The rich culture and ethnographic heritage of the Yakan people of Basilan took center stage as National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) Chair Regalado Trota Jose Jr. presented on Wednesday a paper on pioneering research about the community during an international conference.

In a news release on Thursday, the NHCP said Jose delivered his presentation at the International Conference on Sustaining Traditions, Securing Futures: Community Knowledge in Food Security, Disaster Response, Climate Change Adaptation, and Women Empowerment, hosted by the Western Mindanao State University (WMSU).

His paper focused on the works of Inger Wulff, a Danish anthropologist whose field research in the 1960s and 1970s provided some of the earliest detailed ethnographic documentation of Yakan culture, traditions, and social life in Basilan.

Jose said he first encountered Wulff’s studies as a young anthropology student in the 1980s through separate articles included in H. Otley Beyer’s collection at the old Anthropology Museum library of the University of the Philippines Diliman.

He later met Wulff in 1981 and examined Yakan collections at the Danish National Museum, experiences that, he noted, underscored the importance of early ethnographic work in preserving indigenous knowledge systems.

Wulff’s research remains vital to understanding and safeguarding Yakan cultural heritage, he said.

He added such studies helped document indigenous practices at a time when many traditions were at risk of being overlooked.

Jose also disclosed that the NHCP continues to work with WMSU and other partner institutions to deepen public awareness of the country’s historical and cultural diversity, particularly in Mindanao, Sulu, and Palawan.

These initiatives, he said, are aligned with preparations for the 2030 Year of Philippine Muslim History and Heritage, under the Dekada ng Kasaysayan ng Pilipinas 2023–2033. (PNA)