Scribe - Prehispanic Palawan, Philippines

Prehispanic Palawan, Philippines

Antonio Pigafetta, in his writings, described the cultivated fields of the native people populating the Palawan Islands. He also mentioned that these people use weapons consisting of blowpipes, spears and bronze ombard. During his stay in the area, he witnessed for the first time cockfighting and fist-fighting. He also discovered that the natives had their own system of writing consisting of 13 consonants and 3 vowels, and they had a dialect of 18 syllables. He further wrote that in Palawan, the local King had 10 scribes who wrote down the King's dictation on leaves of plants.