Filipinos before the arrival of the Spaniards were basically hunters, fishers, and cultivators. These tribes were groups of highlanders who barely had access of seawater. And because of the presence of rice terraces, only the central mountains of Luzon had well structured livelihood that resulted to a more fixed territory.
Clothing and Ornaments
Before the coming of the Spaniards to the Philippines the natives already wore clothes and personal ornaments. The men wore short-sleeved and collarless jackets, whose length reached slightly below the waist. The color of the jacket appeared to indicate the position of the wearer in society, e.g., red for the chief, and blue or black for those below him, depending on the societal class. They wore a bahag for the lower part, a strip of cloth wrapped around the waist, passing between the thighs.
A piece of cloth wrapped around the head, called a putong, served as a head gear. The kind of putong one wore was important. For example, a red putong meant the wearer had killed a man in war while one who had killed at least seven people signified so by wearing an embroidered putong. They also wore necklaces, armlets or kalombiga, earrings, rings, and anklets, usually made of gold and precious stones. The women’s upper garment was a sleeved jacket, called a baro. Over their skirts (saya or patadyong) was wrapped a strip of cloth called tapis. They also wore gem-studded bracelets, necklaces, rings, and gold earrings.