This is a great question and one that I have pondered also. I think I read (perhaps in Cato) that the likely origin of the panabas was a shortened version of a pole arm, and I've worked off that assumption for some time. I don't have anything more specific to base that idea on. It has also been suggested that the panabas is derived from an agricultural tool (the tabas) still in use today--that begs the question, though, of how the tabas may have originated.
However, in looking at various options as a predecessor for the panabas, I must agree with Wayne that some examples of the Thai pra come close. Attached are pictures of a large version of the Thai pra (at least I am calling it a pra although it may go by another local name). This one is 38 inches in overall length and has a curved heavy blade (3/8 inch thick at the handle). The blade is simply wedged into the handle and secured with an iron ferrule, with no adhesive used, leaving the thickest part of the wedge exposed for a short distance--if the blade becomes loose, then pounding the end of the hilt on the ground drives the wedge further into the handle and tightens it up again (a convenient design feature IMHO). This is the same arrangement as on most of my panabas.
I don't believe that the Thai pra was necessarily a prototype for the panabas, but they may share a common ancestor.
Ian.
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