INFLUENCES OF

ARCHITECTURE IN THE
PHILIPPINES
ARCH 391 – HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE 4
 GEOGRAPHICAL CONDITION
 Situated in the SE of the Asian Continent
 Boundaries are:
North: Taiwan
East: Pacific Ocean
South: Indonesia
West: West Philippine Sea
 Volcanic in origin
 Archipelago of 7,107 islands
 Made up of mountains, plains, valleys, and volcanoes
complemented by bays and lakes, rivers and waterfalls
 Within the Asian Continent
 Discovery by Spanish traders strengthened Spain’s desire to extend
her empire, propagate her culture and the Christian religion
 Strategic location in Asia and the Pacific was apparently a reason for
America’s colonization of the country and in the desire to become a
major power
 3 regional island groups
- LUZON
- VISAYAS
- MINDANAO
 GEOLOGICAL CONDITION
 Rich in Natural Resources
 Abundance of wood for building (ipil, molave, yakal, guijo, apitong,
tanguile, red and white lauan, almon, palosapis, Benguet pine,
tindalo, kamagong, and narra), furniture making, carving, etc.
 Minerals: Gold, Silver, Iron, etc.
 Clay for making bricks
 Stone: limestone, marble, adobe, granite, coral stones, lime, grave
and sand
 Early Philippine Architecture (domestic structures) were light and
airy due to indigenous materials used
 Bahay kubo swayed with earthquakes, easily knocked down by
typhoons and also vulnerable to catch fire
 CLIMATIC CONDITION

2 GENERAL CLIMATIC TYPES:

DRY SEASON – November to June; November to February is cool,
while March to June is warm and humid
WET SEASON – July to October with torrential rains and typhoons
 CLIMATIC CLASSIFICATION IN TERMS OF ORIENTATION

 EAST – generally wet, the wettest period coinciding with the north-
east monsoon or Amihan; October to April; dry cool season in the
west during these months
 WEST – wet season during south-west monsoon or Habagat; May to
October
 Country is located in the “Pacific Ring of Fire”
 Over 30 significant earthquakes with the latest one with a
magnitude of 7.2 last October 15, 2013.
 Bahay na Bato – developed during the Spanish was more durable
and permanent than the nipa hut
 RELIGION

 93% of its population are Christians

 Inflow of Spanish Missionaries since 1521 resulting in the prevalence
of church architecture over the country
 Before the Spaniards came, Filipinos already believed in the
existence of a supreme being, the cult of the dead and the cult of
the spirits; they also believed in underworld creatures
 Cathedrals, mosques and chapels: landmarks
 Church runs educational institutions, hospitals, asylums and leper
colonies nationwide
 Protestanism, since 1898
 Islam was introduced before the Spaniards arrived: Muslims, the
largest non-Christian group and is concentrated in Mindanao
 Iglesia ni Kristo was founded in 1911
 SOCIAL, CULTURAL, ECONOMIC, POLITICAL CONDITION

 The country was settled by Negritos from the Asian mainland

followed by seafaring Indonesians and then by the Malays
 Early Filipinos established relationships with India, China, Arabia,
Japan, Indonesia, Cambodia, Thailand and other Southeast Asian
countries before the Spaniards arrived
 The barangay system was the early form of government based on a
kinship and made up from 30-100 families
 The family was the basic unit of Philippine society thus strong
family relationships characterized every Filipino home
The Spanish conquest led on the introduction of several changes in the
socio-cultural and economic life of the Filipinos such as:

1. Abolition of slavery
2. Towns cities and villages were established
3. Introduction of the Gregorian calendar
4. Use of Spanish surnames and converts first names changed to those
of saints
5. Assimilation of the Latin alphabet and the Spanish Language
6. Establishment of the first printing press
7. Introduction of the European system of education
8. Promotion of the arts: introduction of the Bahay na bato and
churches
9. Practice of the sciences
10. Establishment of hospitals and orphanages
11. Introduction of fiestas and holidays (cockfighting, horse races,
pilgrimages, haranas, flores de mayo and santacruzan, indoors and
outdoor games
 HISTORICAL

 22,000 BC – Man inhabits Tabon Caves for about 40,000 years

 960 AD – Chinese goods began to flow into the Philippines
 1100 AD – Chinese colonies were founded along coastal towns
 1150 AD – Ancient Filipinos built the Rice Terraces
 1200 – Islam is introduced in Mindanao, Southern Philippines
 HISTORICAL

 1521 – Ferdinand Magellan reached the Philippines and claimed the

archipelago for the King of Spain
 1762 – 1764 – the British occupy Manila
 1834 – Manila is opened to world trade; economic development is
underway
 1892 – Andres Bonifacio founded the Katipunan, a secret society
aiming for the separation of the Philippines from the Spain
 1898 – The American Congress declared a state war between the
United States and Spain
 HISTORICAL

 June 12 – Filipinos declared Philippines independence; a

constitutional government is established with Emilio F. Aguinaldo
as the president
 1899 – The Philippine – American war broke out
 1902 – Filipino armed resistance against the Americans
 1941 – Japanese bombers attacked the Philippines
 HISTORICAL

 1945 – Liberation of the Philippines from Japan

 1965 – Senator Ferdinand E. Marcos is elected President of the
Philippines
 1972 – Marcos declared Martial Law
 1998 June 12 – the Philippines celebrated the centennial of
Philippine Independence