Readings in

Philippine
History

By: Exequiel J. Elumba, LPT

Course Instructor.
I. Introduction to
History
A. Etymology and Definition

– History (from the Greek word Historie or

Historia which means “learning, inquiry and or
investigation”)
Definition and Subject Matter
History has always been
Known as the study of
The past
Why History is
important?
 B. Historiography

– Historiography on the other hand refers to

the study of history itself.
Phil.His.

World.His.
Asian.His.
C. Elements of History

1.The Historian.
2.Place.
3.Period.
4.Sources.
D. Nature of History as
an academic discipline
A. History has no subject matter of its
own.
It is a
c tually
cover very
every broad
inclu thing since
d in g that h it doe
all as a s s
politi pects happ
cal, e from ened
cono in the
mic s socie
ocial, ty
cultu
re etc
.
 Anthropology Sociology

Archaeology
B. History synthesizes
knowledge from other fields.
C. History illuminate’s pieces of the
past.

– History provides for explanations of

things that happened in the past.
D. History is constantly changing.

– Historians have to rely on what is

available.
– Therefore, when new data are
discovered, previous historical accounts
can be changed.
E. History sheds light to truth.
– Since a historian constantly write about previous
phenomena using historical sources as basis, all claims
therefore supports only the truth base on the data
available.
– This however does not preclude the fact that a historian
uses also unwritten sources such as oral accounts and
traditions.
II. Sources of History
In history, sources are classified mainly into :

1. Primary Sources
2. Secondary
Sources
A. Primary Sources

– A primary source provides direct or first hand evidence about an

event, object, person, or work of art.
– These are the evidences by eyewitnesses or created by people who
experienced the said event or phenomena.
– In effect, a primary source is direct source of historical
information dating from the period in question
B. Secondary Sources

– Secondary sources, on the other hand, are

interpretations of history.
– They describe, discuss, interpret, comment upon, analyze,
evaluate, summarize, and process primary sources.
– These are the products of people or writers who were
not part of the event or phenomena.
Historian Trishia

Phil.President
Donna
2220
Phil.President
Audio record
Donna
2220

Historian Trishia
Books
C. Tertiary Sources

– Tertiary sources contain information that has

been compiled from primary and secondary
sources.
1. Government Documents

– Government documents provide evidence of activities, functions,

and policies at all government levels.
– These documents include hearings and debates of legislative
bodies; the official text of laws, regulations and treaties; records of
government expenditures and finances; and statistical compilations
of economic, demographic, and scientific data.
2. Serials – Journals, magazines, and newspapers are serial publications that
are published on an ongoing basis.
III. Historical Criticism
There are two kinds of criticisms that a
historian can use in the process; these are

1. External
Criticisms
2. Internal Criticisms
A. External Criticism
– The ‘External Criticism’ covers the physical
examinations of sources like documents, manuscripts,
books, pamphlets, maps, inscriptions and monuments.
I. Authorship.
– The author’s name in itself can provided for the test of
authenticity.
– In cases of anonymous writings when the exact name of the author
is not known then the office that holds the record should also be
taken into consideration.
II. Date and place of publication
– The date of the document including the time and place of
publication should be properly analyzed in order to establish its
authenticity.
– Modern day documents and publication have their date and place
of publication usually printed at the back of the title page.
B. Internal Criticism

– Positive criticism refers to understanding of both literal

and real meaning of words.
End…………