K W
What you knew about the pre-
colonial in general?
~ I already knew that before the
Spanish expeditioners claimed their
discovery of Philippine archipelago,
there were numerous settlers from
diverse group of people (malays, afro-
asian, negritos and etc.) already
inhabited the island.
~ I remember that these malays
arrived in the Philippine archipelago
using their oceanic vessels called
balangay. These people established
their own small communities which
they called barangay. The term
barangay originated from the word
balangay, a malay word means
“sailboat”.
~ I do recall (from my grade 5 lesson in
HEKASI) that during pre-colonial era,
the inhabitants in Philippine
archipelago established their own
civilization. They already have
government systems led by sultans,
rajahs and datu. They have their
system of trading called barter in
which they exchanged goods from
different merchants. Also, they have
their belief system where in they
worshipped deities such as anito,
diwata at bathala. They also believed
in the spirits, gods and goddess in
nature. They shamans called babaylan
who is a communicator of spirits of
nature. Lastly, they have their system
of writing called baybayin (or alibata).
What do you want to know on the
pre-colonial?
~ I want to know who were the very
first settlers in Philippine archipelago.
~ I want to know more about how
people lived as a community and was
there any justice systems when they
commit a crime during pre-colonial
times.
~ I want to know the importance of
women during the pre-colonial
period/times.
H L
How do you intend to get the
information / knowledge
~ I intend to get the information or
knowledge through researching online
sources. I intend to read different
articles that will help me get the
information that I need. Also, I will
watch some documentaries about the
pre-colonization period in the
Philippines. Or, I will ask history major
students about the pre-colonial
period.
What have I learned about this
period? Please cite example.
~ I have learned that the very first settlers
in the Philippine archipelago were the
negritos. They are believed to have
migrated by land bridges some during
glacial period. Negritos didn’t have that
much impact. They were followed by
malays who brought civilizations. Example
of that are their balangay and their
established barangay.
~ I learned that people prefers to live in
coastal areas because it was the ideal
places for economic activity to develop
since business trades from different
country such as China, Japan and etc.
happens in coastal areas.
Examples of trades from China were
Porcelain, china ware and leads. Japanese
also trades, mainly pottery and gold.
~ I learned the women of the pre-Hispanic
era were given importance, they could
even hold high characters in communities
like healers, priestesses, and they could
even handle leadership roles and fight as
warriors. Women had the right to inherit
property and they also had important
parts in business and trading. They would
weave, do pottery and make jewelries to
be used for exchanging in the market, in
other tribes and other foreign traders.
They controlled the operations of
transactions because their husbands were
not allowed to barter unless their wives
approved.
One example of a well-known women
leader was Princess Urduja of Pangasinan.