A long time ago, there was a Sultan in Maranaw, Philippines named Makan-ali who fall in love to a poor but beautiful servant. They had a child named Duri; unfortunately, she didn't inherited the beauty of her mother. When she became a young lady nobody likes her because she has an ugly face. Sultan loves Duri very much and very proud of her even she is ugly and her mother was only a servant. Although she was a daughter of Sultan, nobody tried to court her even the slaves never tempted to woo her.

After many years passed by she felt depressed and hopeless because nobody asked to marry her. Not so long she got sick. Makan-ali called all the adept doctors, but they said " Even we have a magical power we can't cure her sickness". One night, she can't sleep for she heard a lullaby song.Miraculously, she was able to stand up and
went outside to find the person singing. She ran and walked through the farm, hill until she reached the forest in searching where the sound coming from. The following day, Duri's father found her dead near the seashore of Agusan. They buried her beside of the hill.

As many days passed by, the people in Maranaw forgot her already. Near the hill beside the tomb of Duri there was a large tree grew bearing abundance of fruit. The fruit, similar to the jack fruit doesn't like to eat by the people for it has a very unpleasant odor and ugly appearance.

In the town of Duri, a famine occurred. There were no plants in the farm, no fish in the river and the sea and also no animals in the forest. There were many died because of starving. The only food they have found was the fruit tree beside of Duri's tomb. Even though the people were ravenous they don't like to eat for it has a rough and spine skin and offensive smell. One day a Sultan from other place came, he took one fruit, peel off the skin and ate it. The people were motivated to eat when they saw that nothing happened to him.They began picking up some of the fruit and eat it. They realized that it tasted good. After the famine period ended, people went back to their home and planted some seed of the fruit tree in the back yard.

So many years passed by, the hill and the forest was covered with fruit trees. In order that they won't forget Duri, the people gave a name to the tree followed by her name. They called it "Duryan"-an ugly fruit tree like Duri but the true beauty is inside the heart.

Source: Philippine Myths [ hawaii.edu ]