INTRODUCTION TO HISTORY
LECTURE - GHIST
WHAT IS HISTORY?
- study of change of time
- study of past events
- covers all aspects of human society
- comes from the Greek word “historie”
which means “inquiry” or “to know”
WHY STUDY HISTORY?
History helps us in understanding the past, on
how it affects the present, and in turn molds the
future
LANGUAGE OF HISTORY
● Time: periods, dynasty, era
- specific points in time: BC and AD;
century
● Information
- historical facts vs opinions
(people’s points of view)
● Evidence
- oral evidence, written evidence,
pictorial evidence; artifacts
(sources of information)
CHALLENGES IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY
● Ability to read and understand text in
foreign language (Spanish language)
● Discern the cultural context and historical
value of primary sources
● Entails discerning mind (authenticity and
reliability)
● Issues in writing Philippine History
(biased, discriminatory, and self-serving
ends)
CHAPTER I : ANALYSIS OF PRIMARY
SOURCES
YEAR 01
TERM 01
What is a Source?
- Artifacts that have been left in the past
- Exist either as relics, also called “remains”
- Testimonies of the witnesses to the past
Relics or Remains
- feasible remaining proofs
- provides evidence of existence
- offers a clue about the past by virtue of
their existence (e.g wooden columns in
prehistoric settlements)
- also referred to as fiscal materials (e.g
coins)
Testimonies
- oral or written reports that describe an
event, whether simple or complex
- (e.g record of a property exchange,
donations, speeches, commentaries)
SOURCE TYPOLOGIES
Written Sources
- narrative or literary
- diplomatic or juridical
- social documents
Narrative or Literary
- chronicles or tracts presented in a written
narrative form
Scientific Tract
- inform contemporaries or succeeding
generations (e.g journals)
Diplomatic Sources
- usually sealed and authenticated
- intended to provide evidence of the
completion of a legal transaction and proof
of juristic fact
- serves as evidence in judicial proceeding
a. Issued by public authorities (kings pope,
congress)
 INTRODUCTION TO HISTORY YEAR 01
LECTURE - GHIST TERM 01

b. Private parties (will or mortgage CHAPTER II : HISTORICAL CRITICISM

agreement)
External Criticism
Social Documents - also known as Lower Criticism
- products of record keeping bureaucracy - verification of authenticity
such as state ministries, charitable - determines the validity of the document
organizations, foundations, churches and - spots fabricated, forged, faked documents
schools - distinguishes hoax from misinterpretation
- focuses on the context
Archaeological Evidence
- one of the most important categories of Conditions:
unwritten evidence - Authorship and provenance
- it talks about culture, way of life, - Type
ambitions, commercial, socio-cultural - Audience
interconnections - Language
- Reliability
- Authenticity
Primary Sources - Influence
- Originate from the past
- Comes from the time the event occurred Internal Criticism
- higher criticism
Examples: - accuracy of the content
- Documents, physical objects, oral/ video - truthfulness and credibility
accounts, artwork, letters, coins, diaries, - credibility
artifacts, diaries, memoirs, interview of
eyewitnesses, speeches made by Conditions:
participants themselves, documentaries - Thesis
(audio-visual documentation of people and - Frame of reference
places, journals, maps, architectural - Truth content
perspectives, paintings, advertisements
and photographs Source Analysis
- requires understanding
Secondary Sources - doing research
- It is something that has been made
recently about the past
- Provide interpretations of Historical Events CHAPTER III : BATTLE OF MACTAN
- Records that were made after the event
happened Antonio Pigafetta
- Written by people who were not present - born in Italy, 1941
during the event and who merely compiled - served as the chronicler of Magellan’s
stories expedition in 1519
- one of the 18 men to return to Spain
Examples: aboard the ship Victoria captained by Juan
- Books, magazines, internet, news report Sebastian Elcano in 1522
- wrote the Primo Viaggio Intorno Al Mondo
 INTRODUCTION TO HISTORY YEAR 01
LECTURE - GHIST TERM 01

- Died in 1531

CHAPTER IV : CUSTOMS OF THE TAGALOGS

Juan de Plasencia
- born in the 16th century
- Franciscian Friar
- wrote the Doctrina Cristiana
- died in 1950 in Liliw, Laguna

Customs of the Tagalogs

- originally written in Spanish
- first Civil Code of the Philippines
- translated to English by Frederic W.
Morrison