Mahayahay, Lemery, Batangas: Historiical Data
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| Historical data from the National Library of the Philippines. |
Full transcription of the so-called “Historical Data” for the barrio of Mahayahay in the Municipality of Lemery, Batangas, the original scanned documents at the National Library of the Philippines Digital Collections not having OCR or optical character recognition properties. This transcription has been edited for grammar, spelling and punctuation where possible. The original pagination is provided for citation purposes.
[Cover page.]
COMPILATION
OF
HISTORICAL DATA
FOR THE
BARRIO
OF
MAHAYAHAY
MUNICIPALITY OF LEMERY
PROVINCE OF BATANGAS
[p. 1]
DIVISION OF BATANGAS
DISTRICT OF LEMERY
Mahayahay Elementary School
HISTORY AND CULTURAL LIFE OF THE BARRIO OF MAHAYAHAY
PART ONE: HISTORY
Present Official Name of the Barrio
Mahayahay
Popular Name of the Barrio, Past and Present
Mahayahay
Derivation and Meaning of the Name
Unknown to the barrio people.
Date of Establishment
Nobody can inform.
Original Families
Enriquez and Marquinez families.
List of Tenientes from the Earliest Time to Date
2. Teodorico Caringal
3. Isidro Cabral
4. Pedro Alicpala
5. Mariano de Leon
PART TWO: FOLKWAYS
Customs and traditions – The tradition of respecting the elders by addressing them with Ate, Kuya, or Manong is maintained. The elders with no blood relationship are addressed with Ka to show respect. Thus, one calls a man who is much older than him as Ka Purong and a woman as Ka Ana. The custom of greeting the elders with “Mano po” by anybody who pays a visit at night is well-observed.
Domestic and social life – The mother keeps the house for the family while the father, being the head of the family, earns the daily bread. In many cases, however, where the father is engaged in farming, the mother and elder daughter take also an active part in farm work during [the] planting and harvesting seasons. A “padasal” after a good harvest is a form of social gathering where young ladies and young men enjoy singing, the old folks mumbling prayers of thanks to the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Birth and Baptism – The godparents of the newborn child are usually selected by both the father and the mother of the child. In some cases where the parents who have meager income promise a grand baptismal party for the child, ample time is allowed for the preparation of the party such that it takes months or even years before a child can be
[p. 2]
baptized. At baptism, the godparents give “pakimkim” in the form of cash or gift to the child.
Courtship and marriage – Usually, the man and woman concerned make their own decisions but in some cases, the parents of both parties intervene even during courtship. Marriage is taken care of by the elders. Sometimes, the bride’s parents ask for a dowry. In many cases, the bridegroom serves in the house of the bride as soon as their forthcoming marriage is publicly announced.
Death and burial – The dead is buried in the public cemetery or in the Catholic cemetery.
Festivals – A barrio fiesta is held in the early part of June.
Popular Songs, Games and Amusements
Songs – eyaye, kundiman, community songs and popular song hits of the time.
Games – basketball, softball
Amusements – serenading, singing and playing the guitar during the planting season.
Proverbs and Sayings
1. Still water runs deep.
2. Iron is destroyed by its own rust.
3. He who believes in tales has no mind of his own.
4. It is easy to become a man but it is hard to behave as one.
Puzzles and Riddles
1. A beautiful lady eating her body. (candle)
2. A piece of rattan can reach Bulacan. (telephone)
Methods of Measuring Time, Special Calendar
1. By the position of the sun.
2. By looking at one’s own shadow.
3. By modern calendars.
Submitted by:
RUFINA F. LEONOR
Barrio Committee Chairman