WHAT IS CULTURE?

Culture is the characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people, encompassing language,
religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts.
It encompasses religion, food, what we wear, how we wear it, our language, marriage, music, what
we believe is right or wrong, how we sit at the table, how we greet visitors, how we behave with loved ones,
and a million other things.
The word "culture" was derived from a French term, which in turn derives from the Latin "colere,"
which means to tend to the earth and grow, or cultivation and nurture.
The Philippines is a country that has varied cultural influences. Most of these influences are results
of previous colonization, deriving mainly from the culture of Spain and the United States. Despite all of these
influences, the old Asian culture of Filipinos has been retained and are clearly seen in their way of life, beliefs
and customs.

ELEMENTS OF CULTURE
Culture combines many elements to create a unique way of living for different people.

SYMBOLS. A symbol is anything that is used to stand for something else. People who share a culture often
attach a specific meaning to an object, gesture, sound, or image. For example, a cross is a significant symbol
to Christians. It is not simply two pieces of wood attached to each other, nor is it just an old object of torture
and execution. To Christians, it represents the basis of their entire religion, and they have great reverence
for the symbol. Another example is Mano or Pagmamano.

LANGUAGE. It is a system of words and symbols used to communicate with other people. This includes full
languages as we usually think of them, such as English, Tagalog, etc. But it also includes body language,
slang, and common phrases that are unique to certain groups of people. Another example of how cultural
languages differ beyond vocabulary is the fact that eye contact represents different meanings in different
cultures. Examples are Lip Pointing, Nodding and raising eyebrows with a smile, Silent looks.

VALUES. It is the culture’s standard for discerning what is good and just in society. Values are deeply
embedded and critical for transmitting and teaching a culture’s beliefs. It helps shape a society by suggesting
what is good and bad, beautiful and ugly, sought or avoided. Values often suggest how people should
behave, but they don’t accurately reflect how people do behave. Values portray an ideal culture; the
standards society would like to embrace and live up to.

The term bahala na, which can be translated to whatever happens, happens, is one of the more familiar
phrases used in the country and is perhaps the most representative of how Filipinos value adaptability and
quick thinking. It exemplifies one’s belief in a higher power and submitting one’s fate to elements that cannot
be controlled.

NORMS. Cultures differ widely in their norms, or standards and expectations for behaving. Norms are often
divided into two types, formal norms, and informal norms. Formal norms, also called mores and laws, refer
to the standards of behavior considered the most important in any society. Informal norms, also called
folkways and customs, refer to standards of behavior that are considered less important but still influence
how we behave.

LAYERS OF CULTURE
• The national level: associated with the nation as a whole
• The regional level: associated with ethnic, linguistic, or religious differences that exist within a nation
• The gender level: associated with gender differences (Female vs. Male)
• The generation level: associated with the differences between grandparents and parents, parents and
children
• The social class level: associated with educational opportunities and differences in occupation
• The corporate level: associated with the particular culture of an organization. Applicable to those who are
employed.

ETHNOCENTRISM vs. CULTURAL RELATIVISM

Despite how much humans have in common, cultural differences are far more prevalent than cultural
universals.
CULTURAL RELATIVISM. It is the idea that a person’s beliefs, values and practices should be understood
based on the person’s own culture, rather than be judged against the criteria of another.

ETHNOCENTRISM. It is the belief or attitude that one’s own culture is better than all others, and should
therefore serve as the standard frame for reference.

WHAT IS POPULAR CULTURE?

It is also called mass culture and pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of
the practices, beliefs and objects that are dominant or ubiquitous in a society at a given point in time. Heavily
influenced in modern times by mass media, this collection of ideas permeates the everyday lives of people
in a given society. Therefore, popular culture has a way of influencing an individual’s attitudes towards certain
topics.
The culture of the Philippines comprises a blend of traditional Filipino and Spanish Catholic traditions, with
influences from America and other parts of Asia. The Filipinos are family oriented and often religious with an
appreciation for art, fashion, music and food.

• Filipinos are very resilient. In times of calamities and catastrophes, Filipinos always manage to rise
above the challenge. Instead of wallowing, they manage to pick themselves up and smile.

• Filipinos take pride in their families. In the Philippines, it is family first. So whether you are part of
the immediate family or you belong to the fourth generation, you are treated as a family member.
Sometimes, even the closest of friends are considered family, too.

• Filipinos are very religious. In all corners of a Filipino house, you can find brazen images of crosses
and other religious paraphernalia. They go to church every Sunday, or sometimes even twice or three
times a week.

• Filipinos are very respectful. From the moment they are born into this world, they are already taught
how to be respectful by using these simple catchphrases—po and opo, words that end sentences
when addressing elders. They have a culture of pagmamano, which is where they raise the backs of
the hands of their elders to their foreheads as a sign of respect.

• Filipinos help one another. More popularly known as bayanihan, Filipinos help one another—
without expecting anything in return—so that undertaking their tasks and responsibilities become
much easier. Sometimes this is called “community spirit.”

• Filipinos value traditions and culture. For Filipinos, traditions in their home and in their family are
important. They usually set aside a specific day for a certain celebration like festivals, birthday parties,
reunions, etc. And of course, every gathering is dedicated to keeping up with each other over
sumptuous food.

• Filipinos have the longest Christmas celebrations. Even as early as August, you can hear
Christmas songs and jingles being played in the malls or in the restaurants in the Philippines. The
mood becomes festive, with many people shopping and in good spirits. Christmas celebrations last
until around the first or second week of January.

• Filipinos love to eat. Aside from breakfast, lunch, and dinner, Filipinos manage to squeeze in a little
meal in between, too. Whether they eat every hour or every three hours, they savour every bite.

• Filipinos love to sing. This is the reason why karaoke has become so prevalent. As part of their
recreation, Filipinos spend some quality time with their families or friends singing or belting out new
and old songs.

• Filipinos love art and architecture. Filipinos have a penchant for bringing art and architecture to a
whole new level. They love to design creatively, to think intuitively, and have a passion for anything
different and unique.
Other Filipino Culture
Filipino Family Values
o The family is the center of the social structure and includes the nuclear family, aunts, uncles,
grandparents, cousins and honorary relations such as godparents, sponsors, and close family friends.
o People get strength and stability from their family. As such, many children have several godparents.
o It is common for members of the same family to work for the same company.

Filipino Concept of Shame

o Hiya is shame and is a motivating factor behind behavior.
o It is a sense of social propriety and conforming to societal norms of behavior.
o Filipinos believe they must live up to the accepted standards of behavior and if they fail to do so they
bring shame not only upon themselves, but also upon their family.
o One indication of this might be a willingness to spend more than they can afford on a party rather than
be shamed by their economic circumstances.
o If someone is publicly embarrassed, criticized, or does not live up to expectations, they feel shame
and lose self-esteem.

Etiquette & Customs

o Initial greetings are formal and follow a set protocol of greeting the eldest or most important person
first.
o Use academic, professional, or honorific titles and the person's surname until you are invited to use
their first name, or even more frequently, their nickname.

If you are invited to a Filipino's house:

• The best time to arrive is 15 to 30 minutes later if they are invited on a large party.
• Dress well. Appearances matter and you will be judged on how you dress.
• Compliment the hostess on the house.

EVOLUTION OF PHILIPPINE POPULAR CULTURE

Popular culture can be traced back to the Spanish period of the Philippines. It was employed and
brought by the Spanish to the native Filipinos through literature and plays to capture their hearts; thus,
emphasizing the colonial origins of popular culture in the Philippines.
It began as a replacement of the native culture with a Christian and European tradition through the
children of the native elites. They became the means for appeasing the natives through vernacular literary
forms. One such popular form was the representation of Jesus Christ’s suffering and resurrection through
plays or drama. This form served as a vessel for the spread of Christianity while the songs and comedy were
vessels for the Spanish monarchy.
Popular culture was introduced to the Philippines to win the Filipino populace to the ideology of the
Spanish regime. It was created to promote the Church and the State’s interest.
When the Americans came to colonize the Philippines, the appropriately-called popular culture was
introduced to the Philippines. The printing press, radio, television, and film paved the way for the speedy
circulation of popular culture forms. Hollywood films reigned over the Philippine market.
According to Bienvenido Lumbera, popular literature is considered a commodity and it is intended for
a mass market. As a commodity, it was seen as a threat to “serious artistic work” because the writers favored
the desires of publishers and editors who were more concerned with sales rather than aesthetics.
Additionally, popular culture is not caused by the populace but instead, it is caused either by the ruling elite
or members of a chose few who are under the employ of those elite for the consumption of the populace.
Popular culture in the Philippines is a concern.
Popular culture is in question because of the following reasons.
1. The Philippines is a third world country.
2. The Philippines has many indigenous ethnic groups that are still not urbanized.
3. The Philippines has a long history of two major cultural influences: Spanish and American.
4. The Philippines is still predominantly agricultural in its present socio-economic status.
5. The Philippines is still dependent on foreign economies.
The definition of popular culture in the Philippines is not just “of the people” but “of the mass”, which
is basically construed to be urban and industrialized
Popular culture in the Philippines is a culture generated by mass media that consists of film, radio,
television, and press. They were introduced in the twentieth century but are still exclusively urban. The
earliest form of popular culture research in the Philippines is mass communication research. It is concerned
with content analyses and effects on the audience. In the mid 70s, literature scholars began examining film,
television, radio, and comics as modes of fiction and drama. Their main concern was the cultural values and
the way the transmission of these values are being done. This concern was brought up by the so-called
“serious” literature, which are the novel, the short story, the poem, and the play because these were not
reaching the majority, not even the urban masses, and definitely not the rural masses.
Let us go through some of the major areas of Philippine popular culture.
Komiks. “Kenkoy” was the first Filipino comic strip. Its first appearance was in 1929. Its main character
was created by Antonio Velasquez. It was only made with four frames and was used as a filler for a weekly
popular magazine Liwayway. In 1931, Kenkoy was joined with other characters and they are:
1. Kulafu. He roamed the mountains of Luzon similar with Tarzan who did Africa.
2. Huapelo. He is a Chinese store owner.
3. Saryong Albularyo. He is a barrio doctor with a last name that actually meant “quack”.
4. Goyo and Kikay. They are the local counterparts of Jiggs and Maggie. Jiggs and Maggie are the main
characters in an American comic strip named Bringing Up Father.
5. Dyesebel. She is a mermaid created by Mars Ravelo, the same legendary cartoonist who created Darna.
6. Darna. She is a Filipino super heroine created by the legendary cartoonist Mars Ravelo.
7. Valentina. She is the arch enemy of Darna, also created by Mars Ravelo.
8. Petra. He is a horse-bodied character.
9. Karina. A magical agent of good with a flying kariton (pushcart).
10. Phantomanok. A character who is a combination of a phantom and a rooster.
During the Martial Law, the komiks have been used by government agencies to deliver message of
development like the Green Revolution, family planning, and housing programs. The content of the komiks
reflects dreams, hopes, values, vision of life, escape from reality, and problems and solutions. All these make
komiks definitely a popular culture. Komiks is created by artists who favor the public voice and dreams.
Komiks has an extensive reach and grasp which makes them entirely “of the people.
Komiks are reading materials that are cheap and accessible for Filipinos and are a substitute for
serious literature. It has such an extensive reach and grasp because they are being swapped between
neighbors and workers and their relatives. That is a form of circulation in itself and it is not expensive.
Komiks has different roles suitable as a phenomenon of popular culture. Komiks is a “purveyor of
entertainment and moral lessons, disseminator of values and attitudes, and a source of practical knowledge
on farming, government policies, medicine, and science.”
Film. Cinematrografo are short-featured films that were first shown in the Philippines. The first feature films
that were produced locally were in 1909, featuring the life of Jose Rizal. Jose Nepomuceno’s “Dalagang
Bukid” was the first full-length feature film shown in 1919. “Ang Aswang” was the first talking picture made
in 1932 by Musser.
There were a total of 214 movie houses in the Philippines in 1924. In 1939, the Philippine movie industry
became fifth in world rank when it came to the number of talkies produced. The Philippine movie industry
moved from the big-studio syndrome to the present proliferation of small independent producers with
challenges such as high taxes, high production costs, raw material scarcity, no aid from the
government, little or no professional training for actors and technical staff, and the greatest challenge was
the competition from foreign movies. Despite all of these challenges, the Filipino film did have an audience.
The movie houses were filled especially with stars like Dolphy, Nora Aunor, Vilma Santos, Sharon Cuneta,
Fernando Poe, Jr., and a lot more.
However, there are no film archives in the Philippines, not even film libraries. There are no film archives even
in the former Big Four film studios namely Sampaguita, Premiere, LVN Studios, and Lebran. Instead, the
films are only seen in television runs where they serve as an “archive” for Filipino films that survive. These
films have been the subject of much discussion and criticism because of their content. One such body is a
film critics’ circle known as Manunuri ng Pelikulang Pilipino. The members are film buffs and writers who
come from the academe and journalism. They view the contents of those films as bakya because of the
unelevated taste the films reflect specifically the melodrama, fighting, weeping, formula romances, and
characters that are stereotypical. The word bakya is a derogatory term used by Filipino directors in the late
fifties to characterize such films. Bakya is a wooden shoe worn by the lower classes in the Philippines that
symbolizes low taste or low quality. Much debate has happened about who really are bakya, whether the
directors and producers or the audience. The directors and producers are the “taste makers” while the general
audience can accept commendable films when presented in a language familiar to them.
Literature about Filipino films is limited. Some of it is mainly film reviews, feature articles, commentaries in
magazines or newspapers. Academic studies are engrossed with film history like the works of Nicanor
Tiongson and Bienvenido Lumbera.

Radio. Radio stations in the 20s were owned and operated by an electrical supply company and organized
by an American named Henry Hermann. These stations were for demonstrations primarily and provided
music for two years. In the 30s, radio stations were owned by department stores for advertisement of their
commodities. In 1932, radio advertising was began by companies other than the radio station owners. In
the Second World War, during the Japanese occupation, all radio stations were closed except for
KZRH, which was then renamed to PIAM. Short-wave reception was prohibited but many have risked their
lives to listen to the broadcasts of “The Voice of Juan de la Cruz” and the “Voice of Freedom” from
Corregidor and the Voice of America. Underground newspapers relied greatly on such hidden radio sets
for information about the war. At the end of the Second World War, came the birth of Philippine radio. There
were 30 operating radio stations five years after the war. The Bolinao Electronics Corporation was formed in
1961. It was the largest broadcasting chain in the
Philippines which then became the Alto Broadcasting System, then the Chronicle Broadcasting Network,
which then became the Kanlaon Broadcasting System after the Martial Law.
After the Second World War, programming in radio was mostly American. However, DRZH launched
the first local shows. In those early times, a recipe for Philippine radio was developed based on satires,
comedies, and variety shows. It consisted as well of soap operas, popular music program, public service,
“advice-to-thelovelorn” programs, and news. Radio sets have become a common household item especially
in the urban centers. The transistor radio became a revolution in 1959 and President Carlos P. Garcia asked
CARE for the donations of such radios to the barrios to fight subversive elements. The transistor radio
brought news of the government and of the city as well as pop music, thus bringing popular culture into the
rural domain. Two central forms of popular culture communicated by radio are popular music and the radio
soap opera.
Popular Magazine. The Philippine Magazine was the first magazine circulated in the Philippines in 1905.
However, it was not popular yet because it was in English, since the teaching of English has just begun in
1901, so it has not reached the majority just yet. On the other hand, perhaps it was the Philippines Free
Press which should be named the first magazine. Although it was in English, it was printed on cheap
newsprint and it was read by the English-speaking Philippine public by the time its publication ceased in
1972. A real popular magazine would have been printed in the vernacular and the one “true” popular
magazine was Liwayway. Its publication began in 1923. It had sister publications in different vernaculars,
namely Bisaya for Cebuano Visayan, Hiligaynon for Ilonggo, Bannawag for Ilocano, and Bicolnon for
Bicolano. Liwayway short stories, poems, and novels are part of literary studies, not popular culture studies.
There are also women’s magazines in the discipline of popular culturist. They are seen as “escape literature”
by housewives, clerks, office girls, school girls, teachers, and for the other types of women
Popular Music. At the beginning of the 70s, Philippine pop music was certainly American. However,
Philippine popular music was also present in the form of kundimans, love songs, zarzuelas, street songs, and
children’s nonsense songs but these were not sung on stages or even played in the airwaves. Philippine
pop culture was basically American, from pop, to rock, and even Broadway, to variety shows in television.
Pinoy rock emerged in 1973 through Joey Smith. It has a Western rock sound but in Pilipino lyrics. Hot Dog
came, which is another group, with a slow and melodious beat in Taglish lyrics. The Pinoy trend emerged
when Rolando Tinio, a poet, translated an album of American songs into Pilipino for Celeste Legaspi.
Radio stations were required to play three Filipino songs every hour, proving that the dominant music culture
was certainly American. Some radio stations went all the way by having allFilipino songs in their
programming, thus Pinoy pop had arrived. The Metro Manila Pop Song Festival, or also known as Metropop
Song Festival, is one of the songwriting competitions in the Philippines that cater to the promotion of
Filipino music. It has launched the careers of singers and songwriters in the country.
Literature of Popular Culture. Popular culture literature consists primarily of the following:
1. Reportage and feature stories in daily newspapers and weekly magazines;
2. Reviews of films, TV shows, pop concerts or performances, radio programs;
3. Studies done by mass communication undergraduates, thesis writers, and scholars;
4. Studies done by literature students and scholars;
5. Studies done by scholars who are interested in popular culture as a field of research.
There are challenges presented by the given literature above. They are done in isolation. They do
not have a clear perspective. They are unlocated in a definite context. There is no collective effort of defining
Filipino through his popular culture and consolidating findings to determine the effects of such culture on
him.