{"id":272163,"date":"2020-10-17T08:16:45","date_gmt":"2020-10-17T12:16:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=272163"},"modified":"2020-10-17T08:16:45","modified_gmt":"2020-10-17T12:16:45","slug":"new-book-bares-camiguins-forgotten-history-folklore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2020\/10\/17\/new-book-bares-camiguins-forgotten-history-folklore\/","title":{"rendered":"New book bares Camiguin’s forgotten history, folklore"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\u201cThe Untold Stories of Camiguin Island\u201d by Andres Narros Lluch is now available at XU Press. (Photo courtesy of XU Press via PNA)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 The Xavier University (XU) Press, the official publication of XU-Ateneo de Cagayan, has launched a new book that revisits Camiguin\u2019s history and folklore.<\/p>\n

Released earlier this month, “The Untold Stories of Camiguin Island” is XU Press\u2019 latest published title authored by Spanish anthropologist Andres Narros Lluch.<\/p>\n

The book traces historic events that occurred in Camiguin from the period of the Manobo inhabitants to the Spanish colonial era when the Augustinian Recollects established the Christian missionary center.<\/p>\n

With the book’s information based on surviving records, it also recalls the infamous volcanic eruption in 1871.\u00a0Recounting these events in narrative form, the book blends history with folk tales that have survived generations.<\/p>\n

Among these is the heroic saga of Camiguin\u2019s legendary warrior and healer, Datu Mehong.<\/p>\n

Shaped by fire<\/strong><\/p>\n

Camiguin has often been cited as one of the Philippines\u2019 top tourist destinations due to the island\u2019s pristine white beaches, hot springs, majestic waterfalls, sunken graves, and massive volcanoes.<\/p>\n

As an exporter of the tropical lanzones fruit, the island does not lack sweet delights.<\/p>\n

Even locals from Northern Mindanao know the island for its delectable cake bread with cream filling.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Untold Stories of Camiguin Island\u201d, however, tackles certain elements that may not have been as famous as the present-day assets of the island.<\/p>\n

By exploring its past, the book reintroduces readers to the island\u2019s origins and its development over the years.<\/p>\n

One of the vital information that the book provides is about how the island got its name.<\/p>\n

Contrary to popular belief that its name came from the phrase, \u201cCome again\u201d, an invitational line that encourages visitors to return after a life-changing experience on the island, the book honors the origin of the name to the first inhabitants, an indigenous community of Manobo known as \u201cKimigin,” derived from their leader, Datu Migin.<\/p>\n

While the island consists of distinct geographical features, the book underscores the people’s history as an important element to appreciate Camiguin.<\/p>\n

The book extends this narrative by exploring the experiences and circumstances of the people inhabiting the island centuries ago.<\/p>\n

The book also ventures into the earliest inhabitants\u2019 culture and traditions.<\/p>\n

Today, many of the island\u2019s cultural elements had been lost due to time, colonization, and migration.<\/p>\n

The pages also detail how cataclysmic events have failed to preserve historical records.<\/p>\n

Foreign author<\/strong><\/p>\n

The book\u2019s author wishes to reintroduce the first inhabitants\u2019 legacy, their customs and culture, and their language to Camiguin\u2019s modern-day residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the ethnohistoric information was collected during my years of research in Camiguin,\u201d Lluch said in an email.<\/p>\n

He first visited Camiguin while working on his field research for a doctorate in anthropology.<\/p>\n

As an academic professor, he has been associated with the Department of Anthropology of the University of the Philippines in Manila.<\/p>\n

Although he has visited plenty of places in the Philippines, writing a book about Camiguin\u2019s extensive ethnohistory is his way of recollecting and preserving the island\u2019s forgotten past.<\/p>\n

\u201cCamiguin is as interesting as any other island in the Philippines,\u201d Lluch said Friday. \u201cIt is a sort of melting pot of cultures and people. But what fascinated me are the island\u2019s complexity and intriguing identity.\u201d<\/p>\n

He conducted interviews with the locals, most of whom have lived on the island for many years, such as the elders, traditional healers, and farmers.<\/p>\n

Lluch also visited the archives of the Augustinian Recollects in Quezon City.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had information that I could not just keep with me. I had to share it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Lluch is also the founder of Kilaha, a small foundation located in Camiguin that aims to preserve its history, culture, and rich biodiversity.<\/p>\n

At present, he is working in a cooperative in Brussels, Belgium that supports non-government organizations for greater impact.<\/p>\n

However, he plans to return to Camiguin someday to continue his foundation\u2019s efforts.<\/p>\n

Despite being a foreigner conducting his research in the Philippines, Lluch brings the foreign angle into his academic studies to help the local communities understand how their culture is being appreciated and celebrated by different people.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes, a foreign researcher can offer a \u2018foreign angle\u2019 that can help locals to understand better where and how they come from,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

History and folk tales<\/strong><\/p>\n

With the release of the book, Lluch hopes that Filipinos would continue to take interest in their history, even at the local level.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom an academic and methodological point of view, the book is very well-grounded,\u201d he said. \u201cWhat makes this book special is its combination with certain doses of fiction, in harmony with local legends I collected while I was living on the island.\u201d<\/p>\n

While supporting the academe and researchers is one of XU Press\u2019s primary objectives as a publishing arm of Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan, it also provides opportunities for Northern Mindanao\u2019s communities to get acquainted with their history.<\/p>\n

The book adds value to this along with the folk tales presented in the pages.<\/p>\n

Physical and digital copies of \u201cThe Untold Stories of Camiguin Island\u201d are available for pre-order on the XU Press page of Xavier University – Ateneo de Cagayan\u2019s official website.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY\u00a0\u2013 The Xavier University (XU) Press, the official publication of XU-Ateneo de Cagayan, has launched a new …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":272164,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-272163","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-lifestyle","mauthors-angelo-lorenzo","mauthors-philippine-news-agency"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272163","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=272163"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272163\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":272165,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/272163\/revisions\/272165"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/272164"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=272163"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=272163"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=272163"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}