Module 3: Early Life of Filipinos and Early Revolt

Introduction
Philippines Before the Conquest
Philippine history writing started during Spanish time when Ferdinand Magellan
landed in the Philippine archipelago in the wear 1521, followed by Filipinos like Dr. Jose
Rizal who annotated Antonio Morga's book "Sucesos De Las Islas Filipinas" Events of the
Philippine Islands) and Americans. But before the Spaniards, there were archaeological
records of the early Chinese and some Muslim scholars narrating the existence of
civilization in the archipelago even before Magellan landed.

Let us look on the life of the native people of Philippine archipelago prior to the
arrival of the Spaniards.

Origins of the Philippines:

1. Land Bridges Theory

 Philippines was believed to be part of Mainland Asia
 About 250,000 years ago, bodies of water surrounding the Philippines were 156
feet lower than its present level.
 The bridges were between Borneo connecting Palawan and Sulu, Mindanao, and
Papua New Guinea and between Taiwan and Batanes.

2. Continental Drift Theory

 Alfred Wegener theorized that some 300 million years ago, the earth’s current
continents were part of a super continent called Pangaea.
 He theorized that if the continents were to be put together, it would appear as
one.
 Scientists believed that the Philippines was separated due to geological changes.
3. Plate Tectonics Theory
 Scientists believed that the outer shell of the earth is composed of thin plates that
relatively move to each other.
 These plates emerged after the drifting of the different continents.
 Movements and collisions of the plates created the different present landform,
including Philippines.

4. Volcanic Theory
 About 225 million years ago, Earth was ravaged by violent earthquakes and
volcanic eruptions.
 Because of these eruptions, different lands were formed and emerged, thus the
establishment of Philippine islands.
 The elevation of Baguio city and nearby mountain areas is the evidence of this
theory.

Origin of the Filipino Races

 Legends - The story of “Malakas at si Maganda”.
 Waves of Migration - Theorized by Prof. Otley Beyer, the Negritos, Indonesians and
Malays.
 The Tabon Man - Found in Palawan who was present earlier than the Negritos.
 The Callao Man - Found in Cagayan believed to be present as early as 50,000
years ago.
 Evolution Theory - Theorized by Charles Darwin.
 Creation Story - The man is created in the image of God.

Early Filipino Ancestors:

Wave Migration Theory

 This theory proves that the early settlers in the Philippines migrated from the
different parts of the world who populated the Philippines some thousands of years
ago.
 This proves the diversity of cultures and traditions passed by our ancestors.
Core Population Theory
 A theory which believes that Filipino ancestors settled within the archipelago, and
in fact that they migrated outside the country spreading our culture to other lands.
o Tabon Man – early settlers in the Philippines who lived 25,000 years ago in
the island of Palawan.

1. Aetas / Negritos
  Nomadic people believed to be the first settlers in the Philippines, living by hunting
and gathering wild plants.
 They came from Mainland Asia about 25,000 years ago.
 Aetas were characterized as very small people, have dark skin, kinky hair thick
nose and lips.

2. Indonesians
 They were the first sea dwellers that migrated in the Philippines about 5000 years
ago.
 They came from South Asia travelling in groups using boats, arriving in mountains
and lowlands.
 Unlike the Aetas, Indonesians were more advanced, and they lived in permanent
homes and used fires practically, lived by hunting, fishing, and small farming.
 Indonesians particularly painted their bodies.

3. Malays
 They came after the Indonesians 2000 years ago.
 They arrived in boats (balangays) coming from Southeast Asia.
 They were medium in height, brown skin with dark eyes, flat nose and have straight
black hair.
 They drove the Indonesian to forests and mountains and they lived in lowlands.
 They lived in larger villages, had government, arts and sciences and an advanced
agriculture, mining, and trading.

Early Shelter
Communities before mostly lived near bodies of water and were lined along coastal
areas or near rivers, bays, or lakes.
 Reasons:
 Food from water resources
 Water system for agriculture
 Means of transportation
 Strategic defense against enemies or wild animals

1. Caves
 Early Filipinos believed caves were the safest place to settle.
 But later, they moved in plains for farming and coastal areas for fishing.

2. Nipa Huts
 Made of nipa leaves, wood and bamboo having a square shape and
about 1 meter above ground.
 It was the most common type of house early Filipino used for shelter.

3. Tree Houses
 Used to provide safety from attacking enemies and wild animals.
 Ladder or ropes are used to access this type of shelter.

4. Houses on Stilts
 These are houses near coastal areas which is connected by a pathway.
 This type of shelter was commonly used by merchants in ancient times.
Early Clothing

Male:
 Bahag – A strip of cloth wrapped around the waist and between the legs.
 Putong – Cloth wrapped in the head
o Red – killed a lot of people in war
o Weaved – killed people not less than 7
 Kangan – A sleeveless coat
o Red – Datu and Maharlika
o Blue - Average male
Female:
 Baro - Is the upper clothing
 Saya - Is the lower covering of women.

Livelihood
1. Agriculture
 Methods:
o Kaingin – preparing the land for farming by burning a specific area of land.
o Wetland Farming – rice was planted in areas where dikes were built to
collect water.
2. Boat-making
 Birey – boats made for 50 to 100 people
 Biroco – boats made for more than 100 people

3. Hunting and Gathering

 Men were trained to hunt animals for the tribe and women were taught to gather
vegetables and fruits and to do household chores.
 The food was divided among the members of the tribe.
 The biggest part is given to the leader and his family.
4. Barter Trading
  Early Filipinos traded with other Filipinos and other nationalities.
 Chinese, Arabs and Indians were the main client of Filipino traders.
 The common products being traded were yellow wax, cotton, pearls,
tortoiseshells, betel-nuts, cocoanuts, and vegetables and abaka.
 To make trading easier, early Filipinos used gold coins (Pilocintos) as a means of
exchange.

Social Classes:

1. Datu
 He was the tribe leader and the chieftain.
 In Tagalog region, he was known as Lakan or Gat.
 He served as the religious leader, can declare war and made important tribal
decision-making.
 Dayang-dayang - wives of the datu.

2. Maharlika (Tumao)
 Considered as the noble and free people.
 They always travelled with the chieftain.
 They are merchants in nature.
 They were assigned to meet foreign traders.

3. Timawa (Timagua)
 They were composed of soldiers, rowers of boat and datu’s guards.
 They could live in other barangays as a privilege.
4. Alipin (Oripun)
 They have the lowest status in the society before.
o 3 Types:
 Horo-han – they served their masters as warriors
 Namamahay (Freeman) – They can acquire a house and have a
family.
 Saguiguilid – They are considered as possession. (War prisoners)

Political System
Barangay – standard unit of government
 It consisted of 30 to 100 families.
 It was ruled by a chieftain.

Powers and Functions of a Datu

 Implementing laws and regulations
 Ensuring peace and order
 Giving protection to his subjects
 Act as judge during trials

Trial by Ordeal - was an ancient judicial practice by which the guilt or innocence of the
accused was determined by subjecting them to a painful, or at least an unpleasant,
usually dangerous experience. The proof of innocence was survival.
 Trial by Boiling Water

Taxation
 The chieftain’s family, Maharlika and Timawa were exempted from paying taxes.
 People pay taxes to the chieftain in exchange of protection they will receive.
(Alipin class)
 Non- payment of taxes was punishable.

War Declaration
 Before declaring war against other tribes, the Datu and the katalonan were the
people making decisions.

System of Writing:
Baybayin – the most common system of writing widely used by the Tagalogs.
 It literally means “to spell”
 These was commonly taught to the children of the Datu and Maharlikas.
 It was mainly used for trading near coastal areas.
o Other System of Writing in the Philippines
 Kurdita – used in northern part of Luzon
 Kulitan – used in Central Luzon mainly Pampanga
 Basahan – Used in Southern part of Luzon
 Haruno’o and Buhid – used in Mindoro
 Tagbanwa – used in Palawan Island
 Badit – used in Central Visayas
 Kirim – Used in Central Mindanao
 Jawi – Used in the Southwest part of Mindanao
BURIAL CUSTOMS

1. Manunggul jar
 Bones of the deceased are buried.
 The two human figures represent the soul on a journey to the afterlife.
2. Hanging corpse
 Practiced by the Manobos.
 Wrapped the corpse in mat and bamboo slats to hang up on the tree.
3. Hanging coffins
 Practiced in Sagada, Mt. Province.
 Believed to bring the deceased closer to heaven.
4. Tree trunk burial
 Practiced by the Tagalogs.
 A dying person chooses the tree beforehand when he or she becomes
terminally ill, the corpse is then entombed vertically inside the hollowed-out
tree trunk.
5. Wrapped corpse burial
 Practiced by the Apayao’s.
 Wrap the deceased person in a mat and buried.
Arts:
Death Masks:
o These gold masks were buried with the dead to go along with them to the spirit
world. They believed that once they are ferried over a spiritual river to the afterlife,
those who wore gold and are covered with tattoos are recognized by the
ancestors and deities. They are supposed to wear these to be accepted. The
masks usually covered the eyes, nose and mouth and are delicately decorated
depending on social status.

Kinnari
o The Kinnari was excavated in Surigao at around 1981. It is a gold artifact that
symbolizes the feminine beauty for it is a half-woman, half- bird, and a religious
significance for it encapsulates grace and accomplishment.
Jewelry
o Prior to the Spanish colonization, the Filipino upper-class society, warriors, common
people and slaves wore gold even to their grave. Of course, the intricacy
depends on their social status but imagine how rich the Philippines was then. It
was part of their everyday clothes.

Courting and Marriages

A man must serve the family of the woman for several years before marrying the woman.
o Cleaning the house
o Gathering food and firewood
o Fetching water
o Killing enemy tribes
o Dowry- giving a part of wealth to each family.

Religious Belief
Babaylan
They were believed as a being able to communicate with the gods and goddesses.
o Katalonan – a priestess of the highest order.
o Mambabarang – priestess of the lowest rank.
Priestesses were believed to cure diseases and can incur maladies.

Gods and Goddesses:

o Bathala – supreme god
o Amaniklable – god of sea
o Idiyanale – goddess of labor
o Ikapati – god of agriculture
o Lakapati – fertility deity
o Mapulon- god of weather
o Mayari – goddess of moon
o Tala – goddess of stars
o Hanan – goddess of morning
o Dumakulem – guardian of mountains
o Anitun Tabu – goddess of wind and rain
 o Anagolay – goddess of lost things
o Apolaki – god of sun and warriors
o Diyan Masalanta – goddess of love
o Sitan – keeper of bad souls
o Mangagauay – plague bringer
o Manisilat – goddesss of broken home
o Mankukulam – disease and fire bringer
o Hukloban – shapeshifting deity

THINGS USED

1. SURVIVAL
A. Nipa palm and bamboo – building houses.
B. Jar – storing foods to preserve it for a long time.
C. Pot – cooking foods.
D. Gold – trading
E. Stones (grounded and smoothened type) – carving woods.
F. Flake stone – cutting, slicing and grating.
G. leaves and bamboos – “paper”
2. WEAPONRY
A. Balaraw – a dagger with a single-edged leaf shaped blade and a cross
shaped hilt.
B. Kampilan – long and straight with a single edge which widens to a dual
point.
C. Lantakas – small cannons.

Reasons Filipinos have a Poor Knowledge of Their Past:

o Propagation of Christianity in the Philippines
o Early Filipinos prefer verbal communication
o Lack of Interest in Understanding Culture
o Filipinos had Different Priorities

EARLY REVOLTS
SILANG REVOLT
 Led by Diego Silang who aims to build an Ilocano nation.
 Was promised by the British army assistance, but it never came.
 Diego Silang was killed by his friend Miguel Vicos under the Spanish
government’s order
 His Wife, Gabriela Silang continued the revolt, but the latter was arrested and
executed in public 4 months after the death of his husband

DAGOHOY REVOLT
 Led by Francisco Dagohoy in Bohol, and is considered to be the longest revolt
against Spain, lasting for 85 years
 Primary reason was the implementation of polo y servicios, and the refusal of a
Jesuit priest to give Dagohoy’s brother a Christian burial
 The revolt officially ended in 1829 under the Spanish commander Manuel Sanz

PHILIPPINE HISTORY IN A GLIMPSE

The Early Philippines

The Philippines is named after King Philip II of Spain (1556-1598) and it was a Spanish
colony for over 300 years.

Today the Philippines is an archipelago of 7,000 islands. However, it is believed that

during the last ice age they were joined to mainland Asia by a land bridge, enabling
human beings to walk from there.

The first people in the Philippines were hunter-gatherers. However, between 3,000
BC and 2,000 BC people learned to farm. They grew rice and domesticated animals.
From the 10th AD century Filipinos traded with China and by the 12th Century AD Arab
merchants reached the Philippines and they introduced Islam.

Then in 1521 Ferdinand Magellan sailed across the Pacific. He landed in the
Philippines and claimed them for Spain. Magellan baptized a chief called Humabon and
hoped to make him a puppet ruler on behalf of the Spanish crown. Magellan demanded
that other chiefs submit to Humabon but one chief named Lapu Lapu refused. Magellan
led a force to crush him. However, the Spanish soldiers were scattered and Magellan was
killed.

The Spaniards did not gain a foothold in the Philippines until 1565 when Miguel
Lopez de Legazpi led an expedition, which built a fort in Cebu. Later, in 1571 the
Spaniards landed in Luzon. Here they built the city of Intramuros (later called Manila),
which became the capital of the Philippines. Spanish conquistadors marched inland and
conquered Luzon. They created a feudal system. Spaniards owned vast estates worked
by Filipinos.

Along with conquistadors went friars who converted the Filipinos to Catholicism.
The friars also built schools and universities.
 The Spanish colony in the Philippines brought prosperity - for the upper class
anyway! Each year the Chinese exported goods such as silk, porcelain and lacquer to
the Philippines. From there they were re-exported to Mexico.

The years passed uneventfully in the Philippines until in 1762 the British captured
Manila. They held it for two years but they handed it back in 1764 under the terms of the
Treaty of Paris, signed in 1763.

The Philippines in the 19th Century

In 1872 there was a rebellion in Cavite but it was quickly crushed. However
nationalist feeling continued to grow helped by a writer named Jose Rizal (1861-1896).
He wrote two novels Noli Me Tangere (Touch me Not) and El Filibusterismo (The
Filibusterer) which stoked the fires of nationalism.

In 1892 Jose Rizal founded a movement called Liga Filipina, which called for
reform rather than revolution. As a result, Rizal was arrested and exiled to Dapitan on
Mindanao.

Meanwhile Andres Bonifacio formed a more extreme organisation called the

Katipunan. In August 1896 they began a revolution. Jose Rizal was accused of supporting
the revolution, although he did not and he was executed on 30 December 1896. Yet his
execution merely inflamed Filipino opinion and the revolution grew.

Then in 1898 came war between the USA and Spain. On 30 April 1898 the
Americans defeated the Spanish fleet in Manila Bay. Meanwhile Filipino revolutionaries
had surrounded Manila. Their leader, Emilio Aguinaldo declared the Philippines
independent on 12 June. However, as part of the peace treaty Spain ceded the
Philippines to the USA. The Americans planned to take over.

War between American forces in Manila and the Filipinos began on 4 February
1899. The Filipino-American War lasted until 1902 when Aguinaldo was captured.

The Philippines in the 20th Century

American rule in the Philippines was paternalistic. They called their policy
'Benevolent Assimilation'. They wanted to 'Americanize' the Filipinos but they never quite
succeeded. However, they did do some good. Many American teachers were sent to
the Philippines in a ship called the Thomas and they did increase literacy.

In 1935 the Philippines were made a commonwealth and were semi-independent.

Manuel Quezon became president. The USA promised that the Philippines would
become completely independent in 1945.

However, in December 1941 Japan attacked the US fleet at Pearl Harbor. On 10

December 1941 Japanese troops invaded the Philippines. They captured Manila on 2
January 1941. By 6 May 1942 all of the Philippines were in Japanese hands.
 However American troops returned to the Philippines in October 1944. They
recaptured Manila in February 1945.

The Philippines became independent on 4 July 1946. Manuel Roxas was the first
president of the newly independent nation.

Ferdinand Marcos (1917-1989) was elected president in 1965. He was re-elected

in 1969. However, the Philippines was dogged by poverty and inequality. In the 1960s a
land reform program began. However, many peasants were frustrated by its slow
progress and a Communist insurgency began in the countryside.

On 21 September 1972 Marcos declared martial law. He imposed a curfew,

suspended Congress and arrested opposition leaders.

The Marcos dictatorship was exceedingly corrupt and Marcos and his cronies
enriched themselves.

Then, in 1980 opposition leader Benigno Aquino went into exile in the USA. When
he returned on 21 August 1983 he was shot. Aquino became a martyr and Filipinos were
enraged by his murder.

In February 1986 Marcos called an election. The opposition united behind Cory
Aquino the widow of Benigno. Marcos claimed victory (a clear case of electoral fraud).
Cory Aquino also claimed victory and ordinary people took to the streets to show their
support for her. The followers of Marcos deserted him and he bowed to the inevitable
and went into exile.

Things did not go smoothly for Corazon Aquino. (She survived 7 coup attempts).
Furthermore, the American bases in the Philippines (Subic Bay Naval Base and Clark Air
Base) were unpopular with many Filipinos who felt they should go. In 1992 Mount Pinatubo
erupted and covered Clark in volcanic ash forcing the Americans to leave. They left
Subic Bay in 1993.

In 1992 Fidel Ramos became president. He improved the infrastructure in the

Philippines including the electricity supply. Industry was privatized and the economy
began to grow more rapidly.

However, at the end of the 1990s the Philippine economy entered a crisis.
Meanwhile, in 1998 Joseph Estrada, known as Erap became president. Estrada was
accused of corruption and he was impeached in November 2000. Estrada was not
convicted. Nevertheless, people demonstrated against him and the military withdrew its
support. Estrada was forced to leave office and Vice-president Gloria Macapagal-
Arroyo replaced him. She was re-elected in 2004.