Bayugin

The bayugin was a class of powerful and historical gender-fluid animist shamans who lived in the Philippines when Spain first began to colonize the islands. Assigned male at birth, the bayugin would take on a feminine lifestyle, habits, clothing, and roles throughout their life. More importantly, they took on the mantle of the indigenous religion and were known to be powerful shamans and mediums. In a sense, the bayugin could be considered the ancestor of the modern-day bakla in the Philippines. One could even go as far as to call the bayugin an ancestor to the modern-day transwoman.The novel Bayugin explores the world of pre-colonial Philippines undergoing a radical cultural and political transformation with the advent of Spanish colonization and Catholic conversions. A historical novel, Bayugin attempts to explore what happened to the calling of bayugin and how queer persons adapted to the coming of European colonization and religion. The novel follows a series of fictional characters inspired by various historical events that European chroniclers recorded during their takeover of the islands.Bayugin wrestles with the questions of religion, authority, gender, and queerness. Can Christianity hold a place for queer people? Does the modern-day persecution of queer people, especially transpersons, reflect the persecution queer people experienced in other historical periods? Is queerness a human right? Equally important, Bayugin works to bring Philippine history to light and draw more attention to this fascinating, rich, and forgotten history.