Timawa

The term timawa refers to an intermediate social class among the various cultures of the Philippines before the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th and 17th centuries. The most common translation for the phrase is "freeman" as opposed to Maginoo (Nobleman) or Alipin (Servant).

As free men who were more than servants but less than nobility, members of the Timawa class werefree to pick their jobs - as soldiers, merchants, etc. They were also free to pick their own wives. They could have servants (alipin), and own property such as land or houses of their own. Consequently, this was the only social class for whom tax payment was required.

An alipin who has fulfilled his or her obligations to the person s/he serves may freed, and become a Timawa (Tinimawa).

References

*Barangay: Sixteenth Century Philippine Culture and Society by William Henry Scott