Readings in Philippine History

Handout #1

TOPIC: Definition of History, Issues, and Methodology

Learning objectives:

 Understand the meaning of history as an academic discipline and to be familiar with the
underlying philosophy and methodology of the discipline, and
 Appreciate the importance of history in the social and national life of the Philippines.

Definition of History

 HISTORY has always been known as the study of the past.

 It was derived from the Greek word “historia” which means “knowledge acquired
through inquiry or investigation”. Historia was adapted to classical Latin and became
known as the account of the past of a person or of a group of people through written
documents and historical evidences.

Thus, it became the historian’s task/ duty to:

1. Write a about the lives of important individuals like monarchs, heroes, saints and nobilities

2. History also focused on writing wars, revolutions and other important breakthroughs

3. Traditional historians lived with the mantra of “no document no history” until the early parts
of 20th century.

History from Below or History of the People - is a type of historical narrative which attempts to
account for historical events from the perspective of common people rather than leaders.

Great Man Theory – refers to an idea dating back to the nineteenth century that history and
everything that happened in the world can be explained by identifying the impact that great
men or heroes have had.

Positivism is the school of thought that emerged between the 18th and 19th century. This thought
requires empirical and observable evidence before one can claim that a particular knowledge is
true. In the discipline of history, the mantra “No Document, No History”, therefore requires the
historians to show written primary documents in order to write a particular historical narrative.
Issues or problems with the written documents:

1. Giving premium to written documents essentially invalidates the history of other civilizations
that do not keep written records.

2. Restricting historical evidence as exclusively written is also discrimination against other

social classes who were not recorded in paper.

3. Does the absence of written documents about them mean that they were people of no
history or past?

4. The history is always written by victors. This connotes that the narrative of the past is always
written from the bias of the powerful and the more dominant player.

However,

History has progressed and opened up to the possibility of valid historical sources like oral
traditions in the form of epics and songs, artifacts, architecture and others.

POSTCOLONIALISM is a school of thought that emerged in the early 20th century when formerly
colonized nations grappled with the idea of creating their identities and understanding their
societies against the shadows of their colonial past.

Postcolonial history looks at 2 things in writing history:

1. To tell the history of their nation that will highlight their identity free from that colonial
discourse and knowledge

2. To criticize the methods, effects, and idea of colonialism

The Methodology

 The difference between History and Historiography

History’s object of study is the past, the events that happened in the past and the causes of such
events.

Historiography – is the history of history. The object of study is history itself (i.e. How was a
historical text was written? Who wrote it? What was the context of its publication? What
particular method was employed? What were the sources used?).
Roles of History

1. States use history to unite a nation

2. Can be used as a tool to legitimate regimes and forge a sense of collective identity through
collective memory of the past
3. Lessons from the past can be used to make sense of the present. Therefore, history can be
used as a basis to predict the results of a contemplated response to a problem
4. Great past can inspire people to keep their good practices to move forward, thus history is
inspirational.
5. History gives a group of people a sense of national identity

Assignment #1

Write a reflection paper about the topic “History Develops One’s Nationalism”. Write it on a
yellow paper and it must be handwritten. Write legibly.

References

Candelaria, J. L. & Alporha, V. C. (2018). Readings in Philippine History. Published by Rex Book Store.
First edition
Standler, Ronald (2013). What is history and Why History is Important? Retrieved from
www.rbso.com/wh.pdf

Property of Myrsel D. Laluna

Instructor- Bulacan State University Sarmiento Campus