UP Researchers Look Into Filipinos’ Long-Standing Bond with Pigs

By: Eunice Jean C. Patron

 

 

The relationship that the Philippine society has with pigs has thrived for centuries. Pork is a staple in Filipino cuisine, and indigenous groups incorporate pig in some of their rituals. This interconnectedness piqued the interest of University of the Philippines – Diliman (UPD) researchers.

 

Humerus of a pig recovered from the San Diego shipwreck (1600 CE). (Photo credit: Joan Quincy Lingao)

 

Researchers from the UPD College of Science (UPD-CS) and the UPD School of Archaeology (SA) explored how imported breeds of pigs integrated in the local swine population by  analyzing animal remains from historical archaeological sites, available genetic data, culinary history, and ethnographic records involving pigs in the Philippines.

 

Joan Quincy Lingao, a Master’s student at SA and an alumna of the UPD-CS National Institute of Microbiology and Biotechnology (NIMBB), along with Dr. Michelle Eusebio, formerly part of the UPD-CS Science and Society Program (SSP) and Drs. Juan Rofes, Grace Barretto-Tesoro, and Michael James Herrera of SA, discovered that pigs currently in the country are the result of interbreeding between different pig populations.

 

“The pigs as we know them today could be a product of a complex history of introduction and interbreeding of different populations of pigs, which resulted from our interactions with neighboring countries and the several centuries of colonial occupation of the Philippines,” Lingao said. 

 

During the Spanish colonial period, pigs were also used as provisions for warships and were widely consumed in Manila and nearby areas. Modern Filipino dishes often substitute pork for other meats used in their original foreign counterparts. Beyond food, pigs also play a vital role in the rituals of indigenous Filipinos, such as being used to communicate with spirits.

 

Lingao shared that their study aimed to cultivate a deeper appreciation of the role animals, such as pigs, play in Philippine society. Understanding human's relationship with animals can also help evaluate their impact on the environment. “We hope that our study can contribute to our understanding of the status of livestock farming in the Philippines and how tracing back centuries of introduction, crossbreeding, and consumption of certain animals can shed light on animal management strategies, conservation of wild species, as well as food security and sustainability,” she added.

 

“Pig-human entanglement was, is, and, most likely, will continue to be at the core of Filipino culture,” the researchers mentioned in their paper, adding that this long-term relationship must be further analyzed. Lingao acknowledged that their study only revealed a small part of the significant connection between humans and pigs. She hoped to encourage other researchers to explore more materials from various sites across the country to gain further insights into pig populations.  

 

The team of researchers look forward to collaborating with scientists in various fields for a more interdisciplinary approach to exploring human and animal entanglement. “We can still obtain more information from these archaeological materials using biomolecular techniques, such as DNA and isotope analysis,” Lingao said, noting that these kinds of research, however, will need more funding. They were also interested in delving deeper into the relationship between humans and other animals.

 

Their paper, titled “This Little Piggy: Pig-Human Entanglement in the Philippines,” was published in the International Journal of Historical Archaeology, a journal presenting the latest research in the field of historical archaeology.

 

For interview requests and other concerns, please contact media@science.upd.edu.ph.

 

References:

 

Lingao, J. Q., Rofes, J., Eusebio, M., Barretto-Tesoro, G., & Herrera, M. (2024). This little piggy: Pig-human entanglement in the Philippines. International Journal of Historical Archaeology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10761-024-00754-6

 

Eunice Jean C. Patron is a  Senior Science Communicator at the UP CS's Office of the Associate Dean for Student, Alumni, and Public Affairs (OADSAPA, https://science.upd.edu.ph/oadsapa/).