Traditions in Philippine Courtship
In my country, having Spanish roots, we’ve established several traditions in the area of Courtship. Our culture is quite conservative especially in the olden days and it has been passed on over the years. There may be some alterations due to the introduction of pop culture and technology into the society but a large percentage of men and women in my country still uphold the same mentality despite of.
I can’t say that the following are still currently being practiced by all, but I reckon some still do.
- “Harana“
Serenade
Armed with just a guitar or their voices, the suitor, oftenly accompanied by his friends, posts under the girl’s window or in front of her residence and serenades her. This is their way of publicly admitting their intention. This marks the start of the courtship. - “Pag-akyat ng ligaw“
Visitation
This refers to the over-all act of courtship if you are to use the native language. However, this only forms a portion of the whole process since what I’m actually talking about is the act of visiting or calling on her in her home. This is a sign of respect especially for the parents since it’s somewhat forbidden or frowned upon when a guy would come up to a girl in public. Chaperones are mandatory. - “Paninilbihan“
ServitudeOnce a guy declares his intention of courting a girl, he is expected to render some service, particularly household chores, i.e. chopping of wood, fetching pails of water from a manual pump, for the duration of the courtship.
- “Pamamanhikan“
Meet the ParentsAlright, so I’m thinking of the movie but, hey, it’s the same idea, only bigger and it’s a party since we’re pretty big on extended families here. Hahaha. The guy and his family are expected to come over to the girl’s house and present some gifts. So, yea. This is the last step in the whole courtship thingie. It leads to marriage because that’s what it means when you go into the whole thing, that you want to marry the girl you’re going to court. So, you’re as good as engaged when it has been established and agreed upon that the feelings are mutual.
Whenever I hear stories that best illustrate these, I can’t help but smile. I hardly see any of them happening nowadays so when they do I relish on how some still value what make us Filipinos. So when I heard that my cousin did the “meet the parents” thingie over the weekend, I was happy to hear it.
Tags: Courtship, engagement, family, gender_relations, Meet-the-Parents, Philippine-Courtship, serenade, traditionsRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Dating in General
0 opinions for Traditions in Philippine Courtship
No one has left a comment yet. You know what this means, right? You could be first!
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: