9. Titles like rajah, datu or lakan were of Hindu-Malayan origins. Maharlikan people have no titles except being “maharlikans” which means men of renown, great men or men from the great plane.
Recent archaeological findings suggests that the history of the Philippines could have begun as early as 67,000 years ago with the discovery of Callao Man and believed to have reached the Islands using primitive rafts or boats. Callao Man predated the arrival of the Negritos 37,000 years earlier. Indonesians arrived more or less between 6,000 to 5,000 years ago.
These groups then stratified into: hunter-gatherer tribes, warrior societies, petty plutocracies and maritime-oriented harbor principalities which eventually grew into kingdoms, rajahnates, principalities, confederations and sultanates. States such as the Indianized Rajahnate of Butuan and Cebu, the dynasty of Tondo, the august kingdoms of Maysapan and Maynila, the Confederation of Madyaas, the sinified Country of Mai, as well as the Muslim Sultanates of Sulu and Maguindanao. These small maritime states flourished from as early as the 1st Millenium. These kingdoms traded with what are now now called China, India, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia.[1]
Titles such as datu, raha, lakan or sultan in the early Pre-Spanish Philippines were of colonial influences and origins introduced during the spread of Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam. The pure Muian Maharlikans have no social classes, statuses or titles as they were created equally in reference to their original purpose and nature. They simply called themselves the maharlikans meaning men of renown, great men, or men from the great plane, a name which exemplifies their sublime and pure origin, their level of consciousness, and their purpose in accordance with the divine plan of creation. In Tagalog terminology, in the Philippine history, maharlika became commonly referred to as “freemen” (malaya) or sometimes called the “noblemen” (maginoo). The first term implies an acquired status free from being a slave or a subject of a master while the second one implies nobility, high regard or respectable status in the society. However, these definitions of terms are misnomers.
Recent archaeological findings suggests that the history of the Philippines could have begun as early as 67,000 years ago with the discovery of Callao Man and believed to have reached the Islands using primitive rafts or boats. Callao Man predated the arrival of the Negritos 37,000 years earlier. Indonesians arrived more or less between 6,000 to 5,000 years ago.
These groups then stratified into: hunter-gatherer tribes, warrior societies, petty plutocracies and maritime-oriented harbor principalities which eventually grew into kingdoms, rajahnates, principalities, confederations and sultanates. States such as the Indianized Rajahnate of Butuan and Cebu, the dynasty of Tondo, the august kingdoms of Maysapan and Maynila, the Confederation of Madyaas, the sinified Country of Mai, as well as the Muslim Sultanates of Sulu and Maguindanao. These small maritime states flourished from as early as the 1st Millenium. These kingdoms traded with what are now now called China, India, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia.[1]
Titles such as datu, raha, lakan or sultan in the early Pre-Spanish Philippines were of colonial influences and origins introduced during the spread of Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam. The pure Muian Maharlikans have no social classes, statuses or titles as they were created equally in reference to their original purpose and nature. They simply called themselves the maharlikans meaning men of renown, great men, or men from the great plane, a name which exemplifies their sublime and pure origin, their level of consciousness, and their purpose in accordance with the divine plan of creation. In Tagalog terminology, in the Philippine history, maharlika became commonly referred to as “freemen” (malaya) or sometimes called the “noblemen” (maginoo). The first term implies an acquired status free from being a slave or a subject of a master while the second one implies nobility, high regard or respectable status in the society. However, these definitions of terms are misnomers.
The following descriptions should further clarify these terms:
So far, the oldest known written record in the Philippine history discovered in the Philippine soil is the Laguna Copperplate Inscription dating back in the year 822 AD, written in the Indonesian script called Kavi. Navigators, sailors and traders of the Srivijayan Empire started their influences by 9th until 12th century. The Chinese had established a commercial contact with the Pre-Hispanic Filipinos as early as the year 982. By 14th century, Islam started to spread in the Philippines. Majapahit Empire replaced Srivijayan Empire until the early 15th century and occupied a Maharlikan territory thereafter.
·
Datu - The word Datu is a cognate of the Malay
terms Dato' or Datuk, which is one of many noble titles in Malaysia, and to the
Fijian chiefly title of Ratu.
·
Raha - Raha; also spelled Raja or Rajah (from
Sanskrit Rājan), is a title for a monarch or princely ruler in South and
Southeast Asia. The female form Rani (sometimes spelled ranee) applies equally
to the wife of a Raja (or of an equivalent style such as Rana), usually as
queen consort and occasionally as regent.
·
Lakan - Lakan originally referred to a rank in
the pre-Hispanic Filipino nobility in the island of Luzon, which means
"paramount ruler." It has been suggested that this rank is equivalent
to that of Raha, and that different ethnic groups either used one term or the
other, or used the two words interchangeably.
·
Sri - Sri, also transliterated as Sree, Shri,
Shree, Si or Seri is a word of Sanskrit origin, used in the Indian subcontinent
as a polite form of address equivalent to the English "Mr." or
"Ms."
·
Sultan – Sultan is a title of the ruler of a
Muslim country, especially of the former Ottoman Empire.
·
Dayang – Dayang or Dayang Dayang means
"princes", and is a title given only to the daughters of the Sultan.
So far, the oldest known written record in the Philippine history discovered in the Philippine soil is the Laguna Copperplate Inscription dating back in the year 822 AD, written in the Indonesian script called Kavi. Navigators, sailors and traders of the Srivijayan Empire started their influences by 9th until 12th century. The Chinese had established a commercial contact with the Pre-Hispanic Filipinos as early as the year 982. By 14th century, Islam started to spread in the Philippines. Majapahit Empire replaced Srivijayan Empire until the early 15th century and occupied a Maharlikan territory thereafter.
With that being said, from the pre-colonial times until 822 AD, there were no surviving records have been found to consult what exactly happened during those missing years. Henceforth, the claim by many that the Muslims were the first to populate the Philippine archipelago is a lie, a baseless claim that should not be entertained at all levels. That statement is a blatant disrespect to the first inhabitants in the Philippines propagated by those Muslims who are trying to give credit to their religion or to their unfounded claim that they belong to the bloodlines of the sultan and the entire archipelago belongs to them.
Source:
[1] History of Philippines
