Readings in Philippine History History (Greek word: Historia)

Suggested Syllabus from CHED  Learning by investigation or inquiry

 Philippine history as viewed from the lens of selected
primary sources in different periods, analysis and
interpretations.
 The end goal is to enable students to understand and
appreciate our rich past by deriving insights from those
who were actually present at the time of the event.
An Introduction to Philippine Historiography: Sources and
Discourses
by Neil Martial Santillan
 History is the Study of the PAST
 All of the recorded events that have taken place in all
regions & all periods
 These events are not, in themselves, history & the
mere knowledge of “facts” from the past is not
HISTORY
 The Interpretation of the Past Events
a) Analyze the facts
b) Relevance to a certain group of people
c) Re-evaluate the mistakes of the past
d) Relationship/ Similarities to other culture

Neil Martial Santillan Historiography is the process of historical writing.

 Administrative positions
- Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, UP Diliman, May Traditional method in doing the historical research focuses on
2014 gathering of documents from different libraries and archives
- Prof. Santillan is the current Associate Dean for to form a pool of evidence needed in making a descriptive or
Administration and External Affairs in the College of analytical narrative.
Social Sciences and Philosophy. Modern historical writing does not only include examination
 Courses handled of documents but also the use of research methods from
- Prof. Santillan has traditionally handled General related areas of study such as archaeology and geography.
Education subjects such as Kasaysayan 1 (Philippine
History), Kasaysayan 2, and Social Science 3 (Gender HISTORY
and Sexuality). He now also offers Kasaysayan 112 Traditional Modern
(Contemporary Philippine History). - History is the - History is the
 Specialization record of the reconstruction of the
- Local History, Mindanao Studies, Film History, past. past based on
Volunteerism, Contemporary Philippines - History is a record available written
of the human records, oral history,
past from the cultural artifacts, and imaginative study of
time written folk traditions. surviving records of
records began to - It is the study of the past, either
appear. events and written or unwritten,
developments in order to determine
concerning people in the meaning and
the past. scope of human
- It basically involves existence.
collection, analysis,
and synthesis of
limited available A historical source is something that tells us about history. It
materials. may be a document, a picture, a sound recording, a book, a
- The mere presentation cinema film, a television programme or an object.
of facts does not
constitute history but Two main types of historical sources
a chronicle. 1. Primary source
- Thus, a historian  Something that originates from the past.
should do two other  Come from the time the event occurred
important tasks:  Examples: Documents, physical objects, and
a. Interpret and recreate oral/ video accounts, artworks, letters, coins,
facts in an orderly and artifacts, archaeological records, diaries,
intelligible manner; memoirs, interviews of eyewitnesses, speeches
and made by participants themselves, journals,
b. Discover patterns and maps, architectural perspectives, paintings,
trends, which govern advertisements and photographs
the behavior of people  Location of primary sources: National Library,
and of nations, and to National Archives, Academic institutions (UP
make generalizations Diliman, Ateneo de Manila, UST, Siliman
out of these. University, University of San Carlos), Private
 Therefore, history is Museum and Archives (Ayala Museum in
the interpretative and Makati, Lopez museum in Pasig), Religious
 congregation (Augustinians, Dominicans,
Jesuits, recollects), Outside Phil. (Spain and US),
Online libraries and archives, Cordillera Studies
2. Secondary source
 Something that has been made recently about
the past.
 Examples: (1) A Roman coin that was made by
the Romans is a Primary Source, but a drawing
of a Roman coin made in 2003 would be a
Secondary Source. (2) A Book written about the
Tudors in 1525 would be a Primary Source, but
a book written about the Tudors in 1995 would
be a Secondary Source.
 Other examples: Books, magazines, Internet,
News reports, Records that were made after
the event happened, Written by people who
were not present during the event and who
merely compiled stories
Challenges:
 Ability to read and understand text in foreign language
(Spanish language).
 Discern the cultural context and historical value of
primary sources
 Entails discerning mind (authenticity and reliability)
 Issues in writing Philippine History ( biased,
discriminatory, and self-serving ends)
Notable Historians
1. Teodoro Agoncillo
- Pioneered nationalist historiography in the country
by highlighting the role of the Filipino reformists and
revolutionaries from 1872.
2. Renato Constantino
- The writings of Constantino were a major influence in
the intellectual formation of countless young Filipinos
who staked their lives and future in opposing the
Marcos dictatorship.
3. Zeus Atayza Salazar
- A Filipino historian best known as a leading
proponent of the historical movement known as
“Pantayong Pananaw.”
4. Reynaldo Ileto
- His major works include Maguindanao, The Career of
the Datu Uto of Buayan, Pasyon and Revolution,
Popular Movement of the Philippines, Filipinos and
their Revolution, Events, Discourses and
Historiography.
5. Samuel K. Tan
- He is best remembered for his mainstreaming the
role and relevance of Filipino Muslims in the country’s
national history.
Issues in writing Philippine History (biased, discriminatory, and
self-serving ends)
 Political Narratives
 Colonial Histories in Historical Narratives
 Elite-centric perspectives
 Patriarchal orientations in Historical Narratives
 Emphasis on Lowland Christianized Filipinos
What to do?
 Narrow-minded view has to be reevaluated in order to
correct misrepresentations (muslims, Indigenous
Peoples)
 Encourage the writing of local histories to correct
national histories)
 Attend conferences and trainings for updates in
Philippine History
TOWARDS A PEOPLE’S HISTORY
 Who is Renato Constantino?
 What is history according to him?
 What do we mean by “people’s history” and what is its
significance?
TOWARDS A PEOPLE’S HISTORY
By: Renato Constantino
The young Renato Constantino learned about patriotism
from his grandmother, who told him endless stories about friar
abuses and her family’s sufferings under American rule, and
from his lawyer-father, who was critical of leaders who did not
fight for the country’s independence
Colonial Scholarship
 Filipino historians were captive of Spanish and
American historiography
 Both viewed Philippine history according to their
prejudices
 The need to rewrite Philippine History from the point
of view of Filipinos
 There were scholars who tried but they failed
The Task at Hand
 The task is to advance to the writing of a truly Filipino
History
 The principal focus must be on the anonymous masses
of individuals and social forces generated by their
collective lives and struggles
 History is the story of man the collective
 Without society there can be no history and there are
no societies without men
 What has hitherto regarded as history is
predominantly a conscious record of the rich and
powerful… not necessarily just and correct
 All powerful leaders, and especially tyrants, exerted
efforts to insure that the history would be written in
their image
 It is only within the context of a people’s history that
individuals, events, and institutions can be correctly
appraised
 A people’s history can serve as a concrete guide for
understanding a developing society
Redressing the Imbalance
 New approaches and new techniques in viewing events
and writing history is a reaction to the official histories
used to justify the backward conditions of their
colonies
 When intellectual decolonization shall have been
accomplished, a historical account can be produced
 which will present a fuller, more balanced picture of
reality
 The need for a real people’s history becomes a more
urgent we Filipinos search for truly Filipino solutions to
Filipino problems
Rediscovering the Past
 A people’s history must rediscover the past in order to
make it reusable
o Such a history can serve as a guide to present
and succeeding generations in the continuing
struggle for change
o It must deal with the past with a view to
explaining the present
o It must be not only descriptive but analytical
o It must not deal only with objective
developments but also bring the discussion to
the realm of value judgments
o In our particular case, history should show how
a nation was born
o A history that serves as a guide to the people in
perceiving reality is itself a liberating factor
The Motive Force
 The only way a history of the Philippines can be Filipino
is to write the basis of the struggles of the people, for
in these struggles the Filipino emerged
 The Filipino resistance to colonial oppression is the
unifying thread of Philippine history
John N. Schumacher’s
The Historian’s Task in the Philippines
PROFILING THE AUTHOR: Fr. John N. Schumacher, SJ
o PhD degree obtained from Georgetown University
o M.A. History degree holder
o Authored “Readings in Philippine Church History” in
1979
o Died in 2016 due to cardiac arrest
o Obtained full Filipino citizenship in 1976
o Main Curriculum Developer of the subject Rizal and the
Emergence of the Philippine Nation in Ateneo
o Authored the Propaganda Movement 1880-1895
o Recipient of National Award on Philippine
Historiography
o M.A. Philosophy degree holder
In 1991, the Ateneo De Manila University published a collection
of Shumacher’s essays “THE MAKING OF A NATION: ESSAYS
ON NINETEENTH CENTURY FILIPINO NATIONALISM” which
reflects the core premises of Schumacher about FILIPINO
NATIONAL CONSCIOUSNESS for over 30 years of historical
writing about the Philippines.
“THERE IS A FILIPINO HISTORY BEFORE THE COLONIAL ERA
(1872)” – JNS, SJ
 Schumacher’s Arguments:
 -Lack of method than a lack of history
 -Cracks in Filipino history; Spanish-dominated
 -How to put questions to the documents
(unintended references)
Why is it so hard to retrieve the genuine Filipino history such  Documentation, Assertions and Interpretation
that the history we have today tends to glorify our colonizers based on facts, Content Validity of the
rather than us, Filipinos? document

• According to Schumacher (1991), there is a DOCUMENTS AS SOURCES OF HISTORY

disproportionate amount of the total research into
Philippine history has been devoted to the
Revolutionary Period and the American Colonial period.
INSIGHTS OF SCHUMACHER ABOUT THE HISTORY OF
PHILIPPINE REVOLUTION
• Much attention was given about the study of friar
lands than the growth of non-friar haciendas
• A Deeper Cultural Understanding Must Be Applied in
understanding the different regions of the country
(Negros region, Iloilo, Tagalog) in relation with the time
of American colonialism
• The real history of Revolution is still to be written (not
just Cavite, Malolos or Luzon)
• History of Revolution must be done through a
thorough research of each region
 Official Documents
 Declaration of Philippine Independence from Spain
(June 12, 1898)
 Memoirs and Letters
 Rizal’s Correspondence
 Literary Works
 Ileto’s Pasyon and Revolution
Futility of Reconstructing the Filipino Past
• TENDENCY:
• Historical fiction – distortion of reality to craft
(One-dimensional; Philosophical constructs
rather than objective description of events)
• Versus
• TRULY FILIPINO HISTORY – a history of the
Filipino masses and their struggles

CAN HISTORY BE OBJECTIVE?

 History is always written from a point of view
 Documents are NOT self-interpreting
 Historian may bring his point of views, biases and
prejudices
 OBSERVING TRUISM* IN WRITING HISTORY
 *History is a science with laws
 HOW? Through CRITICAL METHOD
AS EDUCATORS OF HISTORY: Relics and testimonies
– Created for specific purpose of the age
WE TEACH HISTORY: – Relics- objects of practical use => historical source
in an attempt to discover (on the basis of fragmentary – Testimonies=> oral or written contemporary proof
evidence) the significant things of the past and to create of an act or right
accepted, valid judgements on the truthfulness of the historical – HISTORIAN: PRINCIPAL TASK IS TO UNCOVER THE
evidences ORIGINAL PURPOSE OR FUNCTION OF THE RELICS
OR TESTIMONIES THAT HAVE COME DOWN TO
POSTERITY
The Source: The Basis of Our Knowledge about the Past – PURPOSES THEY SERVE AT
BY: Howell and Prevenier THE TIME CREATED
– TESTIMONIES AND ARTIFACTS
What is a source? – ORIGINALLY TO SERVE AS RECORDS => intentional
– Artifacts that have been left by the past – Other purpose => unintentional
– Exist as relics, “remains” – Eg. Kennedy’s assassination filmed for private
– Testimonies of witnesses to the past enjoyment
– HISTORIAN: CONSIDER THE CONDITIONS UNDER
Relics or remains WHICH SOURCE PRODUCED
– Clue about the past by virtue of their existence Materials should be checked based on their:
– Eg. Wooden columns in prehistoric settlements 1. RELIABILITY and
– involves all aspect of culture 2. HISTORICAL CONTEXT
TESTIMONIES HISTORICAL AND HISTORIOGRAPHICAL CONTEXTS = HEART
– Oral or written OF HISTORICAL INTERPRETATION
– Simple or complex
– (example: record of property exchange, donations, SOURCES = MATERIALS from which historians construct
speeches, commentaries) meanings
– WHAT HAPPENED – object from the past or testimony which historians
– HOW AND IN WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES depend >>>> create own depiction of the past
– WHY IT OCCURRED – Historical work or interpretation is the result
– historian supplements the raw material available in – historical interpretation is an argument about the
the source event
 – Rizal’s diary
PRIMARY SOURCES- DIRECT OR INDIRECT
– DIRECT= letters or chronicles from 18th century
businessman
– law code
– letters of books from an educated woman’s study
(training and intellectual interests)
– sales of Barnes and Noble
Primary source indirect
– Church history left by Eusebius of Caesaria (265-
340)
– Interpreting first Christian history
HISTORIAN: RESPONSIBILITY IS TO DISTINGUISH
INFORMATION FROM SOURCE ITSELF
OR A PERSONAL INTERPRETATION
– Source typologies, their evolution and
complementarity
WRITTEN SOURCES TRIPARTITE SCHEME:
1. NARRATIVE OR LITERARY
2. DIPLOMATIC/JURIDICAL
3. SOCIAL DOCUMENTS
1) NARRATIVE OR LITERARY
a) CHRONICLES – to impart a particular message.
b) SCIENTIFIC TRACT- inform contemporaries or
succeeding generations
c) NEWSPAPER- shape opinion
d) EGO DOCUMENT- personal narratives- justice of the
author’s action - (INTENTIONALITY) individual
perspective from which it was written.
e) NOVEL OR FILM TO ENTERTAIN, MORAL TEACHING,
RELIGIOUS CAUSE
f) BIOGRAPHY- praise the subject’s worth or
achievement
NARRATIVE SOURCE are BROADER THAN FICTION
NOVELS and POETRY
g) MEMOIRES - (selective accounts) highly edited
accounts of the life being recorded
You can comprehend the EXPERIENCES of the
author=> POLITICAL INTENTIONS and TACTICS ,
IDEOLOGY and CULTURE OF THE AGE
2) Diplomatic sources
– Once treated as best source
– Legal instrument COMPLETION OF A LEGAL
TRANSACTION, proof of juristic fact, serve as evidence
in judicial proceeding
a. Issued by public authorities (kings, pope,
congress)
b. Private parties
FUNCTIONS of Diplomatic Source
LAW-GIVING= ordinances, declaration of law, statutes
JURIDICAL=judgements of courts
VOLUNTARY AGREEMENTS= contracts wills, social agreements
3) Social documents
a. Products of record keeping by bureaucracy, state
ministries, charitable organizations, foundations,
churches and schools
b. Economic, social, political and judicial import
c. Account particular charges, meetings, business
policy fiscal structure, social structure, political
administration
ARCHEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE – one of the most important
category of unwritten evidence
- Culture, way of life, ambitions, commercial, socio
cultural interconnections
– Coin hoards, paper currencies= government, economic
condition
ORAL EVIDENCE- TALES AND SAGAS OF ANCIENT PEOPLE
– PROTEST SONGS, ARTISTIC PERFORMANCES
In the study of history as an academic discipline, a
primary source (also called an original source or
evidence) is an artifact, document, diary, manuscript,
autobiography, recording, or any other source of
information that was created at the time under study.
– Sreedharan believes that primary sources have the
most direct connection to the past and that they "speak
for themselves" in ways that cannot be captured
through the filter of secondary sources.
Sreedharan, E. (2004). A Textbook of Historiography,
500 B.C. to A.D. 2000. Orient Longman. p. 302. ISBN 81-
250-2657-6.

RELATION OF THE FILIPINAS ISLANDS AND OF THE CHARACTER

- AND CONDITIONS OF THEIR INHABITANTS
BY MIGUEL LOPEZ DE LEGAZPI
TRANSLATED BY ALFONSO DE SALVIO
DATE/PLACE OF PUBLISHING – JULY 7, 1569/PHILIPPINES
PURPOSE: Give detailed information about the Philippines natives
and their conditions
MIGUEL LOPEZ DE LEGAZPI • Privateering and robbery have a natural attraction for
them.
BORN: 1502, ZUMÁRRAGA, SPAIN
• Whenever the occasion presents itself,
DIED: 20 AUGUST 1572, MANILA they rob one another
• They are always more ready to rob
SUCCEEDED BY: GUIDO DE LAVEZARIS their neighbors of their possessions ,
than to work and cultivate their own
land.
FILIPINAS ISLANDS
• All their skill is employed in setting ambuscades and
• Archipelago; some are large and most of them thickly
laying snares to seize and capture one another, and
populated, especially on the seacoast and all along the
they always attack with safety and advantage to
rivers.
themselves.
• Land is fertile.
• The natives are the laziest people in the world.
• Location is strategic: this land has many neighbors and
• They do not work the mines steadily,
is almost surrounded by the Japanese Islands, China,
but only when forced by necessity.
Xava (Java), Borney, the Malucos and Nueva Guinea.
• Their idleness surpass their
• Salubrious and has a good climate.
covetousness.
• More or less gold is found in all these islands.
• Gold
• There are places where pearls can be found.
• Rice
• Cinnamon
• Pearls
• Timber
• Pepper trees and other
CHARACTER AND CONDITIONS OF THEIR INHABITANTS
drugs.
• The inhabitants of these islands are not subjected to
• Debt is paid double.
any law, king, or lord.
• At times they sell their own children, when there is
• These people declare war among themselves at the
little need or necessity of doing so.
slightest provocation, or with none whatever. All those
• Slaves are not under great subjection to their masters
who have not made a treaty of peace with them, or
and lords.
drawn blood with them, are considered enemies.
 •Marriage among these natives is a kind of purchase
and trade. Men pay and give money in exchange for
their women.
• The men treat their wives well, and love them
according to their habits and customs – although they
are all barbarians and have no manners or politeness.
• Most of the people are heathens except for the Moros.
• The Moros have little knowledge of the law which they
profess, beyond practicing circumcision and refraining
from pork.
• The mountain regions are inhabited by blacks, with
whom as a general rule, the Indians are at war, and
whom the latter capture and sell, and also employ as
slaves.
MIGUEL LOPEZ DE LEGAZPI’S RECOMMENDATION
In order to attain this (settlers increasing the wealth of the land in
a short time), the first and foremost thing to be attempted is
Colonization and settlement.
• But if we undertake to subdue them by force of arms,
and make war on them, they will perish, and we shall
lose both friends and foes.
• Conversion of the natives to Catholic faith.
LEGAZPI’S BIASES
Very Eurocentric in describing the Philippine Culture.
RELATIVE INFO
- First successful expedition and paid the way for
colonization starting on Cebu (Zubu)
MAIN POINT OF TOPIC
- Description of the natives and the islands.
- Key poits: life of natives, socio-political structure, trade
relations, strategies for establishing Philippines and
conversion to Christianity
INTENDED AUDIENCE
King of Spain (about the rich resources of the Philippines)

LEGAZPI’S STRATEGY PRIMO VIAGGO INTORNO AL MONDO

• These natives could be easily subdued by good Author: Antonio Pigafetta
treatment and the display of kindness; for they have Date of Birth: 1491, Italy
no leaders, and are so divided among themselves and Death: 1530s
have so little dealing with one another – never Date of Writing: 1525 (published 1550s)
assembling to gain strength, or rendering obedience Place Written: Spain
to one another. Translation by J.A. Robertson

Purpose: to give report of what happened on the first voyage
Social Milieu: age of exploration/navigation – rivalry of Spain and
Portugal in terms of navigation – race to find the spice islands
Intended Audience: The King – Monarchs
MAIN point of Topic: Battle of Mactan – the escape of Spaniards
from Cebu – [Key Topics: Disobedience of Magellan, Massacre of
the Spaniards, Death Of Magellan, Betrayal of Enrique (the
translator/interpreter )
Pigafetta’s Personal Bias: glorification of Magellan ( read
examples: 1st page = 28th line…; 2nd page = 2nd line… )
USING PRIMARY SOURCES
TRANSCRIPTION AND TRANSLATION
THE LAGUNA COPPERPLATE INSCRIPTION
The Laguna Copperplate Inscription was found in 1989
near the mouth of the Lumbang River near Laguna de Bay , by a
man who was dredging sand to turn into concrete.
Suspecting that the artifact might have some value, the
man sold it to an antique dealer who, having found no buyers,
eventually sold it to the National Museum of the Philippines,
where it was assigned to Alfredo E. Evangelista, head of
its anthropology department
Antoon Postma
(28 March 1929 – 22 October 2016)
Dutch anthropologist who married into and lived among the
Hanunuo, a Mangyan sub-tribe in southeastern Mindoro,
Philippines.
He is best known for being the first to decipher the Laguna
Copperplate Inscription, and for documenting the Hanunó'o
script, paving the way for its preservation.
Background of the LCI
The LCI bears the Saka date of 822 or 900AD
Proof that the LCI did not originate from Java:
1. Copperplate inscriptions from the same era in Java bear
the name of the King (at that time was King Balitung) and
are charters or Royal Decrees
2. CI from Java were written in OJ language
Some notes about the LCI:
1. The script used was the aksara Kawi or Kawi script –
originated in Java and widely used across Southeast Asia
from 8AD- 1500AD
2. The language used was Old Malay, Old Tagalog, and some
Old Java words
3. The LCI bore the date saka warsatita 822 waisakha – the
Saka was a dating system (calendar)

What is Post-Colonial History?
What constitutes a People’s history?
The historians’ Task
Relevance of History
Renato Constantino John Schumacher
1. Mostly American and Spanish 1) Hispano-centric outlook of the sources
historiography. 2) Revolutionary on the American Period
2. Focuses on the heroic deed 3) Distortion and forgeries of the sources
3. Particularities without a unifying thread. used.
4. Contemporary events
5. Correcting historical misimpressions.
1) Focus on the anonymous masses and on 1) Filipinos as the primary agent of history.
the social forces 2) Acknowledge what is valuable and what
2) A true peoples’ history discovers the is harmful in the Filipin past in order to
laws of social development. aid the need of the present nation.
3) Must be general
4) Not only descriptive but also analytical.
5) Rediscovers the past.
1) To write Phil History from the point of 1) To write Phil History from the point of
view of the Filipinos view of the Filipinos masses
2) To advance to the writing of a truly 2) To present the Filipino Past that really in
Filipino history all its variety.
3) To weave particular events into a total 3) History research and writing should aim
view. to undergird the formation of the society
that provides justice, and participation
not only to the elites of power but to
every Filipino.
1) Policy formulation 1) Understanding of our past, cultivation of
2) Filipino solutions to Filipino problems our national identity, and inspiration for
3) Identify forces that impede real the future
progress. 2) Reform and reshape the society.