How the Name

BENGUET

Came to Be

There are two versions. First, the Kankanaey story:

In earlier days, the Kankanaey from the north traveled to the south to trade with the lowlanders. This region was thickly forested, allowing for only one common trail which had to pass by a wide swampy area, now known as La Trinidad Valley, veggie capital of the country. This swamp is a memorable landmark to the northerners, who have not encountered a big body of water and regarded the wetland lake as a sea. Because the swamp is made muddy and foul by wallowing pigs, caraboes and buffaloes, the traveler has to follow the edge of the swamp to reach the other side. The Kankanaey word "benget" [roughly bung-uht] means "edge" and the well-trod edge of the swamp became popularly known as benget. And the people residing on the edge of the lake were called Ibenget.

The Ibaloys tell it this way:

La Trinidad, even before the Spanish arrived, was a fertile valley supporting a farming community. A lake in the center of the valley supported taro in the shallow portions, wading carabaos, fish and birds. It was a place of plenty and general contentment. In the cold season, the wealthy members of the community cover their heads with a red kerchief and the rest of the head and face with white cloth, leaving a wide opening for the eyes. In the old Nabaloy dialect, this head covering is called a benget. Other families used hides of a civet cat for the same protective purpose and from afar, those seen wearing the furry accessory are called nanbengebenget.

When the Spanish expeditionary forces under Comandante Guillermo de Galvey first saw the scenic valley. One of his lowland Indio interpreters misunderstood a query of the Spaniards. A conquistador pointing his finger in the direction of the taro-farming folks asked the name of the place. The Indio interpreter, in turn, asked a native elder what manner of clothing covered their heads and got the response, "benget".

The cartographer of the expedition wrote benget with European flair, noting it as "Benguet," pronouned Beyng-get.

 

Abridged from Wasing D. Sacla’s Treasury of Beliefs and Home Rituals of Benguet (based on interviews with Jacinto Kiwas and Edward Bantilan)

Back to Benguet Coffee