The Mandaya, which means "the first people upstream", is a Philippine ethnic group living along the mountain ranges of Davao Oriental in Mindanao. The Mandaya's main economic activity is kaingin or slash and burn farming. They also trap fish and birds for meat. Culturally, the Mandayas have retained their basic social, religious and political organizations along with their traditional materials crafts. The Mandaya women hand down from generation to generation the art of weaving cloth from the fibers of abaca plant, colored with root and mud dyes with intricate figures and patterns depicting the folklore and religion of the tribe.