11/19/2025
The Surviving Traditional Script of Hanunoo (sometimes referred to as Surat Mangyan or Mangyan Baybayin).
It is an abugida (a type of syllabic alphabet) that Is one of only a few indigenous Philippine scripts still actively used today (along with the Buhid and Tagbanwa scripts).
It Is traditionally inscribed, or carved, onto fresh bamboo using the tip of a knife.
The primarily used for writing traditional poetry, particularly the ambahan
(a seven-syllable line poem).
It Is descended from the Brahmic scripts of India, likely arriving in the Philippines between the 10th and 14th centuries.
This script is recognized for its cultural significance and was inscribed in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register in 1999 as part of the "Philippine Paleographs (Hanunoo, Buid, Tagbanua, and Pala'wan)."
Hanunó'o, is one of the scripts indigenous to the Philippines and is used by the Mangyan peoples of southern Mindoro to write the Hanunó'o language.
It is an abugida descended from the Brahmic scripts, closely related to Sulat Tagalog, and is famous for being written vertical but written upward, rather than downward as nearly all other scripts (however, it is read horizontally left to right). It is usually written on bamboo by incising characters with a knife. Most known Hanunó'o inscriptions are relatively recent because of the perishable nature of bamboo. It is therefore difficult to trace the history of the script.
