Kuntao or kuntau (, Pee h-e-j: kn-thu, Tagalog: kuntaw) is a Hokkien term for the martial

arts of the Chinese community of Southeast Asia, especially the Malay Archipelago. It is most
commonly practiced in and associated with Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore.
Over time, kuntao and silat have influenced each other to the point where the distinction between
the two can sometimes be blurred. The Malaysian art of Buah Pukul is classified as silat despite
its Yunnan origin, while Javanese Kuntao Harimau retains its kuntao status despite being influenced
by the folk religion and indigenous culture of Java. Some traditional styles include both words in
their name, such as Kedah's 500-year-old Silat Kuntau Tekpi which is categorized as silat.

Tchunggas
Among all the customs of the East-Benguet people, there is one in which the spears and shield of
old appear and in which as in days of old, some men in gala attire execute a war dance and sing to
glorify the bravery of the warring knights of yesteryears.
In this barrio of Kabayan (north East-Benguet) this dance is called Bindian . Further north of EastBenguet, they call it Tchungas. In Kabayan, it is a common practice that all people present in a
caao must participate in this dance. In the villages between Ambuclao and Bila where they
celebrate the Tchungas, all people present dance together for an hour or so, after which the dance
is kept going by a couple as it is in the Tayaw.
This interpretation of the Bindian and Tchungas are identical as if it is a sort of a victory over the
ghosts of all the enemies who were slain by their ancestors, and whose heads were brought home
as trophies.
The dance goes this way: When the mambunong (priestess) arrives, some men follow her as she
retires to a nearby ravine, taking with them a small pig. Two of the young men adorn their heads
with crowns of woven bamboo made colorful by sticking rooster feathers on them. These crowned
men are called oro-ols. One of the oror-ols wear a necklace of silver called tipabokel. Both men
fasten rattan baskets on their backs. Each basket contains the enormous bill of a certain bird called
kalao. Each oro-ol carries a hatchet in a scabbard and armed with spears and shields. The
mambunong sits near the pig, begins to pray and invokes the spirits-who are living in the hades
who are living in the sources of all waters-who are living where the waters stop-who are living in the
sun and in the moon.
She invokes the spirits who have commanded the performance of the Tchungas to help them to
pray and to sing the angbe (Tchungas war song) and at the same time pleads that she be informed
of the names of the valiant head-hunters.
After the invocation, the oro-ols execute the war dance around the small pig. They hop and jump to
the rhythm of the solibao and the ganza which are being played near the house of the host. At a
certain point of the dance, their companions in the ravine yell shouts of honor. Oo-wa-ayOo-waay! In the meantime, they butcher and prepare the small pig for cooking. At the command of the

mambunong , they all partake of the boiled pork.

The oro-ols resume the dance after everybody is through eating the boiled pork. The oro-ol with the
necklace around his neck bends a little forward and gazes fixedly at a distant tree. He Advances
and slowly creeps toward that tree, as if it personifies an expected enemy. As soon as he is near
that tree, he leaps suddenly. The other oro-ol follows him, amking similar contortions and
movements. Finally, they thrust their spears into the tree trunk. The foe is slain.
The oro-ols pull their spears out from the tree and led by the mambunong and with all the rest of the
companions who came to the ravine following, they return to the house of the host
At the house of the host, the oror-ols are offered cups of tapae (rice wine). Before drinking the
tapae, they dip the points of their spears in the cup of wine. Then they are asked to name the
enemy that they have killed. In reply, they mentioned the name of an old man famous headhunter.
Then they drink the tapae.
At the entrance of the house, one of the oro-ols plants his spear in the ground and the other oro-ol
hangs his basket and shield on the planted spear.
The mambunong comes forward with her arms lifted. She leads the oro-ols and the other people to
dance the Tchungas around the spear planted by one of the oro-ols. Inside the circle going towards
the opposite direction, the women with long blankets over their shoulders, join the dance. They
interrupt the dance with shouts of triumph as they hop and skip in a victorious manner, their arms
are stretched horizontally. They continue to hop and skip, as they simultaneously yell and shout of
honor Oo-wa-ayOo-wa-ay!
The dance goes on, the mambunong leaves the dancing group and goes to sit by a jar of tatae.
Surrounded by a group of men she slowly sings the angba of the Tchungas, a sort of narratives
about the victorious fights against the headhunters of the north very long time ago. After the
narrative, the mambunong rises and prays a short exorcism, after which she joins the other to drink
their share of the tapae. Finally, everybody is served with cooked pork and boiled rice.
After the meal, leads in a ceremony in which everybody join hands and encircle the house. The
mambunong whispers a sort of prayer.
The solibao and the ganza which were silent for a time are suddenly heard again and everybody
dance the Tchungas again. After some rounds the dance is kept going by one couple who dance
just the way the Tayaw is performed. When the first couple gets tired of another couple takes over.
The oro-ols by this time have gone back to the ravine to bathe , after which they eat their share of
the pork and boiled rice.
Everybody stay in this particular house for two or more days. The Tchungas goes on and on night
and day as long as the food and the tapae last.

SAGAYAN
Sagayan is a Philippine war dance performed by both the Maguindanao and Maranao depicting in
dramatic fashion the steps their hero, Prince Bantugan, took upon wearing his armaments, the war
he fought in and his subsequent victory afterwards. Performers, depicting fierce warriors would
carry shield with shell noisemakers in one hand and double-bladed sword in the other attempting
rolling movements to defend their master.
KAYAW
Martial dances pertain to war, combat, or duel movements common to dances for men. In the
context of Philippine dance, these dances symbolize manhood. It can mean community acceptance
in the council of warriors as practiced in the Mangayaw of the Bontoc - a tribe in the Cordillera
Region of Northern Luzon. The Mangayaw is a a pre-headhunting ritual performed by adult
villagers where new warriors are presented to the council.
The combat dances of the Bontoc, Ifugao and the Kalinga in the Cordillera Region commonly
represent the distinct bravery of their people. Kayaw is a headhunting expedition of the Kalinga
performed in a ritual calledIdaw. The ritual shows a bird of omen in which warriors observe insects
entering in an offered plate, that will later indicate the number of heads to be taken, upon a
consultation with a ritual practitioner called a Mandadawak. The Ifugao Monhim-ong ritual is a
dance-like activity after a violent death of a member of a community. The men move in a single file
rhythmically beating instruments called bangibang. The Kalinga also celebrate victory through
dancing. They perform the Takiling after a successful headhunting expedition of the Mingao or the
crowned heroes. Dressed with colorful lawi or rooster feathers on their head and accompanied by
the beating of the ganza (gong), this dance is performed by the Bodans. Another northern tribal
group, the Bontocs also depict their people's unique character through dancing. The
Bontocs' Pattong exhibits a mock combat dance where performers brandish head axes and spears
together with the clashing of shields. A bigger crowd dancing the Balangbang also shows a duel or
combat of two warriors who later joins them. In this dance, the hide and seek movements which
follow the rhythm of the ganza (gong) dramatize the killing. The dancing crowd shields the warriors
from clashing with each other. A closed dance formation represents the shielding and an open
dance formation depicts the duel or fight scene.
The most common among Philippine martial dances exhibit the use of equipment or hand props
with varied weapons such as head ax, spear, bow and arrow, shields, bolo, kris and knives. In
today's dancing, these weapons are considered already part of the dance as hand or body
properties are.
The proximity of Philippine shore to the Malay Peninsula accounts for Malay influences in the
martial dances particularly, those found in the islands of Jolo, Sulu, the southern most tip of the
archipelago. Langka, the term use to mean dance , has many types: Lanka-Silat, Langka-Pansak,
Langka-Lima andLangka Budyang. Langka Silat is a dance simulation of a fight in graceful and

flowing arm movement. This is almost the same as the Burong Talo, which is an imitative dance of
the fight between the cat and the eagle in flight. Also, of the langka tradition is the Langka-Pansak a variation of slow-paced movements punctuated by a momentary pause at the end of every stance
sometimes emphasized by the use of pis (over-sized handkerchief). Langka-Lima, on the other
hand, provides a combat variation featuring five defense positions. There is also the LangkaBudyang, the only martial dance variation performed by women in graceful leaps and kicks
characterized by feminine arm thrusts and the use of a fan. The semblance between and among
these martial dances is closely compared to other Asian martial arts movements related to the
Chinese Taichi and Kung-fu. In fact, the Langka-Silat is similar to an ancient Sumatran martial art
called bersilat of the Malakan Sultanate.
Down south, the Maguindanao display an intricate gesture and combat movement in a dance
calledSagayan-silat. Performed by a very fierce warrior carrying a shield and a kris, the dance
involves leaping, turning, jumping, kicking and the rolling movements of a warrior ready to defend
his master in battle. On most occasions, this dance is performed before any celebration or gathering
to drive away evil spirits and to welcome good fortunes or omen. The Manobo of Agusan del Sur
and del Norte pride themselves in the dance called Binanog. Here, the warrior mimics a combat
movement trying to fight the Banog (big eagle) in defense of a troubled hen and her chicks ending a
heroic display of killing the Banog. The Mandaya perform the Saot usingkasan (spear) with the
beating of gimbal (drum) and agong (big gong). The Subanon of Zamboanga del Norte perform a
combat-like gesture or movement in a dance called Sohten, a generic name for all male dances of
the Subanon. The warriors carry on their hands a cut of dried and crisp palm leaves and a
decorative shield with tinkling bells believed to have the best sound to please their gods.
Choreographed fighting also inspired the Filipinos to develop a dance called Sabong where
dancers imitate the movement of the fighting roosters.
These martial dances show Filipino bravery and a distinct cultural tradition marked by warriors
ready to defend their tribes or to avenge the death of their tribesmen. As such dancing indeed
becomes a form of expression mirroring clearly the soul of each tribe, of the nation.
KAYAW
Kayaw is a headhunting expedition of the Kalinga performed in a ritual called Idaw. The ritual shows
a bird of omen in which warriors observe insects entering in an offered plate, that will later indicate
the number of heads to be taken, upon a consultation with a ritual practitioner called
aMandadawak. The Ifugao Monhim-ong ritual is a dance-like activity after a violent death of a
member of a community. The men move in a single file rhythmically beating instruments
called bangibang. The Kalinga also celebrate victory through dancing. They perform
the Takiling after a successful headhunting expedition of the Mingao or the crowned heroes.
Dressed with colorful lawi or rooster feathers on their head and accompanied by the beating of
the ganza (gong), this dance is performed by the Bodans.Another northern tribal group, the Bontocs
also depict their people's unique character through dancing. The Bontocs' Pattong exhibits a mock
combat dance where performers brandish head axes and spears together with the clashing of
shields. A bigger crowd dancing the Balangbang also shows a duel or combat of two warriors who
later joins them. In this dance, the hide and seek movements which follow the rhythm of the ganza
(gong) dramatize the killing. The dancing crowd shields the warriors from clashing with each other.

A closed dance formation represents the shielding and an open dance formation depicts the duel or
fight scene.
SIKARAN
Sikaran is a distinct Filipino Martial Art that involves hand and foot fighting. As Sikaran is a general
term for kicking which is also used as the name of the kicking aspects of other Filipino Martial arts,
this article discusses the distinct art which is specifically practiced in the Rizal province that focuses
almost exclusively in kicking.

http://ncca.gov.ph/about-culture-and-arts/articles-on-c-n-a/article.php?igm=1&i=124
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikaran
http://dancepinoy.blogspot.com/2009/08/philippine-martial-dance.html
http://dancepinoy.blogspot.com/2009/04/tchunggas.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagayan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuntao