TheTagalogmaginoo, theKapampanganginu, and theVisayantumao were the nobility social class among various cultures of the pre-colonialPhilippines. Among the Visayans, thetumao were further distinguished from the immediate royal families, thekadatuan.
The Pilipino had a three-class social structure consisting of themaginoo (royalty), themaharlika (lit. freemen; warrior nobility), and thealipin (serfs and slaves). Only those who could claim royal descent were included in themaginoo class. Their prominence depended on the fame of their ancestors (bansag) or their wealth and bravery in battle (lingas). Generally, the closer amaginoo lineage was to the royal founder (puno) of a lineage (lalad), the higher their status.[1]
Members of themaginoo class were referred to asGinoo. Proper names of themaginoo nobles were preceded byGat (short for "pamagat" or "pamegat", originally meaning "lord" or "master", though it means "title" in modernTagalog) for men andDayang (lady) for women, denotingLord andLady respectively. The titlePanginoon was reserved for particularly powerfulmaginoo who ruled over a large number of dependents and slaves, owned extensive property, and whose lineage was impeccable. Lower-statusmaginoo who gained prominence by newly acquired wealth were scornfully known asmaygintawo (literally "person with a lot of gold";nouveau riche). InVocabulario de la lengua tagala (1613), the Spanish Franciscan missionaryPedro de San Buenaventura compared themaygintawo to "dark knights" who gain their status by gold and not by lineage.[1]
The Tagalogdatu weremaginoo who ruled over a community (adulohan orbarangay, literally "corner" and "balangay boat" respectively) or had a large enough following. Thesedatu either ruled over a single community (apook) or were part of a larger settlement (abayan, "city-state"). They constituted a council (lipon,lupon, orpulong) and answered to a sovereign ruler, referred to as thelakan (or theSanskrit titleraja, "king"). After the Spanish conquest, thesedatu were given the Spanish title ofDon and were treated as local chiefs.[1]
InVisayas, the Visayans utilized a three-class social structure consisting of theulipon (commoners,serfs, and slaves, alsouripon inWaray), thetimawa (warrior nobility), and at the top, thetumao (nobility). Thetumao consisted of blood relatives of thedatu (community leader) untainted by slavery, servitude, or witchcraft.[2] They were usually descendants of the children of adatu and secondary wives known assandil. Varioustumao supporters of thedatu are collectively referred to assandig sa datu ("beside the datu"). Thetumao were also usually employed in the court of thedatu in various positions (though these may sometimes be filled withtimawa as well). The chief minister or privy counselor of thedatu was known as theatubang sa datu (literally "facing thedatu"). The steward who collected and recorded tributes and taxes and dispensed them among the household and dependents of thedatu was known as theparagahin. Theparagahin was also responsible for organizing public feasts and communal work. Thebilanggo was the one responsible for maintaining law and order and whose own house served as the community jail (bilanggowan). Bothtumao andtimawa were obligated to serve as the military forces of thedatu in times of war, at their own expense.[1]
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The immediate royal family of the Visayandatu were distinguished from the rest of thetumao as thekadatoan, which was both a political office and a social class. The purity of the lineage of thekadatoan was extremely important in claiming the right to rule, thus thekadatoan usually only married members of other royal families. The sons and daughters of thedatu by his first wife were zealously guarded from the rest of the community.[1] The princesses were known asbinokot orbinukot (literally "the veiled ones" or "the wrapped ones"), due to the fact that they were usually transported by slaves in coveredpalanquins. Women of thekadatoan class were powerful and revered. The first wife of thedatu and thebinokot could command the same number of slaves and dependents.[3]
Adatu who gained his status by marrying a princess is known as asabali. Adatu who is of pure royal lineage is known aspotli orlubus nga datu, while a datu whose four grandparents are all of pure royal descent are known askalibutan ("all around").[1]
Thedatu served as leaders and judges. Their proclamations (mantala) were delivered to the general populace by anulipon serving as the town herald (theparatawag). They received tributes, taxes, and gifts from their subjects, among them were thehimuka (gifts fromtimawa for permission to marry),bawbaw (gifts from the winning parties in a dispute settled by the ruling of thedatu), andhikun (the greater share of property being redistributed). They had control of trade throughhonos (fee for anchoring a ship in the community harbor),bihit (tariffs), andlopig (discounts on local purchases). They also had the power to restrict access to communal property through decrees (balwang) and their crops and animals were distributed among his subjects to care for in a practice known astakay. Thedatu, however, were far from being a leisured aristocracy. They were often skilled craftsmen, hunters, blacksmiths, fishermen, and warriors in their own right, and their household produced the best commodities for trade.[1]
Visayandatu were loosely bound to each other in afederation (achiefdom). Members of a chiefdom had a leadingdatu who had authority over otherdatu, usually simply referred to as thepangulo ("head" or "ruler"),kaponoan ("most sovereign", from the Visayan word for "root" or "origin",puno), ormakaporos nga datu (unifying chief). Thepangulo of seaports with frequent foreign traffic may sometimes take onMalay orSanskrit titles likeRajah ("ruler"),Batara ("noble lord"),Sarripada (from SanskritSri Paduka, "His Highness"; variants includeSalip,Sipad,Paduka, andSalipada). However, they were notkings in the European sense. Their authority usually stems from favorable trade positions, military prowess, lineage, and wealth (bahandi) rather than royal rule. While they had limited power over other memberdatu of the chiefdom based on their renown, they had no direct control over the subjects or lands of the otherdatu.[1]
The historianWilliam Henry Scott theorizes that this may have beenFerdinand Magellan's fatal error. Magellan assumed thatRajah Humabon was the king of the land and thus ofMactan as well. But the island of Mactan, the domain ofLapu-Lapu and anotherdatu named Zula, was in a location that enabled them to intercept trade ships entering the harbor ofCebu, Humabon's domain. Thus it was more likely that Lapu-Lapu was actually more powerful than Humabon. Humabon himself was married to Lapu-Lapu's niece. When Magellan demanded that Lapu-Lapu submit as his "king" Humabon had done, Lapu-Lapu purportedly replied that "he was unwilling to come and do reverence to one whom he had been commanding for so long a time".[1]
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In the MuslimSultanate of Sulu andSultanate of Maguindanao, the supreme ruler was thesultan, anArabic-derived title adopted after their conversion toIslam. The power of the sultan is counterpoised by a council ofdatu. Female nobility of these ranks were addressed asdayang ("princess"), with the sultan's daughters being known asdayang-dayang ("princess of the first degree"). All of these titles are strictly hereditary.[4]
Below the royal nobility are the provincial governors (panglima) as well as wealthy people (orang kaya).[4] Commoners can sometimes be promoted to nobility, known asdatu sadja. Usually for outstanding feats or services in line of duty through display of bravery, heroism, and so on. Unlike truedatu, the rank is only for the lifetime of the recipient and is not hereditary.[5]
TheMaranao people of theLanao region differ from other Moro sultanates in that it is not centralized. Instead it is a confederation of several independent Maranao states each formed by multiple clans. The hereditary royal class of the Maranao society are collectively known aspidtaylan, and trace their descent from the first Sultan. These sultans rule independent states (pengampong), which are further divided into smaller communities (pulok) ruled by hereditarydatu of thekadatuan class. Local government units are administered bypanglima (governors) andmaharajah.[6]
The highest position in female nobility is thebai-a-labi (most exalted queen). This is followed bypotri maamor (princess),solotan a bai (kind queen), andbai a dalomangcob (queen). Noble women are referred to asbayi ("lady"), while non-noble wealthy women are known asbayi a gaos (rich lady).[6]
During the time of former president of the Philippines,Ferdinand Marcos, the term "maharlika" was mistakenly attributed to mean "royalty". As part of his drive at promoting theBagong Lipunan (New Society), Marcos sponsored the research into pre-Hispanic culture of the Philippines. Apart from recommending changing the name of the Philippines into "Maharlika", Marcos was influential in makingmaharlika a trendy name for streets, edifices, banquet halls, villages and cultural organizations. Marcos himself utilized the word to christen a highway, a broadcasting corporation, and the reception area of theMalacañan Palace. Marcos' propagandistic utilization of the word started duringWorld War II. Before being proven false in 1985, Marcos claimed that he had commanded a group ofguerrillas known as the Maharlika Unit.[7] Marcos also usedMaharlika as his personalnom de guerre, depicting himself as the most bemedalled anti-Japanese Filipino guerrilla soldier during World War II. During themartial law period in the Philippines, Marcos attempted to produce a film entitledMaharlika to present his "war exploits".[8]
One of the results of this trend was the distortion of the original meaning ofmaharlika.Maharlika does not actually refer to the "royalty" class as is claimed, but refers to thevassal warrior class. Themaharlika were also more or less unique to the Tagalog caste system and that of its neighboring tribes.[7]
