Inventory of extant and extinct traditional literature in Western Visayas area I (Iloilo, Antique, and Guimaras)

Abstract

This study surveyed the body of existing traditional literature for Iloilo, Antique and Guimaras. The basic objectives of the study are to collect a body of traditional manuscripts for the area and to determine which genres are extinct or extant. The methodology of this research is likened to a treasure hunt, operating on a hit and miss procedure. The search for manuscripts began with known entities like libraries, indigenous centers, the internet, and local printing presses. It also pursued word-of-mouth leads about people known to be writers of traditional literature. This study collected a variety of traditional manuscripts in Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a, Tagalog and English translations, and Inati representing the following literary periods: Early Bisayan, Spanish Colonial, American Colonial, Japanese Colonial, Philippine Republic, Philippines After EDSA, and Philippines in the 21st Century. The study shows the following: literature follows a language instead of a political map; traditional literature in Hiligaynon, Kinaray, Tagalog and English translation and Inati documented in the Early Bisayan Period are extant; and traditional literature did not become extinct rather evolved into modified forms with the coming of the Spanish and American colonizers. It further posits that Hinilawod, the epic of the Sulod people in Central Panay is the crown jewel of traditional literature in Area I.