I am a Kalinga native born at a time when the region was still called the old Mountain Province as a whole. People from various places migrated in Kalinga mostly in the fertile land of Tabuk valley. I grow up calling the people from Bontoc, Benguet, and Ifugao as "Igorots" while they call us "The Kalingas". I just take it for granted when lowlanders call me "Igorot" as such as they are ignorant and unlearned about us and at the same time, I don't wish to raise up an issue, much more so, to further argue.

Misinformation also abound that Kalingas were named by the Cagayan valley "Gaddangs", meaning headhunters. I strongly disagree. We are called Kalingas because we grow up as Kalinga since time immemorial. No one gave us that name. I believe God ordained us to be the tribe of the Kalingas much like the Bontocs, Ifugaos, Benguets, or Apayaos, or Itawes, or Itnegs. No outsiders called them by those names. They were called as they are today and loved to be called by their own tribe names.

Where in heaven have you heard that the Tagalogs were named by the Bicolanos? Nor the Ilocanos were named by the Tagalogs? None. We are all called by our tribal names as much as God gave Adam the authority to name all animals on earth.

As for the term Igorot, we are not known by that name as we call ourselves Kalingas (Dikamin IKalinga). Come to my province and you will know what I'm talking about.