Ibong adarna
epic poem. It is about an eponymous magical bird. The longer form of the story's title during the Spanish era was "Korido at Buhay na Pinagdaanan ng Tatlong Prinsipeng Magkakapatid na anak ni Haring Fernando at ni Reyna Valeriana sa Kahariang Berbanya" ("Corrido and Life Lived by the Three Princes, children of King Fernando and Queen Valeriana in the Kingdom of Berbania"), and is believed by some researchers to have been based on similar European stories. The tale is also known as The Adarna Bird.[1]
Ibong AdarnaIbong Adarna, Painting by Nat Lamina, 2022AuthorJosé de la Cruz (attributed)Original titleKorido at Buhay na Pinagdaanan ng Tatlong Prinsipeng Magkakapatid na anak nang Haring Fernando at Reyna Valeriana sa Kahariang BerbaniaCountryPhilippinesLanguageTagalogGenreFantasy, Folk-tale
The story revolves around the life of King Fernando, Queen Valeriana and their three sons, Don Pedro, Diego, and Juan. The three princes, after discovering their father has fallen sick and cannot be healed, set out to find the fabled Adarna bird and heal him; whoever brings the bird first will inherit the throne. The story is commonly attributed to the Tagalog poet José de la Cruz or "Huseng Sisiw"; however, he has not been proven to be the actual author; although Facebook and other online fora cite Wikipedia as being the source of the information that Ibong Adarna was brought to the Philippines by Miguel López de Legazpi, this is not the case as it is with other European stories brought to the Philippines. According to Eulogio Balan Rodriguez, the then 1893 Assistant Director, of the National Library, "According to the more reliable studies on the subject the tale is of Pre-Spanish origin and so is indigenous Philippines literature, although it is not free in its 19th century version from outside influence, like the other native corridos that were "derived" from European romances, that are greatly saturated with the "medieval flavor and setting of chivalry". It is comparable or possibly on a par with the world-famous Arabian Nights' Entertainments a book included in the outside reading texts of both public and private schools."[2]
The poem forms part of the curriculum for Junior High School students as well as those in Grade 7 in the Philippines