Santol, Mataasnakahoy, Batangas: Historical Data - Batangas History, Culture and Folklore Santol, Mataasnakahoy, Batangas: Historical Data - Batangas History, Culture and Folklore

Santol, Mataasnakahoy, Batangas: Historical Data

Batangas History
3 Jan, 2018
Historical Data graphic
Historical data from the National Library of the Philippines.

Full transcription of the so-called “Historical Data” for the barrio of Santol in the Municipality of Mataasnakahoy, Batangas, the original scanned documents at the National Library of the Philippines Digital Collections not having OCR or optical character recognition properties. This transcription has been edited for grammar, spelling and punctuation where possible. The original pagination is provided for citation purposes.

[p. 1]

HISTORY AND CULTURAL LIFE OF BARRIO SANTOL

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* PART ONE: HISTORY *
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1. Present Official Name of the Barrio –

Northwest of the poblacion of Mataasnakahoy lies the barrio of Santol. It was the name given to it during the latter part of the Spanish regime by the early inhabitants.

2. Popular name of the barrio, present and past; derivations and meanings of these names. Names of sitios within the territorial jurisdiction of the barrio.

When the early inhabitants came to this place, the popular name Santol was given. It was derived from the plant santol. This plant was the most common and popular of all trees planted within the jurisdiction. Santol, small as it is, has some sitios as Sipit, Manggahan, Sta. Rosa and Kinaiputan. People living in these places are contented, happy, and prosperous.

3. Date of Establishment –

During the latter part of the Spanish regime, barrio Santol was established.

4. Original Families –

In this barrio, there are five original families. These are the Ariola, Silva, Malaluan, Mangubat, and Maralit families. The Ariola, Silva, Malaluan and Mangubat families came from Taal, an important town at the western part of the province of Batangas. The Maralit families came from Cuenca, a town also of Batangas. They are still the leading families of the place.

5. List of Tenientes from the Earliest Time to Date –

Since barrio Santol was established to the present time, the place became very progressive until different families came and settled in the place headed by Mr. Apolinario Maralit, the first barrio teniente, succeeded by Mr. Julio Lumbera and the present barrio teniente is Mr. Januario Recinto. These barrio tenientes had shown good records during their incumbencies that people lived happy and peaceful.

6. Story of old barrio or sitios within the jurisdiction that are now depopulated or extinct. – N o n e.

7. Data on historical sites, structures, buildings, old ruins, etc.

Santol is small but there are also some historical sites in it. These sites are usually found along the shores of Taal Lake. One of these is the so-called Kinaiputan. According to the old stories, this cave had served as the favorite headquarters of the early insurgents.

8. Important facts, incidents or events that took place.

Barrio Santol is also a historical place. It was a resting as well as a hiding place of the insurgents during the Spanish regime. And in the latter part of the Japanese occupation, the different sitios of this barrio served as the evacuation place of the people of the towns of Mataasnakahoy and Lipa and the neighboring barrios of Lipa, the latter now a city.

9. Destruction of lives, properties and institutions during wars, especially in 1899-1900 and 1941-1945.

There were none of these happenings whatsoever in this community within such dates to the present.

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Courtship and Marriage - Courtship is done by parents’ agreement. But sometimes by the wishes of their children. When both parties agree with each other, the gentleman will serve in the lady’s home for almost one year or more.

After the term of service, the day of celebration of marriage is solemnized in the church. All the people of the barrio gather together to promote their traditional comradeships. They have unity in every line of endeavor.

Death and Burial - When a member of a family dies, nobody in the family is allowed to stop at the door. Neither is [anyone] allowed to watch the mother in her delivery room; also not allowed to lie down crosswise on the floor, believing that she will have hardship in delivering the child.

Popular Songs and Amusements
The most popular songs that the people of the place like best are the “kundiman” and “kutang” songs. The “subli” and the “pandanggo” dances were also their amusements. Both the songs and dances were used by both adults and young folks in social gatherings.

Proverbs and Sayings

To wait means to suffer.
He who never looks backward to his ancestors will not look forward to his destination.
[A] Spring cannot rise higher than its sources.
Familiarity breeds contempt.
Success is the fruit of slow growth.
[A] Barking dog seldom bites.

A piece of meat always wet. (tongue)
It is not a man, neither an animal, but it has two heads. (hammer)
It is not a man, neither an animal, but it has two hands. (clock)
It is round.
It is shiny.
But it is not gold. (sun)

Methods of measuring time, special calendars

The methods of measuring time used by the early people of the place were the position of the sun, stars, the sounds of birds and wild beasts that roam in the large tracts of woodland. As the people advanced in civilization, their method of measuring time was by the use of the standard telling time.

Folklore:

JUANANG ILAYA, THE TERROR OF CHILDREN

Once upon a time, there lived in the barrio of Santol a widow with two children. In order to distinguish her from other Juanas, she was called Juanang Ilaya. She loved her children very much, thus, she worked hard in order to support them. A very beautiful widow was she. Many men still fell in love with her. Whenever a suitor would propose his love to her, her answer was that she was already contented to live alone with her children. One of those who courted her got mad because every time he would ask for her consent, the same answer was repeated to him.

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for them. She went very far until she reached the place where the witch lived. The witch caught her and turned her into a witch also. Although she was a witch, yet she never forgot her children. She could go two the place she wanted because of her supernatural power.

It is said that since that time, she was often seen appearing before a crying child because she thought that the child crying was hers. This believe became very popular not only in that barrio but also in the neighboring barrios. Thus, when a child cries, and somebody says it might be heard by Juanang Ilaya, the child suddenly stops crying, being afraid of her. So, Juanang Ilaya became the terror of children.

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Notes and references:
Transcribed from “History and Cultural Life of Barrio Santol,” 1953, online at the National Library of the Philippines Digital Collections.
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