S.Y.

2021-
2022
DR. AURELIO MENDOZA MEMORIAL COLLEGES
Formerly: Lyceum of the South
Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay
"Dream big dreams"

READINGS IN PHILIPPINE
MODULE HISTORY
FOR First Semester
Prepared by:
Marjorie B. Canones
 Course Description

Philippine History viewed from lens of selected primary sources in different periods, analysis
and interpretations.
The course aims to expose students to different facets of Philippine History through lens of
eyewitnesses. Rather than rely on secondary materials such as textbooks, which is the usual
approach in teaching Philippine history, different types of primary sources will be used—written
(qualitative and quantitative), oral, visual, audio-visual, digital- covering various aspects of
Philippine life (political, social, cultural). Students are expected to analyze selected readings
contextually and in terms of content. The end goal 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.
The course analyzes Philippine history from multiple perspectives through the lens of
selected primary sources coming from various disciplines and different genres. Students are given
opportunities to analyze the author’s background and main arguments, compare different points of
view, identify biases and examine the evidences presented in the document.

Learning Outcomes:

At the end of the course, students should be able to:

1. Evaluate primary sources for their credibility, authenticity and provenance.
2. Analyze the context, content and perspective of different kinds of primary sources.
3. Determine the contribution of different kinds of primary sources in understanding Philippine
History.
4. Develop critical and analytical skills with exposure to primary sources.
5. Demonstrate the ability to use primary sources to argue in favor of against a particular
issue.
6. Effectively communicate using various techniques and genres, their historical analysis of a
particular event or issue that could help others understand the chosen topic.
7. Propose recommendations/solutions to present-day problems on their understanding of root
causes and their anticipation of future scenarios.
8. Display the ability to work in a team and contribute to a group project.
9. Manifest interest in local history and concern in promoting and preserving our country’s
national patrimony and cultural heritage.
Expected Outputs:
1. Written Outputs
● Essays
● Reflection paper/reaction paper
● Poem composition
● Analysis of Primary Sources

2. Pre-Lim /Midterm/Pre-Final/Final Examination

3. Project/Performance Task
● Term Paper
● Interview
● Blogs
Grading System
● Project/PT-------------------30%
● Periodical Examination—40%
● Written Outputs------------ 30%___
Total --------------------- 100%
 DR. AURELIO MENDOZA MEMORIAL COLLEGES
Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay
Department of Criminolgy
Readings in Philippine History
First Semester
S.Y. 2021-2022
Module 1-Week 1-2 : Meaning and Relevance of History, Distinction of Primary and
Secondary Resources, External and Internal Criticism, Repositories of Primary
Resources, and Different Kinds of Primary Resources

CHAPTER I. HISTORY AND HISTORIOGRAPHY

MEANING AND RELEVANCE
Socrates in his dialectic argued the importance of coming up with terms before engaging
in a discourse. In this way, there will be a common ground for the exchange of discussion. On
the other hand, the appropriation of meaning is complicated for it has to consider several
factors. Aside from the reasons stated, the power that emanates from the one who controls the
discourse is also a factor to consider. To quote Napoleon Bonaparte “what is history but a fable
agreed upon.”

Gottschalk (1969), posited that the term history has evolved from its present
connotation. Etymologically, history was taken from Greek word iotopia which means “ to
learn”. At present the term connotes the past events.

Generally, history is concerned with the study of the human past (Barnes, 1963).
Specifically, we can give three attributes of meanings to the concept. First, it deals with the
past events; Second, the records of past events such as, chronicle, annals, official records like
birth certificates; Third, history as an academic discipline (Shaffler, 1974).

Furthermore, Dr. Zeus Salazar defined history as “ mga pangyayari na may saysay para
sa grupo ng taong sinasaysayan nito” (2000). Salazar advocated the use of Filipino in historical
discourse.

History as defined by a foreign scholar “is the record of what one age finds worthy of
note in another”. For Carr, history is a study of human achievements. Whatever differences
historians may give, still them term suggests past events.

The term history although it means past, cannot be narrowed down to the records of
past events only. Likewise, even though the subject of history is past events, nobody can deny
that it connotes many implications that affect the life of the people and the future of a country..
As defined by Medina, history is not just the past but also and principally the present and
future. History is a forward projection. It is a social construction of a future reality. Forthese
authors, the writing of history is political endeavor. Since history is a continuous process, it is a
good vehicle to use in directing the future of a country. This brings us to the question posed by
Keith Jenkins about history and power. For Keith Jenkins, history can never be and will never
be for one’s self. It is always for one person. He added that history is a form of power wherein
the direction of the arrangement of the past is discussed.
 HISTORY AND PHILIPPINE HISTORIOGRAPHY

Historiography is the art of writing. It also refers to the theory and history of historical
writing. The term historiography is rooted from the Greek word historia which means past and
graphier which means to write. Although the writing of history can be traced thousands of years
ago, historiography, the scientific way of writing history, gained prominence only in the early
1900s.

In the Philippines, the dominance of the colonial discourse has challenged Filipino
historians to write the history of the Philippines using a discourse that will privilege the Filipinos.
Filipino historians like Agoncillo , Lleto, Guerrero, Diokno, Salazar and others worked hard to
counter the colonial historiography that dominated Philippine historiography for a long time. The
accumulation of new data and the development of new theoris gave Filipino historians many
aspects of Philippine history that were left unexplained.Historians with the help of other
disciplines like archeology, anthropology, psychology, linguistics and other disciplines faithfully
reconstructed the Philippines past using a Filipino perspective.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF PHILIPPINE HISTORIOGRAPHY

Historical consciousness is innate among the Filipinos. As reflected in a popular Filipino

saying “ Ang hindi marunong lumingon sa kanyang nakaraan ay hindi makararating sa kanyang
paroroonan.” This is indicative that the Filipinos have an intrinsic love of their past.

For so many years, Filipino historians became followers of a very rigid tradition in writing
history—a tradition based on positivism. Positivism holds that historical knowledge and
interpretation ought to be based upon verifiable data gathered after examination of documents
through internal and external criticisms. Because of the weaknesses of this tradition, a new
historical approach known as New Historicism emerged. It seeks the interpretation of facts from
all perspectives, including those that do not concern history before.

1.1. The Writing of History during the Spanish Period

The development of Philippine historiography can be traced back to the Spanish period.
The early friars with their zeal to propagate Christianity studoed the cultures of the early
Filipinos and faithfully recorded their valuable observations. Although the writings of the early
friars were basically missionary history, their recorded observations on the life of the early
Filipinos are indispensable in the understanding of the Philippine past. Since the early
historians were Spanish friars, their accounts were focused on Spanish history of the
Philippines, specifically their missionary experience in the country.
The first order of firars that arrived in the Philippines was the Augustinians. Some of the
Augustinian friars who contributed to the writings of history were Fray Juan de Grijalva who
wrote the book “ Cronica de la order de N.P.S. Agustin en las provincias dela Nueva Espana”,
which showcased the Augustinian missions in the Philippines, Fray Casimiro Diaz wrote on
the Filipino uprisings in the 17th and 18th centuries, and Fray Joaquin Martinez de Zuniga wrot
“Historia de las Islas Filipinas” which was a summary of the accounts of the early chronicles.
The Dominican Order who came after the Augustinians became one of the most
 influential religious orders in the Philippines. Some of the Dominican friars who gave valuable
contributions in the development of Philippine historiography were Fr. Diego de Advante, who
wrote “ Historia de la Provincia del Santo Rosario” which showcased their missionary
activities; Fr. Baltazar de Santa Cruz, who accounted the Binalatongan Revolt of 1860 in
Pangasian; Fr. Vicente Salazar; Fr. Diego Colantes who gave a vivid account of the
Dominican mission in Batanes and Fr. Juan Ferrando who worked on the history of the
Dominican Order in the Philippines.”
The order of Saint Francis also held missionary posts in the country. The works of the
Franciscan friars like Fray Juan de la Plasencia and Fray Francisco de Santa Ines are
indispensable sources of knowledge regarding the cultures of the early Filipinos.
The Jesuit Fathers also made valuable contributions to the understanding of the 16 th century
Pilippines. Fr. Pedro Chirino, considered as one of the most distinguished Jesuit historians,
authored the book “ Relacion de las Islas Filipinas” which was published in Rome 1604. The
book is a narrative of the life of the Filipinos prior to their colonization.
The Recollect Fathers, although less popular compared to other religious orders in the
country, had also made distinguished contributions in the development of Philippine
historiography. The Recollect Fathers like Fray Juan de la Concepcion had written valuable
information that can be used to understand the cultures of the Spanish Philippines.

1.2. Secular Historians during the Spanish Period

The writing of history during the Spanish period was not confined to the hands of the friars.
As a proof, many secular historians had shown great interest in the Philippine affairs which
they recorded. The secular historians during the Spanish period can be divided into the
following : Spanish officials in the Islands; foreign residents and writers and the Filipino
Ilustrado.
Among the Spanish officials who served the country , Dr. Antonio de Morga , can be
considered as the most respected and his “ Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas”, one of the most
reliable source of information regarding the 16 th century Philippines. Another authoritative
work on pre-Spanish Philippine Society wasthe book written by an ecomendero in the
Visayas, Captain Miguel de Loarca.

1.3. Filipino Historians during Spanish Philippines

The opening of Manila to international trade has brought economic development to the
country and this development paved the way for the birth of the middle class. The economic
prosperity that was achieved gave Filipino historians the opportunity to study in Europe and
work for Philippine Reforms. The Filipino Ilustrados like Jose Rizal, Marcelo del Pilar,
Graciano Lopez Jaena, Pedro Paterno, Antonio Luna, Mariano Ponce and Isabelo de los
Reyes, among others, can be considered as the first Filipino nationalist-historians who
defended the Philippines and the Filipinos from a very biased portrayal by foreign historians.
The Propaganda Movement used the liberal atmosphere in Europe to advance the fight of the
Filipinos for reforms. The propagandists through “La Solidaridad” wrote several articles that
dealt with the Philippine condition during and prior to Spanish colonization.

1.4. The Writing of History during the American Period

On June 2, 1898, General Emilio Aguinaldo declared he independence of the Philippines.
The short-lived Philippine Republic ended with the capture of Aguinaldo in Palanan, Isabela
on March 23, 1901. In this year, the American government decided to terminate the military
government and replaced it with a civil government under the leadership of William Howard
 Taft. Generaly speaking, the writing of history during this period can be considered better
compared to the writings of history during the Spanish period.Although, most of the writings of
the Americans about the Philippines were extremely biased, still there were few Americans
who wrote in favor of the Filipinos. Historians during this period can be classified into Filipino
Ilustrado, American colonial officials, non-colonial officials and the so-called academic
historians.
Generally, the accounts of the colonial officials were criticsl to the republic of Malolos and
to the Filipinos. Similar to the accounts of Spanish friars, the history written by the colonial
officials is a narrative of the history of the United States in the Philippines. In their writings,
they boast of the achievements of the colonial administration in the country. They highlighted
the changes and developments that the Americans introduced and made it appear that the
Filipinos are nothing without the tutelage of the Americans. On the other hand, non-colonial
officials in the country like Catherine Mayo, highlighted the so-called backwardness of the
Filipinos.
1.5. Historical Writings during the Third Republic
After the Philippines regained its Independence in 1946, the newly established Philippine
Republic had to confront several problems. Aside from the rehabilitation of the country, the
newly established government had to face the problems concerning national unity and
national identity. In this light, the country was in need of history that will reflect the characters
of the people and will serve as a unifying factor of the country.
History writing during this period was influenced by the cold war. The Philippines being known
as an ally of the United States tried to combat communism by privileging the achievements of
the colonizers in the Philippine history.
In the late 1950s., Teodoro Agoncillo revolutionized the writing of the Philippine history.
Agoncillo in his effort to write the history of the Philippines using a Filipino standpoint
highlighted the 1896 Revolution and considered 1872 as the beginning of the history of the
Philippines as a nation.

CHAPTER 2. DISCOURSING THE CONTENT AND CONTEXT OF SOME PRIMARY

SOURCES IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY

1. Historical research/writing is dependent on the availability of primary sources,

documentary sources, secondary event or testimonies of the authorities. Historical sources
can be categorized into written, material and traditional. Written sources can be subdivided
into literary and official. The former is the interpretation of the writer which involves his
subjectivity while the latter is the record produced when transacting business. Traditional
sources such as folklore, oral tradition, epic and indigenous material are also used as
source of history.
Primary sources which can either be written or non-written (sound, artifacts, art
work, etc.) provide direct or firsthand evidence about an event, object, person, or work of
art. They include historical and legal documents, eyewitness accounts, data, pieces of
creative writing, audio and video recordings, speeches and art objects, photographs, films,
journals, letters, diaries, scrapbooks, published books, newspaper and magazine clippings
published at the time of the event, interviews, eyewitness accounts, clinical reports,
treaties, government publications. They are not characterized by their own format but by
the information they convey and their relationship to the research question. They are often
located in the Special Collections of a Library.
Primary sources are considered as the windows to the past of historians which
 enable them to discover what people were doing, planning, or discussing at a particular
time.
Secondary sources are any account of something that is not a primary source.
Published research, newspaper articles, scholarly or popular books and articles, reference
books, textbooks and other media are typical secondary sources.
Although secondary sources often quote and/or use some primary sources, they
are considered one step removed from primary sources since they can add a layer of
interpretation and analysis of the same topic being presented, or being written. They can
include sources as most books about a topic, analysis or interpretation of dats, scholarly or
other article about a topic, especially by people not directly involved, documentaries.

2. Distinction Between Primary and Secondary Sources

A primary source is an original document or other material that has not been
changed in any way. Secondary sources are documents based on primary sources.
Primary sources are immediate firsthand account of a topic from people who had direct
connection with it. Secondary sources are any account of something that is not a primary
source.
Benjamin (1994) referred to primary source as also primary evidence which records
the actual words of someone who participated in, or witnessed the events described, while
secondary evidence records the findings of someone who did not observe the event but
who investigated primary evidence.

3. Internal and external Criticisms

History as an academic discipline follows the very rigid tradition set by logical
positivism. This tradition gives weight on the use of documents and other tangible artifacts
as basis of historical fact.
As a science, it should remain faithful to the tradition of producing knowledge based
on scientific methodology which is highly objective. At this juncture, it is imperative to all
students of history to understand internal and external criticism.
Internal criticism deals with the analysis of the content of the documents. This
means that the historian should evaluate the relevance of the content of the documents to
the time and place of the phenomenon. These past few years, the famous poem of Jose
Rizal “Sa aking mga Kababata” became the subject of scrutiny of some scholars. Some
scholars pointed out that the poem was written during the Filipino-American War, and it is
attributed to Germinigildo Cruz or Gabriel Beato Francisco (Ocampo, 1993).
On the other hand, external criticism deals with the analysis on the form of the
documents . This criticism allows the historian to evaluate the authenticity of the
documents by giving importance to the author of the document and the time when the
document was written..
To sum up, internal and external criticisms are not only very important tools in
establishing the validity of historical writing but also in establishing the validity of the
discipline of history as an academic discipline.
 What is repositories?

1. a place, building, or receptacle where things are or may be stored.

oa place in which something, especially a natural resource, has accumulated or
where it is found in significant quantities.

oCOMPUTING
a central location in which data is stored and managed.

Repositories of Primary Sources

The National Archives of the Philippines is the home of about 60 million documents from
the centuries of Spanish rule in the Philippines, the American and Japanese occupations, as well
as the years of the Republic. It is also the final repository for the voluminous notarized documents
of the country.

THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF THE PHILIPPINES (Filipino: Pambansang Aklatan ng Pilipinas or

Aklatang Pambansa ng Pilipinas, abbreviatedNLP) is the official national library of the Philippines.
The complex is located in Ermitaon a portion of Rizal Park facing T.M. Kalaw Avenue, neighboring
culturally significant buildings such as the Museum of Philippine Political History and the National
Historical Commission. Like its neighbors, it is under the jurisdiction of the National Commission for
Culture and the Arts(NCCA).

The National Census and Statistics Office (NCSO) . The National Census and Statistics Office
has the major civil records after 1932 and is currently responsible for all civil registration.
Unfortunately, most documents from 1932 to 1945 were destroyed in World War II. Prior to 1974
the office was known as the Bureau of Census and Statistics.

Most vital records should be available at the Family History Library and Family History Centers.
The microfilmed records include birth certificates, death certificates, marriage contracts, and
notarial records.

Tanggapan Sa Pamamahala Ng Mga Kasulatan At Sinupan (Records Management and

Archives Office). The Archive Division of the Records Management and Archives Office (Bureau
of Records Management) has approximately 11,000,000 documents from the Spanish
colonization period (1552–1898) and a few records from the American occupation period (1898–
1946). Unfortunately, thousands of documents have been lost due to careless handling,
deliberate destruction, and natural deterioration caused by termites, mold, and moisture.

The Family History Library has filmed the most important genealogical records from this
collection, including:
 Cemetery records (cementerios).
 Inheritance records and inventories of personalestates (bienes de difuntos).
 Marriage records (matrimonios).
 Census records (vecindarios, estadísticas, padrones de chinos).
 Military records (quintas, guardia civil, hojas de servicio).
  Immigration and naturalization records(naturalización de Españoles, radicación de
estrangeros).
 Notarial records (protocolos).

The Philippine National Library has a valuable 45,000-volume Filipiniana collection of

biographies, local histories, bibliographies, and gazetteers. It also has collections of rare books
and manuscripts, newspapers and brochures, and microforms.

Computers with modems can be useful tools for obtaining information from selected archives and
libraries. In a way, computer networks themselves serve as a library. The Internet, certain
computer bulletin boards, and commercial online services help family history researchers:
 Locate other researchers.
 Post queries.
 Send and receive e-mail.
 Search large databases.
 Search computer libraries.
 Join in computer chat sessions.

ACTIVITY 1.

Direction: Answer the following questions.

1. Discuss how the writing of history was affected by the dominant perspective of a
period.
2. Explain why despite colonial historiography’s hostility to the Filipinos, they are still
considered important to modern day historians.
3. Discuss history as academic discourse.
4. Research, read and critique the 3 primary sources
A. The Philippines a Century Hence (by: Dr. Jose Rizal)
B. Dasalan at Toksohan (by: Marcelo H. Del Pilar)
C. Pag-ibig sa Tinubuang Lupa (by: Andres Bonifacio)
Questions:
1. What are the importance of the documents?
2. Give the background of the authors.
3. Explain briefly the context of the documents.
4. What are their contributions to understanding Philippine History?

Activity 2. Performance Task: Compose a poem expressing love of country.(4 stanza with 4
lines in every stanza)

Criteria: Relevance-------------25

Grammar--------------25

Accuracy--------------25

Overall-----------------75 points