Courtship In The Philippines Before And Now – How They Court Women
COURTSHIP IN THE PHILIPPINES – In this topic, we wil now know how courtship in the Philippines was before and nowadays.
Before
According to NIU, the term used is panliligaw or ligawan, which is synonymous to the term pandidiga or digahan (diga means “to say or express”.
It was more subdued and indirect compared to Western customs. When a man is interested in a woman. He has to be discreet ad friendly primarily so that he will not look too boastful or aggressive.
Usually, friendly dates comes first and it is usually with a group of friends. The couples will usually go out on their own but still discreet. Families and friends will know of their romance once they decided to do so.
The man will usually visit the house and family of the woman to formally introduce himself to the girl’s parents as this is an appropriate gesture.
Men, with his friends would also would serenade the woman ,or harana in local terms, at night to sing songs of love and affection. This is a Spanish influence.
The Filipina maiden is expected to play hard to get as an appropriate gesture, especially in a courtship dance. That way, she tells the man to work hard to earn her love.
After a long courtship, they will decide to marry. A tradition called pamamanhikan, is characterized by visiting her parents to ask for their blessing to marry their daughter and at the same time, know the family of the man.
Today
The traditional style still exists, only with modern-day influences. Now, technology became a vital part of today’s courtship as they are usually conversing via text messages or online conversations.
Serenading has been long gone in the modern times but the standards of courting a woman still exists.
READ ALSO: HILARIOUS WORDS: Funny, Unexpected Words Added To The Dictionary