Origin of the Word

• Origin of the Word

There are theories tracing the origin of the word anting-anting. One of this is the theory of Lorna Revilla-Montilla. According to her anting-anting was derived from the English word "anti", or against. Although it is logical, it is disputed because of the fact that the anting-anting dates much earlier than the Americans from whom supposedly the word comes from. There are other view points that it is an obsolete native term. However, none of the languages in the Philippines gives the real key to its origin. On the other hand, Jose Garcia Panganiban believes the the word was derived from the Malaysian word anting, which means "dangling", and Javanese word anting-anting means "ear pendants."