A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

Chonguita is the monkey bride in Pilar Ejercito’s Tagalog story, heard from her aunt and published by Fansler in 1921. An old man directs Don Juan to a palace guarded by monkeys and gives him bread to distribute among them. Inside, Chonguita’s mother announces that her daughter will marry him, and a monkey archbishop performs the ceremony. Juan takes his wife home reluctantly and is ashamed beside his brothers’ human brides.

His father seeks an excuse to have Chonguita killed. He orders each daughter-in-law to embroider a coat within three days, then a cap within two. Chonguita’s coat is the finest, and all the caps arrive on time. In a final contest, the king promises his throne to the husband of the woman who paints the finest picture on his chamber walls. Chonguita wins, making Juan king.

At the celebration she insists on dancing with her husband. He angrily throws her against a wall; the hall darkens, then brightens to reveal her as a beautiful woman. The story ends there. It does not supply an original curse, a removable monkey skin or an explanation of why this violent act changes her form. Those details should not be imported from the other animal-bride stories in Fansler’s comparative notes.

Monkey brideMonkey mother and ceremonial courtExcels in embroidery and paintingTransforms into a woman at the ending
01

Origins & earliest records

Philippines; Pilar Ejercito of Pagsanjan, Laguna; heard from her aunt, who knew it from childhood

02

Records & interpretation

Complete tale and shared comparative notes read in the retained 1921-edition transcription.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    Filipino Popular Tales

    Dean S. Fansler, collector and editor; source: Pilar Ejercito of Pagsanjan, Laguna; heard from her aunt, who knew it from childhood · 1921

    Tale 29, Chonguita, pp. 244–246; notes 246–248; American Folk-Lore Society

Family, evolution & connections

Chonguita’s mother — Pilar Ejercito’s account

Complete no.29 narrative and separate comparative notes, pp.244–248.

Explicit daughter and mother designations in the main narrative. No father, siblings or children of Chonguita are stated. Don Juan’s king father is her father-in-law, not birth father. Monkey guards are not inferred siblings. Indian, Greek and Visayan parallels in the notes remain separate versions.

Fansler, Filipino Popular Tales (1921), 29, Chonguita, pp.244–248
Comparison · motif comparison

Mouse Princess of Fillmore’s Forest Bride

Both selected accounts give an animal-presenting bride a human husband and tasks demanded by his father. Fillmore rewards Veikko’s kindness; Chonguita’s ending follows Don Juan’s violent act. This is a parallel with contrasting moral framing, not evidence that one telling borrowed from the other.

Fansler, Filipino Popular Tales (1921), 29, Chonguita, pp.244–248 · Fillmore, Mighty Mikko (1922), The Forest Bride, pp.123–139

Primary records and illustrations

Complete narrative, source statement and all attached comparative notes inspected

Dean S. Fansler, Filipino Popular Tales (American Folk-Lore Society, 1921)

Part I, Hero Tales and Drolls. Tale 29, Chonguita, pp. 244–246; notes 246–248

Cache fansler-29.txt and master fansler1921.html. Source chain: Pilar Ejercito of Pagsanjan, Laguna; heard from her aunt, who knew it from childhood. Comparative romance summaries not silently imported into the main narrative.

Inspect the digitized plate · Source collection manifest

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Historical collected folktaleFansler, tale 29, ChonguitaResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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