Corazón D. Villareal

LANGUAGE, GENDER, AND DESIRE IN HILIGAYNON

The paper is a study of lexicographic entries in three dictionaries on Hiligaynon in terms of how they relate to expressions of desire. Hiligaynon is the main language in the Panay islands in Central Philippines. These include the provinces of Capiz, Iloilo, and Negros Occidental. However, Ilonggo, which is the colloquial form of Hiligaynon, is also spoken in Davao, Cotabato and other areas in Mindanao populated by Hiligaynon immigrants. Hiligaynons in pre-Spanish Philippines were noted to be at ease with their sensuality. This was seen in the care with which both males and females tattooed their bodies, filed their teeth black, used various embellishments such as earrings, and wore their hair long (cut hair was a sign of mourning or punishment). The males had penis pins that women manipulated to increase sexual pleasure (Scott citing Pigafetta and the Rajah Tupas collection in Capiz 24). Anthony Reid, in fact, viewed this practice as a sign of the power and the freedom enjoyed by most Southeast Asian women: “the most graphic demonstration of the strong position women enjoyed in sexual matters” (Cited in Mojares 26). Missionaries viewed these with disdain; for instance, the missionary Martinez declared the pins satanic and they quickly removed to reform the body through various strictures.

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