The world abounds with famous legends, and today, people can visit the modern-day locations where these stories originated to explore their rich historical and cultural significance. Unlike purely fictional myths, legends are often rooted in a seed of truth, emerging from historical events, notable individuals, or real-life experiences that became part of collective cultural memory (Banda et al., 2024). As Valentine (2023) explained, these stories evolve through generations, often acquiring embellishments or distortions that make them more memorable, relatable, and entertaining.
In the Philippines, myths and legends remain integral to cultural expression, often shared as a means of instilling moral values in children. For example, the well-known tale explaining why pineapples have multiple “eyes” reflects ancestral practices and daily life, while also imparting lessons relevant to Filipino values. Storytellers emphasize that such legends carry meaningful insights into the lives of Filipinos. By learning these narratives, individuals gain a deeper understanding of the mindsets and perspectives of their forebears, thereby enriching cultural identity and self-awareness (Sevilla-Pavón & Alcantud-Díaz, 2021; Pastera, 2024).
Legends also hold particular significance for the people of Antique. One of the most enduring stories recalls the arrival of the ten Bornean Datus and Datu Sumakwel’s landing in Malandog, now part of Hamtic, Antique. Many legends from the province also explain the origins of local place names. Jocano (1965), for instance, documented twenty-six place-name legends from Antique to examine their functions within local communities, underscoring the cultural relevance of storytelling traditions.
In Culasi, origin stories tied to place names such as the legends of Mararison and Batbatan continue to be shared by local elders, with multiple versions reflecting the richness of oral tradition. Despite growing academic attention to Antique, the cultural role of storytelling in shaping Culasi’s identity, particularly through the narratives surrounding Mt. Madja-as, remains underexplored. While Culasi is increasingly recognized as a premier destination in Antique, limited scholarly focus has been placed on the origins and cultural meanings of its places, especially in relation to events such as the Madja-as Festival.
The legend of Madja-as continues to thrive in the collective consciousness of Culasinos through narratives passed down across generations. Younger members of the community still value the stories shared by elders, sustaining awareness of Madja-as’s historical and cultural importance. Today, the legend is further celebrated through the municipality’s annual foundation observance, during which Mt. Madja-as is honored as a symbol of heritage and identity.
Bibliography
Agonos, M. J. (2018). Shaped by the waters: The influence of folk narratives in community practices and community formation (Master’s thesis). University of the Philippines.
Astorga, J. M. (2025). Identifying Greek mythological characters in Philippine mythology using archetypal theory among BSED-English students at Granby Colleges of Science and Technology. Journal of Contemporary Philosophical and Anthropological Studies, 3(2). https://doi.org/10.59652/jcpas.v3i2.407
Banda, L. O. L., Banda, C. V., Banda, J. T., & Singini, T. (2024). Preserving cultural heritage: A community-centric approach to safeguarding the Khulubvi Traditional Temple Malawi. Heliyon, 10(18), e37610. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e37610
Banico-Villaruel, R. (2014). Unearthing mythological legends of local communities in Pontevedra, Capiz, Philippines. JPAIR Multidisciplinary Research, 16(1), 131–144. https://doi.org/10.7719/jpair.v16i1.275
Cordero, E. (2019). Literatures of Western Visayas: Collection and categorization. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 1254, 012038. https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/1254/1/012038
Garcia, J. N. C. (2015, November). Myth and the creative. Keynote at the Second National Conference on the Sugidanon (Epics) of Panay, University of the Philippines Visayas, Iloilo Campus.
Jocano, F. L. (1965). Twenty-three place-name legends from Antique Province, Philippines. Asian Studies, 3(1).
José Luis Usó Doménech, Gash, H., Nescolarde-Selva, J. A., & Segura-Abad, L. (2024). Mythical systems: Sign and symbol. Kybernetes, 53(10), 3401–3429. https://doi.org/10.1108/K-01-2023-0140
Lawrence, T. N., & Rine, J. (2012). Collective identity narratives: Historical and emergent stories of selfhood in a deindustrializing community. In N. K. Denzin (Ed.), Studies in symbolic interaction (Vol. 39). Emerald Group Publishing Limited. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0163-2396
Mangarin, R. A., & Bungabong, R. A. D. (2024). Women through the lens of Philippine literature: Analysis of notable and inspiring traits. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 8(10), 2784–2794. https://doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2024.8100233
Ogdoc-Gascon, D. (2015). Legends: Mirror of a people’s mind. GSTF Journal of Law and Social Sciences (JLSS), 4(2).
Pastera, R. J. (2024). Unveiling the veil: Intangible cultural heritage and the Filipino college students. Journal of Ethnic and Cultural Studies, 11(2), 25–41. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejecs/1818
Sevilla-Pavón, A., & Alcantud-Díaz, M. (2021). Tales from the Philippines: Fostering intercultural language learning through a literary journey around the Philippine archipelago. In L. Escobar & A. Ibáñez Moreno (Eds.), Mediating specialized knowledge and L2 abilities (pp. xxx–xxx). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-87476-6_16
Sugue, S., & Reyes, M. (2022). Rediscovering the value of Philippine mythology for Philippine schools: Literature review. International Journal of Language and Literary Studies, 4(3), 329–341. https://doi.org/10.36892/ijlls.v4i3.1057
Talaguit, C. J. (2021, February). Pisting yawa: The devil who was once a Bisayan deity. The 14th De La Salle University Arts Congress.
Valentine, J. (2023). The persuasive nature of mythology and folklore through human behavior, entertainment, and popular culture (Integrated Studies, No. 444). Murray State University. https://digitalcommons.murraystate.edu/bis437/444
Walsh, A. (2020). Rendering 20th century Peruvian folklore for a 21st century reader: Translation and analysis of Peruvian folktales and mythology (Master’s thesis, Minnesota State University, Mankato). Cornerstone: A Collection of Scholarly and Creative Works for Minnesota State University, Mankato. https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/etds/1075
