Module 1 Lesson 3: Content Analysis

“Customs of the Tagalogs”

Submitted to:
Professor Rommel Combis

Submitted by:

Jainal, Michaella Jemaine

Mitra, Maria Sarah Luciae

Pantig, Angelo Mohan

Salalila, Mary Grace

Suratos, Stephanie
Background of the Author

Juan Portocarrero was born in the year 1520 in Plasencia, Spain. His birthplace was the origin of
his nickname today, Juan De Plasencia. Juan de Plasencia grew up during the period known as the Siglo
de Oro, a Golden Age when the arts and literature flourished in many parts of Spain, among them his
native Extremadura. It is not well known when or where he first entered the Order of the Franciscans.
Some scholars point to the Convento de Villanueva de la Serena, in Plasencia, while others speculate
that he might have traveled to Italy and joined a convent there, at a time when a large part of Italy was
under Spanish rule.

Plasencia is believed to have arrived in the Philippines on July 2nd, 1578. Fray Diego de Oropesa
was the other missionary, and they both started preaching around Laguna de Bay and Tayabas, Quezon,
in Quezon Province, where he founded several towns. Juan de Plasencia wrote several books designed
primarily to promote the understanding of both the Spanish language among the natives and the local
languages among the missionaries, to facilitate the task of spreading Christianity. He is the author of
what is believed to be the first book printed in the Philippines, the Doctrina Cristiana, that was not only
printed in Spanish, but also in Tagalog, in both Latin script and the commonly used Baybayin script of
the natives of the time, and it even had a version in Chinese. Other works attributed to him are the
"Relacion de las Costumbres de Los Tagalos" (1589), when he was around 79 years old, that not only
helped understand and preserve many of the traditional ways of the local population, but also provided
the first form of Civil Code, used by local governors to administer justice.

Historical Background of the Document

This document, given the title "Customs of the Tagalogs," was authored by the account of Juan de
Plasencia, who in his responsibility was for his missionary work in the native land of the Philippines.
This document was stated to have been written in the year 1589. In this document, Plasencia has written
about what the native people of Luzon during those times considered their own culture and civilization.
This document was also authored by Plasencia following the order of the then King of Spain. Through
the letter he sent, Plasencia was commissioned to write down what he saw and observed in the cultural
basis of the traditions and customs that the locals followed and believed in.

This account is only a significant portion of the known lengthier manuscripts of the historians who
during that time were part of the Spaniards who explored the land of the Philippines. Since this account
was based on merely observations and judgment, many misconceptions arose due to the newly
interpreted culture as well as an incorrect description of the customs of natives at that time.
Misconceptions also arose due to the author's being a Spaniard; thus, it was not of Western knowledge.
 This document served the purpose of providing descriptions of the culture, customs, and traditions of
the early native Filipinos.

Like other colonial documents created during the Spanish colonial period, the "Customs of the
Tagalogs" was written with the goal of creating an exoticized or spiced-up representation or depiction
of the Tagalog people. Since the document was affected by political considerations and propaganda in
order for the content to appeal to Westerners rather than indigenous peoples, it was not meant for local
consumption (Mapanoo, 2015).

Content Presentation and Analysis of the important Historical Information found in the Document

The “Customs of Tagalog," or the original title "The Las Costumbres de Los Indios Tagalos de
Filipinas," was written by Fray Juan de Plasencia and is about the history of the Filipinos in the 1570s. This
document is all about government, justice, inheritance, slaves, and dowries, as well as worshiping their
Gods, beliefs, superstitions, and idols.

✓ The document presented and described the narrative culture and system of legal government of the
early indigenous Filipinos during those prescribed times, which were then headed by a Datu.
✓ They (Datu) serve as war captains who must be obeyed by the people.
✓ Datus governed over a tribal gathering, which is also referred to as a barangay. This term was
inferred by the early natives who sought that the boat they used in arriving on this land was then
referred to as the name "barangay."
✓ The governing leader of the barangay (Datu) was in charge of protecting their subjects as well as
governing and enforcing legitimate laws.
✓ There are three types of people in this barangay: nobles, commoners, and slaves. The nobles, or
maharlica, are at the top of the social hierarchy and must be respected. The commoners, known as
aliping namamahay, are servants of their master, even if he is not a datu, but they also have property
and gold. Slaves, also known as "aliping guiguilir," worked for their master.
✓ There is still no fairness or equality in the community during the time of the natives. They still had
rankings, fostering either a higher estate or rank, or a lower classification.
✓ If a borrower is unable to repay a debtor, he must pay the debtor the price by becoming the debtor's
slave. When the true children receive their parents' entire heritage, and if the children are numerous,
the children's inheritance will then be distributed equally.
✓ Adopted children will inherit twice as much as biological children, but when the adoptive parents
die, the adopted children will lose the inheritance of the parents.
✓ With the Dowries, the man will give his inheritance to the woman's parents.
 ✓ There are many Filipino superstitions stated in this document, including Catolonan, Mangangauay,
Manyisalat, Mancocolam, Hocloban, Silagan, Magtatangal, Osuang, Mangagayoma, Sonat,
Pangatahojan, and Bayoguin. They all have mystical powers and are worshiped for their evil.
✓ Juan de Plasencia also documented superstitions, beliefs, idolatry, and worship of gods.
✓ The natives had no holy temples for the worship of their idols. Nevertheless, they have a
"simbahan," wherein it is their place of adoration or a place for their feast, called "pandot."
✓ In addition, they worship many different gods and have some images and objects that they idolize,
such as the Bathala. He is believed to be worshiped by the natives because his meaning was "all
powerful" or "maker of all things." It is also believed that the sun is worshiped because of its beauty.
✓ The natives had a presiding priest or priestess do the prayerful singing.
✓ They believed in premonitions about what they would encounter, and they also believed in
foretelling to improve their luck.
✓ They did not have a structural concept of time, thus only recognizing the time stated by the sun and
water.
✓ They also institute many feasts and sacrifices, such as feeding their idols and burying their dead. If
he was a datu or of high rank, he would be buried beneath the little house, and his loved ones would
mourn for him for a few days.
✓ Tagalogs coped with their grief by eating and drinking.
✓ Their burial is distinct from that of the aetas. They will dig a deep hole and place the deceased
person inside, then put on a crown and a cocoa nut to protect the body.

Contribution and Relevance of the document in understanding the grand narrative of Phil. History

This document has indeed shown the culture and customs of the natives during the time of Plasencia.
Moreover, this has shown great contribution and relevance. The Customs of the Tagalogs, written by Juan
De Placencia, had a substantial impact on the grand narrative of Philippine history as we know it today.
Plasencia's report served as the foundation for Spanish laws and policies in the Philippines, allowing
Spaniards to not only govern but also reconfigure and reconstruct Philippine society. It has also remained
the basis for reconstructing Tagalog society's history. As John Phelan pointed out, the vast majority of our
knowledge about the nature of pre-conquest Tagalog society stems from a study of Tagalog customs written
by a Franciscan friar named Juan de Plasencia. His work is all the more significant because not all Spanish
accounts, reports, and other materials agreed with his reconstruction of Tagalog society (Woods, 2005).
Additionally, Placencia’s work is deemed relevant for it confirms that Filipinos had a government as well
as a set of beliefs and practices prior to the arrival of the Spanish. The beliefs and practices concluded in
his narrative are deduced to be still existent and acknowledged today.

This document also signifies the culture of the natives of the Luzon region from a viewpoint where
many people have not seen its great importance and the homage of the traditions presented in the account.
The "Customs of the Tagalogs" also illustrate the form of structure as well as the traditional laws that were
upheld by the community present at that time. The societal structure has also provided a coordinated
mechanism of sophisticated relationships. Thus, understanding the root of the decisions and actions made
by the natives as stated in this document. The written narrative present in this document has allowed many
generations to be knowledgeable of the customs and traditions that were withheld during the native times
of Filipinos in the Luzon region.

Personal Insights

As Tagalogs, Juan De Placencia’s narrative provided a nostalgic experience as having read the
document and were reminded of the shows, anecdotes, and stories we encountered in our childhood.
Through his work, we were able to delve deeper into the customs of our ancestors, some of which have
reached our generation. It was interesting to read about the social classes and social relationships that
existed and were practiced before the Spanish colonization. Hence, our amazement as to how the same
customs have endured multiple colonizations and the test of time. From our point of view, as natives but
no more than outsiders, the customs of our ancestors are complicated but also resemble the reality of the
present. In the city, we may have no dato, but we have an established government; the rich, in place of
maharlicas, aliping namamahay, who have remained as commoners, and aliping sa guiguilir as the poor.
It led us to think about how, no matter how much time passes, the people who make up these social classes
are treated the same in society.

This narrative by Juan de Plasencia, for us, supports the argument that Filipinos already had their own
set of traditions, customs, rituals, beliefs, and governance in place before the Spaniards colonized the
Philippines. He offered knowledge that will aid today's generation in comprehending our history and
identifying practices that are no longer used. Even today, some ethnic groups in the Philippines continue to
practice some of the 16th century practices, such as the Bagobo system, which requires the bride-to-father
be's to make a return present equivalent to one-half of whatever is agreed upon as dowry, and there are still
people, especially the elders, who believe in the existence of tikbalang and tiyanak.

We've also discovered that this text contains information on how our forefathers lived in the past. This
gave us a thorough understanding of what it means to learn from primary and secondary sources. This
document, for us, may serve as a connotation of a journal, illustrating the documented reports written by
the author. This leads to our analysis and assessment of these sources as our basis in providing a narrative
report. It is critical that we understand this because it is our history, our Filipino heritage. Reflecting on our
lives, it is clear that we have come a long way from how the natives lived before us. It's a part of who we
are and where we came from.

REFERENCES:
The Biography of Juan De Plasencia
https://www.howold.co/person/juan-de-plasencia/biography
The summary of the life of Juan Portocarrero
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/saint-louis-college/bs-accountancy/juan-de-plasencia-
background/15605299
Mapanoo, S. (2022, January 26). Accustomed Othering in Colonial Writing: Philippine Art, Culture and
Antiquities. Artes De Las Filipinas. http://www.artesdelasfilipinas.com/archives/186/accustomed-
othering-in-colonial-writing.

Gutay, J. (n.d.). Post Page. FranciscaKnows. https://ofmphil.com/news/franciscaknows-life-and-

works-of-fray-juan-de-plasencia

Woods, D. L. (2005). From Wilderness to Nation: The Evolution of Bayan. UCLA: Center for
Southeast Asian Studies. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/24m1q0f9

Blair, E. H. & Robertson, J.A. (2013). The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898, Volume XXXIII, 1519-
1522Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and their peoples, their history and
records of the catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the
political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those islands from their earliest relations with
European nations to the close of the nineteenth century. Cleveland, Ohio: The Arthur H. Clark Company.
Retrieved from https://www.gutenberg.org/files/42884/42884-h/42884-h.htm