HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE 4

ARCHITECTURE IN THE PHILIPPINES

INFLUENCES HISTORY
Pre-Colonial:
• Immigration via land-bridges as early as 250,000
years ago, and later, sea-vessels
• Immigrants of Malay origin, food gatherers and
hunters
• 3000 BC, joined by advanced agricultural race from
Indonesia, with barangays as tribal system
• laws on marriage, inheritance, ownership, crime,
and behavior
• elaborate animistic religion
• Indians in 4th and 5th century BC
• Chinese in 3rd and 4th century AD
• Arabs - converted some parts to Islam in 1300 AD
• Trade center of the Orient – Sulu was frequented by
ships from China, Cambodia, Sumatra, Java, India,
Arabia
INFLUENCES HISTORY
Spanish Rule:
• 1521 Ferdinand Magellan landed
• 1564 Miguel Lopez de Legazpi brought Christianity
• Systematically and efficiently Christianized most
part of the country
• Introduced European institution and thought
• Economically linked Manila with Mexico and the
rest of the world - via the Spanish Galleon Trade
• Brief occupation by the British forces (1762-1764);
attempted seizure by Dutch and Chinese
• Spanish colony until 1900's
• Nationalist movement by Jose Rizal, unsuccessful
revolt by Aguinaldo
INFLUENCES HISTORY
American Rule:
• Islands were sold or ceded to America, as a result of
Spanish war with USA
• Continued fighting
• Democracy was introduced - allowed a self-
government called the Commonwealth Era
Japanese Invasion:
• December 1941
• Established a puppet government
• Liberation when Gen. McArthur returned in July
1945
• Independence in 1946
• 3rd largest English-speaking country in the world
• Citadel of Christianity and democracy in East Asia
• Mixture of races: Malay, Chinese, Spanish, American
GEOGRAPHY & GEOLOGY
• Archipelago of 7100 islands – mountainous and
fragmented
• 3 main island groups: Luzon, Visayas and
Mindanao
• Southeast Asia, Pacific Ocean - strategic position
- in the path of Far East trade
• major earthquake and volcanic belt
• in the path of typhoons from the Pacific
ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER
DESCRIPTION
Building Capability:
• Even with ties to nearby countries, our
ancestors saw no need for large megalithic
structures, etc
• Nevertheless, showed engineering capability
and prowess with the Rice Terraces of Northern
Luzon
Settlements
• big villages along key trade centers
• near the sea-shore, beside rivers and streams –
for purposes of travel, communication and
sanitation
I. EARLY PHILIPPINE
SHELTER
 HOUSE, EARLY FORM

• LUNGIB / KWEBA • BALANGAY OR BOATHOUSE • PINANAHANG / LEAN-TO • TREE HOUSE

/ CAVE An impressive boat, A form of dwelling A single-room house
approximately 25 meters in common to the Negritos, of light materials that
A natural
length and carbon-dated to an ethnic group regarded are either integrally
chamber on the
320 AD, and that was built as wanderers, hunters, build on
side of a hill
entirely of wood and used for and farmers practicing high tress or above the
utilized as one of
seafaring by the ancient slash and burn tree stump serving as
the earliest forms
kingdom of Butuan. agriculture even during the main house‟s
of dwelling.
the Hispanic period. support
 CAVE DWELLING AS THE EARLY HUMAN SHELTER
• Pleistocene People
Philippine‟s earliest cave dwellers. (ice age
offspring)
Tabon Cave
• Most antiquated cave periodically dwelt
by prehistoric family 30,000 yrs ago.
• Found in Lipuun Point, South west of
Palawan.

TABON CAVE - Was named “Tabon” after the large footed

bird that lays eggs in huge holes it digs into cave floors,
many of which found in cave.
 CAVE DWELLING AS THE EARLY HUMAN SHELTER
TAU’T BATU
• People occupying the south of Palawan who
continuous lives the primeval practice of living in
caves.
•Datag – a basic sleeping platform since the cave
accommodates multiple family, each family unit is
defined by individual datag

The rock shelters of Angono, Rizal

are renowned for their rich prehistoric art, making
them a significant archaeological site in the Philippines.
• The Angono rock shelters feature numerous
petroglyphs depicting animals, humans, and
abstract symbols.
 CAVE DWELLING AS THE EARLY HUMAN SHELTER

The Idjang; The Ancient Precolonial Castles of Batanes

are The Idjang date back to the precolonial period, and are
believed to have been built by the Ivatan people, the
indigenous inhabitants of Batanes.
 EPHEMERAL PORTABLE ARCHITECTURE
Ephemeral architecture - is an ancient part of our architectural heritage, stretching back to
the vernacular works of nomadic cultures.

Dait-dait – is a simple windscreen Hawong – by Pinatubo Aeta.

Lean-to / Pinanahang –
used by the Mamanua of Usually constructed with a
botanic sheild of the Agta
northeastern Mindanao when ridge pole supported by
of Palanan. Built with
hunting. Built with wild banana, forked stakes or limbs. It
strong but light branches
coconut fronds or grass usually forms two sloping sides with
and palm fronds.
lashed out with rattan. one or both end open.
 ARBOREAL SHELTER
Tinguian of Palan, located at northwest of Abra,
has two shelters. The daytime shelter was a small
hut while the nocturnal abode is called alligang.

TREE DWELLERS IN THE PHILIPPINES

•Gaddang and Kalinga of Luzon
•Manobos and Mandaya of
Mindanao
•Moros of lake Lanao
•Negritos of Bukidnon and North-
central Mindanao
•Bagobo of Davao
•Mandaya
•Bilaan
•Ilongot
 RICE TERRACES

a remarkable feat of human ingenuity,

particularly in regions with steep slopes.
These man-made structures involve
carving terraces into hillsides to create
flat areas for cultivating rice. .
RICE TERRACES PARTS RICE TERRACES
• Bawang, enclosed pond-field surface
•Pumpudungan, property marker
•Inado, vegetable mulch mounds
•Banong, dike/pond-field rim
• topeng, stone retaining wall
•Lobong, water
•Guheng, spillway
•Luyo, worked pond-field soil
•Haguntal, hard earth fill
•Adog, rough gravel fill
•Gonad, foundation stone
•„ahbubul, submerged water source
•„anul, drainage conduit
•Gangal, course fills/small stone
•„aldoh, second-course walling stone
•Doplah, bedrock/original valley-floor earth
 RICE TERRACES
RICE TERRACES ZONING

Bable – The settlement of

Ifugao Community which
compromise of bale/fale and
granary
II. Philippine Vernacular Architecture
Philippine Vernacular Architecture

VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
• Broadly applied to denote indigenous,
pock, tribal, ethnic/traditional architecture
found among the different ethnolinguistic.
• From Latin “Vernaculus” w/c means
native.
• Refers to the grammar, syntax, and diction
in expressing buildings in a locale, while
signifying the diverse range of building
traditions in a region.
Philippine Vernacular Architecture

Primitive Architecture
is a term that has been used to describe the
earliest forms of human-built structures,
often associated with indigenous or pre-
industrial societies.
Philippine Vernacular Architecture

Indigenous Architecture
used by other writers seemed to bracket off
the non-formal architecture introduced and
built by immigrant and colonialist population
in order to privilege those building forms
constructed by the indigenes.
Philippine Vernacular Architecture

Anonymous Architecture
reflects the bias towards buildings
designed by named and canonic architects.

Folk Architecture
is tinged with issues of class differentiation.

Ethnic Architecture
a term that reflects an exoticization of the
residual ethnolinguistic Other by the
dominant cosmopolitan culture.
5 PRINICIPLE FEATURES
VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
• the builders, whether artisans or those
planning to live in the buildings, are non-
professional architect or engineer
• There is consonant adaptation using
natural materials to the geographical
environment
• Actual process of construction involves
intuitive thinking, done w/o blue prints
and is open to later modification
• There is balance between Social/economic
functionality & aesthetic features
• Archt. Patterns & style are subject to a
protracted evolution of traditional styles
specific to an ethnic domain.