Professional Documents
Culture Documents
The legend says that in the 13th century, 10 datus or chieftains from Borneo
left their land together with their families and friends to escape the cruelty
and injustice of Sultan Makatunaw, the ruler of Borneo. The ten datus were:
Datu Puti (the leader), Datu Bangkaya, Datu Dumalugdog, Datu Sumakwel,
Datu Lubay, Datu Paiburong, Datu Dumangsil, Datu Balensusa, Datu Paduhinog
and Datu Dumangsol. They sailed on their balangays (vintas or boats) without
knowing where to go. Finally they reached Panay Island. They bought the
island from the chieftain of the Atis or Aetas who were then occupying the
island. The chieftain's name was Marikudo and his wife was Maniwantiwan.
Three of the datus decided not to settle in Panay but to sail northward. The
three were: Datu Puti, Datu Balensusa and Datu Dumangsil. They settled in
some parts of Luzon. When Sultan Makatunaw was no longer in power, Datu
Puti returned to Borneo. The seven datus who stayed in Panay divided the
island into three areas: Hamtik (now Antique), Irong-Irong (now Iloilo), and
Aklan (now Aklan and Capiz). Hamtik was under Datu Sumakwel, Irong-Irong
was under Datu Paiburong, and Aklan was under Datu Balangkaya.
The story of the buying of Panay by ten datus coming from Borneo is told in
the Maragtas, a legendary account about the pre-Spanish Panay Island. This
narrative tells us that about A.D. 1250, at about the time Malaysia and
Indonesia were dominated by the Hindu-Malay Empire of Sri-Vijaya, a cruel
sultan named Makatunaw ruled Borneo–or perhaps part of it. Because he was
cruel, ten of his datus decided to leave Borneo and seek their freedom and
fortune beyond the sea.
One dark night after loading on boats their families, warriors, slaves, and
supplies, they secretly left in their balangays (boats) without a specific
destination in mind. After sailing north for many days, they reached the
southern tip of Panay Island. They landed at the mouth of the Sirwagan
River there, near the present town of San Joaquin in Iloilo. From there they
proceeded to Lake Andona where they met an Ati fisherman. This man led
them to the Negrito village of Sinugbuhan and was introduced to the local
ruler, King Marikudo and his queen, Maniwantiwan. Datu Puti addressed them
and said they came as friends and would like to buy land.
Marikudo consulted his wife and the elders of his kingdom and agreed to sell
some land to them. The purchase price consisted of a gold salakot (a native
helmet) for Marikudo and a long gold sumangyad (necklace) for
Maniwantiwan. The sale was sealed by a pact of friendship and merry
feasting. After that, Marikudo and his people bade farewell to the Borneans
and went into the hills.
Datu Puti
Branding
Datu Puti is a combination of the surname of Reyes' mother (Dátu), and the
Filipino translation of the color white ("puti"), which is a primary color of the
traditional palm or sukang paombong. The logo used for the brand features
the image of a datu.