Balisong

By: Eulalie Alba 1

The word "balisong" could mean barrio in the town of Taal, in Batangas. The word literally means broken horn, from the word "bali", which means to break, meaning horn of the water buffalo.

Based on my research, the knives are handmade in the traditional manner. A person who makes things made of iron will produce the blade, and another craft worker will going to sharpen it. The handle maker will prepare the rough frames while the others will polish the blades. Then it's time to insert some decorative inlays and put together the blades, handles and latches.

The "balisong" was commonly used by Filipino people, especially those in the Tagalog region or in some provinces, as a self-defense and pocket utility knife. In the hands of a trained or professional user, the balisong can be brought to bear quickly using one hand. Manipulations, called "flipping" or "fanning", are performed for art or maybe in some amusement.

As I discover this kind of "balisong" in Batangas we always brought it whenever or wherever we go but not all the time because there are some places that are strict like malls as usual because knife is a deadly weapon that's why we have to use it properly. We have different kinds of knife like bread knife, switch knife and many more but this kind of knife in Batangas called butterfly knife or "balisong" is very different to other knife because it is handmade in a traditional manner and it is very sharp and there is a high chance of cutting you that's why we have to be careful using it.

This kind of "balisong" is very helpful to most of us Filipinos because we can bring it wherever we go and it is very useful when we are having an outing or picnic with our family, friends or "barkada".