Malapad na Bato, Nasugbu, Batangas: Historical 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 Malapad na Bato in the Municipality of Nasugbu, 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.
[p. 1]
PART ONE: HISTORY
1. Present official name – Malapad na Bato
2. Popular name of the barrio – Malapad na Bato
(a) It is derived from the geographical shape of wide flat stones found in the vicinity.
(b) Names of sitios:
| 1. Cayguinto 2. Amoyong |
3. Butucan 4. Caypeperez |
3. Date of establishment:
(a) As a sitio – During the Spanish occupation
(b) As a barrio – April, 1952
4. Original families:
(a) De la Vega
(b) Bayaborda
5. List of tenientes:
6. Story of old sitios within the jurisdiction that are now depopulated or extinct – none.
7. Data on historical sites, structures, buildings, old ruins, etc… none.
8. Important facts or incidents that took place:
(a) During the Spanish occupation
(b) During the American occupation – none.
(c) During and after World War II – none.
[p. 2]
9. (a) Destruction of lives, properties and institutions during the wars – None.
(b) Measures and accomplishments toward rehabilitation.
1. After World War II, the people have greatly improved their conditions of living. They have rehabilitated their homes. Cogon and nipa houses were changed to galvanized iron and wood.
PART TWO – FOLKWAYS
TRADITIONS; CUSTOMS; AND PRACTICES:
A. Baptism
When a child is going to be baptized, preparations for a big party are done. People in the barrio, particularly the men, attend the party in groups. Friends, relatives, and neighbors of the child’s parents help in the preparation for the party. Some help in cooking under the shade of trees, while the young ladies prepare the table. Still others make fun. Conversation can be heard throughout the house.
Too much hospitality is shown in this ritual. The parents of the child invite so many people of the town and barrio to make the party more enjoyable. It is their pride to have many visitors. Different kinds of food are served. Music is furnished by a string band or an orchestra which is composed of ten members only. Men ask young women to sing to the accompaniment of the guitar. Ballroom dancing is also a common sight in the barrio these days during these occasions. They have this under the shade of big trees with the solid ground as the dance floor. It is the practice of the barrio folks to bring the child to town very early in the morning to attend the baptismal ceremony. They ride on carts and drop on any relative’s house in the town before they proceed to the church. Invited persons go to the barrio [by] means of carts. There are at least five carts in [a] single line on the road like a parade. The guests enjoy the ride that one could hear the peals of laughter emanating from the group.
[p. 3]
After the party is over comes the big headache for the parents. They come to realize that they are heavily indebted, with their only pig and chickens gone to the bellies of the people.
The sponsor gives a gift to the child. Sometimes, it is a piece of jewelry – a ring, a necklace or an earring depending upon the sex of the child being baptized. At times, it is in the form of cash, the amount of which depends on the financial standing of both the sponsor and the parents of the baby.
B. Festivals:
All members of the family get together during Christmas, weddings, funerals, birthdays and thanksgiving days. On these occasions, the people enjoy themselves. On fiesta, people from other barrios come to join in the celebration. Every home has foods to be served to visitors.
C. Other Customs:
1. The people are fond of cockfighting. They have “topadas” on certain days of the week.
2. Showing respect for elders, parents, relatives, godparents, by kissing their hands after praying or meeting them on special occasions.
3. Greeting elders by calling [them] as “mang,” “ale,” “kuya,” “ate,” etc. Answering “po” and “opo” when called or asked.
4. Helping parents support the family to pay their debts. Children of school age are sent to school.
5. Asking permission before leaving the home by children who are of major age already.
6. Being courteous in speech.
7. Saying a family prayer during the Angelus. Children who are out of home come to join the prayer.
8. Making the sign of the cross before going out of the house.
[p. 4]
RIDDLES (MGA BUGTONG
1. It has an ear, but it cannot hear – cornHindi madangkal, hindi madipa;
Pinagtutulungan ng lima – karayom
Hindi tao, hindi hayop, nakakapagsalita ng Tagalog.
II. SUPERSTITIOUS BELIEFS (MGA PAMAHIIN)
A. Means of livelihood:
1. You should not sweep at night for the grace of God will not come your way.
2. Do not sweep the house towards the door for God’s grace of livelihood might go down.
3. Do not throw the money for the grace of God is lost.
4. Do not build the floor of the house parallel to the stairs for the means of livelihood might go down.