Sibat is the Filipino word for spear, used as a weapon or tool by natives of the Philippines. The term is used in Tagalog and Kinaray-a. It also called bangkaw, sumbling or palupad in the islands of Visayas and Mindanao; and budjak (also spelled bodjak or budiak) among Muslim Filipinos in western Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago.
Sibat are typically made with rattan, bamboo, bahi or other hardwood, either with a sharpened tip or a head made from metal. These heads may either be single-edged, double-edged or barbed. Styles vary according to function and origin. For example, a sibat designed for fishing may not be the same as those used for hunting wild game such as boar.
According to Kalis Ilustrisimo archivist Romeo Macapagal, in Kapampangan, it is known as tandos or tandus and a fishing harpoon with 3 or more prongs is a salapang in both Tagalog and Kapampangan.[1]
According to Filipino martial arts researcher & author Celestino Macachor, a shorter version of the Visayan bangkaw in Cebu is the sapang, around 38 inches (97 cm) in length and a thrusting weapon, and a budiak or bodjak is a Moro weapon that is about the same length as the bangkaw, but heavier.[1]
In the Mountain Province of Luzon, the Igorot people have different versions of them such as the fan′-kao and kay-yan′, and the fal-fĕg′ war spear of the Bontoc people.[2]
The sibat/bangkaw is widely used in Arnis systems such as San Miguel Eskrima, Modern Arnis, Kombatan, Inayan Eskrima and Pekiti-Tirsia Kali.
- ^ a b Foronda, Fuentes, Lingamen, Macapagal, Macachor. "Filipino Warrior Arts Research Society: Filipino spears - Sibat, Bangkaw".
{{cite newsgroup}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Albert Ernest Jenks (February 3, 1904). The Bontoc Igorot.