| Also Known As: Inati,Ati
Description:
The Ati is a Negrito ethnic group in Panay, which is located in the Visayas (Islands of Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor, Leyte, Samar, Panay, Masbate, Negros and Guimaras), the central portion of the Philippine archipelago. They are genetically-related to other Negrito ethnic groups in the Philippines such as the Aeta of Luzon, the Batak of Palawan, and the Mamanwa of Mindanao.
In the Philippines the Aetas or Ati ancestors were the 'aboriginals' or the 'first' inhabitants of this Archipelago. They most probably arrived from Borneo (perhaps departing from the ethnic group ‘Sepang') 20-30,000 years ago, through what is thought to be an isthmus (today what remains of that is the island of Palawan) that in the prehistoric epoch connected the Philippine archipelago to that malay land, via a land bridge covered 5000 years ago by sea waters.
According to some oral traditions, they also pre-date the Bisaya, who now inhabit most of the Visayas. Legends, such as those involving the Ten Bornean Datus and the Binirayan Festival, tell tales about how, at the beginning of the XII century, the ancestors of the Bisaya escaped from Borneo from the persecution of Rajah Makatunaw. Led by Datu Puti and Datu..... full article at Wikipedia |
