The Aeta (pronounced as “eye-ta,”), Agta or Ayta are an indigenous people who live in scattered, isolated mountainous parts of Luzon, Philippines.

They are considered to be Negritos, who are dark to very dark brown-skinned and tend to have features such as a small stature, small frame, curly to kinky afro-like textured hair with a higher frequency of naturally lighter hair color (blondism) relative to the general population, small nose, and dark brown eyes.

The Aeta were included in the group of people termed “Negrito” during Spanish colonial rule as Negritos. Various Aeta groups in northern Luzon are known as “Pugut” or “Pugot,” a name designated by their Ilocano-speaking neighbors, and which is the colloquial term for those with darker complexions. In Ilocano, the word also means “goblin” or “forest spirit”. They have survived as forest dwellers and as hunters and gatherers for thousands of years.

The Aeta people are a peaceful and non-violent indigenous people with their own traditions, customs, identity, and their own language called Sambal. The Aeta have suffered racial discrimination and receive little recognition and support from the government, and during the past fifty years they have lost much of their ancestral domain to land grabbers, loggers and mining operations backed by corrupt politicians and officials.