not their custom to wear any kind of chemise; the garments just described are worn next to the skin; their waists and stomachs, together with their legs, are uncovered almost the length of one span. When they venture out of doors they wear a white cotton mantle-like wrap, or sometimes one made from taffeta of different colors. When women leave their homes to visit others, they walk very slowly, making a thousand movements with their bodies, with one arm swinging freely; they consider this very fashionable. The men do the same thing. And if the women belong to the upper crust, they wear crowns and wreaths on their heads made of tinsel imported from China; lacking these, they wear wreaths of flowers and roses picked from the fields.
Ok, so that was a lot of info on what women wore. I see nothing has changed for us as we do love our clothing haha. Now let’s look at this passage one by one. First, let’s look at one piece of garment that I personally just love and own several pairs of. I’m sure many of you know what this garment is.
“The dress and garments of Visayan women consist of brightly-colored striped cotton fabric, though others are made from one of their plants from which they fashion these garments. And some of the women wear plain taffeta and damask from China. All of these garments are made by sewing a cloth on both sides to form what looks like a big wheat sack with two openings. As they slip it on, they insert their heads through one of the openings and turn the fabric down to their waists with both openings falling below. They then cinch a knot in it above the waist; the fabric is loose-fitting enough to make this possible. The garment hugs their bodies, the knot off to one side in a very elegant manner and the dress looking like they are wearing two petticoats, one longer than the other because of the fold they make, resulting in the dress I have just described.“
Girls, does this sound familiar? It is in fact a malong. It is slightly different from a patadyong, which is a wrap around skirt. A malong on the other hand is a skirt woven together making it a tube skirt with two wide openings on both ends. The length can be very large and depending on that length and your height, you can adjust it by cinching it around your waist and tying a knot to hold it still, just as the author mentions here. I absolutely love this skirt for its versatility. Not only can you wear it as a skirt, but there is just a plethora of uses for this garment. You can use it as a blanket to cuddle yourself inside it on cold nights, to carry around your baby, make a makeshift bag when out in the market, or even use it as a scarf around your neck in those cold brutal winters if you live up in the north like I do.
“They accompany this with a bodice or doublet with ruffled half sleeves that reach down to the elbows, although some are full sleeved. They are close fitting and collarless and have no neckline; they fasten in front with braids or cords or silk. And many of the women wear a lot of gold jewelry which they use as fasteners; these have small gold herring-bone chains attached to them, each woman according to her means. It is not their custom to wear any kind of chemise; the garments just described are worn next to the skin; their waists and stomachs, together with their legs, are uncovered almost the length of one span.“
Pictured to the right is an illustration depicting this paragraph with the woman’s top and gold jewelry. Oh we loved our gold.
Some of these gold jewelry have actually been recovered in burial sites and excavations. Back in 2015 there was actually an exhibit here in NYC displaying these gold artifacts from the Philippines. The Philippine Gold: Treasures of Forgotten Kingdoms exhibit displayed some very beautiful and intricate pieces. Some of these gold artifacts you can find them in the Ayala Museum and National Museum of the Philippines.
“When they venture out of doors they wear a white cotton mantle-like wrap, or sometimes one made from taffeta of different colors. When women leave their homes to visit others, they walk very slowly, making a thousand movements with their bodies, with one arm swinging freely; they consider this very fashionable. The men do the same thing. And if the women belong to the upper crust, they wear crowns and wreaths on their heads made of tinsel imported from China; lacking these, they wear wreaths of flowers and roses picked from the fields.“
“They walk very slowly, making a thousand movements with their bodies, with one arm swinging freely…” Ok, strut your stuff. As for me, I don’t think I would be able to walk like that. I would be the one running around telling them to hurry up while trying to make sure my clumsy ass self doesn’t trip over my malong.
Now if you read that paragraph and saw the sentence “and if the women belong to the upper crust,” I assure you that was not a typo on my part. It is most definitely a typo on the authors of The Boxer Codex translation though. But, with typing an almost 700 page book, they can be forgiven. Still, they belonged in the upper crust is hella funny. Now, reading it as crust I just want a slice of crust pizza as I continue to write this at 11pm at night. *drools*
Back on topic, this last sentence conjures up images of a woman just happily picking wild flowers and weaving them as a wreath or placed in her hair. Hell, I still do this. But, doesn’t it sound like what women in the Pacific do? I wonder if there was a term for these floral crowns like the Hawai’ians have for their haku lei. If anyone knows, leave a comment below. These flower adornments are mentioned in a few other Spanish texts, one in particular of Hara Humamay, Rajah Humabon’s (a leader of Cebu during the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan) wife.
So that’s it for part 1. Part 2 on our reading of the Bisayan chapter from The Boxer Codex will be on the creation story.
Before you leave though, I suggest grabbing a notebook and jotting down notes, especially if you are just starting to learn about our precolonial history and culture. Here are a few questions that you can think on and answer, whether in the comments, or to yourself. Think of this as part of a lesson plan.
1.) What are your thoughts and opinions on the tattooing traditions of the Bisayas and the rest of the Philippines? Do you think it would have remained thriving if the Spaniards didn’t arrive? Would you get facial tattoos?
2.) Do you have any of the clothing mentioned here? What do you think about the fashions back in the day.
3.) Is there anything you found interesting while reading these passages from The Boxer Codex? What images does it invoke?
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