Karakoa

Last updated

Artist's reconstruction of classic Philippine caracoa, by Raoul Castro Raoul Castro's reconstruction of Philippine caracoa.jpg
Artist's reconstruction of classic Philippine caracoa, by Raoul Castro
A Spanish-owned juanga, which is what Spaniards called a large karakoa, from Historia de las islas e indios de Bisayas (1668) by Francisco Ignacio Alcina Joangan, or the Spanish-built Joanga.jpg
A Spanish-owned juanga , which is what Spaniards called a large karakoa, from Historia de las islas e indios de Bisayas (1668) by Francisco Ignacio Alcina

Karakoa were large outrigger warships from the Philippines. They were used by native Filipinos, notably the Kapampangans and the Visayans, during seasonal sea raids. Karakoa were distinct from other traditional Philippine sailing vessels in that they were equipped with platforms for transporting warriors and for fighting at sea. During peacetime, they were also used as trading ships. Large karakoa, which could carry hundreds of rowers and warriors, were known as joangas (also spelled juangas ) by the Spanish.

Contents

Panday Piray of Pampanga, Philippines, was also known for forging heavy bronze lantaka to be mounted on Lakan's (Naval Chief/Commander) ships called 'caracoas' doing battle against the Spanish invaders and cannons were also commissioned by Rajah Sulayman for the fortification of Maynila.

By the end of the 16th century, the Spanish denounced karakoa ship-building and its usage. It later led to a total ban of the ship and the traditions assigned to it. In recent years, the revitalization of karakoa ship-building and its usage are being pushed by some scholars from Pampanga.[ citation needed ]

Etymology

Superstructure of a Visayan caracoa (side view) Superstructure of a Visayan caracoa.jpg
Superstructure of a Visayan caracoa (side view)

Karakoa was usually spelled as "caracoa" during the Spanish period. The name and variants thereof (including caracora, caracore, caracole, corcoa, cora-cora, and caracolle) were used interchangeably with various other similar warships from maritime Southeast Asia, like the kora kora of the Maluku Islands. [1] [2]

The origin of the names are unknown. Some authors propose that it may have been derived from Arabic qurqur (pl. qaraqir) meaning "large merchant ship" via Portuguese caracca (carrack). However, this is unlikely as the oldest Portuguese and Spanish sources never refer to it as "caracca", but rather "coracora", "caracora" or "carcoa". The Spanish historian Antonio de Morga explicitly says that the name karakoa is ancient and indigenous to the Tagalog people in Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas (1609). There are also multiple cognates in the names of other vessels of Austronesian vessels (some with no contact with Arab traders) like the Ivatan karakuhan , Malay kolek , Acehnese kolay, Maluku kora kora , Banda kolekole, Motu kora, and the Marshallese korkor . Thus it is more likely that it is a true Malayo-Polynesian word and not a loanword. [3]

Description

Karakoa is a type of balangay (Philippine lashed-lug plank boats). [3] It can be differentiated from other balangay in that they possessed raised decks ( burulan ) amidships and on the outriggers, as well as S-shaped outrigger spars. They also had sharply curved prows and sterns, giving the ships a characteristic crescent shape. Their design was also sleeker and faster than other balangay, even though karakoa were usually much larger. Like balangay, they can be used for both trade and war. Their main use, however, were as warships and troop transports during the traditional seasonal sea raids (mangayaw) or piracy (especially against European trade ships). They were estimated to have speeds of up to 12 to 15 knots. [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

18th-century engraving of a karakoa
from The Discovery and Conquest of the Molucco and Philippine Islands (1711) by Bartolome Leonardo de Argensola, translated into English by John Stevens Caracoa (Karakoa).jpg
18th-century engraving of a karakoa from The Discovery and Conquest of the Molucco and Philippine Islands (1711) by Bartolomé Leonardo de Argensola, translated into English by John Stevens

The Spanish priest Francisco Combés described karakoa in great detail in 1667. He was also impressed by the speed and craftsmanship of the vessels, remarking: [10]

"That care and attention, which govern their boat-building, cause their ships to sail like birds, while ours are like lead in this regard."

Francisco Combés, Historia de las islas de Mindanao, Iolo y sus adyacentes (1667)

Like other outrigger vessels, karakoa had very shallow drafts, allowing them to navigate right up to the shoreline. The hull was long and narrow and was made from lightweight materials. The entire vessel can be dragged ashore when not in use or to protect it from storms. [5] [7] [8]

An illustration from Historia de las Islas e Indios de Bisayas depicting a tattooed Visayan horo-han (commoner warrior) with a leaf-shaped paddle (bugsay
). The horo-han
served as paddlers and warriors for karakoa
, they were seated on platforms (daramba
) mounted on the outriggers. Ulipon - Philippines (c.1668).jpg
An illustration from Historia de las Islas e Indios de Bisayas depicting a tattooed Visayan horo-han (commoner warrior) with a leaf-shaped paddle (bugsay). The horo-han served as paddlers and warriors for karakoa, they were seated on platforms (daramba) mounted on the outriggers.

The keel was essentially a dugout made from the single trunk of hardwoods like tugas ( Vitex parviflora ) or tindalo ( Afzelia rhomboidea ). Strakes were built up along the sides of the keel, forming the hull. They were usually made from lawaan wood ( Shorea spp.) and were tightly fitted to the keel and with each other by dowels reinforced further with fiber lashings (usually from sugar palm) on carved lugs. Ribs for support and seating connected the strakes across, which were also lashed together with fiber. The use of dowels and lashings instead of nails made the hull flexible, able to absorb collisions with underwater objects that would have shattered more rigid hulls. Strongly curved planks were fitted at both ends of the keel, giving the ship a crescent-shaped profile. These were usually elaborately carved into serpent or dragon ( bakunawa ) designs. Tall poles festooned with colorful feathers or banners were also affixed here, called the sombol (prow) and the tongol (stern). [note 1] The anterioposterior symmetry allowed the boat to reverse direction quickly by simply having the rowers turn around in their seats. [5] [7] [8]

Karakoa had tripod bamboo masts (two or three in larger vessels), rigged with either crab-claw sails or rectangular tanja sails (lutaw). The sails were traditionally made from woven plant fibers (like nipa), but were later replaced with materials like linen. In addition to the sails, karakoa had a crew of rowers (usually horohan warriors from the alipin caste) with paddles (bugsay), [note 2] or oars (gaod or gaor) [note 3] on either side of the hull. In between the rowers was an open space used as a passage for moving fore and aft of the ship. Various chants and songs kept the pace and rhythm of the rowers. Above the rowers was a distinctive raised platform ( burulan ) made of bamboo where warriors ( timawa ) and other passengers stood, so as to avoid interfering with the rowers. This platform can be covered by an awning of woven palm leaves (kayang, Spanish: cayanes) during hot days or when it rains, protecting the crew and cargo. Karakoa lacked a central rudder and was instead steered by large oars controlled by the nakhoda (helmsman) seated in a covered structure near the back of the ship. These oars could be raised at a moment's notice to avoid obstructions like shallow reefs. [7] [8]

The hull was connected to the outrigger structure, which was composed of the S-shaped crosswise outrigger spars (tadik) attached to the outrigger floats (katig or kate) at water level. The katig provided stability and additional buoyancy, preventing the boat from capsizing even when the hull is entirely flooded with water. The katig, like the hull itself, curve upwards at both ends, minimizing drag and preventing rolling. Katig were usually made with large bamboo poles traditionally fire hardened and bent with heat. In between the katig and the hull was another lengthwise beam called the batangan. This served as the support structure for two additional burulan on either side of the boat called the pagguray, as well as additional seating for rowers called daramba . [7] [8]

Karakoa can reach up to 25 metres (82 ft) in length. Very large karakoa can seat up to a hundred rowers on each side and dozens warriors on the burulan . [5] [7] [8] Vessels of this size were usually royal flagships and were (inaccurately) referred to by the Spanish as joangas or juangas (sing. joanga, Spanish for "junk", native dyong or adyong). [8] [11]

Sea raiding

Karakoa were an integral part of the traditional sea raiding (mangayaw) of Filipino thalassocracies. They were maritime expeditions (usually seasonal) against enemy villages for the purposes of gaining prestige through combat, taking plunder, and capturing slaves or hostages (sometimes brides). [5]

Before a raid, Visayans performed a ceremony called the pagdaga, where the prow and the keel of the karakoa warships were smeared with blood drawn from a captured member of the target enemy settlement. Karakoa and attending smaller ships usually raid in fleets called an abay. A fast scout ship, called a dulawan (lit. "visitor") or lampitaw, is usually sent in advance of the abay. If intercepted by defending enemy ships, karakoa can engage in ship-to-ship battles called bangga. The pursuit of enemy ships is called banggal. [5]

Warriors aboard karakoas were shielded from projectiles by removable panels of bamboo or woven nipa, in addition to kalasag personal shields. They were commonly armed with various swords like the kalis and metal-tipped spears called bangkaw . In addition, karakoa also had throwing javelins called sugob, which were thrown in large numbers at enemy ships. Unlike the bangkaw, they didn't have metal tips and were meant to be disposable. They were made from sharpened bagakay ( Schizostachyum lumampao ) bamboo whose compartments were filled with sand to add weight for throwing. They sometimes had wooden tips laced with snake venom. Short-ranged bows (pana or busog) were also sometimes used in close-quarter volleys at enemy ships. [5]

Like other ships for trade and war in maritime Southeast Asia, karakoa were also usually armed with one or more bronze or brass swivel guns called lantaka , [5] and sometimes also larger guns. [12]

There was a great deal of honor involved in participating in a raid. Exploits during raids were recorded permanently in the tattoos of Visayan warriors and nobility ( timawa and tumao ), earning them the name of pintados ("the painted ones") from the Spanish. [5]

See also

Notes

  1. Tongol means "to behead" or "severed head" in Visayan, which may have been the original item placed on the stern pole
  2. Bugsay were carved from a single piece of wood, around 1 m (3.3 ft) in length, with leaf-shaped blades
  3. Gaod had disc-shaped blades

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outrigger boat</span> Boat with one or more lateral support floats

Outrigger boats are various watercraft featuring one or more lateral support floats known as outriggers, which are fastened to one or both sides of the main hull. They can range from small dugout canoes to large plank-built vessels. Outrigger boats can also vary in their configuration, from the ancestral double-hull configuration (catamarans), to single-outrigger vessels prevalent in the Pacific Islands and Madagascar, to the double-outrigger vessels (trimarans) prevalent in Island Southeast Asia. They are traditionally fitted with Austronesian sails, like the crab claw sails and tanja sails, but in modern times are often fitted with petrol engines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vinta</span> Traditional outrigger boat from the Philippine island of Mindanao

The vinta is a traditional outrigger boat from the Philippine island of Mindanao. The boats are made by Sama-Bajau, Tausug and Yakan peoples living in the Sulu Archipelago, Zamboanga peninsula, and southern Mindanao. Vinta are characterized by their colorful rectangular lug sails (bukay) and bifurcated prows and sterns, which resemble the gaping mouth of a crocodile. Vinta are used as fishing vessels, cargo ships, and houseboats. Smaller undecorated versions of the vinta used for fishing are known as tondaan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basnig</span> Fishing technique

Basnig or balasnig are lift nets (salambaw) operated by a large outrigger boat called Basnigan. They use a large bag net suspended directly below or beside the ship. This net is attached to multiple temporary booms projecting from the ship's outriggers and detachable auxiliary masts. Modern basnig typically use generators and electric lights to attract fish and squid. This method is unique to the Philippines. It is common in the Visayas, particularly in the provinces of Capiz and Iloilo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kora kora</span> Traditional Indonesian canoe

A kora-kora or kora kora or coracora is a traditional canoe from the Maluku (Moluccas) Islands, Indonesia. They are naval boat for carrying men on raids for plunder or for slaves. In Maritime Southeast Asia, raiding for slaves was an honourable way of making a living, and the kora kora was needed for defence against raids as well as for forays. Large kora-kora is called juanga or joanga.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paraw</span> Sail boat type (Philippines)

Paraw are various double outrigger sail boats in the Philippines. It is a general term and thus can refer to a range of ship types, from small fishing canoes to large merchant lashed-lug plank boats with two outriggers (katig) propelled by sails

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Balangay</span> Type of lashed-lug boat

A balangay, or barangay, is a type of lashed-lug boat built by joining planks edge-to-edge using pins, dowels, and fiber lashings. They are found throughout the Philippines and were used largely as trading ships up until the colonial era. The oldest known balangay are the eleven Butuan boats, which have been carbon-dated individually from 689 to 988 CE and were recovered from several sites in Butuan, Agusan del Norte. The Butuan boats are the single largest concentration of lashed-lug boat remains of the Austronesian boatbuilding traditions. They are found in association with large amounts of trade goods from East Asia, Southeast Asia, and as far as Persia, indicating they traded as far as the Middle East.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warfare in pre-colonial Philippines</span> Military unit

Warfare in pre-colonial Philippines refers to the military history of the Philippines prior to Spanish colonization.

Joanga or juanga is Spanish for "junk". It can also refer to other large native ships in Southeast Asia, including:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lanong</span> Type of warship from the Philippines

Lanong were large outrigger warships used by the Iranun and the Banguingui people of the Philippines. They could reach up to 30 m (98 ft) in length and had two biped shear masts which doubled as boarding ladders. They also had one to three banks of oars rowed by galley slaves. They were specialized for naval battles. They were prominently used for piracy and slave raids from the mid-18th century to the early 19th century in most of Southeast Asia. The name lanong is derived from Lanun, an exonym of the Iranun people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Garay (ship)</span>

Garay were traditional native warships of the Banguingui people in the Philippines and were used by the Bruneian Navy. In the 18th and 19th centuries, they were commonly used for piracy by the Banguingui and Iranun people against unarmed trading ships and raids on coastal settlements in the regions surrounding the Sulu Sea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lepa (ship)</span> Boats of the Southeast Asian Sama-Bajau people

Lepa, also known as lipa or lepa-lepa, are indigenous ships of the Sama-Bajau people in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia. They were traditionally used as houseboats by the seagoing Sama Dilaut. Since most Sama have abandoned exclusive sea-living, modern lepa are instead used as fishing boats and cargo vessels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bangka (boat)</span> Traditional Filipino watercraft with outriggers

Bangka are various native watercraft of the Philippines. It originally referred to small double-outrigger dugout canoes used in rivers and shallow coastal waters, but since the 18th century, it has expanded to include larger lashed-lug ships, with or without outriggers. Though the term used is the same throughout the Philippines, "bangka" can refer to a very diverse range of boats specific to different regions. Bangka was also spelled as banca, panca, or panga in Spanish. It is also known archaically as sakayan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orembai</span> Type of boat from the Maluku Islands of Indonesia

Orembai or Arombai is a type of plank boat from the Maluku Islands of Eastern Indonesia. It is mainly used for fishing and transport. This vessel is used as far as Batavia, where in the 17th century it became popular to go out "orembaaien" on an evening rowing on the river or city canals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Djenging</span>

Djenging is a type of large double-outrigger plank boat built by the Sama-Bajau people of the Philippines. It is typically used as a houseboat, though it can be converted to a sailing ship. It was the original type of houseboat used by the Sama-Bajau before it was largely replaced by the lepa after World War II. Larger versions of djenging were also known as balutu or kubu, often elaborately carved with bifurcated extensions on the prow and stern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bangkong</span> War boat of Dayak people

Bangkong is the war boat of dayak people, notably used by sea dayaks of Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. They are used for riverine warfare in Borneo, but they are also capable of sailing across the sea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lashed-lug boat</span> Boat construction method from Maritime Southeast Asia

Lashed-lug boats are ancient boat-building techniques of the Austronesian peoples. It is characterized by the use of raised lugs on the inner face of hull planks. These lugs have holes drilled in them so that other hull components such as ribs, thwarts or other structural components can be tied to them with natural fiber ropes. This allows a structure to be put together without any metal fastenings. The planks are further stitched together edge-to-edge by sewing or using dowels ("treenails") unto a dugout keel and the solid carved wood pieces that form the caps for the prow and stern. Characteristically, the shell of the boat is created first, prior to being lashed unto ribs. The seams between planks are also sealed with absorbent tapa bark and fiber that expands when wet or caulked with resin-based preparations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Juanga (ship)</span> Large-sized kora-kora or karakoa

A juanga or joanga refers to large-sized kora-kora, karakoa and lanong. They are used all throughout the Philippines and Eastern Indonesia, in Maluku smaller versions were popular and are still used to this day (Kora-kora). They are propelled by oars but are not used for carrying cargo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burulan</span>

Burulan is a Visayan term referring to fighting platforms on the traditional large trimaran warships (balangay) of the Philippines. They were made from bamboo and were distinctively raised from the deck. They carried the warrior-nobility of the Visayans and other passengers during travel, naval warfare, and seasonal coastal raids (mangayaw), so as to avoid interfering with the paddlers. This platform can be covered by an awning of woven palm leaves during hot days or when it rains, protecting the crew and cargo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daramba</span>

Daramba is a Visayan term referring to paddling and fighting platforms mounted directly on the outriggers (katig) of traditional large trimaran warships (balangay) of the Philippines. They accommodated one or more rows on each side of commoner warriors (horo-han) with large leaf-shaped paddles (bugsay) during travel, naval warfare, and seasonal coastal raids (mangayaw). The paddlers were kept in rhythm by various chants and songs. The platforms for the horo-han are distinguished from the side-mounted fighting platforms (pagguray) of the warrior-nobility, which were also built on the outriggers, in that the daramba was mounted on or near the water surface, while the pagguray was mounted above, closer to the hull.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Austronesian vessels</span> Sailing vessels of Austronesian peoples

Austronesian vessels are the traditional seafaring vessels of the Austronesian peoples of Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar. They also include indigenous ethnic minorities in Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand, Hainan, the Comoros, and the Torres Strait Islands.

References

  1. Charles P.G. Scott (1896). "The Malayan Words in English (First Part)". Journal of the American Oriental Society. 17: 93–144.
  2. Raymond Arveiller (1999). Max Pfister (ed.). Addenda au FEW XIX (Orientalia). Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für romanische Philologie. Vol. 298. Max Niemeyer. p. 174. ISBN   9783110927719.
  3. 1 2 Haddon, A. C. (January 1920). "The Outriggers of Indonesian Canoes" (PDF). The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland. 50: 69–134. doi:10.2307/2843375. JSTOR   2843375.
  4. Scott, William Henry (1982). "Boat-Building and Seamanship in Classic Philippine Society" (PDF). Philippine Studies. 30 (3): 334–376.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 William Henry Scott (1994). Barangay. Sixteenth-Century Philippine Culture and Society. Ateneo de Manila University Press. ISBN   9715501389.
  6. Aurora Roxas-Lim. "Traditional Boatbuilding and Philippine Maritime Culture" (PDF). International Information and Networking Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region, UNESCO. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 12, 2019. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Patricia Calzo Vega (June 1, 2011). "The World of Amaya: Unleashing the Karakoa". GMA News Online. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Emma Helen Blair & James Alexander Robertson, ed. (1906). The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898.
  9. Bartolomé Leonardo de Argensola (1711). "The Discovery and Conquest of the Molucco and Philippine Islands.". In John Stevens (ed.). A New Collection of Voyages and Travels, into several Parts of the World, none of them ever before Printed in English. p. 61.
  10. Francisco Combés (1667). Historia de las islas de Mindanao, Iolo y sus adyacentes : progressos de la religion y armas Catolicas.
  11. Antonio T. Carpio. "Historical Facts, Historical Lies, and Historical Rights in The West Philippine Sea". Institute for Maritime and Ocean Affairs. pp. 8, 9.
  12. James Francis Warren (2007). The Sulu Zone, 1768-1898: The Dynamics of External Trade, Slavery, and Ethnicity in the Transformation of a Southeast Asian Maritime State. NUS Press. pp. 257–258. ISBN   9789971693862.