Aeta… the first Philippine settlers!

The statue depicts an ancient Aeta, believed to be the first settlers in the Philippines. Their descendants still roam the region of Zambales and some migrated to the other parts of the country. Most of them, kicked out of their land like the Indians of North America, are now begging for food and financial assistance to live.

Isn’t it a pity that the ancient settlers are those normally put at the bottom of a country’s social caste system and the foreign invaders lord over them as if the invaders were those who settled in the country first before them?

OriginalPeople.Org: The Aeta (pronounced as “eye-ta,”), Agta or Ayta are an indigenous people who live in scattered, isolated mountainous parts of Luzon, Philippines. They are considered to be Negritos, who are dark to very dark brown-skinned and tend to have features such as a small stature, small frame, curly to kinky afro-like textured hair with a higher frequency of naturally lighter hair color (blondism) relative to the general population, small nose, and dark brown eyes. They are thought to be among the earliest inhabitants of the Philippines, preceding the Austronesian migrations.

The Aeta were included in the group of people termed “Negrito” duringSpanish colonial rule as Negritos. Various Aeta groups in northern Luzon are known as “Pugut” or “Pugot,” a name designated by their Ilocano-speaking neighbors, and which is the colloquial term for those with darker complexions. In Ilocano, the word also means “goblin” or “forest spirit.”