Baon for the Thomasites

BAON (bah-on) is a Tagalog word that means "food to go", and in particular, as used in our house, food that the girls take to school for lunch or snack. For a long time, the girls thought this word was English, because we use it at home as in "Don't forget to prepare your baon", reminding them to pack their own lunchboxes for school the night before. Baon can also mean food that one takes along as sustenance on a long journey (or a short one!) or food that one takes home as left-overs from a party. (Filipinos like to overcook for feasts for many reasons, one of which is so the guests can have baon to take home with them and enjoy some more even after the party is over.)

The Thomasites were one of the first shiploads of American teachers who were sent to the Philippines by the U.S. Government in 1901, to establish the public school system. They were so named because they came over in the ship named USS Thomas. This was decades before I was born, but I hold the Thomasites directly responsible for why English is my first language, and not Spanish!

I found this article that details what the Thomasites brought over on the ship as baon. Click HERE.