The document provides an overview of the Igorot people of the Philippines, including their subgroups, territories, culture, and traditions. The larger Igorot group lives in central and western Cordillera and practices rice-terrace farming, while the smaller group lives in the east and north, and some formerly practiced headhunting. Their culture includes traditional clothing like loincloths and skirts, musical instruments like gongs, tattoos to signify status, and thatch-roofed houses. They have systems of communal work, marriage rituals, death rites, and festivals involving feasts and dances. Their cuisine features salted pork and methods of cooking chicken blood near its skin.

2. IGOROT
in a Nutshell
“A Glimpse of the Rich
Cultural Heritage”
Meta-Presented by:
Jovelle Gauiran
Weyalein Liban

3. Brief Introduction
Igorot is the general name for the
people of the Cordillera region, in
the Philippines island of Luzon.
The Igorot form two subgroups:
• the larger group lives in the
south, central and western areas,
and is very adept at rice-terrace
farming;
• the smaller group lives in the
east and north. Some Igorot
groups formerly practiced
headhunting.

4. Etymology
The word "Igorot" is an eponym,
derived from the archaic Tagalog term
for "mountain people" (formed from
the prefix i-, "dweller of" and golot,
"mountain range").

5. Territorialities
IGOROT

6. KALANGUYA
 This group (Kallahan,
Kalanguya, Kadasan,
Ikalasan, Kalasan) may be
found in Imugan and Kayapa
in the provinces of Nueva
Vizcaya and Benguet living in
mid-mountain forests of
tropical oak, hence their
ascribed name.
 Segments of this population
may be found in the province
of Ifugao where they are
known as Kalanguya,
speaking dialects like Keleyi.
 This group is concentrated in
the southwestern corner of
Ifugao. The national
population is some 34,000
(Rice 1974).

7. KANKANA-EY
 The Kankanay (Northern
Kankanai, Lepanto Igorot,
Katangnan, Sagada Igorot,
Kataugnan) are found on the
western flank of the Cordillera in
the Mountain Province just east
of Ilocos Sur.
 They are in the municipalities of
Tadian, Besao, Sabangan, and
Sagada. Cervantes in Ilocos Sur
also has a fairly large Lepanto
Kankanai concentration.
 The population is estimated at
some 59,987 (NSO 1990) in the
area about Lepanto and Tiagan
to the headwater streams of the
Chico and Abra rivers where they
practice wet terracing.

8. IBALOI
 The Ibaloy (Ibaloi,
Ibadoy, Igodor, Benguet
Igorot, Nabaloi, Benguet,
Iniballuy) constitute a
large ethnic group that
number approximately
112,447 (NSO 1990) and
are found in Benguet
province, principally in
the municipalities of
Itogon (12,353), Tuba
(11,063), La Trinidad
(12,136), Bokod (8,911),
Baguio (68,550), and
Atok (9,063) (NSO
1980, 1990).

9. IBALOI
 The population has spread
to the neighboring
provinces of Pangasinan, La
Union, Nueva Vizcaya, and
Nueva Ecija. Kabayan is
recognized as the center of
Ibaloy culture. The
settlements are scattered in
the municipalities of Bokod,
Atok, Tublay, Sablan, and
Kabayan.
 A wide range of dialectical
differences are known but
not clearly studied. Thus far,
(1) Ibaloy Proper and (2)
Karao are the subgroups
cited.

10. BAGO
 The Bago (Bago Igorot)
were identified first in the
municipality of Pugo in the
southeastern side of La
Union.
 This is a highly acculturated
group whose villages are
along major transporation
routes between the
lowlands and the Abatan,
Benguet markets in the
highland.

11. BAGO
 The major ritual practices
and beliefs are somewhat
related to the northern
Kankanay, thus the idea that
the people were migrants
because of trade from
western Mountain Province.
The Kankanay regard them
as such and not as a specific
ethnic group.
 The language is a mixture of
northern Kankanay with an
infusion of lowland dialects.
Most of the individuals are
bilingual with Ilocano as the
trade language.

12. Community Labor Sharing
 Da-ngah: This labor sharing is
usually done when building a house.
A family prepares the building
materials like wood and pal-ot and
sets a date to put up the structure
then announces it to the
neighborhood. The community
comes to help build the hut free of
charge. Free lunch is served.

13. Non-Material Culture

14. Community Labor Sharing
 Ubbo: This usually happens during
the planting and harvest seasons
where one family/household
schedules and announces the job,
then neighbors or other villagers
who are expecting to do similar
tasks come to help.

15. Community Labor Sharing
 Gammal: One plans
a project and
prepares an animal,
usually an ut-utik
(young pig), to be
butchered and
divided equally as
wage for the men
volunteers to work on
the project.

16. Division of Work in the Family
 Normally, men do
the preparation of
a kaingin while
women do the
planting. Harvesting
is mostly done by
women but men
also help carry the
harvest to granaries
or to homes.

17. Traditional Judicial System
 In the case of a deliberate murder there is
a special ruling on this called ta-pil, a
death penalty for the murderer.

18. Marriage and Ritual Rites
 Kalon: When a man desires to propose
to a lady for marriage, he calls for a
friend or elders to go to the woman to
propose for him. They normally bring a
bottle of rice wine or gin which will be
opened and shared to act as a seal when
they think that the woman has agreed
and accepted the man.

19. Marriage and Ritual Rites
 Timbal: Normally, a minimum of three
fully-grown pigs are butchered on the
Wedding Day. On the eve of the wedding
the bride and groom must observe the
ngilin rite where they are sanctified for
each other by a local priest
(Mabaki). Wedding rites were usually
done at the bride’s residence.

20. Marriage and Ritual Rites
 Kaihing: This is an early negotiation
between two families for the marriage of
their children. Sometimes it is also
intended to settle family disputes where
the offender and the offended family are
required by the nangkaama (elders) to
settle their feud through kaihing.

21. Internment of the Dead
 The rich are buried after several days,
even weeks of funeral rituals (adamag).
The rich dead is seated and tied to a chair
(hangdil) and is usually placed near the
door of his house or in a location where it
can be viewed or seen conveniently by
the mourners.

22. Internment of the Dead
 If the dead is poor and has no high
standing in the community, it only takes
3 days before burial. If the dead is a
child it could be buried within 24 hours
or the most 3 days. If the death is due
to accident, suicide or murder, the dead
is usually buried as quick as possible.

23. Traditional Feasts
 Cañao: It is a
festival or ceremony,
a liturgy or service, a
rite or ritual and
offering. It is a
celebration for
productive economic
activities where
animals are offered in
thanksgiving known
as Iya-ey.

24. Traditional Feasts
 Padit: An eight-day feast. Gongs are
played and this is when they observe the
so-called hinagawhaw. It is a kind of a
victory dance where an imaginary
human head made of fern tree top is put
up on a pole and placed in the middle of
the front yard with a big jar of rice wine
where folks dance around.

25. Traditional Feasts
 Kiyad: This is a one-day big feast. No
gongs are played during this feast but
prayers (baki) are offered by the
Mabaki in behalf of the host as in the
other feasts.

26. Traditional Feasts
 Kalang: To butcher any animal on the
eve or arrival is not compulsory because
this feast is limited to the community
where the host family lives. Gongs are
played throughout the day and as usual
the host family starts the dancing.

27. Traditional Feasts
 Diloh: Family celebration of child birth
and is once in a lifetime for each child.

28. Material Culture

29. Clothing

Traditional clothing for men & women are clearly
distinct and bears no Spanish influence. Surprisingly,
it bears a strong resemblance to that of American
Indians.

30. Clothing

The men wear long
strips of handwoven loin
cloth called “wanes”.
The woman wear a kind
of wrap-around skirt
called “lufid”.

31. Clothing

32. Weapons/Tools
Hinalung is a (one of the six tribal
groups) term for a short to moderately
long double edged bladed implement
which may be used on a pole as a spear
or in the hand as a dagger or chopper.

33. Weapons/Tools

34. Musical Instruments
Gongs or Gangsa

35. Tattoos
Tattoos in Igorot
signifies their position
in the community.

36. Traditional House
The traditional house of
the Igorot, called the
“BINANGI” is a thatch-
roofed 4 poster house that
has no windows except for
a small opening at the roof
just in front of the door for
the air to pass through.
The interior of the house is
dark made even darker by
soot caused by smoke
from the hearth and the
kind of lamp being used.

37. Igorot Cuisines
 Innasin/Etag
Foreigners dubbed
this as Igorot Ham. It
refers to salted pork
and is cooked best
with pinikpikan,
legumes, or plain
vegetables.
It can also be deep
fried and then in
vinegar or hot sauce.

38. Igorot Cuisines
 Pinkipikan
A meal prepared by
beating a chicken
with a stick to make
its blood clot near
the surface of its
skin, making its
meat tastier. It is
then smoked and
served together with
sayote and soup.

39. Salamat son sikayon
emen!

40. References/Online
Resources
• http://benguet.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article
&id=209&Itemid=271
• http://ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/culture-profile/bago/
• http://ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/culture-profile/ibaloi/
• http://ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/culture-
profile/ikalahankalanguya/
• http://www.ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/articles-on-c-n-
a/article.php?igm=4&i=227
• http://ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/culture-
profile/kankanaykankana-ey/
• http://myplanetphilippines.com/culture-and-tradition/canao/