MUNICIPALITY OF LONGOS (LAGUNA), Historical Data of

At present, this town is officially known as Longos. In the early days, before the coming of the Spaniards to Longos, then known as "Tabing Dagat," was an uninhabited wilderness. Big trees called "anii" grew there abundantly. A species of this kind of tree may still be seen along the roadside between Lumban and the barrio of San Juan. How it got the name "Tabing Dagat" may possibly be due to its location on the shore of Laguna Lake.

According to records, Longos was created a pueblo (municipality) in 1678. Its name was never changed.

Juan Longos, a native of Lumban and a fisherman by occupation, was no doubt the founder of the settlement. The place was a good fishing ground. As the place was abundant in different kinds of fish, he was attracted to permanently settle the place with his wife. He built his hut near the shore. Because of his plentiful catch and good earnings, he invited his brothers-in-law, who were residing in Bay. Many of the couple's relatives from Lumban and from Bay followed them and decided also to live in the place. Since then, the inhabitants of the place had grown larger and larger.

After so many years, "Tabing Dagat" became inhabited by many people. Juan Longos, the pioneer fisherman and first settler of the place, was a brave, intelligent, industrious, and kind man. He was loved and respected by all the inhabitants. They regarded him as a ruler. They, at last, thought of naming the place after his second name.

Names of persons who held leading official positions in the community:

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Capitan Florencio Magsino Capitan Fermin Montes Capitan Aniceto Fadrigalan Capitan Roman Villanueva Capitan Canuto Sabio Capitan Rosendo Maganto

7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13.

Capitan Roman Macawili Capitan Manuel Ramiro Capitan Ceferino Angotero Capitan Francisco Villanueva Capitan Epifanio Montes Capitan Vicente Maganto Capitan Ludivico Macatangay

1. Father Santiago Suarez 2. Father Alejandro Corrales 3. Father Jesus Rodriguez 4. Father Francisco Pateño 5. Father Braulio 6. Father Castor Garcia 7. Father Felix Moya 8. Father Angel Gomez Platera 9. Father Winter

A Spanish priest -do- -do- -do- A Filipino priest A Spanish priest -do- -do- -do-

1. Judge Epifanio Montes

2. Judge Pedro Sabio

1. Sr. Venancio Bokawe - 1894
2. Sra. Juan Lopez - 1894
3. Sr. Eustaquio Natividad - 1895-1897
4. Sra. Juan Lopez - 1895-1896
5. Sra. Rosario Ramiro - 1897
6. Sr. Ramon Dalangin - 1898-1899
7. Sr. Juan Quezada - 1900-1901

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

President Pedro Sabio President Leon Valena President Mariano Granador President Turiano Montes President Isidro Nahamalan

6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

President Gregorio Adame President Gregorio Lafrades President Domingo Acuesa President Juan Cablit President Gregorio Molina

1. Judge Epifanio Montes 2. Judge Pedro Sabio 3. Judge Cirilo Villamin

1907-1910 1910-1928 1929-1938

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16.

Mr. Renato Asedillo Mr. Apolinario Matienzo Mr. Rosendo de la Fuente Mr. Eusebio Gallardo Mr. Reaslio Nadal Mr. Catalino Gallano Mr. Valeriano Acueza Mr. Fernando de la Mesa Mr. Estanislao Adelan Mr. Vicente Lisboa Mr. Gregorio Molina Mr. Andres Noble Mr. Mariano Ragesa Mr. Marcelino Banalan Mr. Fulgencio Cabusura Mr. David Villanueva

17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31.

Mr. Segundo Lisboa Mr. Juan Rellosa Mr. Arcadio Molina Mr. Tiburcio Bagulbagul Mr. Domingo Acueza Mr. Apolinario Galano Mr. S. Madrazo Mr. Jacinto Acupan Mr. Pedro Cabuena Mr. Mariano Tadique Mr. Rosendo Pacurib Mr. Jose Cabugasan Mr. Andres Pacuribot Mr. Andres Noble Mr. Juan Madrazo

1. 2. 3. 4.

Mr. Leon Valena Mr. Vicente Espiritu Mr. Javillenar Mr. Juan Alantos

5. 6. 7. 8.

Mr. Fabrig Mr. Engracio Aquino Mr. Vicente Santos Mr. Salitt

As to the coming to this new settlement of the Christian missionaries who were mostly Franciscans, no definite account was available. The first priest assigned there was Father Santiago Suarez. Through his ingenuity and leadersip, together with the cooperation of the townspeople, a chapel facing north was built. In 1852, it was destroyed by an earthquake. The remains still stand today. Another priest whose name was not recorded undertook the building of a new church. It was erected behind the former and facing west. The same priest worked hard for the erection of a schoolhouse called "Escolafia." This, too, was destroyed by an earthquake. The present schoolbuilding was built in its place during the American regime.

During the Spanish occupation, many events of interest took place. In 1896, there occurred a great conflagration which burned almost all the houses. In the same year, the insurgents or Katipuneros entered the town and kidnapped and killed Don Vicente Hernandez, a Spanish teniente mayor. This incident made the Spaniards so angry that they took one Ludovico Nadal and condemned him to death. The last Spanish teniente was Don Prequinto Estrella. He was also killed by the Katipuneros. Father Castro Garcia, a Spanish priest and sympathizer of the Filipino movement, was never molested by the Katipuneros. The maltreatment of the natives of Longos by the Spaniards grew so bad that they were obliged to take an active part in the revolution of 1896 under General Bino (Severino Taino [unsure, blurred]), a native of Pagsanjan. The evils of the Spanish administration were so [unreadable] that two able-bodied men, namely Hernando de la Rosa and Epifanio Rosales [unreadable] everything they could to free people from the [unreadable]

The Americans were good to the people. But they were in constant search of Epifanio Monte who, during that time, was the right-hand man of General Juan Cailles.

The Japanese were not good to the people. They looted people's properties. All important things that they could see were taken from the hands of the owners. Pedro Labanlaban and Numeriano Sabio were killed by the Japanese. Because of the Japanese maltreatment, the people themselves became guerrillas under the leadership of Mariano Montes.

On April 27, 1945, the church was bombed. Then, at about 12 o'clock A.M. of the same date, the Americans arrived. All the people were ordered to enter the town.

As informed, from the year 1896 to 1900, a great destruction of lives and properties occurred in the poblacion. Several important men in the community were killed by the Guardia Civil and, on the other hand, the Katipuneros were also forced to kill Spaniards and Filipinos who acted as spies. Farming was half-neglected because of the trouble.

In the years 1941 to 1945, there were also persons from this community who lost their lives. This was due to the war. The people were so much troubled that farming was also neglected, especially at the end of the war, because the Japanese cruelty became worse.

1. Birth - The manner of treating the mother and child after delivery is entirely different from the system applied at present. The cutting of the navel of the child, for example, is done by using "lapat" instead of scissors or knives. Lapat is a very small piece of bamboo, usually three inches long and one-half inch wide, both sides of which are sharp. In the belief that "taul" (beri-beri infantile) is driven away, the forehead, the chin, the cheeks, the edges of the ears, the the backs of each of the palms are scorched with a sudden touch of a piece of sharp, pointed coconut shell that is glowing. For its food on the first day, it is made to suck on a kind of nipple prepared by wrapping ampalaya leaves and dipping these in molasses. The mother is never allowed to drink cold water. The warm water of the boiled sarsaparilla (root of a medicinal plant) is given instead. For washing purposes, she is given the warm water of boiled guava leaves. For her bath, which is usuall given every eighth day, consists of boiled leaves and roots of different kinds of medicinal plants taht are sweet-scented.

2. Baptism - The child after birth is not baptized at once. The usual practice is to baptize the child after eight days or more. In some cases, baptism is much delayed even for a month or more. There is a common belief that if baptism is delayed, the child grows intelligent. Baptism, however, is given after a day or more when there is a sign that the child is going to die. The ceremony, which is called "buhos tubig," is performed by the midwife or some old folks who know how to recite what the priests say in a baptismal ceremony. It is the common belief that the child will die a Christian. Whether baptism is officiated by a priest or some laymen, there is usually proclaimed a godfather or a godmother. Custom has it that the godfather or godmother of a child baptized by a priest has more obligations to meet than the godfather in a "buhos tubig." He pays for the dress used by the child. In case of the child's death, he pays for the coffin, the music, and even for the entertainment [unreadable] the child.

3. Courtship - Courtship in the old days was never done without the knowledge of the parents of the girls. A young man who proposed his love to a young woman paid her a visit several times with the permission, of course, of the parents of the woman. If the young woman was in love, she informed her suitor to tell his parents to interview her parents to talk the matter over. The business was, in most cases, not settled in the first interview. A second interview called "tapusan" was necessary. If the proposal was accepted, many matters were agreed upon. The dowry in the form of money, land, house, or animals, the feast, the date of the marriage, and the sponsors or best men or best woman were decided. From the time of the marriage to the date of the marriage, the young man rendered service to the family of the young woman.

4. Marriage - The marriage ceremony is done in the church before a priest. After the ceremony, the newly-married pair goes around the town followed by a band. Upon reaching the house, they pay the necessary respects to the relatives of both sides. They are advised to perform the "galahan." The bridgegroom and bride approach everybody with their glasses of wine. Anyone approached will drink a little of the wine and then give a certain amount to the married couple. The money collected by them is kept for their own.

5. Death - Whenever there is a dead person in a certain house, it has been the practice by the relatives and friends to pay respect to the dead and to expresss sympathy to the bereaved. They sometimes give small amounts of money. At night, many people go to the dead person's house to help comfort the family of the deceased. They often play games like "tres siete." The young men and young ladies have their own games, too. They do this so that they will not fall sleepy. Oftentimes, they have also something to eat like boiled camote or bananas, coffee, and bread.

6. Burial - The custom of burial is also the same as of the present. Only, they don't use during those days the wooden coffins. But, instead, they wrapped the body in the mat where he was lying. Then, it was carried to the church for some blessings of a priest and then taken to the cemetery.

7. Visits - Relatives and friends have a custom of visiting each other. Oftentimes, they stay for three or more days. On their visits, they bring some food and other presents. During their stay, they also do the household work and help them in different activities in the house.

8. Festivals - The celebration of fiestas was not as elaborate as at present. They all prepared small amounts of food at home, and there was also a Mass in the church. They did not hire bands from other towns. At night, as a sort of entertainment for the public, they had "Moro-moro" plays.

1. Sun - If they rays of the setting sun are yellowish, this foretells bad weather.

2. Moon - If the moon is drooping at Mt. Banahaw, there will be rainy weather.

3. Stars - If we see many stars at night, the next day, the weather will be hot.

4. Eclipses - When the moon passes between the earth and the sun, we have an eclipse of the sun. When the earth is between the moon and the sun, we have a lunar eclipse.

5. Lightning - Lightning results from the electric discharge of electricity from the clouds and also the earth.

6. Clouds - When tiny particles of water in the air become so heavy that the atmosphere cannot carry them anymore, they are condensed and become as if they are condensed high above the earth's surface, then they are what we call clouds.

7. Storm - A storm is a mild form of typhoon. It is accompanied by lightning and thunder. It is not as destructive as a typhoon.

8. Changes of climate -

a. The current of the ocean.
b. The wind movements.
c. The proximity of bodies of water.
d. Altitude of places (above sea level).
e. The earth's rotation and position.
f. The heat that the earth receives.

Luha sa luha ang pinagkunan ko
Puso sa puso ang nag-atas nito
Kaya ang nangyari o buhay ng buhay
Walang ibang giliw kundi ikaw lamang.

Api mang yaring pagliyag
At nilimot na ng lahat
Ang nagdaang araw ay wala ng bakas
Sa puso ko nang ay bukas
At doon na nakalimbag
Walang tanging giliw kundi ikaw lamang.

Mula maghari ka sa aba kong lagay
Walang ligayang nahukal sa buhay
Dumahap ng aliw sa iyo ring hanggang
Kung bakin at hindi malimutang tunay.

Pusong sa bagabag kahimat libangin
Pagdaloy sa lungkot ikaw rin ang giliw
Yamang hindi sala, hindi pagtataksil
Matawiring yata ako'y papagkamtin.

Ako'y nagtanim ng granada
Sa tabi't piling ng laguerta
Paano kaya ang pagkuha
Walang kamay kundi paa
Sa talaga ng Poong Dios
Ang granada ay nahulog
Paano kaya ang pagsambot?
Walang kamay kundi tuhod
Sa talaga ng Poong Virhen
Ang granada ay nabitin
Walang kamay kundi ngipin.

Nagbulaklak ay di nagbuko
Nagbunga ay walang buto.

Isang malaking pension
Iisa ang uminom.

1. Pag may sinuksok ay may madudukot.
2. Kung ano ang tahim, siya ang aanihin.
3. Ano mang haba ng prusisyon, sa simbahan din ang tuloy.
4. Ang lumalakad ng matulin, kung matinik ay malalim.
5. Kung ang tubig ay malagaslas, arukin mo at mahibas.
6. Ang natural ng isang tao ay mahirap na mabago.
7. Walang pinagkikita na hindi nakikita.
8. Walang matimtimang virhen sa matiyagang manalangin.
9. Walang matibay na baging sa matiyagang maglambitin.
10. Kahoy mang babad sa tubig, sa apoy ay huag idirikit, pagka't kung madaran sa init, pilitang magdirikit.

1. By the position of the sun. When the sun is overhead and you can step on your shadow, it is already 12 o'clock noon.

2. The stars - When certain stars are shining, they give the time, too.

3. The bird "calo." Every time this bird sings, the people know the time.

4. With the use of cigarettes. The people often say that upon consuming one cigarette, they will be able to reach a certain place.

The names of Filipino authors born or residing in the community, titles and subjects of their works, whether printed or in manuscript form, and the names of the persons possessing them:

Authors Titles of their Works

Nature of Report Folkways ------------------	I N F O R M E R S 1. (SGD.) Angelo Sadsad 2. (SGD.) Ambrocia Sabidon 3. (SGD.) Nicolasa Badel 4. (SGD.) Santiago Magante
1. Judge Turiano Montes 2. Mrs. Natalia de Montes 3. Mrs. Pacifica Montes 4. Mr. Feliciano Badel
	Respectfully submitted: 1. (SGD.) NICOLAS ESPIRITU - Leader 2. (SGD.) Mrs. MAURA PALACIO - Member 3. (SGD.) Miss J. AFUANG - Member
APPROVED: (SGD.) FAUSTO M. ROBLES Principal

Transcribed from:

Historical Data of the Municipality of Longos, Province of Laguna, online at the National Library of the Philippines Digital Collections.