Philippine brooms

Mama: Hoy badlungon kang anaka ka, bunalan tikaw ron ug silhig!!!
Anak: Unsa mang klase sa silhig?  Tukog?  Lanot?  o Bagiou?.... aw naa pay usa ma, plastic???....


On my recent trip to Taboan, I was able to see the three kinds of traditional  brooms that are still being used here in the Philippines.

First, is the silhig tukog. It is made out of the sticks in the palm fronds. It is a very tedious process because each stick is individually removed and then tied up into fist size bundles. Next the sticks are cut and trimmed so they are of the same length.

SILHIG NGA TUKOG

The second type of broom is the silhig nga lanot. It is made of the dried buli tree trunks. After the trunks are dried they are beaten or "ti-ti-on" until they look like thick strands and then tied to a handle, usually a small bamboo pole. Some lanot brooms are dyed red or green. A buli  tree actually gets to sacrifice its life so that we can sweep our floors.

SILHIG NGA LANOT

The third kind of broom is the Bagiou broom. It is also known as the Tambo Walis as it is made of a grass that grows in the Bagiou area, called Tambo. The grass is dried and then tied together to a wooden handle and then decorated with plastic Bagiou signs. It is a cultural icon in Bagiou.

SILHIG NGA BAGIOU