Wikipedia
Bahag is a loincloth that was commonly used throughout the Philippines before the arrival of European colonizers, and which is used by some indigenous tribes of the Philippines today - most notably the Cordillerans in Northern Luzon.
It is basically a hand-loomed piece of long cloth that is wrapped around a man's middle. The design of the weave is often unique to the tribe of the person wearing the Bahag, much like the Celtic Tartans were.
Modern bahags have since found their way to the lowlands as table runners, serviettes, and other decor and fashion accoutrements.
The Moro Muslim, Lumad, and Igorot peoples resisted Spanish rule unlike the Filipinos who submitted to the Americans and Spanish such as the Tagalog. The mixed Moro and Igorot Joseph Allen Ruanto-Ramirez wrote on how these Filipinos suffer from "Bahag syndrome" trying to compensate for their colonized mentality and culture by adopting Igorot clothing and faux Igorot tattoos. Eric John Ramos David authored the book Brown Skin, White Minds: Filipino-/American Postcolonial Psychology (with Commentaries) on this topic. E. J. R. David authored the book Filipino-American Postcolonial Psychology: Oppression, Colonial Mentality, and Decolonization. The King Philip II colonial derived name "Philippines" is held in scorn by Moro Muslims and instead Maharlika is favored as a better native origin name.
Bahag may refer to:
- Bahag (garment), a type of loincloth worn in the Philippines
- Simeon Kayyara or Bahag, 9th-century Jewish author