Chapter 33

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS AND GENERAL APPEARANCE OF THE MANÓBOS OF EASTERN MINDANÁO

PHYSICAL TYPE

DIVERGENCE OF TYPES

There seem to be differences in physical type between the Manóbos on the lower part of the Agúsan as far as the Bugábus River and those of the Ihawán and the upper Agúsan Rivers. On the upper Agúsan the variations become more noticeable as we approach the confines of the Mandáyas and the Debabáons, both of whom differ from the Manóbos in physical characteristics to such an extent that even an ordinary observer can not fail to notice it. Again, on the upper Agúsan, in the vicinity of Tagusab, we find types that remind us of the Mañgguáñgan with his manifestly Negroid characteristics. Over on the Tágo River, too, and on the far upper Wa-wa, there are groups of so-called Manóbos who are clearly descendants of Mamánuas. With these exceptions the following delineation holds good, I think, for the great mass of Manóbos with whom one comes in contact throughout eastern Mindanáo.

GENERAL PHYSICAL TYPE

In general, the Manóbo man is of athletic build and of strong constitution, although he is often short of stature. His muscular development denotes activity, speed, and endurance rather than great strength. Corpulency and prominence of the abdomen are never present, so far as I have observed. His skin, as a rule, is of a reddish-brown color that turns to a somewhat dark brown after long exposure to the sun, as in the case of those who engage in fishing in the lake region.

The hair is abundant, long, black, straight, and coarse. As we approach the domains of the Mañgguáñgans and of the Mamánuas, the hair is a little less abundant and shows traces of curliness. Occasional waviness may be observed also among those Manóbos who live near the territory of the Mandáyas, Debabáons, and Mansákas.

Beard and body hair are not abundant. In this respect the Manóbo differs from the Mandáya and from the Banuáon, both of whom have a more copious growth (though I can not be definite as regards the latter people), and, in some cases, beards that are abundant enough to suggest admixture with white people.

The head appears to be well developed, being rather high and arched, as compared with that of the average Bisáya.[1] There is no flattening of the occiput. This roundness of the posterior part of the cranium, due, as Montano[2] states, to the prominence of the parietal bumps, becomes very apparent when comparison is made with the heads of Bisáyas of other islands. The occipital arch of the latter is invariably flattened.

[1] In physical comparisons between Manóbos and Bisáyas no reference is made to the Bisáyas of eastern Mindanáo, the great majority of whom are undoubtedly of Manóbo or other pagan origin.

[2] Une Mission aux Philippines, 349,1906.

Owing to the prominence of the jawbones and to the above-mentioned height of the cranium, the face is decidedly lozenge-shaped, a feature that distinguishes it, on the one hand, from the long face of the Mandáya and of the Banuáon and, on the other, from the short, round face of the Mamánua and of the Mañgguáñgan. Montano[3] says that this peculiar shape is due to the development of the zygomatic arches or cheek bones and to the diminution of the minimum frontal line, that is, the shortest transverse measurement of the forehead.

[3] Loc. cit.

Prognathism is marked but variable according to the testimony of Montano, who took the anthropometrical measurements of many crania which he obtained from caves in northeastern Mindanáo.

The forehead is somewhat high and prominent, and the superciliary ridges are salient. The eyes are brown in color. The palpebral opening is elongated as compared with that of the Mandáya, whose eye is round. There is no trace of the Mongolian falciform fold, and the transverse axis is perfectly horizontal.

The nose is prominent and well-developed but short, and, as a rule, straight. Toward the confines of the Banuáons we sometimes notice a slight curve upward at the top. The nostrils are somewhat slender, but otherwise well developed. They are a little larger than those of Bisáyas. The ridge is broader than that of Bisáyas, and the root is lower down.

The lips bear resemblance to those of the Bisáyas except that the upper lip of the Manóbo is more prominent and more developed, due, it is suggested, to the universal, incessant practice of carrying a quid of tobacco partly under it and partly protruding out between it and the lower lip.

The chin is round and well developed, but is not prominent.

The above statements hold true of the women in all details except that of stature. The difference between the stature of the male and female Manóbo is much greater than that between the sexes among Bisáyas and other civilized people of the Philippines. This difference in the stature of the sexes is apparent in all the tribes of eastern Mindanáo with the exception of certain groups of Mandáyas, and may be attributed, on the one hand, to the excessive burdens carried, and the onerous labor performed by the women in the discharge of their household and other duties, and, on the other, to the unencumbered outdoor life pursued by the men in their hunting, fishing, and trading expeditions.

The other parts of the bodies of both sexes are in good proportions. The thorax is especially well developed, and the feet are, perhaps, inordinately large.

The general appearance of the men is somewhat unpleasing and, perhaps, among the Manóbos of remote regions, might be said to be coarse. This is especially noticeable among the latter, as their eyes usually bulge out and give them a somewhat wild and even vindictive air. The blackening of the teeth and lips, the quid of black tobacco between the lips, the look of alarm and suspicion, and various other characteristics all tend to heighten this expression.

The women have a more pleasing expression, but the timid furtive look, the ungainly gait, and the ungraceful contour of their _abaká_ skirts, detract from the moderate beauty that they possess in their youth. After marriage their beauty wanes incredibly fast.

Comparing the Manóbo's physical and general appearance with that of neighboring peoples, we may say that he stands fifth, the Mandáya, Mansáka, Debabáon, and Banuáon leading, while below him stand without any question the Mañgguáñgan and the Mamánua. He has not the height, the proportions, the fairness, nor the gentility of the first three. He lacks the nobility, courage, and intelligence of the fourth,[4] but he maintains his superiority over the Mañgguáñgan, whose repellent features, sparse hair, scanty clothing, and low intelligence put him only a little above the Mamánuas. These latter are only poor homeless forest dwellers like the Negritos of Luzon, and physically, mentally, and culturally stand lowest in the plane of civilization of all the people of the eastern Mindanáo.

[4] My acquaintance with Banuáons is so slight that I can not make any definite physical comparison.

RACIAL AND TRIBAL AFFINITIES

With our present lack of knowledge concerning the great number of tribes that inhabit not only the island of Mindanáo but Borneo, Sumatra, and other islands of the Indies, it is impossible to make any definite statement as to the racial and the tribal affinities of the Manóbo people.

MONTANO'S INDONESIAN THEORY

Montano proposed the Indonesian theory to explain the origin of the Samals, Bagóbos, Giangas, Atás, Tagakaólos, Manóbos, and Mandáyas. He asserts that these peoples are pure Indonesians whose origin can not be explained otherwise than by supposing them to be the indigenes of all the islands included under the term Indonesia. Hence he calls the above tribes Indonesians of Mindanáo.

He claims that these Indonesians are the result of a fusion of three elements: (1) the Polynesian, (2) the Malay-Bisáya, and (3) the Negrito.

The Bisáya element, he says, is considerable and becomes apparent in the increase of transverse diameter of the cranium. The Negrito element is apparent only in the waviness of the hair, the height and prominence of the forehead, and the darker color of the skin.

He further states that the anatomical characteristics of these tribes are their superior stature, their muscular development, and the prominence of the occipital region in contradistinction to the flattening noticeable in Malays in general, and especially in those of the Philippines.

KEANE'S VIEW

Keane in his Ethnology[5] notes that--

the term "Indonesian," introduced by Logan to designate the light-colored non-Malay inhabitants of the Eastern Archipelago, is now used as a convenient collective name for all the peoples of Malaysia and Polynesia who are neither Malays nor Papuans but of Caucasic type. * * * Doctor Hamy, who first gave this extension to the term Indonesian, points out that the Battaks and other pre-Malay peoples of Malaysia so closely resemble the Eastern Polynesians, that the two groups should be regarded as two branches of an original non-Malay stock. Although all speak dialects of a common Malayo-Polynesian language, the physical type is quite distinct and rather Caucasic than Mongolic, though betraying a perceptible Papuan (or Negrito) strain especially in New Zealand and Mikronesia. The true Indonesians are of tall stature (5 feet 10 inches), muscular frame, rather oval features, high, open forehead, large straight or curved nose, large full eyes always horizontal and with no trace of the third lid, light brown complexion (cinnamon or ruddy brown), long black hair, not lank but slightly curled or wavy, skull generally brachycephalous like that of the Melanochroic European.

[5] Ethnology, 326 _et seq_., 1901.

Regarding the Indonesians of the Philippine Islands, he says:[6]

Apart from the true Negrito aborigines Blumentritt distinguishes two separate "Malay" invasions, both prehistoric. Montano also recognizes these two elements which, however, he more correctly calls Indonesian and Malay. The Indonesians whom he affiliates to the "Polynesian family" were the first to arrive, being followed by the Malays and then, in the sixteenth century, by the Spaniards, who were themselves followed, perhaps also preceded, by Chinese and others. Thus Blumentritt's Malays of the first invasion, whom he brings from Borneo, are Montano's Indonesians, who passed through the Philippines during their eastward migrations from Borneo and other parts of Malaysia. The result of these successive movements was that the Negritoes were first driven to the recesses of the interior by the Indonesians with whom they afterwards intermingled in various degrees. Then the Indonesians were in their turn driven by the Malays from the coast lands and open plains, which are consequently now found occupied mainly by peoples of true Malay stock. Then with peaceful times fresh blends took place and to previous crossings are now added Spaniards and Chinese with Malays, there "quadroons" and "octoroons" with Indonesians, and even here and there with Negritoes. It has thus become difficult everywhere to distinguish between the true Malays and the Indonesians, who are also less known, dwelling in the more remote upland districts, often in association with the Negritoes and not always standing at a much higher grade of culture.

[6] Op. cit., 332.

THE INDONESIAN THEORY AS APPLIED TO MANÓBOS

Comparing the physical characteristics of the Manóbos with those which are predicated of the Indonesians by these and other writers, I find that, in the case of the Manóbos of the Agúsan Valley, in stature, waviness of the hair, abundance of the beard, and lightness of the skin color there appears to be a divergence from Keane's Indonesian standard. Keane requires 1.795 meters as an average for the stature of the Indonesian, whereas the average of the Manóbo, as I found it from cursory measurements, is approximately only 1.60 meters and Doctor Montano found it to be only 1.4667 meters. As to waviness of the hair, I have observed it rarely among the Manóbos to which this paper refers. Neither is the beard abundant, and as for fairness in the color of the skin, a casual glance at the great mass of Manóbos that occupy the Agúsan and its tributaries will convince one that their color is decidedly ruddy brown and not light. It is true that in the mountains children and even young women are found with fair complexions, but this is probably due to confinement in the house or to protection from the sun while out of doors.

PHYSICAL TYPE OF CONTIGUOUS PEOPLES

In the first part of this chapter a broad comparison was made between the Manóbos and the contiguous tribes of eastern Mindanáo, but, in order to bring out in stronger relief the physical characteristics of the Manóbo, it is considered expedient to give a brief description of the contiguous tribes.

THE MAÑGGUÁÑGANS

In stature the Mañgguáñgan is shorter than the Manóbo. His physical configuration gives one the impression that he is undersized. His cranium is elongated from the front backward along the antero-posterior curve, there being formed accordingly an enlargement on the upper part of the occiput. From this enlargement downward there is a flattening of the curve. The forehead is large, high, and very prominent, and diverges backward from the plane of the face at an observable angle. The face is narrow and flat, the narrowness being due to the prominence of the lower jaw and to a depression that is formed in the side of the face between the jaw and the cheek bone. The hair is lank, coarse, and in males, scant. The beard is very sparse except in elderly men, and even then it is far from being as abundant as that of the Manóbos and especially that of the Mandáyas. The nose is broad and conspicuously depressed, while the nasal orifices are rather large. On the whole, the prognathism is considerable but is not as variable as that of Manóbos and of Mandáyas.

There can be no doubt as to the Negritic character of the Mañgguáñgan. Owing to the peculiar circumstances that arose after my arrival on the upper Agúsan in 1909, I found it impossible to get into communication with any but the more domesticated Mañgguáñgan in the vicinity of Compostela, but my observation of their physical and mental characteristics and of their low degree of culture led me to a strong conviction of a Negrito origin not far removed.

THE MANDÁYAS

The Mandáya, on the other hand, with the exception of groups on the upper Karága and perhaps on the upper Kasaúman Rivers, is of superior stature. Montano found the stature to be only 1.578 meters, but the number of men measured by him was so small that we can not base any conclusion on his figures. I did not make any measurements of Mandáyas, but it is my impression that the male Mandáyas of the Kati'il, Karága, and Manorigao Rivers are noticeably taller than Manóbos. In fact, one meets a great number that seem to come up to the Indonesian standard of Keane.

The Mandáya's cranial conformation differs, according to Montano, from that of the Manóbo only in one particular, namely, in the straightness of the middle part of the antero-posterior curve of the cranium. In other respects his cranium is similar to that of the Manóbo. The face is oval rather than lozenge-shaped and has a pleasant, sympathetic look, due no doubt to the greater width of the palpebral opening, the largeness of the eye, and the length, darkness, and prominence of the eyelashes.

The nose is straight and prominent, occasionally quite European, and the nostrils are not depressed nor flattened. Their lower edges, instead of being horizontal, slant slightly upward from the tip. The nasal apertures are of medium size.

The superciliary ridges are prominent, but as the hair of the eyebrows is constantly kept shaved, there is not such an impression of prominence as in the Christianized Mandáyas of the southeastern seaboard of Mindanáo.

As to the abundance of beard, it is hard to form a judgment because from youth it is constantly and conscientiously eradicated. The hair of the head is long, black, and abundant, often somewhat wavy and not as coarse, I think, as that of Manóbos.

The most striking characteristic of the Mandáya is his fair color. It is not my intention to give the impression that he is one of a "lost white tribe" or that he is entitled to be called white in the sense in which we use the term when speaking of Europeans. But for a native of the Philippine Islands he certainly may be denominated white, though his skin is not tawny white like that of the Japanese or Chinese but has a peculiar ashy tint. I have seen a few individuals that were very nearly as white as the average American, but who otherwise were not of a pronounced Caucasian type.

It is very difficult to explain the prevailing fairness of this tribe except by presupposing an admixture of some other blood. The Manóbo lives in as dark forests and on as lofty mountains as those occupied by Mandáyas. His manner of life is practically the same, and yet the average tint of his skin is far darker, so much so that the Mandáya, in speaking not only of him but of Mañgguáñgan and even of Bisáya, spurns them all as being "black."

THE DEBABÁONS

As to the Debabáons, I have not come in touch with a sufficient number of them to enable me to make any general statements. The groups that I met in Moncayo, on the Sálug where the Baglásan River empties into it, and in the country extending some 10 kilometers to the west of it, closely resemble the Mandáyas in physical characters, and yet in language, general culture, and religious belief, and by genealogy, they belong to the Manóbo tribe. It is probable that they are the result of intermarriage of Manóbo men of Baóbo and Ihawán origin with Mandáya women of the lower Sálug and Tágum Rivers.

THE MAMÁNUAS

The Mamánuas need little comment. They are full-blooded Negritos in every respect, physical and cultural, like the Negritos of Mariveles, as Montano very explicitly states. The Manóbos of the upper Tágo River constantly intermarry with Mamánua women, as I had occasion to observe on several visits which I made to that region. It is probable that the same thing takes place on the Húbo, Marihátag, Lanusa, and Kantílan Rivers. In the vicinity of Lake Maínit, a great many Mamánuas are reported to be half-breeds.

THE BANUÁONS

I visited only one settlement of Banuáons, near the mouth of the Maásam River. I met members of the tribe here and there along the Agúsan between San Luis and Las Nieves, but my observations of them were casual and superficial so that I am not prepared to make any statements as to their physical characteristics. All reports, both of Manóbos and Bisáyas and the testimony of the Jesuit missionaries, state that they are a superior people. It is probable that this group of people, known as Banuáon in the Agúsan Valley, is a branch of the Bukídnons of whom the celebrated missionary Urios and others make such commendatory mention,[7] the former in one place going so far as to make the statement that the Bukídnons are fit to be kings of the Manóbos.

[7] Cartas de los PP. de la Compañía de Jesús, passim.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE AS MODIFIED BY DRESS AND ORNAMENTATION

The upper garment of both sexes among the Manóbos is a closed square-cut garment with sleeves and with a sufficient opening on top to admit the head. It fits the body either closely or fairly loosely. It is made of _abaká_ fiber when imported cloth is not available. It is always adorned with embroidery of imported red, white, blue, and yellow cotton, on the cuffs, on the seams of the shoulders and the side, and on the neck and lower edges. The garment of the man differs from that of the woman in being all of one color, except that across the back, over the shoulders, and as far down as the breasts, are horizontal, parallel, equidistant lines of inwoven blue cotton yarn.

The body and sleeves of the woman's garment are of different colors. Thus, if the sleeves are black, the body is red and vice versa. Another distinguishing feature is the profuseness of cotton embroidery on the front of the garment.

The lower garment of the man is a pair of trousers, generally of native cotton and _abaká_ fiber, reaching somewhat below the knees, with cotton embroidery in the above-mentioned colors on the sides and at the bottom. The ends of the draw string that holds the trousers in place hang down in front and are ornamented with tassels of the same colors.

The lower garment of the women is a doubled sacklike skirt of _abaká_ fiber, almost invariably of a reddish color, with beautiful designs in horizontal panels or with a series of horizontal equidistant black stripes. A girdle of human hair or of plaited vegetable fiber, held in place with a shell button or with a plaited cord, retains this garment in place. The consequent gathering of the capacious opening of the skirt at the waist and the bulging out at the bottom (which is just a little below the knees), detracts not a little from the gracefulness of the Manóbo woman's figure. From the girdle hang, in varying number and quality, beads, hawk bells, redolent, medicinal, and magic seeds, sea shells, and fragrant herbs.

The hair is worn long by both sexes. It is dressed much like that of a Chinese woman except that it is twisted and tied up in a chignon on the crown of the head.

The man wears a long narrow bamboo hat which protects only the top of the head, and which is held on the head by two strings passing from end to end behind the ears. It usually has a plume of feathers standing up at right angles to the back part. The woman wears no hat as a general rule, but in lieu thereof adorns her head with a bamboo comb, at times inlaid with mother-of-pearl, at others covered with a lamina of beaten silver, but nearly always ornamented with decorative incisions. A pair of ear plugs with ornamental metal laminae are placed in the enlarged ear lobes.

I have seen men who had each ear lobe pierced in one or two places and small buttons fastened over the orifices, but I never saw a case of a Manóbo woman with any other perforation in the ears than the great aperture in each lobe for her ear disks.

Around the neck the woman wears in more or less profusion, according to her means and opportunities for purchase, necklets of beads, and necklaces of seeds, beads, shells, and crocodile teeth.

On her forearms she wears one or more sea-shell bracelets, circlets of black coral or of copper wire, and a close-fitting ringlet of plaited _nito_. This last adornment is also worn by men, who dispense with the use of other forms of bracelets, but who usually adorn the upper arm with a finely plaited ligature made of a dark fibrous vine. Both men and women frequently wear similar ligatures just below one or both knees. On solemn and festive occasions the woman decks her ankles with loose coils of heavy wire.

A square knapsack of hemp, frequently fringed with cotton yarn of many colors and suspended from the back by strings passing over the shoulders and under the arms, constitutes the man's receptacle for his chewing paraphernalia. It may be more or less elaborate in beadwork and embroidery, but as a rule there is no ornamentation of this kind.

Both sexes blacken the lips with soot black, and continually keep them more or less in that condition by the use of a large quid of tobacco, mixed with lime and _máu-mau_ juice, the whole being carried between the lips. This mixture serves not only as an indispensable and pleasing narcotic, but also as the principal factor in bringing about the complete and permanent staining of the teeth.

In order that "they may not look like dogs," both sexes have the upper and lower incisors ground at an early age. They proceed at once to stain what is left with frequent applications of the above-mentioned masticatories.

As white and sharp teeth are doglike, so beard and body hair are suggestive of the monkey. Hence all straggling hairs are sedulously and constantly eradicated.

Tattooing by both sexes is universal. It consists of the puncturing of the skin and the rubbing in of a soot made from a very common variety of resin. The figures tattooed, often artistic, are representations of stars, leaves, crocodiles, etc.

Both sexes are tattooed on the breast, arms, and fingers, but it is customary for women to have an extra design on the calves of the legs and sometimes on the whole leg.

As to the Christianized Manóbos, it is obvious that the great majority have adopted the garb of their Bisáya brethren and abandoned the use of ornaments and mutilations characteristic of their pagan compeers. The change was enjoined by Spanish missionaries for religious reasons and, in the case of clothing, was encouraged by Bisáya traders for commercial motives, but did not benefit the new Christians, as far as my observation goes, either religiously, financially, or esthetically.