Biag ni Lam-ang is an epic story of the Ilocano people from the Ilocos region of the Philippines. It is notable for being the first Philippine folk epic to be recorded in written form, and was one of only two folk epics documented during the Philippines' Spanish Colonial period, along with the Bicolano epic of Handiong. It is also noted for being a folk epic from a "Christianized" lowland people group, with elements incorporated into the storytelling.
An illustration depicting the protagonist Lam-ang
The Ilocanos, Ilokanos, or Iloko people are the third largest Filipino ethnolinguistic group. They mostly reside within the Ilocos Region, in the northwestern seaboard of Luzon, Philippines. The native language of the Ilocano people is the Ilocano language.
Ilocano women from Santa Catalina, Ilocos Sur, c. 1900
Ilocano merchants in the mid-19th century
An Ilocano woman and man wearing kattukong and annangá, circa 1820s
Ilocano people emigrating to the Cagayan Valley, c. 1920