PRE-HISPANIC PERIOD

Before the coming of Ferdinand Magellan and Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, two of our
infamous colonizers, the islands of the Philippines were already a hub for tribal gathering and
cultural diversity (Ocay, 2010). Looking back at the most basic elements of a civilization that
creates defining features that are innately of a certain race or group we identify and highlight three
of these elements: cultural and religious beliefs, political system, and means of economic
sustenance. One of the earliest signs of religious practices in the Philippines coincided with the
discovery of urns of jars that were used for religious practices to mourn for the dead.
Archaeologists suggest that this shows interest and practice of honoring the dead as they believed
in life after death brought upon by higher beings (Arcilla, 2013).
On the idea of more abstract forms of religion such as paganism and animism, the
knowledge on primitive cultures and religions of the Filipino are mostly confined to material
manifestations of their existence or are interpreted by Western researchers while studying certain
Philippine tribes like the Igorots (Beyer, 1912). However, one thing is evident – these practices
were already existing and thriving long before missionaries arrived. One thing was most especially
true, that their supreme god would be called Bathala, which would indicate that Philippine culture
was heavily derived from Indians or the Malayans (Arcilla, 2013). Perhaps an even more basic
conception of the creation of Philippine civilization is the narrative on Malakas and Maganda, a
male and female made out of two nodules of a bamboo shoot and eventually bore children called
Filipinos (Zaide, 1994).
In Beyer’s work (1912), he noted how different groups operated based on suspected
maturity or sophistication of these communities. Differences usually were concerned with how
these individuals interacted with their gods and suspected origins of these beliefs but one trend
remains evident – that regardless of their version of their gods they believed in the concept of the
afterlife which constituted the underworld. This is why certain practices were made in order for
these individuals to preach their gods, although Luzon-based tribes were more organized in these
practices – they would offer gifts, consider the possibility of the existence of more than one deity
and even bracketed their classes in accordance to who was the closest to their supreme beings.
Other practices were then also heavily influenced by their beliefs such as employing mourners,
embalming corpses, killing of slaves to accompany their masters in the next life and even working
in rice fields. To the pre-historic Filipinos, everything had life. Thus, they worshipped the
mountains, rivers, lakes, trees, and others. They worshipped the spirits of dead relatives. They
believed in the existence of good and bad anitos. With the exception of the Muslims, they believed
in one God, Bathalang Maykapal, who would punish the evil and reward the good. (Rosales,
Sebastian and Viray, 2019).
Meanwhile, the history of Mindanao prior to the advent of Islam has either traditional or
mythological origins. What is agreed on, on the other hand, is the existence of art, knowledge and
civilizations, as well as a new form of government rising that came alongside this religion
(Saleeby, 1905). The mythical story is lengthy, but in summary the origin of Mindanao involves
two brothers banding together to save an entire community from large, blood-thirsty animals. Once
they defeated these animals, they were proclaimed the heroes of Maguindanao and formed large
families that would share down their legacy to future generations.
Saleeby then goes on to explain the traditional origin of Magindanao and Islam in the
Philippines. A story that is also quite lengthy cut short, Mohammedan conquerors of Mindanao
and Sulu originated from Malay and Arabian descent, his name was Kabungsuwan – he eventually
married Putri Tuñina and became the first sultan of Maguindanao. Eventually, these groups spread
out to more regions of the Mindanao island and finally had to institutionalize their beliefs through
the use of education, Arabic alphabet, and mass producing their religious text, the Quran. (Zaide,
1994).
Many theories arise from this variety of religious beliefs. Some say that the appearance of
Islam can be most attributed to the trade networks – communities in Mindanao often traded with
neighboring countries around them that were Muslim but that is something that remains a theory,
especially when pre-Hispanic documents were destroyed by the Spanish, and most of our
information on the First Peoples is heavily reliant on Spanish interpreters.
Marriage ceremonies in Pre-Hispanic Philippines were known to be long and laborious.
The man may start by announcing to his whole tribe that he desired someone. He then throws a
spear toward the front of the house of the woman while appealing to their ancestors and deities for
blessings which will also serve as an announcement to the family that he wishes to marry their
daughter (De Loarca, n.d). Also, the man lives in the house of the girl to serve her family whereas
if the girl's family did not like him, he would be driven away. If the family accepts him, he would
have to pay the dowry called "bigay-kaya", usually in gold, land, slaves, animals, or anything
worth the value. Three days prior to the wedding, relatives of the two will gather at a house to set
up a palapala, or trellis, for the reception. (Gumobao,1987). The wedding ceremony itself will last
for three days whereas on the first day, the bride and groom will be stood on separate processions
and will be brought to the “babaylan” or priest, to join their hands over a plate of raw rice
(Alvina,1987). On the second day, the bride and groom will complete a blood compact and lastly,
on the final day of feasting, the bride will ceremoniously be bathed by her godmothers and decked
again in her wedding finery, solemnly and finally delivered to her husband in their new house (Sta.
Maria,1987).
Pre-hispanic settlers married among their own classes. Men had only one wife but
could have several concubines, who lived in the same house where the legitimate wife lived.
Marriage in prehispanic is monogamous. The virtue of marriage among the natives where conjugal
infidelity and separation were uncommon whereas divorce isn’t perceived as general (Anima,
1975). Giving a contrast of past and present marriage tradition in the Philippines. In Zaide’s study,
except for muslims, marrying more than one wife or monogamy was not certainly a custom. The
legitimate wife had the sole right to the title ynarba and her children were the heirs of her husband.
If he had no child with the illegitimate wife, he could will his wealth to anyone he chose.
Before the Spaniards came there already was an established political, social and economic system.
People in the community, including women, have important roles (Dolan, 1993). They could have
high role in a society like priestesses, healers, and they could have leadership role to fight for
battles like the Datu. There were chances that the women of the baranggay can lead like a Datu
depending on the circumstances were there’s no man on the baranggay that is fit to be one. Also,
men and women are treated equally, they had equality rights. Women can also inherit a property
and also had an important part in business and trading. They also had the privilege to name their
children. They can produce products from weaving, pottery, and making jewelries to be used for
exchanging goods or trading in the market, other tribes, and from foreign traders. They were also
the one who controls the operation on transactions because their husbands were not allowed to
participate in a barter without the approval of their wives (Saldua, 2011).
A healer or also known as a Babaylan is also a woman. There were also
circumstances that a man will take this role but he needs to dress up as a woman. The Babaylans
were looked up by the people in this era because of their wisdom and knowledge. The role of the
Babaylan in the society is when there is a problem that will arise and there are no other ways to
fix it, the Babaylan is the one to be called; they will perform a rituals and chants to drive away the
bad spirits that caused the turmoil in their community.
People were ruled by Chiefs called Datus, who governed over relatively large population
and had a monopoly over information and captained wars or conflict with other groups, in groups
called a barangay. These leaders also carried with them the power of the executive, legislative and
judiciary branch of government. Alongside the datus in the were the Maharlika, those who need
not pay tribute to the datu, but must accompany him at war at their own expense. The chiefs of
some villages also had fisheries, with established limits, and sections of the rivers for markets. At
this no one could fish, or trade in the markets, without paying for the privilege, unless he belonged
to the chief's barangay or village.
Those in the lower bracket were called the Alipins who were slaves because of one of five
reasons – they were born that way, they were captured in war, they needed to pay a debt, they
committed a crime, or if they were sold as a slave. They were then further divided. Aliping
Namamahay could marry and while serving their master, whether he may be a datu or not. They
also had the opportunity to stay and live in the homes of their own masters while they served them.
These individuals would accompany their masters wherever they went and eventually when they
had children, the offspring would unquestionably have the same fate as their parents. Conversely,
the Aliping Sagigilid did not have the same type of luxuries that the former social class had. They
did not have their own homes and were often sold between masters. If their master sees fit that
they are worthy of payment, portions shall be given so accordingly under the circumstance that
they serve their master faithfully. (Havana and Galvez, n.d). An additional feature of pre-Hispanic
Philippines that the Spanish were impressed by was the overall lack of supreme authority within
the entire archipelago or that rules over all of the tribes – they were simply anarchic. Datu and
Sultans could reign over their own regions but not have power or control over seemingly ‘smaller’
datus and sultans (Arcilla, 2013).
The economic system of Pre-Historic Philippines was based on trading that had been
happening in Southeast Asia in the first millennium of the Common Era. Coastal Southeast Asian
politics were gradually throughout contact with other nations, religions, and ideas during the sea
trade between India and China. The expanding Asian trade routes have compounded this impact
by introducing the knowledge of new belief systems and governance methods. From this time on,
Southeast Asia could be described as a crossroads, a place where ideas, commodities, and people
from local and foreign countries combine to create cultural and social change. Until recently, some
people felt that "crossroad" classification suggested a sense of culture, implying that Southeast
Asians are readily influenced by foreign influence. But this pessimistic view has been compounded
by two theories. First, there is the understanding that all cultures shift by interaction with outsiders;
Southeast Asia's environment has opened it too much further communication than most other
areas. As a result, fluidity tended to define local politics, and "outsiders" were relatively easily
"insiders" by engagement, trade, or the acquisition of valuable skills (Abinales and Amoroso,
2005).
This idea is further discussed by Zaide (1994); he explains one theory on how seafaring
Malays brought the Iron Age culture and introduced new ways to process metal and steel into more
useful products, as well as bringing in the idea of pottery-making, cloth-weaving and jewelry-
making – making it more possible to create a variety of products that could be traded between
trading partners. Another theory suggests that due to India’s search of gold, glory and a better life
– all of these were potentially present in an incredibly rich land of the Philippines. It is suspected
that the intricate and strategic trade routes between countries in the Southeast Asian regions, China
and India are all attributed by the Indianization of these areas. Domestic trade existed even within
Philippine barangays. Usually, they traded using a barter system where they would sell anything
from rice, cotton, fish and other sea products especially when most of these regions were located
near large bodies of water. According to Chinese records, Filipinos went to China before the
Chinese came to the Philippines. In the Tang Dynasty, the Chinese had no knowledge of any land
between Taiwan and Java, this meant that these then-considered farthest reaches of the Chinese
dynasty was at and end, with only small dwarves with black teeth inhabiting the rest of the islands
(Scott, 1989). The earliest account of Filipino traders from any Westerner comes from a brief
mention in a French ethnologist’s notes on foreigners in China, where 982 merchants from Manila
visited Canton for trade – this was sometime between 976 and 983 (Benitez and Craig, 1916).
It wasn’t until the Sung Dynasty that a luxury trade in foreign exotica would become
essential to China’s economy. Scott (1989) asserts that an edict in 972 indicates that Mindoro (Ma-
i), then Philippines, was part of this particular trading route alongside other regions such as Arab,
Java, Borneo and Achen. It wasn’t until five years after the establishment if these trading routes
did a Chinese tribute mission began together with the ruler of Brunei. These tribute missions were
a Chinese idea of a fit diplomatic approach from underdeveloped states and their neighbors. The
tribute mission was not in any means a way to colonize, instead it was an establishment of these
states as part of the Chinese cosmic order of things, recognizing it as within the Chinese dynasty
but not under its jurisdiction.
This is where many Chinese values and customs began finding itself in Filipino traditions.
The Emperor would then send tribute-bearing envoys with gifts to demonstrate China’s grandeur
and cultural sway, these gifts included court costumes decorated with precious gems. Writings
from a Chinese author named Chao Ju-kua were then discovered – the writings heavily focused on
maritime commerce of the Chinese, and one chapter was heavily dedicated to writing about the
Filipino people. The Chinese called the Philippines “the country of Mayi” and describes us as an
area situated to the north of Poni (Borneo). Ju-kua described the people as natives clothed in
coverings that resembled bed sheets. Certain products that the indigenous people would trade with
the Chinese were yellow wax, cotton, pearls, shells, or abaca or piña. Products imported by the
Chinese included porcelain, gold, lead, glass beads, iron-cooking pans and iron needles.
The first Philippine tribute mission to China appears to have come from Butuan on March
17, 1001, a small country east to Champa that interacted quite often with Champa but rarely with
China. Butuan then seemed to have attracted some type of notoriety. For four years, King Kiling
sent missions every year. Each year bringing extravagant tribute after extravagant tribute until they
sent a request to identify as an equal to Champa, a request denied under the premise that “Butuan
is beneath Champa.” We see now how the trade that led to the tribute system sparked tension
within political geography at the time especially with Champs establishing itself as the oldest
tributary state to China and therefore one of the more powerful tributary states.
Eventually, a new ruler of Butuan named Sri Bata Shaja tried again in 1011, sending
precious products and even slaves and Butuan was eventually given significant honor of military
titles. A Butuan memorial was granted which exalted Butuan – they had requested flags, pennons
and armor to “honor a distant land.”
Eventually, Philippine-China ties also led negative forces into these regions. At the end of
the 12th century, some Visayan Filipinos visited China for a very different mission. Bisayan chiefs
had assembled into parties of several hundreds to conduct raids on neighboring Chinese coasts.
Documents telling tales of why they had done it are not currently present or have not been found
so the reason behind it is unclear, although these groups murdered to innumerable numbers and
were even charged of cannibalism (Craig & Benitez, 1916).
 This raid is what led the Chinese to “discover” the rest of the Philippines. Records in 1178
even show that the Chinese did not know that they were trading partners with a southeastern region,
they simply assumed it was still Java that they were interacting with. By the Sung Dynasty, the
government encouraged Chinese merchants to carry and trade their products on their own and
eventually, in 1206, Mindoro, Palawan, and Basilan were established as “known” states – along
the way northern Philippines was also “discovered” by Chinese traders, including Lingayen, Luzon
and even Manila (Scott, 1989). By 1346, the following Philippine regions were identified in the
connected trade-route of China: Malilu, Ma-i, Butuan, Sulu and Maguindanao.
Sulu first appears in Chinese records on the year 1368, and mentioned again in 1417 when
three royals arrive with a retinue of 340 wives, relatives and ministers. With them, they brought a
golden memorial as well as tributes of pearls and tortoise shells. They were registered as Paduka
Batara, Maharaja Kolamating, and Paduka Prabhu and were presented to the Emperor, then given
royal seals and recognized as the princes of the realm. They went home with military escorts and
were gifted with chinaware, ceremonial insignia, silk, horses, and coins. The Sulu princes’ were
recognized not only for their wealth but for their great contribution to the traders within Asia which
was a lingua franca.
Sulu was given great importance by the Chinese, being mentioned many times in their
poetry and annals. They were given standard pricing for their goods, but without tariff duties.
These advantages that they gained by impressing the then-Emperor allowed them to grow into an
international emporium with a continuous flow of income, enough for self-sustainability. This
suggests an intention to consolidate its position on the new Malacca trade route by formal alliances.
The result of this interconnectivity was the presence of more “civilized” way of life long
before the arrival of the Spaniards. Sultans and datus dressed in fine clothing, while most central
ports of the Philippines had established a place in the Malacca trade route. What was a clearer
indication of their relationship with foreigners was the presence of firearms and cannons (Barrows,
1905).
Such commercial importance eventually attracted Governor-Generals of Spain, which
explains the early raid in Sulu. The conflict eventually would lead to Jolo having a difficult time
trading with past partners until Spain ended up restricting trade from Jolo. However, Jolo remained
an important port and transshipping station in Mindanao in the Philippines. New routes began
opening under the Spanish regime and Jolo quickly started losing importance as a transshipping
station but was considerably still one of the most significant ones because of its strategic placement
and well-established trade between southeast Asian countries (Saleeby, 1908).
But as threats among Spain and Sulu expanded, Sulu brokers turned out to be less brave
and became less and less. Chinese dealers, then again, were less attacked and conditions supported
their expansion. The "Chinese wharf" is an exceptionally old business foundation, and Chinese
brokers and shippers have dwelled in Jolo for some ages. Their number, in 1851, surpassed 500.
At present Chinese shippers have unlimited authority of the exchange of the Sulu Archipelago.
The Sulus have relinquished business as an exchange and do not tend to continue it on any huge
scale. This is expected for the most part to the decrease in their capacity and the present suppression
of their national life. Another political restoration will no uncertainty change their mentality and
may achieve an astounding improvement in expressions and exchanges just as of business
(Saleeby, 1905).
Chinese trade continued quite steadily until the arrival of the Spaniards where there was an
enormous increase through the demand for Chinese food-products which the Spanish would pay
for in Mexican silver. Legaspi soon perceived certain advantages which would accrue to his
conquest if he fostered development of commerce with the Islands that already had stable and
historical trading partners. China had eventually gained sufficient confidence under European
protection, some writers assert that they even propagated their religion and habits although the
documents are not sufficient enough to confirm this. The Chinese and their skill in business
contributed greatly to the development and prosperity of the new Colony (Foreman, 1905).
The Spaniards continued to benefit from China with the Galleon Trade. The Galleon Trade
was a way for Spain to monopolize trade coming in and out of the Philippines. They would send
to Galleon ships annually to Acapulco that carried with it the products of the Philippines and of
China – most of the money would obviously go to Manila and to the Spaniards. It was also noted
that eventually the multiple races present in the Philippines would create mestizo children –
children of mix race (Craig, 1916).
When we talk about history, it is possible that elements present in a period may remain
constant or somehow similar to prior practices. Grounded in human nature, men moved to think,
feel and act by their heritage from the past, which is part of their education and contributes to their
knowledge (Taylor, 1938).
 From the pre-Hispanic times where Animism was very much practiced by our ancestors
with Babaylans, to the colonial period where Catholicism was spread out and guided by priests,
the strong sense of religion remained strong and active among people. Prior to the arrival of
Catholic missionaries and explorers from Spain, it was known that Islam had been introduced and
practiced in the Philippines in the late 14th century through trade with merchants (Gamas, et al.,
2017). It was only later in the 16th century that the voyages of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand
Magellan (1480-1521) first brought Catholicism (Hoh, 2018).
Another similarity of both periods is the strong maritime culture of boat building in the
Philippines. Pre-Hispanic People were excellent architects and makers of karakoa and the moment
the Spaniards arrived, they incorporated it in their galleons or ship-building yards in Cavite. It was
even written in the history, how the utilization of ships such as Acapulco ships, and a few small
vessels is used to defend islands (De Zunigas, 1803). In fact, the Spanish galleon ships of later
times were influenced by the sleek and swift design of the Karakoa.
Before the Spaniards arrived, the country was occupied by natives, inhabiting many towns
and mud villages, governed by their respective chiefs. Even before the Spaniards, exacerbation of
regionalism was a hit whereas different groups of people were in barangays and governed by
Datus. Prior to colonialism, the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries politically
functioned around the Mandala system, with each Mandala being independent and autonomous
from the other. However, upon Spanish and American conquest, regionalism was one of the
reasons why colonizers did successfully colonized Philippines (Barrows, 1905).
Prior to Spanish colonization, we already had strong trading ties with other countries— and the
Spaniards again recognized and capitalized on this by keeping a restricted number of Chinese in
Manila, for the sake of the Galleon Trade whereas 80–90% of the Galleon’s contents were drawn
from Chinese junk traders (De Zunigas, 1803).
Despite this, there were also stark contrasts between these periods. The initial changes
started with religion. Subjugation of the natives were done in the name of Christianity. In the
opinion of the Spanish, non-Catholics had no inherent rights that made them human, meaning it
was easier for them to abuse these individuals and impose power onto them because they were
considered ‘higher’ due to their strong connection with God and so they wanted the same things
to be present within colonized races (Foreman, 1905). Eventually, religion became more of a tool
for power rather than an genuine practice for Filipinos.
 Next, the political system was also drastically changed during the time of the Spanish in
order to have a better system to oversee colonies. In the beginning of the colonization, the
Philippines was controlled by mostly military men up until the colonies were eventually divided
into provinces or Encomenderos which were overseen by the Alcalde (Foreman, 1905). Unlike
pre-Hispanic rule, this shows distribution of overseers who are accountable to each other and are
meant to hold some type of social order within their respective vicinities. The concept of taxation
was also now introduced. This meant power was more centralized and controlled by someone.
Lastly, economically speaking, the earlier traders of indigenous industries were eventually
killed off, but some were able to escape and survive in other regions of the Philippines. These
escapees were known mostly for their skill in creating weaponry. Another native occupation was
tailoring – eventually the Europeans used their skills to their own advantage especially when abaca
was discovered. Instead of being independent entities with sovereign economies, they now
answered to the Spanish and were greatly exploited (Arcilla, 2013). The economy of indigenous
people was also heavily hinged on native crops present in the Philippines that would entice the
Europeans and in order to mass produce and adopt to the demand, they had to start domesticating
more animals. Eventually, mineral deposits were found in the Philippines but the income was
mostly towards the Spaniards (Foreman, 1905). Eventually the principle products of the colony
became these natural resources present in the Philippines (Lala, 1898).
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