I was intrigued to read an article by Atty. Jess B. Tirol entitled “The Little People of Bohol" published in Bohol Magazine sometime in February 1999. What the historian talked about is not dwarfs or duwende but some mysterious beings which existed in Bohol. Stories of these small people called tudtod prompted the University of Bohol professor to conduct an in-depth research especially in Antequera, Bohol, where the story seemed originated.
People who saw these small people said that they are about 18 inches tall. They live or hide near riverbank. In order to live, they ate shellfish by cracking the shells with stones and eating the meat. They usually get out from their hiding places during the night and on moonlight nights they love to play along the dry portion near the river. Sometimes they venture to places away from the river.
Atty. Tirol had interviewed a Home Economics teacher of Antequera Central Elementary School. According to the teacher, sometime in 1960’s, she was surprised why her supply of biscuits in the HE Room were eaten or consumed since it was stored in a sealed container. They were thinking that cats or rats were the culprit. But cats or rats are not known to open the lid-cap of containers, so they tried to sprinkle white flour near the biscuits containers. The next morning, they saw the imprints of small feet, like that of children, with five toes, clearly marked on the spread flour. With the reported sighting of tudtod near the stream at the rear of the school, they concluded that it was the tudtod who entered the HE Room.
But Atty. Tirol didn’t dig much information because the people of Antequera are very secretive about the existence of the tudtod. Many were afraid to divulge what they learn because they believed the tudtod is very vindictive when displeased. Tudtods are said to be armed with small bow and arrows or small blowguns that are poisoned.
Aside of Antequera, tudtods are said to be sighted in Bilar, Bohol and Lila, Bohol. The report from Lila Bohol said that the tudtod laughed when it saw a naked man bathing in the stream.
This story of tudtod is an old story. Fr. Juan Felix de la Encarnacion had used this as an entry in the Bisayan-Spanish dictionary published in 1852. The Spanish definition can be translated as a kind of satyr, monster or demigod imagined by the superstitious and semi-Christians. It is said to have two teeth above and two below and it is very big and with an arm of stone.
Since the reported sightings of tudtod are numerous, Atty. Tirol said that it may be a kind of unknown nocturnal animal existing in Bohol. We know that the tarsiers, flying lemurs, salimaw and linaw (the last two are now extinct), are found in Bohol. Or may be a kind of animal similar to a monkey but without tail. Or there’s a probability that the tudtod are really small people existing in Bohol.
To uncover the truth, we need further research. And this is a great challenge to all of us Boholanos.
What you can say, Sano?
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Topic: Are There Really Little People in Bohol? (Read 1855 times)