An Overview of Philippine Literary History

AN OVERVIEW OF PHILIPPINE LITERARY HISTORY
Literature
• Is a body of written works
• Originated from oral traditions.
• Are imaginative works
• Deals with stories and poetry
• The content depends on the author
Three Points of Literature

 Literature portrays human experience
 Authors interpret these human experiences
 It is an art form and a style of expression
The Three Literary Periods

BC-1564: The Pre-Colonial Period
 This existed before the Spanish occupation in the 1500s
 It is oral in nature and is full of lessons and ideas about life, its blessings, and its
consequences
 It contains ideas from birth to the grave
 The oral characteristic of pre-colonial literature gives the possibility for many
alterations
 In the Philippine context, no matter how it may be considered as altered, pre-
colonial literature is still revered to by many Filipinos
 The sources are usually the local native town folk.
Forms
1. Oral Literature
a. Riddles
b. Proverbs
2. Folk Songs
a. Lullabies
b. Drinking Songs
c. Love Songs
d. Songs of Death
e. Religious Songs
3. Folk Tales
a. Myths
b. Legends
c. Fables
d. Epics
Riddles (Mga Bugtong)

 These are statements that contain superficial words, but they function figuratively
and as metaphors, and are in the form of questions
 These are questions that demand deeper answers
 Deals with everyday life
 It usually has mundane things as answers
 This is used in the past as a form of game in small or large gatherings
Examples:
Bisaya
Baboy sa lasang, (A wild pig of the forest,)
Ang tunok puro lansang. (Is covered with spikes.)
Answer: Nangka (Jackfruit)
Meranaw Chabacano
Sominub lawiyan, (It dived,) Tagia que tagia, (You keep on slashing it,)
Mbowat lawitan. (It rose.) Hende ta penetra. (But it does not penetrate)
Answer: Ragum (Needle) Answer: Agua (Water)
Proverbs (Mga Salawikain)

 These are statements that are considered as wise
 These are usually given by parents or elders of the community
 There is belief that experience is the best teacher.
Examples:
Mandaya on Viriginity
Yang ataog aw madugdug, (An egg once broken,)
Di da mamauli. (Will never be the same.)
Tausug on Secret Affairs Ilocano on Guilt
In lasa iban uba, (Love and cough,) Ti agutak, (He who cackles
Di hikatapuk. (Cannot be hidden.) Isut nagitlog. (Laid the egg.)
Folk Songs
 These are folk lyrics that are usually chanted
 These usually contain ideas on aspirations, hopes, everyday life and expressions of
love for loved ones
 It is bounded by the learning of good morals
 It is easy to undestand because it is straightforward and not figurative in nature.
Lullabies- locally known as the Hele

 These are sung to put to sleep babies. The content varies, but usually, parents sing
these with ideas on how hard life is and how they hope that their child will not
experience the hardships of life
Drinking Songs- these are locally known as Tagay and are sung during drinking sessions.
Love Songs- to many Filipinos, these are known as the Harana. It can also be called Courtship
Songs and are used by young men to capture the heart of the girl that they love.
Religious Songs- are songs or chants that are usually given during exorcisms and
thanksgiving during good harvest.
Songs of Death- are lamentations that contain the roll of good deeds that the dead has
usually done to immortaliz his or her good image.
Examples:
Lullabies
Ilocano
Maturog, duduayya Go to sleep, dear little one
Maturog kad tay bunga, Will my child please sleep,
Tay lalaki nga napigsa This strong boy
Ta inton dumakkel tay bunga, So when the child grows big
Isunto aya tay mammati He will obey
Tay amon a ibaga me. Everything that we say.
Folk Tales (Mga Kwentong Bayan)

 These are stories of native Filipinos.
 These deal with the power of naturepersonified, their submission to a deityusually
Bathala- and how this deity is responsible for the blessings and calamities.
 These also tackle about irresponsibility, lust, stupidity, deception, and fallibility that
eventually leads to the instilling of good morals.
Usual Themes:
• Ceremonies needed to appease the deities.
• Pre and Post apocalypse
• Life and Death
• Gods and Goddesses
• Heroes and Heroines
• Supernatural beings
• Animals
Myths- these tackle the natural to strange occurences of the earth and how things were
created with an aim to give an explanation to things.
-There is Bathala for the Tagalogs and the Gueurang for the Bikolanos.
- Paradise is known as Maca, while Hell is Kasanaaan
Legends- through legends, the natives understood mysteries around them. These stories
usually come with a lesson that giveS credit to supernatural powers, supernatural
occurrences, and other out-of-this-world native imagination.
Fables- are short or brief stories that cater the children of the native Filipinos and are usually
bounded by good manners and right conduct. These stories use animals as characters that
represent a particular value or characteristic.
Epics- are very lengthy narratives that are based on oral traditions.
 Recount the good deeds of a hero
Your Task
Interview your parents/grandparents or any older members in your family. Let them
share to you three Ilocano riddles and three Ilocano proverbs. Ask them the significance or
importance of these riddles and proverbs during their childhood and until now. Summarize
their responses. Include also your realizations. Then, write a reflection of not less than 200
words. Submit your output until September 28, 5:00 PM.

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AN OVERVIEW OF PHILIPPINE LITERARY HISTORY

Three Points of Literature

The Three Literary Periods

Riddles (Mga Bugtong)

Proverbs (Mga Salawikain)

Lullabies- locally known as the Hele

Folk Tales (Mga Kwentong Bayan)

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