I once had a fanfic idea about ponies encountering Tikbalang. Arroz mentioned doing a story involving the Ibong Adarna. So I thought, why not start a thread about Philippine mythology? We can talk about our favorite legends, have answers questioned questions answered, discuss how to include Philippine mythology in ponyfics, or anything really.

Anyway, here's a tidbit about Tikbalang:

The Tikbalang has a body and arms of a man, but the head and hind legs of a horse. They are usually harmless and may prove to be helpful when tamed. They say that if one could grab a few strands of hair from the mane, the tikbalang would give that person a marvelous ride across the sky, safely bring him back home, and be his faithful servant. (source: Philippine Demonological Legends and Their Cultural Bearings by Maximo D. Ramos)

3121148 Hmm, I have an idea where an Aswang or a Tiyanak winds up in Equestria, or have a foal become a Tiyanak

I would have to guess that Aswang are the Philippine equivalent of changelings, but waaay more gruesome and violent.

3121883 That sounds awesome! I'll look forward to reading that. Please tell me when you get around to writing it.

3123559 Some variations of Aswang are. There are a lot of discrepancies in the legends and descriptions I've read, depending on which province they originated from.

Anyway, here are my notes on Aswang:

The term Aswang could refer to one of the following mythological creatures, depending on which ethnolinguistic group one hails from:
1. a corpse-eater or ghoul
2. the blood-sucker or vampire
3. the self-segmenter or viscera sucker (also called the Manananggal)
4. the werebeast (also called the Segben)
5. the hexer or witch (also called the Mangkukulam)

Aswang (especially 1 and 2) are said to start hunting at sunset, and use a long tube-like tongue and claw-like nails to devour a victim. To kill an aswang, one could use methods associated to vampire hunting (prayers, crucifixes, holy water, garlic, etc.). Rubbing calamansi or garlic juice on the body is said to ward off the creature, as well as displaying the tail of a stingray or the snout of a sawfish in the house. (sources: Philippine Demonological Legends and Their Cultural Bearings by Maximo D. Ramos; and The Balete Book by Salvador and Jose Juan Paraiso)

And guess what? My professor says that Aswang are cryptids.

3125886 There was a news story a few weeks back, headlines and all, where a family brutally murdered an old lady (the grandmother, I think) because they thought she was an Aswang.

3243289 Brutal. That's just brutal.