GE 002 – READINGS in PHILIPPINE HISTORY

Chapter 1 – Appreciating the Field of History

This chapter hopes to bring understanding and appreciation of history – a social

science discipline which is often afforded a backseat mainly because of the popular notion
that history is boring and repetitive.

In addition, both the traditional and modern concepts of history will be explored and
various key terms will be explained.

Objectives :
At the end of the chapter, the students should be able to:
1. Locate in time the birth of the discipline.
2. Appreciate the role of the historian/s.
3. Differentiate the various relevant terms such as social science, history,
historiography, and historical methodology.
4. Contrast and evaluate the traditional and modern concepts of history.

Lesson 1: Scope of History and Definition of Terms

Preliminary Activity: Natural and Social Sciences (25 pts)

A. Look at the following terms:

Economics Geography Political Science Sociology Astrology

History Chemistry Physics Zoology Botany

Biology Psychology Astronomy Anthropology Geology

Where do these fields of discipline belong? Categorize each field either as NATURAL
SCIENCE or SOCIAL SCIENCE. (15 pts.)

NATURAL SCIENCES SOCIAL SCIENCES

B. Answer the following questions: (10 pts.)

1. Can Geography be considered a social science? Why or why not?

2. Which field is not classifiable under any of the two categories? Expound using not more
than three (3) sentences.

Discussion:

History belongs to the field of Social Sciences. Likewise, Economics, Political Science,
Anthropology, Psychology and Sociology, among others, are also classified under the Social
Sciences.

Common to these fields of discipline is the fact that they focus on people, human
relationships, and the social dynamics at play. Henceforth, social science can be simply
defined as the scientific study of human society and social relationships.

History, as a field of discipline, is as old as mathematics and philosophy and has existed
for about 2,400 years.

History is often defined as “the study of the past”. There is some truth to it but essentially
it is an incomplete definition. Etymologically, history comes from the Greek word “historia”
which refers to “the knowledge acquired through inquiry or investigation”. Later, the term
“historia” was adapted to classical Latin and acquired a new definition. At this point, History
came to be known as “the account of the past of a person or a group of people through
written documents and historical evidences”.

Historians fulfill the essential task of interpreting what happened in the past. However,
they only get to access representations of the past through historical sources and evidences.
This brings to the fore the reality that the exact account of the past can never be fully recorded
but the historian, as much as possible, produces a record of events according to his
interpretation based from the available credible sources.

To put in proper perspective the accounts of the past, historiography offers the much
needed help to the historians. Historiography, simply put, is the “history of history”.

Historiography is essentially the writing of history based on the critical examination of

sources, the selection of particular details from the authentic materials in those sources, and
the synthesis of those details into a narrative that stands the test of critical examination.
 Therefore, historiography, answers queries such as “how was a certain historical
narrative written?”, “who was the author?” “what was the context of its publication”, “what
particular historical method/s and sources were used?” This means that people interested in
history are not only presented with historical facts but are also provided with the understanding
of the facts and the historians’ contexts. Hence, with the aid of historiography, the students are
allowed to have a better understanding of history.

Historians, because they interpret the past, are confronted with issues of subjectivity.
Despite this, however, history itself is a scientific discipline because it employs the rigors of
research and methodology. What then is historical methodology?

Historical methodology is the process by which historians gather evidence and

formulate ideas about the past. In addition, it is the framework through which the account of
the past is constructed.

In particular, historical methodology is composed of certain techniques and rules that

historians follow in order to properly utilize sources and historical evidences in writing history.
With historical methodology, historical evidences are validated and corroborated thus
shedding light to conflicting accounts of eyewitnesses.

Therefore, although there is subjectivity in the historian’s interpretation of the historical

narrative, historical methodology ensures a balanced account of the past because it employs
the scientific method.

Assignment: (25 pts)

Work with your group. Select and copy a headline story from any of the existing
Philippine daily broadsheets dated anywhere from 2012 to 2018. Discuss among yourselves
the headline and do a mini-historiography.

Lesson 2: Traditional versus Modern Concept of History

Preliminary Activity: (20 pts)

A. Work with your groupmates. Choose one secretary to list down the group’s answers. In
List down ten (10) Philippine historical events that you can recall. Do not edit your
thoughts, list down those that immediately came to your mind. (10 pts)
 HISTORICAL EVENTS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

B. Answer the following question: (10 pts)

What theme is common among these events? In other words, what do these events
commonly highlight? Why do you think this js so?

Discussion

Whenever people are asked to cite a historical event, they usually mention wars,
pandemics, murders, heroes, kings, and all sorts of events worthy of a newspaper headline.
This is not surprising because until the early part of the twentieth century, historians were using
framework of the traditional concept of history.

As stated above, the traditional concept views history as “the account of the past of
a person or a group of people through written documents and historical evidences”.

A mantra is a phrase or slogan repeated frequently serving as the principle that guides
the behavior of those repeating it. Inevitably, traditional historians’ reliance on written
documents and historical evidences lead them to the mantra “no document, no history”. This
means that unless a written document can confirm a certain historical event, then it cannot
be considered as a historical fact.

The traditional concept of history, however, has its limitations:

First, it essentially nullifies the history of civilizations that leave no traces of written
records. In fact, some civilizations chose to rely heavily on oral traditions. Documents being
burned or destroyed poses another challenge.

Second, the traditional concept of history presents a restrictive, if not discriminative,

outlook because historical documents usually presented the ruling class, (monarchs, elites,
etc.) but neglected recording the lives of ordinary people. Corollary to this, keeping birth
records and other related documents of indigenous groups were given very minimal attention.
 Recent developments have addressed the above limitations thus giving rise to the
modern concept of history. Modern historians have started employing other valid sources such
as oral traditions which include epics, songs and poems. Giving importance to artifacts were
likewise given emphasis. Highlighting these new forms of evidence necessitated that modern
historians collaborate with professionals of other disciplines such as the linguists, biochemists,
and archeologists, among others, to offer mankind an enhanced view of the past.

Assignment: (50 pts)

Work with your group members and come up with the following output:

1. Mantra of a person who does not appreciate the Philippine History subject.
In other words, what do you think will be the slogan of a person who dislikes
Philippine History? Make a catchy one-slide powerpoint presentation for this. (10
pts.)

2. Except those already mentioned in the Preliminary Activity in Lesson 1, name one
(1) allied discipline of History and discuss how it helps History. Make a two-slide
powerpoint presentation for this. (20 pts).

3. As a group, come up with your own definition of the modern concept of history.
Make sure to use your own words. (20 pts)
References:

Candelaria, John Lee P. and Alporha, Veronica C. (2018). Reading in Philippine

History. Quezon City: Rex Book Store
Gottschalk, Louis. (1969). Understanding History: A Primer of Historical
Method. New York: A.A. Knopf.

https://www.google.com/search

https://languages.oup.com/google-dictionary-en/
 GE 002 – READINGS IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY

CHAPTER 2 – HISTORICAL SOURCES

Historical sources help confirm and ascertain historical narratives. This chapter
explores the two (2) types of historical sources, namely the primary and secondary sources.
It also tackles other classifications such as relics or remains and testimonies along with the
concepts of artifacts, sociofacts, and mentifacts.

Objectives:

At the end of the chapter, the students should be able to:

1. Distinguish primary from secondary sources.

2. Enumerate examples of primary and secondary sources.

3. Examine and understand related concepts such as relics or remains, testimonies, artifacts,
sociofacts, and mentifacts.

Lesson 1: Historical Sources = Artifacts

Discussion

People commonly refer to “artifacts” as those tangible objects which prove the
existence of a certain story or narrative. Thus, the manunggul jar, the balanghay or a piece
of stone tool are popularly mentioned when we are asked to name artifacts.

The popular meaning of artifacts presented above is actually an incomplete meaning.

In

history, the term “historical sources” (commonly shortened to “sources”) is interchangeably

used with the term “artifacts”. Sources are artifacts that have been left by the past.
Therefore, in history, “artifacts” refer to both tangible and intangible sources.

Relics or remains present one variety of sources which offer clues about the past.
Further, they refer to anything that is made or modified by human hands. Testimonies are
another variety. They may be oral or written reports that describe an event. They provide
details on what took place, the location, the reason and how the event took place.

Written testimonies are of three types: 1) Narrative or “Literary” Sources, 2)

Diplomatic or Judicial Sources, and 3) Social Documents.

The first type of written testimonies refers to the narrative or “literary” sources.
They are which are written to narrate or impart information. The message given by these
sources may be real or fictional.
 Narrative or “Literary” sources may take the form of scientific tracts, journals,
newspaper articles, and letters.

Ego documents such as memoirs and diaries are also examples of narrative or
literary

sources.

Poems and novels are additional examples.

The second type of written testimonies refer to the diplomatic or judicial sources
such as court records, the Constitution, and contracts. These documents are especially
helpful as proofs of legal transactions and in settling judicial disputes.

The third type of written testimonies refer to social documents. These documents
have evolved due to rapid improvement in technology since the 19th century. They include
photographs, films, and recordings.

Lesson 2: Artifacts, Sociofacts and Mentifacts

Discussion:

Remember that artifacts include relics or remains and testimonies. In this lesson, we
will

focus on artifacts as relics or remains. These relics/remains are anything made or modified
by

human hands. Examples include stone tools and crafts, jade fragments, bangka,

alibata/baybayin.

Artifacts, sociofacts and mentifacts influence each other. Sociofacts refer to the
structures and organizations of a culture which influence social behavior. As such, they
explain how people come together, for what purpose have they come together, and the
practices governing people’s behavior. Examples are manners, customs, rituals, ceremonies,
myths, and legends. They also include social structures such as families, tribes, schools,
church group, social classes, corporations, gang, neighborhood, sport teams, and the like.

Mentifacts, on the other hand, are those which influence our thinking such as needs,
values, and attitudes. In short, they represent what people think or believe.

Let us see how artifacts, sociofacts and mentifacts work together.

Let mortar and pestle (also referred to as “almires”) be our chosen artifact. What
sociofacts are associated with this artifact? We can mention the following sociofacts:
(1) Always present during events and occasions

(2) Allowing others to borrow this kitchen tool strengthens ties among neighbors

(3) Can be used to make food preparation easier and tastier

Next, we ask “What mentifacts are associated with mortar and pestle (almires)?”
Our answers may include:

(1) Consists of a bowl and a cylinder-type tool

(2) Is used to smash or grind ingredients

(3) Improves taste of meal

Lesson 3: Primary and Secondary Sources

Discussion:

Generally, historical sources can be classified either as primary or secondary sources.

Primary sources are those sources which are produced at the same time as the event,
period, or subject being studied. Hence, a primary source is the testimony of an eyewitness
or of a witness by any other of the senses. Further, a primary source is not limited to a
person but may also take the form of any mechanical device that was present during the
event of which it tells.

For example, if a historian wishes to study the covid 19 pandemic, he would utilize
the following primary sources: WHO meeting minutes, hospital and government records,
medical journals, interviews of recovered patients, and even photographs. Other common
examples are memorabilia, letters, archival documents, artifacts, census, and government
records.

Conversely, a secondary source is the testimony of anyone who is not an eyewitness

i.e.one who was not present at the events of which he/she tells. Textbooks best exemplify
secondary sources.