Proem

This year's celebration of the Sandugo Festival will also coincide with the holding of the Tigum Bol-anon sa Tibuok Kalibutan (TBTK).

Even though the TBTK is a recent development, it has come to being due to the peculiar migratory and homing instinct of Boholanos.

A Pre-Historic Behavior

Among Filipinos, Boholanos are tops in out-migration. The last known data that this writer could find indicates that the out-migration rate of Boholanos is 145 per thousand of population. Other provinces in the Philippines could have comparable rate but none could compare to the homing instinct of the Boholanos. A Boholano, wherever his is located in the world has always the desire to come home, and they always come home especially during fiesta or special occasions.

When I was excavating an archeological site in Cabisi, Taloto, Tagbilaran City I discovered that the site held only vessels with finger-bones, toe-bones, and teeth. There was no complete human skeleton. The archeological site was dated around 700 A.D.

After some research, I found out that the meaning of the Bisayan word cabisi means to perform what you have promised. And what was that promise that the owner of the finger-bones and toe-bones promised? It was the promise to come home dead or alive.

If the Boholanos who traveled to faraway placed died, his companions removed his fingers, toes, and teeth. These were then put in a vessel and brought back to his beloved Bohol and buried in Cabisi. The dead Boholano was then considered to have performed his promise to come home dead or alive.

During the advent of the Spanish era, the cause of offering changed from a sacred burial site to a Patron Saint. Nowadays, Boholanos would come home in order to celebrate the fiesta of the Patron Saint of his town or barrio.

The TBTK Phenomenon

The different Boholano organizations in the United States and Canada conceived of the Tigum Bol-anon sa Tibuok Kalibutan (Gathering of Boholanos throughout the world) to be held every two years and to coincide with the celebration of the Sandugo Festival of Bohol.

As former Bohol Governor Rolando Butalid would say, "The Boholano is comparable to a kite. No matter how high the kite will fly, it is still tied with a string to the owner on the ground." IN the same vein, no matter where a Boholano is located in the world, he is still tied to the desire to come home to his homeland - Bohol.

To our co-Boholanos who came from faraway lands, welcome back to Bohol and may you enjoy the stay and memories of Bohol.