Handumanan sang Ulian (Memories of Ulian): The River Residents’ Sense of Place

Abstract

This interpretivist-symbolic interactionism study aimed to document the sense-of-place memories among the residents living near or alongside the Ulian River in the Municipality of Lambunao, Province of Iloilo, Philippines. It was grounded on the assumptions surrounding the epistemology of constructionism and the theoretical research perspective of interpretivism-symbolic interactionism. Specific theories pertaining to Sense of Place and Memory were also anchored by this study. Fifteen participants from seven barangays in the Municipality of Lambunao, where the Ulian River flows or passes, took part in this study. They were determined through purposive sampling. Narrative inquiry was used as the methodology of the study, and thematic analysis was applied as a method of analyzing the narratives. After all needed information was gathered through interviews, the data were transcribed, coded, and then analyzed, thus resulting in the formulation of fifteen narratives capturing the sense-of-place memories of Ulian River residents. It was found out that based on the gathered, analyzed data, there were five themes pertaining to the sense-of-place memories of the Ulian River residents. These themes are the river as a food source, the river as a venue for livelihood activities, the river as a place for recreation and extension of household chores, the river as a passageway, and the memories of the river in the context of change.