Philippines · Woodcarving / Metalwork
Okir / Ukkil
Okir (or ukkil) is the defining visual language of Maranao culture — an intricate flowing arabesque composed of interlocking naga (serpent), pako rabong (fern frond), and geometric forms carved into wood, incised into metal (brassware), and woven into the elaborate malong tubular cloth. Applied to the torogan (royal house), the langkaw (ceremonial platform), and all prestige objects, okir carving requires the continuous flowing line of the arabesque to be maintained through complex three-dimensional transitions — the same arabesque logic as Kelantan Islamic carving (CRAFT-0232) but with a distinctly Philippine Islamized aesthetic vocabulary. Lake Lanao in Mindanao is the cultural center. The pako rabong fern frond motif — a curling, unfurling spiral — appears in all Maranao craft media and is the primary unit of the okir visual system.
Risk level: Critically Endangered · Not inscribed internationally; Philippine national ICH recognition
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