Eskaya Tribe

Overview

The Eskaya are an indigenous group in Bohol, recognised as an Indigenous Cultural Community (ICC) under the Indigenous People Rights Act (IPRA) of 1997. Their communities are concentrated in the interior barangays of Duero and the neighbouring municipality of Guindulman, with presence in a handful of other nearby towns.

The Eskaya speak a distinct language called Eskayan, structurally unrelated to Cebuano and not mutually intelligible with it — it is spoken only within the tribe. Eskaya oral tradition holds that the syllabary they use predates Spanish contact; linguists have generally treated that claim with skepticism, since the documented community history traces to the tribe’s early-20th-century founder, Mariano Datahan. Whatever its true age, the language and script are what earn the Eskaya recognition as Bohol’s only living intangible cultural heritage, with a listing among the geosites of the Bohol Island Geopark, which received UNESCO Global Geopark status in 2023.

Location

Barangay Taytay and other interior barangays of Duero, southeastern Bohol. The Eskaya communities in Duero are in the upland interior, away from the municipal coastal area. Communities also exist in the interior of neighbouring Guindulman.

Getting There

Duero is approximately 90 kilometres from Tagbilaran City via the Bohol Circumferential Road, accessible by bus or van from Dao Terminal. Reaching the interior Eskaya community in Taytay requires travel beyond the town centre. [TO ENRICH: specific road access to Taytay, travel time from Duero Poblacion, whether a guide or barangay council contact is needed for visits, protocol for community visits as required under IPRA.]

Practical Info

• Municipality: Duero
• Barangay: Taytay (primary Duero community)
• Legal status: Indigenous Cultural Community under IPRA 1997
• Language: Eskayan (distinct from Cebuano; not mutually intelligible)
• Cultural designation: Listed in Bohol Island Geopark geosite inventory
• Recognition: Only living intangible heritage of Bohol (BPTO designation)
• [TO ENRICH: tribal population size, NCIP (National Commission on Indigenous Peoples) contact for visitation protocol, specific cultural practices open to outside observers, community tourism arrangements if any]

What to Expect

Visits require prior arrangement and adherence to IPRA’s free, prior and informed consent protocols for ICC communities — this is not a drop-in cultural stop. [TO ENRICH: whether cultural demonstrations, storytelling sessions, or community tours are formally offered; Geopark visit arrangements; NCIP contact details.]

Notes

The Eskayan language has attracted academic interest as a potentially constructed or ritual language with a distinct writing system. Its morphological structure differs from Cebuano and the other Visayan languages. [TO ENRICH: current state of language transmission to younger generations, academic sources on Eskayan linguistics, Geopark geosite visit logistics.]

See also: Eskaya Tribe (Guindulman) — slug: eskaya-tribe-guindulman — for the Guindulman community entry.