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Overview
Cole’s Mandaya account presents the Sun as an angry husband pursuing the Moon. Their changing distance explains the continuing celestial chase. Their first child is a large star resembling a man; the Sun cuts him into pieces and scatters them across the sky, producing the many stars. A second child is the enormous crab Tambanokano. The tale therefore gives a particular celestial family, rather than making all Philippine sun-and-moon accounts one genealogy. The husband’s violence is an action in this narrative, not an endorsed model of marriage.
Origins & earliest records
Philippines; Mandaya account as grouped by Cole
Records & interpretation
Complete relevant story, collection preface, regional introduction and attached notes directly read.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Philippine Folk Tales
Mandaya, The Sun and the Moon, pp. 145–146 and notes 23–24
Family, evolution & connections
Sun and Moon’s two children — Cole’s Mandaya account
The two offspring explicitly described on pp. 145–146 in this telling.
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- Unnamed first star-child
Opening marriage statement followed by first-child and another-child wording; note 23 supplies the crab’s name. The parent node represents the married pair, not a single being. No additional personal name is supplied for the star-child. The divided pieces become stars in the narrative; they are not separately named children. Note 24’s comparative eclipse discussion does not establish shared descent or historical influence across traditions.
Tambanokano
Cole calls the giant crab another child of the married Sun and Moon; note 23 names him Tambanokano. This parentage is specific to the collected Mandaya account.
First star-child in Cole’s Mandaya account
Their first child is a large, manlike star. The Sun cuts him into pieces that become the many stars; the text does not name him.
Primary records and illustrations
Mabel Cook Cole, Philippine Folk Tales (Chicago: A. C. McClurg, 1916)
Mandaya section. Mandaya, The Sun and the Moon, pp. 145–146 and notes 23–24
Complete tale and attached notes read. Exact source-specific identities, narrative ending and limits retained. Earlier recordings credited by Cole have not been independently inspected for this entry.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Historical collected narrative and editorial notesCole, Philippine Folk Tales (1916), Mandaya, The Sun and the Moon, pp. 145–146 and notes 23–24Research access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.