Philippine History
One of my favourite subjects already in elementary (and later in high school and college) has always been HISTORY (besides GEOGRAPHY and - later Mass Comm). Before my several journeys to many different countries I always tried to learn more about the nation, its people - and its history.
Being back from South Africa in 1980 I really got surprised to find more then 50 letters of different Filipinas, who answered one of my advertisements in a national Philippine daily looking for a penpal. This was the time I started also being interested in Philippine history. And, of course, it’s more then interesting:
Named after Philip II of Spain, the Philippines is a beautiful country and has been called “Pearl of Orient”. No wonder, if more and more people plan to come here - as tourist, as business people, or - permanently for good. With a fertile soil, healthy climate, and rich natural resources and fishing grounds, it is poised on the brink of of an agra-business and aquaculture revolution. It has the world’s longest discontinuous coastline of about 34,000 km. Can you imagine this?
The Filipinos are a racial mixture due to their reception of different cultures in their history. Intermarriages have been - and, are still common. the majority of the people have mixed blood. Aboriginal tribes populate the mountain interiors. Most Filipinos belong to the Malay race, with a twany complexion, black hair and black eyes.
The Philippines is indeed a unique nation with four cultural heritages - Asian, European, Mexican, and American. No other nation in the world can claim to have such a varied experience with all four cultures. Thus, it is not unusual for Filipinos to look Oriental, have a Spanish sounded name, speak English with an American accent, and have a Latin temperament.
Philippine history is more then interesting: the Early history (back to the 13th century), the Spanish colonization, the three centuries of Spanish rule (1565-1898), the Filipino nationalism, Philippine revolution and War of Independence (1896-1901) up to the “Third Republic” (1946-1972). Knowledge of Philippine History, to my opinion, is a must, for every one, who plan to stay here. Such knowledge eases the first problems of adjustments while staying here for good.
Or, what do you think?
Postscriptum: No wonder, that “I didn’t leave my heart in San Francisco” (even having in-laws there!) - but IN DAVAO CITY/PHILIPPINES.
Hi Klaus. Indeed.
Your advice is not only true to people who wants to come the Philipiines but to Filipinos themselves. Most Filipinos’ sense of history is: Magellan discovered the Philippines. The Philippines was under Spain for more than 300 years. Rizal died in 1896 and the Americans came and liberated the Philippines from the tyrranical Spaniards.
In fact, I wish there is more knowledge available to what happened to the 300+ years under Spain. Aside from Christianization, there should be other good things that the Spaniards did to the Philippines.
Food for instance: Most Filipinos think that lechon, maruya (banana cue), binake, kinilaw, sikwati etc are authentic Filipino cuisine….in fact they are truly Spanish in origin.
It’s unfortunate that most records in the municipio are either lost as toilet paper or burned. Those that made it are real treasures.
One of these days if time permits it will be something to visit the Bibleoteca Nacional de Espana (Madrid) and see if some manuscripts and papers of the Philippines made it. First, I have to brush up my Espanol.
Klaus, your work in presenting Philippine History in blogs like this is a treasure by itself. Keep up the good work.
Cheers.
Thanks Klaus. I, myself am a student of Philipine history, with so much more to learn.
Thanks!
Hi Dr. Sponk Long, thanks for leaving your very interesting thoughts- and, of course, thanks for your kind words… . Good luck for your visit in Spain… . I am sure, you will find very many important and interesting stuff… TAKE CARE!
Hi Ed Griffin, that’s great. Good luck to you… I am sure you enjoy it.
Klaus
I enjoyed your post. I also have a long time interest in history , which I guess would be natural since I have been teaching history here in the U.S for close to 40 years. One of my primary historical interests is thee American period in Philippine history. (1898-1946). I realize the U.S still plays a role but I mean when they played the major role. I think that the main ethnic, national forces in Philippine history have been Malasian, Chinese, Spanish( I agree with Dr. Long that the Spanish contributions are more complicated than the usual treatment) and American.
Let me give an opinion and hope for some feedback. I think that the most inportant Spaniard in Philippine history was Legaspi, the most important American was William Howard Taft and the most important Malasian(Filipino) was Manuel Quezon. I’ll be happy to explain why I reached those conclusions if anyone is interested. I would certainly be interested in any comments from you Klaus or any of your readers on my opinions
Thanks again . Klaus, I hope to meet you, Bob , Dr. Long and other readers when my Asawa and I retire to Baybay Leyte next year.
Hi Richard, thanks a lot for your really interesting comment. No wonder you are so much interested also in Philippine history. Wow, almost 40 years. Amazing… - Regarding Legaspi, Taft and Quezon I would strongly agree with you, although it would be interesting to read your explanation. Personally I would also to add the Philippine National Hero Dr. Jose Rizal.
Not only because of being a big part of the Philippine-German relations… .
Hi Richard. I tried to borrow an old biography book on William Howard Taft. It was a two volume work. Unfortunately, the local public library only had the second volume. The first volume is where the years about the Philippines was. I will still try to look for that volume.
I agree that William Howard Taft indeed made a lot of difference for the Philippines. It was in his time that he made steps to prepare the Philippines for self-rule. If I remember right it was him who sent U.S. teachers, civil servants, bureacrats, goverment technicians, etc to train Filipinos. Schools were set up all over the archipelago.
One of these schools was a trade school. Kids were taught the three R’s. They were taught agriculture, animal husbandry and elementary civil engineering (Architecture, etc.). At the 12th grade they graduated and became teachers themeslves and then sent all over the country. That school was Baybay Preparatory School. It subsequently became a college- Baybay Agricultural College (BAC). Then it became Visayas College of Agriculture (VISCA). Then, Leyte State University (LSU). Now, it’s Visayas State University (VSU).
Indeed the 27th President of the U.S. and the 10th Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court William Howard Taft was a big benefactor of the Philippines.
Good luck on your move to Baybay—one of the best places to live in the Philippines….and enjoy the spectacular Baybay sunset.
Hi Dr. Sponk Long, thanks for your very interesting comment…
Richard, indeed Baybay is a wonderful place. Good luck to you and your asawa. I am sure it would be a unforgettable event, if we all could meet one day… Stay safe…
Hi Klaus,
I believe that in order for one to really understand a people, one must try to understand their history. While it is true you don’t need to be defined solely by your history, it does shed light onto why you or a people are where you are today. For this reason I really applaud the work of people involved in historic preservation efforts here in the Philippines and elsewhere. Preserving the past provides us all with tangible reminders of where we came from as a nation, now in the present, and into the future. I especially like reading the columns of Augusto Villalon in the Philippine Dily Inquirer.
Cheers!
Klaus,
Thanks for your answer to my post. I chose William Howard Taft as the greatest American in Philippine history because he was selected by President William McKinley to be the first governor general of the Philippines and he and Mckinley agreed that American policy would be “the Philippines for the Filipinos” meaning that the purpose of American governance would be to improve the lives of the average filipino and move the Philippines toward independence. Other Americans who might be considered ,in my opinion, would be Dean Worchester, Cameron Forbes and Douglas MacArthur. I agree with you that Dr. Rizal was probably the ” greatest” Filipino, but the reason I chose Quezon as the “most important” Filipino was because he became the leading Filipino politician from 1898 on, formed the Nationalist Party, and persuaded the Filipino people to choose independence over continued commonwealth status with the United States like PueroRico still has to this day.
Dr. Spock, thanks for your information about the history of Visca , now VSU. I was not aware of that. Yes I will look forward to those Baybay sunsets. Thanks to all who read this long post. didn’tmean to turn this into a history lecture Guess I just can’t help myself. LOL!
Hi Martin, I strongly agree with you. Some important glimpses of one’s history will do. Btw, I also enjoy reading Villalon’s columns in PDI. Unfortunately I don’t take enough time to do so. Anyway, thanks for stopping by… cheers!!!
Hi Richard, I like tot hank you again for this additional comment. I am pretty sure, that this is a very welcome addition to your first comment. Sure, I also agree with you, that Dr. Rizal was the ‘greatest’ and Quezon the ‘most important’ Filipino. Thanks for your historical lecture… take care…
Hello,
Just a comment specifically from S. Long’s comment. The US did not liberate the Phil from Spain… they took over the Phil after the Treaty of Paris, the Katipuneros continued their struggle toward independence and over a million Filipinos got killed during the Philippine-American War.
Hi Gerry, thanks for your comment and your interesting explanation. I should confess, that I have several publications in my personal library about Philippine history. And? I found indeed YOUR and Dr. Long’s formulation. Maybe we all need further explanations… Anyway Gerry, THANKS A LOT for stopping by… .