Philippine E-Journals

The Aeta Approach: Perceptions on, Expressions, and Importance of Kapwa

Marianne Ani | Faye Eusebio

 

Abstract:

This paper explores the heart of Filipino personhood which is kapwa. The idea of a shared self unlocks the significance of a treasured character that, despite modernity, has never lost its place in Filipino communitiesm. This study found through interviews with Aetas in Duhoc Balite, Botolan, Zambales that while certain core values may have changed at some point, the key factors of expression of kapwa among the respondents are still manifested. Kapwa, among the Aetas, still reflect a people-centered orientation and the endurance of th-is core concept among the indigenous peoples dislocated by calamity and industrialization. The paper concludes that the core concept of kapwa is still relevant in the lives of Aetas in Duhoc Balite and, as such, manifests it as an indigenous concept that remains even more intact in the context of climate change and disaster dislocation.