Here’s A Complete List Of The 46 Parts of A Filipino House

Know your history of the parts and furniture pieces of a traditional bahay na bato,
from Azotea to Zaguan

Photography: Vincent Coscolluela (Main Photo)

Entering a well-preserved Filipino ancestral house is like boarding a time machine. Our
generation is fortunate, because the heirs of these remaining antique houses have put
tremendous effort in preserving their ancestors’ dwellings for us to experience and learn
from it.

IMAGE Miguel Nacianceno. The sala mayor at the Lizares mansion in Negros.
So when traveling back in time through ancestral houses, avoid getting lost by knowing
the names of important house parts and the things to see in a fully furnished bahay na
bato.

IMAGE Vincent Coscolluela. A dining room in a house in Taal, Batangas

For starters, the traditional rooms in a typical Filipino ancestral house from the 19th
century consist of the caida (receiving room), sala mayor (main living
room), comedor (dining room), oratorio (prayer
room), cuartos (bedrooms), cocina (kitchen), and azotea (an open balcony that served
service kitchen). These rooms are located on the second floor living quarters.
IMAGE Miguel Nacianceno.
A cuarto or bedroom in the Lizares mansion.
Some houses have entresuelo (mezzanine) that were divided into function rooms such
as a despacho (home office) and a couple of guest rooms for an old aunt or cousins
visiting from the province. The ground floor with the zaguan that looks like a damp
dungeon serves as parking space for the family carriage and carrozas, and storage for
farming supplies and produce. It also houses the cuadra (stable) for the horses.

IMAGE Vincent Coscolluela.

A traditional cocina in Taal.

The following is a list of selected house parts and furniture found in each room of
a bahay na bato.

IMAGE Rene Mejia

A intricately carved four poster bed famous for its kalabasa detail (squash) bedposts
made by a famous 19th century craftsman from Binondo.

Aljibe
A water cistern located in the azotea that was filled with rainwater or potable water
bought from an aguador (water vendor). In some occasions, table silver and jewelry are
lowered into the slimy bottom of the aljibe to hide them from local bandits.

Almario
A vertical pillow rack used to air-dry pillows, bed linens, and banig (woven mats) during
the day. It was placed at a corner in the sala of single-room house at a time when family
members slept together on mats spread on the living room floor. It was eventually
moved into the bedroom when the use of proper beds became popular.
Aparador de Tres Luna
A towering three-door cabinet in the master bedroom crowned with fretted scrollwork. It
was named for the mirrors attached to its doors.

Aparador ropero
A storage bin for used, soiled clothes. It is made out of a wooden frame with rattan
screen (solihiya) woven onto the sides. One side opens for the contents to tumble out
without having to invert the hamper.
Azulejo

IMAGE Vincent Coscolluela

Expensive, patterned hand-painted tiles imported from Spain used to decorate the stair
landings or descanso. A locally made version is the Machuca (a trademark, proper
name is “encaustic tile”).

Banggera
A slatted wooden dishrack attached to a dining room or a kitchen window. It is used for
air-drying newly washed tableware and kitchen utensils before they were kept in
the platera (sideboard) or pamingganan (plate cabinet).
Bastonero

IMAGE Miguel Nacianceno

A hat and cane rack placed at the caida or the staircase landing.
Batibot Chair
A metal version of the cane bentwood chair. Batibot means “enduring.”

Calado

IMAGE Vincent Coscolluela

Pierced wooden panels above doors or walls of each room that allow light and air to
circulate in the house. A status symbol were the calados designed with art nouveau
patterns by famous sculptors of the time such as Emilio Alvero and Isabelo Tampingco.

Columnilla
A decorative colonette that divides a window into two sides. Most popular styles used
are the Solomonic columns that spiral upward into a Gothic arch.
Concha

IMAGE Vincent Coscolluela

Latticework panels that framed the translucent capiz shells used to completely shut
windows at night or during a storm.

Coquina

Coral rock quarried from reefs during low tide was used as ground floor building
material in places where no adobe limestone is available.

Escritoriong tinipaklong
A sewing table traditionally placed in a lady’s bedroom and seldomly used as a side
table.

Espejo
Spanish word for mirror. In building terms, these were transoms above windows to allow
more daylight in. Transoms that have tracery patterns were called espejong calado.

Gallinera
A bench with a built-in chicken coop underneath. These were designed for tradesmen
and tenant farmers who brought in fighting cocks while waiting for the master of the
house.

Kulompyo
A rocking chair, also called tumba-tumba or mercedoras.

Lavadores or lavadera
A freestanding washstand with a swinging mirror and basin. This was a standard
bedroom accessory, along with the orinola.
Media aquas or tapangcos
Metal window awnings or canopies decorated with tin cutouts.

Mirador

IMAGE Glenn Martinez

A small room at a tower that is in the highest floor in the house and is used as a lookout.
It is topped by a weather vane with the letter O for oeste, the Spanish word for west.

Painadora
A dresser with a mirror. The full-length mirror usually comes with two adjustable side
mirrors and a marble top called the tremor.

Paminggalan
This food cabinet with slatted doors to keep leftover food properly aired also functions
as a plate cabinet. Its legs stand on tin cans filled with water or petroleum to discourage
insects from crawling towards the food.
Piedra China

IMAGE Miguel Nacianceno

Blocks of white stone that paved the zaguan of houses near the port. They were
originally used as counterweights of Spanish galleons.

Persiana
Jalousies on window panels that shield the house interior from the sun while letting air
in. A free-standing persiana called biombos was used as divider between the dining
room and the volada to conceal a servant pulling a cord to swing the cloth fan over the
dining table called the punkah.

Postigo
A service door that was cut on the side of the main doors to serve a pedestrian passage
while the wide and tall double doors opened to the carruaje (carriage) and the
empty carozza (float to carry saint’s statue during processions).

Silla Peresoza
A lounging chair that allow a sitter to stretch out his legs on the unusually long armrests.

Sillon Fraile
A chair made for the convent but found its way to the gentry’s residence. It is wider than
a lounging chair to accommodate stocky friars, hence its name.

Silong
This hollow space beneath a bahay kubo was for storing livestock. In a bahay na bato,
this was sometimes used as storage of family jewels and jars of silver coins. Back then,
tenants caught stealing were imprisoned by landlord in the silong.

Teja de curva
Clay roof tiles that were laid carefully on the roof of a bahay na bato. A tile roof
traditionally kept the bahay na bato cool.
Urna

IMAGE Miguel Nacianceno

A carved altar that enshrines statues of saints made out of wood or ivory.

Vajilera
A tall, glass-fronted display cabinet meant for keeping porcelain plates and glassware.
Another version is the cristaleria that was exclusive for keeping glassware.
Viriña

IMAGE Rene Mejia

A bell-shaped glass jar (or bell jar) that was used to encase statuettes or a diorama of
biblical scenes.

Vitrina
A small shelf with glass that keep curios free from dust.
Ventanilla

IMAGE Dakila Angeles

A small window located right under the barandilla (windowsill) that allows air to come
into the house through elaborate grillwork or wooded balustrades. Blank boards were
slid in and out to regulate the amount of air and cover the ventanillas completely.
Volada

IMAGE Dakila Angeles

Comes from the Spanish word volar, meaning “to fly,” and this refers to a cantilevered
walkway that runs along the window side around the house. In the past, the galleria
voladawas used by servants to go from room to room, since the main floors of the
house were reserved for the masters.