The traditional tattoos of the philippine cordillera region: A study on their differences in appearance, causes and discursive strengths

This paper attempts to investigate deep into the culture, practice and history of traditional tattooing in the Philippine Cordillera region by synoptically looking at them in the context of the eight major ethnolinguistic groups in this said region, namely: 1) the Ibaloy, 2) Kankana-ey, 3) Ifugao, 4) Bontok, 5) Southern Kalinga, 6) Northern Kalinga, 7) Itneg, and 8) Isneg. This paper is premised on a hermeneutic principle that comparisons and contrasts of related phenomena would lead to insights that are otherwise missed if the study were done on a single phenomenon. By looking at the earliest ethnographic materials about tattooing among these eight ethnolinguistic groups, this paper attempts to understand their similarities and differences in appearance, causes and discursive strengths, thereby establishing a historical baseline on tattooing in the said region immediately prior to the massive influx of modern and western influences mediated by the American occupation. This paper is the preliminary part of bigger project, funded by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts of the Republic of the Philippines, which aims to understand the historical fading of this traditional tattooing, to evaluate the current measures undertaken by various stakeholders to counteract such fading, and to propose additional measures that can be feasibly undertaken by such stakeholders.