Project to digitize Manobo epic ‘Ulahingan’ wins $5K grant

A project to digitize a Manobo epic has received a $5,000 grant from EMC Corporation.

The Filipinas Heritage Library's Ulahingan Digitization project placed third in the US multinational IT provider's Heritage Trust contest, held for cultural initiatives with a digital preservation component. This is the first time an entry from the Philippines reached the finals.

According to the FHL in a statement, the Ulahingan is a major Manobo epic, its name coming from the word “ulahing,” meaning to sing and chant.

Containing 79 episodes, with 4,000 to 6,000 lines per episode, the Ulahingan is chanted over several days, an oral tradition passed down from one generation to the next.

This photo of a Manobo couple was taken in 1900. The Manobo community consider the Ulahingan one of their major epics. Photo: Surigao Diocesan Collection

The epic was orally recorded on an estimated 1,200 audio reels and cassette tapes and compiled by the late Silliman University professor Dr. Elena Maquiso.

The Ulahingan project will convert these into playable digital sound files, as the old media storage formats are expected to last only two to three more years before they deteriorate.

The Ulahingan is currently stored in old media formats at great risk of deterioration. Photo: Filipinas Heritage Library

Digitization preserves the Ulahingan for future generations. Photo: Filipinas Heritage Library

"These recordings contain generations of oral traditions that may not be recreated again. These contain histories of a communion of people from long ago that has been passed on to their descendants and succeeding generations. As today's world is characterized by globalization and Filipino diaspora that pose a challenge to a nation's character, this project will serve as an instrument to protect and uphold the Filipino identity," the FHL said in the release. — BM, GMA News