Binalaybay Contest at Museo Iloilo on February 11
Students from high schools and colleges will show their mastery of the Hiligaynon language in the afternoon of Saturday, February 11, at the show room of Museo Iloilo. On this day and time, they will participate in a Binalaybay contest.
What is Binalaybay? It is poetry in Hiligaynon. It is how a man expresses himself about anything as when he woes a lady; say soothing words about a city or a barangay muse; proclaims a queen in a town fiesta and utters descriptive words on her highness, the "Queen" or tells a story about the school's anniversary or awakens the longing heart when in sadness. Poetry can have anything for a subject matter on which a poet may express himself in a language that is fitting to the mood he wishes to convey.
The Sumakwelans will again rekindle in the youth and adult alike during the Binalaybay contest on February 11, 2006, the theme: "Pasanyugon ang Hiligaynon nga Pulong sa Aton Pungsod," a deeper love for one's mother tongue. This is a timely challenge not only to our current generation but also to our upcoming youth who will hold high the torch of a literary form which is most familiar to all Ilonggos. The Sumakwelans hope that the contestants will be able to instill upon the audience during the contest on February 11 a new sense of appreciation for our native language.
The ten Bornean datus landed in Sirawagan River in San Joaquin, Iloilo between 1240 and 1250 A.D. But finally settled in Malandog, Antique, according to the early historians. Datu Puti who was the leader of the Bornean ten datus left Datu Sumakwel in Panay to oversee the settlements established in Antique and Aklan when he left for Borneo. The dialect then was Hinaray-a and Hiligaynon and was passed on to Panay natives. The old Bisayan was a combination of the Hiniray-a and Hiligaynon, the Bornean settlers spoke this language.
The Aklanons modified their dialect which is somewhat "pihit", the Antiqueños, mostly Hiniray-a or Kinaray-a; the Capizeños' Hiligaynon with an intonation; the Ilonggos with a mixture of Kinaray-a and Hiligaynon while the Guimarasnons and Negrenses speak fluent Ilonggo. But in all these Western Visayan provinces, Hiligaynon is the common language everyone can understand.