RESEARCH DATA:

The piningitan is a wrap-around skirt worn by Tinguian or Itneg women, typically from adolescence to adulthood, in Abra. Its name comes from the root word pingit, which means “on the edge,” referencing the decorative trims along the skirt’s edges (Respicio, 2000). It consists of plain white woven panels, each bordered with red-dyed threads. The longer sides (weft edges) follow the same weaving style as the white panels, while the shorter sides (warp edges) use a brocade technique to create more intricate patterns.
In contrast to the everyday skirts worn by Tinguian women, the piningitan is reserved for special occasions when the community or neighboring villages gather. Respicio (2000) mentions several such events, including the bedeng (a peace settlement between villages), pakalon or boda (wedding celebrations), lay-og (feasts for the dead), and other traditional ceremonies for the ancestors. During these events, women wear the piningitan and take part in the tadek, a traditional dance (Respicio, 2000).
The piningitan’s design highlights the intricate craftsmanship of the weavers, as well as the Tinguian people’s view of their environment and the weaving process. A key pattern, the binek-beklat, which resembles a python, is woven along the two warp edges using black/indigo, red, and yellow threads in the pinilian technique (Respicio, 2000). This design is also referred to as tinultulbek or "key," marking the start and end points of the weaving process (Respicio, 2000). Another design, the inar-arabas, is a caterpillar-like pattern made with indigo and red yarns, arranged in a staccato fashion between the skirt's white panels (Respicio, 2000). Finally, the weft edges, known as inurlma, are dyed using natural pigments like sapang (for red), tayum (for indigo), and wild ginger (for yellow) (Respicio, 2000).
This particular piningitan from the collection stands out from the typical white piningitan, as it is dyed indigo and adorned with traditional white thread embroidery motifs, including frogs, lizards, zigzags, and rice plants. These embroideries outline the panel joineries, the brocade-woven details along the warp edges, and the red-banded weft ends. While it may look quite different from the usual piningitan, it still retains the characteristic features of the textile: plain-woven weft ends, brocade-woven warp edges, and embroidered staccato joinery.