Module in Readings in Philippine History (GEC 105)

History Department, MSU-GSC

CHAPTER 1 - WEEK 1

MEANINGS AND CONCEPTS OF HISTORY

Lessons 1.1. to 1.3
Timeframe: 3 hours
Objectives: At the end of this chapter, the students will be able to:
1. Define History as a discipline.
2. Identify the different concepts of History
3. Discuss the relevance of studying History.
4. Explain what Pantayong Pananaw (From Us - To Us Perspective) is.

Overview

History is the study of life in society in the past, in all its aspects, as well as contemporary
developments and future hopes. It is the story of the man in time, an inquiry into the past based on evidence.
History investigates what happened in the past, how it happened, and analyze the inevitable changes in
human actions, and the ways how these changes affect or influence the present patterns of life within the
society.

History also aims to help students to understand the currently existing political, economic, and
socio-cultural conditions of the people. Without knowledge and concern of the past, you cannot trace the
relevance of doing and observing cultures, traditions, customs, and others. Thus, History helps us to
understand the present-day problems objectively.

This unit introduces the students how the study of History developed as a discipline, its meaning,
nature, and the relevance of studying it. Further, the students will be guided with the essential Concepts of
History when analyzing historical evidence. Lastly, the students will be exposed to Pantayong Pananaw.
This is a Filipino perspective developed by Dr. Zeus Salazar when studying and writing one’s historical
narrative.

Activity: Anticipation Guide

Read each statement below. These statements were selected quotes about History, as uttered by
famous Filipino historians, world leaders, and other figures.

In the table shown, respond in the left column whether you agree (A) or disagree (D) with each
statement.

Before Reading Statement

Agree or Disagree
1. History is written by the victors (Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of UK, 1941-
1945).
2. We are not makers of History. We are made by History (Martin Luther King, Jr., an
African American minister, and activist, 1955-1968).
3. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it (George
Santayana, Spanish essayist, poet, and novelist).
4. History is a living, and lively account of what we were and are; its recent and past
events. If all of that makes us understand humanity, so does History make us understand
ourselves, and our country definitely better, in the context of our culture and our society
(Ambeth Ocampo, Filipino historian).

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Module in Readings in Philippine History (GEC 105)
History Department, MSU-GSC

5. Tsismis noon, kasaysayan ngayon (Lourd de Veyra, Filipino musician, journalist, TV host,
broadcast personality).

 Analysis
Based on the exercise above, reflect on the following questions:

1. In your own understanding, how would you define History?

2. What is the nature of History?
3. What are the essential “concepts” when studying History?
4. Is History a relevant academic discipline? Why?
5. How should we write our nation’s history?

 To further understand the discipline of History, the following will be the assigned readings that the
student must be able to analyze, namely:

a. Carr, Edward. 1962. “Chapter 1. The Historian and His Facts” in What is History? 6-30. New York:
Knopf.
b. “The Historian’s Toolkit.” nd. Oxford Big Ideas. Accessed on August 3, 2018. https://www/oup.com.au
c. Constantino, Renato. 1975. “Towards a People’s History” in A Past Revisited, 3-11. Quezon City: Tala
Publishing Services.
d. Salazar, Zeus. 2012. “Pantayong Pananaw: Bilang Diskursong Kabihasnan”. Accessed on August 4,
2018. www.bagongkasaysayan.org

 Points to Remember: In analyzing the readings, analyze the author’s background/biography and his main
arguments, identify biases, and examine the evidence or materials used to present his work.

 Abstraction

Lesson 1.1. What is History?

A sense of past is a light that illuminates the present and directs attention toward the possibilities
of the future. Without adequate knowledge of History, today’s events are disconnected occurrences.

The origin of the word History is associated with the Greek word ‘Historia,’ which means “inquiry,
knowledge acquired by investigation.” In Ancient Greek Civilization, some early historians recorded
important events of their time. Famous among them were Herodotus and Thucydides.

Herodotus (c. 484-425/413 BCE) was a Greek writer and geographer credited with being the first
historian. His first great narrative Histories is considered as the founding work of history in Western
literature, which marked him as the “Father of History.” It serves as a record of the ancient traditions, politics,
geography, and clashes of various cultures that were known in Western Asia, Northern Africa, and Greece
at that time. It stands as one of the first accounts of the rise of the Persian Empire, the events of, and causes
form the Greco-Persian Wars. In contrast with Herodotus' “Histories” which jump around chronologically,
Thucydides’ “History of the Peloponnesian War” set a standard scope, concision, and accuracy that makes
it a defining text of the historical genre. His work is about a historical account of the Peloponnesian War, a
conflict between the Peloponnesian League (led by Sparta) and the Delian League (led by Athens).

During the Enlightenment Period in the 18 th century, History is being studied as a unique form of
thought. History is considered as a kind of scientific research or inquiry, trying to discover what man does
not know. The historian showcased this inquiry through the correct interpretation of evidence. In

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Module in Readings in Philippine History (GEC 105)
History Department, MSU-GSC

investigating the evidence, which serves as the backbone of historical fact, historians use to get answers to
its questions.

The term history is not only complex but quite encompassing to elicit an agreed definition. In its
broadest definition, History is the study of past events. It generally presents the known past. Others look at
History as a dynamic discipline, making it difficult for historians to agree upon one definition. To some,
History is “man-his-story”; hence, it is the story of man’s efforts to satisfy his/her craving for an orderly social
life to satisfy his/her hope for beauty and knowledge.

History is a means to understand the past and the present. The different interpretations of the past
allow us the see the present differently and, therefore, imagine - and work towards - different futures.
History is often said to be the “Queen” or “Mother” of all social sciences since it is the basis of all subjects
of study which fall under the category of Humanities and Social Sciences. It is also the basis of the study of
philosophy, economics, politics, and even art and religion (Talekau, Nayakm Harichandan n.d., 2)

 Edward Carr’s “Historian and His Facts” in What is History (1962)

(Refer to Compilation of Readings for his biography and full text of the article.)

Through analyzing a chapter of the seminal book What is History (1962) - “The Historian and His
Facts” by Edward Carr, we will understand more about History. Edward Hallett Carr (1892-1982) was both
an international historian and a philosopher of history.

What is History (1962) discussed a variety of issues ranging from the importance of facts, relation of
History to morality, clarification on the quite antithesis between individual and society to moral or value
judgments in History.

In this article, he emphasized the role of historians to give meaning to facts and events. The theme of
the article focuses on the symbiotic relationship between the historian and his facts. Thence, one ceases to be
meaningful without the other.

He also established the viewpoint that historians belong to a particular period, and society will
undoubtedly influence the problems in the past they choose to comment upon and also on the selection
they seek. As he related:

“When we attempt to answer the question ‘What is history?’, our answer, consciously or
unconsciously, reflects our own position in time and forms part of our answer to the
broader question what view we take of the society in which we live” (Carr 1962, 8).

Also, he tried to attack the traditional historical methods and practices by presenting
historiographical principles rejecting these methods and practices (paradigm shift). The 19th historians
(traditional) gave much focus to facts. As he mentioned: “…the task of the historian was simply to show how
it really was (wie es eigentlich gewesen) this not very profound aphorism had an astonishing success (Carr
1962, 9). In the 1830s, there were even legitimate protests against moralizing history and limited the tasks
of the historian to show how it was. The Positivists claimed History to be a science and again stressed on
the importance of facts. They had a view first of ascertaining facts and then concluding them. More so, since
there is also this difficulty that not all facts of the past are not being ‘historical facts’ and the historians not
treating them as such.

So, what is a historical fact? As what Carr (1962) defined, it refers to:

1. The backbone of History, which refers to as a commonsense view, and sometimes rely on the
interpretation from the auxiliary sciences of History; and

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Module in Readings in Philippine History (GEC 105)
History Department, MSU-GSC

2. A priori decision of the historian, i.e., the historian necessarily become selective of his gathered
facts (10-11).

He depicted that the facts are really not at all like fish on the fishmonger’s slab. They are all like fish
swimming about in a vast and sometimes inaccessible ocean; and what the historian catches will depend,
partly on chance, but mainly on what part of the ocean he chooses to fish in and what tackle he chooses to
use—these two factors being, of course, determined by the kind of fish he wants to catch. By and large, the
historian will get the kind of facts he wants.

He advised that there should be a need to observe on how to critique if the facts are historical facts.
He pointed out three points to ponder:

1. … study the historian before you begin to study the facts

2. … have an imaginative mind, to understand the minds of the people with whom he is dealing 3. …
possible to study History through the limelight of the present (22-25).

Put merely, Carr recommended that a particular historian, as a researcher, must seek to bring into
the picture all known or knowable facts relevant, in one sense or another, to the theme in which he is
engaged and to the interpretation proposed.

Lastly, at the end section of the chapter, Carr proposed a new definition of History: “History is a
continuous process between the historian and his facts, an unending dialogue between the present and the past (30).”

Nature of History
(Talekau, Nayakm Harichandan n.d., 3-4)

1. A study of the present in light of the past. The present has evolved out of the past. Modern History
enables us to understand how society has come to its present form so that one may intelligently interpret
the sequence of events. The causal relationships between the selected happenings have unearthed that
help in revealing the nature of happenings and the framing of general laws.
2. History is the study of man. History deals with man’s struggle through the ages. History is not static. By
selecting “innumerable biographies” and presenting their lives in the appropriate social context and the
ideas in the human context, we understand the sweep of events. It traces the fascinating story of how man
has developed through the ages, how man has studied to use and control his environment, and how the
present institutions have grown out of the past.
3. History is concerned with man in time. It deals with a series of events, and each event occurs at a
given point in time. Human history is the process of human development in time. It is time that affords a
perspective to events and lends a charm that brightens up the past.
4. History is concerned with man in space. The interaction of man on the environment and vice versa is a
dynamic one. History describes nations and human activities in the context of their physical and
geographical environment. Out of this arise the different trends in the political, social, economic, and cultural
spheres of man’s activities and achievements.
5. Objective record of happenings. Every precaution is taken to base the data on original sources and
make them free from subjective interpretation. It helps in a clear understanding of the past and enables us to
make well-informed decisions.
6. Multisided. All aspects of the life of a social group are closely interrelated, and historical happenings
cover all these aspects of life, not limited only to the political aspect that had so long dominated History.
7. History is a dialogue between the events of the past and progressively emerging future ends. The
historian’s interpretation of the past, his selection of the significant and the relevant events, evolves with the

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Module in Readings in Philippine History (GEC 105)
History Department, MSU-GSC

progressive emergence of new goals. The general laws regulating historical happenings may not be
considered enough; attempts have to be made to predict future happenings based on the laws.
8. Not only narration but also analysis. The selected happenings are not merely narrated; the causal
relationships between them are properly unearthed. The tracing of these relationships leads to the
development of general laws that are also compared and contrasted with similar happenings in other social
groups to improve the reliability and validity of these laws.
9. Continuity and coherence are the necessary requisites of History. History carries the burden of human
progress as it is passed down from generation to generation, from society to society, justifying the essence
of continuity.
10. Relevant. In the study of History, only those events are included, which are relevant to the
understanding of the present life.
11. Comprehensiveness. According to the modern concept, History is not confined to one period or
country or nation. It also deals with all aspects of human life-political, social, economic, religious, literary,
aesthetic and physical, giving a clear sense of world unity

Lesson 1.2. Concepts of History

Historian
A historian is an expert who studies and writes about the past. With the help of allied disciplines like
archaeology, the historian can describe the pre-historical events in the past, i.e., before the invention of the
system of writing.

Moreover, a historian follows a continuous, methodical narrative research to understand the past.
This methodical analysis of the sources (historical criticism) and synthesis of the materials being interpreted
is known in the field as a historical method. The historian asks questions, forms, opinions, and theories,
locate and analysis sources, and use evidence to develop an informed explanation of the past.

Historical criticism is a kind of diagnostic device or cross-examination to test the reliability and
credibility of a piece of evidence. It has two levels: external and internal. External (lower) criticism checks
the reliability or veracity (correctness) of the source or evidence by evaluating its author's background, the
title of the evidence, the date and place of publication, and so on. On the higher level, Internal criticism
judges the credibility or validity (trustworthiness) by attributing a moral value to the piece of evidence or
source.

After this step, the historian proceeds to the shifting, grouping, arrangement, generalization, and
organization of the facts gathered in order to form a body of connected and related knowledge. As a
standard form, these facts are presented in a logical, narrative form. This step is called the Synthesis
(Reporting).

Moreover, historians are interested in all aspects of the past and seek to piece together accurate
pictures of what life was like in the past. They also look for patterns - what has remained the same, what
has changed and why.

 Concepts of Historical Understanding (Refer to Compilation of Readings for full text.)

As historians investigate past events, it is a must to learn and apply historical concepts and skills.
These concepts are a historian’s ‘tool of the trade.’ As you learn to apply each concept, you will begin to
think like a historian.

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Module in Readings in Philippine History (GEC 105)
History Department, MSU-GSC

In the diagram below, it summarizes the essential points within concepts of History:

Figure 1. Concepts of History.

Lesson 1.3. History from Filipino People Point of View

 Constantino, Renato. 1975. “Towards a People’s History” in A Past Revisited, 3-11. Quezon City: Tala
Publishing Services.
Salazar, Zeus. 2012. “Pantayong Pananaw: Bilang Diskursong Kabihasnan”. Accessed on August 4, 2018.
www.bagongkasaysayan.org

History is one of the most effective weapons of a once-colonized nation in the struggle to achieve
real independence. Conversely, History can also be used to carry on methods of subservience and
dependence on former colonizers. In the Philippines, Filipinos began to use History as an essential
representation as an independent country. However, this has not been easy to begin writing the nation’s
history. The History of the Philippines as a nation is the story of its rise, development, and outcome. It
explains the present and guides the way to the future. History is not meant to be mechanically memorized
and later be forgotten. Nevertheless, it should be used to derive valuable insights and perspectives on what
we are and what we want to be.

In the Philippines, we can divide that there were three stages of how its history has been written:

I. Our image of ourselves and our past was shaped mainly by the writings of the colonizers, disregard
the sufferings of their colonies.

II. Filipino historians consciously set themselves the task of writing from the Filipino point of view.
Their work emphasized the role Filipinos played in their History, described the abuses perpetrated by the
Spaniards, and presented Filipino responses to all colonizers with respect and admiration. However, there

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Module in Readings in Philippine History (GEC 105)
History Department, MSU-GSC

were scant analyses of the American colonization. Overall, in many instances, this is the point of view of the
Filipino elite.

(Ladino→ Secular Priests→ Ilustrado→ Pensionado→ Fulbright/Mombusho Scholar→ Intellectuals)

(Salazar 2012, 4-15).

III. The writing of the nation’s history from the point of view of the Filipino people. It means it should
be judged in terms of whether they advanced the interests of the Filipino masses (democratic participation
and a better life for all). A people’s History will help significantly in eradicating our colonial mentality, the
tendency to accept western ideas and products as inherently superior, and failure to pinpoint national
interest apart from those of former colonizers. With the writing of History following Filipinos point of view, it
will make the citizens more nationalistic, more wary of their former colonizers, more zealous in safeguarding
the country’s resources for the people, and more determined to attain the sovereignty of their political and
economic life.

A more significant aspect of History is that it is not just a story. It carries a valuable meaning. Perhaps
the best way to illustrate this is the discussion of the Filipino word for History, which is kasaysayan.
Kasaysayan has a deeper meaning; its root word saysay means “sense” or “meaning.” It also means
importance or purpose. The things that have no importance or meaning are valueless or walang saysay.
With the addition of the suffix yan, saysayan now means the act of conveying words of importance or sense.
This is told through a narrative or story (kasaysayan). With the addition of the prefix ka, saysayan now jas a
new meaning. “Ka” has a significant connotation. It implies a connection of interaction or relationship, of
being a part of something, of being together or doing something together. Hence, in kasaysayan, people
share important narratives, sharing similar or opposite points of view (De Viana 2011, xi).

To wit, Zeus Salazar, UP Professor, introduced the concept of Pantayong Pananaw to appreciate
further the value of writing our nation’s history following the Filipino perspective. He defined that:

“Pantayong Pananaw ay nasa panloob na pagkakaugnay-ugnay ng mga katangian, halagahin,

kaalaman, karunungan, hangarin, kaugalian, pag-aasal, at karanasan ng isang kabuuang
pangkalinangan - kabuuang nababalot sa, at ipinapahayag sa pamamagaitan ng isang wika, ibig
sabihinm sa loob ng isang nagsasariling talastasan/diskursong pangkalinangan o
pangkabihasnan (2012, 2).

The most essential characteristic of Pantayong Pananaw is that the historical narrative (story)
should be written in Filipino or local language: “ang pinakamahalagang katangian nito ang pagkasulat sa wikang
Filipino na madaling maunawaan ng taumbayan. Ang paksa ay umiikot sa relasyon ng mga bumuo ng bayan - and
mga Muslim, Indio at iba pang mga nasa kabundukan.

Table 1 below summarizes the important key points on how to distinguish the different perspectives
in writing the history of the Filipinos:

Pangkaming Pananaw Pansilang Pananaw Pangkayong Pananaw Pantayong Pananaw

(From Us - For You) (From Us - For Us)
▪ Written by the Filipinos in ▪ Written by foreigners in ▪ Written by foreigners in ▪ Written by Filipinos in
English English English Filipino/katutubong salita

▪ POV of Filipino writers ▪ POV of the foreigners ▪ POV of foreigners POV of Filipino writers

▪ Meant to be read by ▪ Meant to be read by ▪ What is produced when ▪ Meant to be read by

foreigners to understand our foreigners to understand our texts by foreigners about our Filipinos
History in our POV History (part/in relation) to History
their History ▪ Revolves around the use of
▪ Used to correct or argue ▪ Meant to be read by Filipino concepts in order to
against false accusations Filipinos explain other Filipino concepts
written by foreigners

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Module in Readings in Philippine History (GEC 105)
History Department, MSU-GSC

▪ Example writers:
ilustrados (the elite Filipino
youth)
Table 1. Tripartite Perspectives

Similarly, Renato Constantino believed that there was indeed a need to write the History of the
Philippines as an independent nation. According to him: “Philippine History is a people’s history. It is a
recorded struggle of people for ever-increasing freedom and newer and realization of the human person
(1975)”.

In the article “Towards a People’s History,” Constantino views History as a means of liberation for
the Filipino people. He proposes to reexamine the historical record and to seek the unifying thread, which
gives meaning to the national evolution of the Filipino people. This thread refers to the “Filipino resistance to
the colonial oppression” (1975, 9), and more specifically, the struggles of the Filipino people of the
masses. In his seminal works, he emphasized the Filipino masses’ role in making History, i.e., it should be
written from their point of view, not the colonizer’s nor the vacillating (indecisive) elites.

Important Keywords:
• History refers to the discipline of dealing with past events.
• Historical method is the technique and process by which historians use to study historical
evidence. It consists of historical criticisms (lower and higher level) and synthesis of the narrative.
• Concepts of History plays a fundamental role in analyzing facts from historical evidence. In the
discipline of history, there are seven concepts, namely: change and continuity, cause and effect,
sources, significance, perspectives, empathy, and contestability.
• Pantayong Pananaw (The “From Us-To Us” Perspective) refers to the concept developed by
Dr. Zeus Salazar. He encouraged to employ this framework when to write a historical narrative of
the nation or a community, representing the ‘indigenized’ and localized perspective of the local
people, using the Filipino language or native language.

 Application/Assessment:
1. Likert Scale. Review your answers in the earlier activity. Write whether you still agree or not
anymore in the third column (After Reading) and justify your response.

Before Reading Statement After Reading Justification

Agree or Disagree Agree or
Disagree
1. History is written by the victors (Winston
Churchill, Prime Minister of UK, 1941-1945).
2. We are not makers of History. We are made
by History (Martin Luther King, Jr., African
American minister, and activist, 1955-1968)
3. Those who cannot remember the past are
condemned to repeat it (George Santayana, Spanish
essayist, poet, and novelist)
4. History is a living, and lively account of what
we were and are; its recent and past events. If
all of that makes us understand humanity, so
does History make us understand ourselves,
and our country definitely better, in the context

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Module in Readings in Philippine History (GEC 105)
History Department, MSU-GSC

of our culture and our society (Ambeth

Ocampo, Filipino historian)
5. Tsismis noon, kasaysayan ngayon (Lourd de
Veyra, Filipino musician, journalist, TV host,
broadcast personality)

Assignment
Read in advance the article “Kalantiaw: The Code That Never Was” by Scott, William. Refer to
your Compilation of Readings.

References

“The Historian’s Toolkit.” nd. Oxford Big Ideas. Accessed on August 3, 2018. https://www/oup.com.au

Carr, Edward. 1962. “Chapter 1. The Historian and His Facts” in What is History? 6-30. New York: Knopf.

Constantino, Renato. 1975. “Towards a People’s History” in A Past Revisited, 3-11. Quezon City: Tala
Publishing Services.

Talekau, P. Nayak, J., and Harichandan, S. n.d. “Nature of History.” History. Accessed on August 8, 2020.
https://ddceutkal.ac.in

Salazar, Zeus. 2012. “Pantayong Pananaw: Bilang Diskursong Kabihasnan”. Accessed on August 4, 2018.
www.bagongkasaysayan.org