Comparison
Content
Comparison between Pre-Colonial and Spanish Period in the Philippines
Categories Pre-Colonial
Barangay-well-organized independent village which functioned much like a city-state was the dominant organizational pattern among indigenous communities in the Philippine archipelago. The name barangay originated from balangay, a Malay word meaning "sailboat". Historically, a barangay is a relatively small community of around 50 to 100 families. Most villages have only thirty to one hundred houses and the population varies from one hundred to five hundred persons. A datu is the chief leader of the barangay. He is the resposible for making his barangay peaceful and to keep it safe. He also makes laws that a umalokohan annouced throughout the barangay.
Spanish Period
1. Political System-The Spanish quickly organized their new colony according to their model. The first task was the reduction, or relocation of native inhabitants into settlements. The earliest political system used during the conquista period was the encomienda system, which resembled the political system known as Feudalism in Medieval Europe. The conquistadores, friars and native nobles were granted estates, in exchange for their services to the King, and was given the privilege to collect tribute from its inhabitants. In return, the person granted the encomienda, known as an encomendero, was tasked to provide military protection to the inhabitants, justice and governance. In times of war, the encomendero was duty bound to provide soldiers for the King, in particular, for the complete defense of the colony from invaders such as the Dutch, British and Chinese. The encomienda system was abused by encomenderos and by 1700 was largely replaced by administrative provinces, each headed by an alcalde mayor (provincial governor)[10] The most prominent feature of Spanish cities was the plaza, a central area for town activities such as the fiesta, and where government buildings, the church, a market area and other infrastructures were located. Residential areas lay around the plaza. During the conquista, the first task of colonization was the reduction, or relocation of the indigenous population into settlements surrounding the plaza. As in Europe, the church always had control over the state
1. Government
affairs of the colony. The friars controlled the sentiments of the native population and was more powerful than the governorgeneral himself. Among the issues that resulted to the Philippine revolution of 1898 that ended Spanish rule was the abuse of power by the religious orders. 2. National Government-On the national level, the King of Spain, through his Council of the Indies (Consejo de Indias), governed through his sole representative in the Philippines: the GovernorGeneral (Gobernador y Capitán General). With the seat of power in Intramuros, Manila, the Governor-General was given several duties: he headed the Supreme Court (Real Audiencia), was Commander-inchief of the army and navy, and was the economic planner of the country. All known executive power of the local government stemmed from him and as viceregal patron, he had the right to supervise mission work and oversee ecclesiastical appointments. His yearly salary was P40,000. For obvious reasons, the Governor-General was usually a Peninsular (Spaniard born in Spain) to ensure loyalty of the colony to the crown. 3.Provincial Government On the provincial level, heading the pacified provinces (alcaldia), was the provincial governor (alcalde mayor). The unpacified military zones (corregidor), such as Mariveles and Mindoro, were headed by the corregidores. City governments (ayuntamientos), were also headed by an alcalde mayor. Alcalde mayors and corregidores exercised multiple prerogatives as judge, inspector of encomiendas, chief of police, tribute collector, capitan-general of the province and even vice-
regal patron. His annual salary ranged from P300 to P2000 before 1847 and P1500 to P1600 after it. But this can be augmented through the special privilege of "indulto de commercio" where all people were forced to do business with him. The alcalde mayor was usually an Insulares (Spaniard born in the Philippines). In the 19th century, the Peninsulares began to displace the Insulares which resulted in the political unrests of 1872, notably the execution of GOMBURZA, Novales Revolt and mutiny of the Cavite fort under La Madrid. 4.Municipal Government The pueblo or town is headed by the gobernadorcillo or little governor. Among his administrative duties were the preparation of the tribute list (padron), recruitment and distribution of men for draft labor, communal public work and military conscription (quinto), postal clerk and judge in minor civil suits. He intervened in all administrative cases pertaining to his town: lands, justice, finance and the municipal police. His annual salary, however, was only P24 but he was exempted from taxation. Any native or Chinese mestizo, 25 years old, literate in oral or written Spanish and has been a cabeza de barangay of 4 years can be a gobernadorcillo. Among those prominent is Emilio Aguinaldo, a Chinese Mestizo and who was the gobernadorcillo of Cavite El Viejo (now Kawit). Early officials of the pueblo were taken from the Maharlika class or nobles of pre-colonial society. Their names are survived by prominent families in contemporary Philippine society such as Tupas, Gatmaitan, Liwanag, Pangilinan, Panganiban and Agbayani to name a few.
5.Barrio Government Barrio government (village or district) rested on the barrio administrator (cabeza de barangay). He was responsible for peace and order and recruited men for communal public works. Cabezas should be literate in Spanish and have good moral character and property. Cabezas who served for 25 years were exempted from forced labor. In addition, this is where the sentiment heard as, "Mi Barrio", first came from. 6.The Residencia Visita and The
To check the abuse of power of royal officials, two ancient castilian institutions were brought to the Philippines. The Residencia, dating back to the 5th century and the Visita differed from the residencia in that it was conducted clandestinely by a visitadorgeneral sent from Spain and might occur anytime within the official¶s term, without any previous notice. Visitas may be specific or general. 7.Maura Law The legal foundation for municipal governments in the country was laid with the promulgation of the Maura Law on May 19, 1893. Named after its author, Don Antonio Maura, the Spanish Minister of Colonies at the time, the law reorganized town governments in the Philippines with the aim of making them more effective and autonomous. This law created the municipal organization that was later adopted, revised, and further strengthened by the American and Filipino governments that succeeded Spanish.
2. Social Status
Women became relegated to second position in society. Their place was considered to be in the home or in the church. After the colonization, the only education available to women was through the convent, and this was only open to upper class girls. Education largely consisted of domestic subjects such as embroidery, and teaching was the only career possible.
3. Economic System
Manila-Acapulco Trade
Galleon
The Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade was the main source of income for the colony during its early years. Service was inaugurated in 1565 and continued into the early 19th century. The Galleon trade brought silver from New Spain, which was used to purchase Asian goods such as silk from China, spices from the Moluccas, lacquerware from Japan and Philippine cotton textiles. These goods were then exported to New Spain and ultimately Europe by way of Manila. Thus, the Philippines earned its income through the trade of the Manila-Acapulco Galleon. The trade was very prosperous and attracted many merchants to Manila, specially Chinese. However, initially it neglected the development of the colony's local industries which affected the Indios since agriculture was their main source of income. In addition, the building and operation of galleons put too much burden on the colonists' annual polo y servicio. However, it resulted in cultural and commercial exchanges between Asia and the Americas that led to the introduction of new crops and animals to the Philippines
such as corn, potato, tomato, cotton and tobacco among others, that gave the colony its first real income. The trade lasted for over two hundred years, and ceased in 1815 just before the secession of American colonies from Spain. Royal Society of Friends of the Country José de Basco y Vargas, following a royal order to form a society of intellectuals who can produce new, useful ideas, formally established the Real Sociedad Economica de Amigos del Pais. Composed of leading men in business, industry and profession, the society was tasked to explore and exploit the island's natural bounties. The society led to the creation of Plan General Economico of Basco which implemented the monopolies on the areca nut, tobacco, spirited liquors and explosives. It offered local and foreign scholarships and training grants in agriculture and established an academy of design. It was also credited to the carabao ban of 1782, the formation of the silversmiths and gold beaters guild and the construction of the first papermill in the Philippines in 1825. It was introduced on 1780, vanished temporarily on 1787-1819, 1820±1822 and 1875-1822 and ceased to exist in the middle of the 1890s. Royal Company Philippines of the
On March 10, 1785, Charles III created the Royal Philippine Company with a 25 year charter.It was granted exclusive monopoly of bringing to Manila, Philippines; Chinese and Indian goods and shipping them directly to Spain via the Cape of Good Hope. It was stiffly objected by the Dutch and English who saw it as a direct
attack on their trade of Asian goods. It was also vehemently opposed by the traders of the Galleon trade who saw it as competition. This gradually resulted into the death of both institutions: The Royal Philippine Company in 1814 and the Galleon trade in 1815. Taxation To support the colony, several forms of taxes and monopolies were imposed. The buwis (tribute), which could be paid in cash or kind (tobacco, chickens, produce, gold, blankets, cotton, rice, etc., depending on the region of the country), was initially was fixed at 8 reales (one real being 8 centavos) and later increased to 15 reales, apportioned as follows: ten reales buwis, one real diezmos prediales (tithes), one real to the town community chest, one real sanctorum tax, and three reales for church support. Also collected was the bandalâ (from the Tagalog word mandalâ, a round stack of rice stalks to be threshed), an annual enforced sale and requisitioning of goods such as rice. Custom duties and income tax were also collected. By 1884, the tribute was replaced by the Cedula personal, wherein colonists were required to pay for personal identification. Everyone over the age of 18 was obliged to pay. Forced Labor servicios) (Polo y
The system of forced labor otherwise known as polo y servicios evolved within the framework of the encomienda system, introduced into the South American colonies by the Conquistadores and Catholic priests who accompanied them. Polo y servicios is the forced
labor for 40 days of men ranging from 16 to 60 years of age who were obligated to give personal services to community projects. One could be exempted from polo by paying the falla (corruption of the Spanish Falta, meaning "absence"), a daily fine of one and a half real. In 1884, labor was reduced to 15 days. The polo system was patterned after the Mexican repartimento, selection for forced labor.
4. Education
In pre-Spanish times, education was informal unstructured in some areas. Children were provided more vocational training and less academics (3 Rs) by their parents and in the houses of tribal tutors. When the Spanish arrived in Manila, though, they were surprised to find a population with a literacy rate using a system of writing known as baybayin which was higher than the literacy rate of Madrid. The most interesting peculiar of ancient
The Early Period During the early years of
Spanish colonization, education was mostly religion-oriented and controlled by the Roman
Catholic Church. Spanish friars and missionaries educated the natives through religion with the aim of converting indigenous
populations to the Catholic faith. King Philip II's Leyes de Indias (Laws of the Indies) mandated Spanish Philippines authorities to in the the
paleographic characteristic
Philippine scripts is its being traditionally written from bottom to top, with the succeeding lines following on the right. However, when theSpaniards attempted
educate
natives, to teach them how to read and write and to the
learn Spanish.
However,
to use the script in their desire to like spread Roman printing the and Catholicism, the Doctrina Tagalog script, the
latter objective was well-nigh impossible given the realities of the time.[2] The early friars
Cristiana in language
learned the local languages and the Baybayin script to better
direction of writing was changed and consequently the axis of the symbols also changed. These changes may be described in
communicate with the locals. Although by royal decree the friars were required to teach the
brief: "the direction of writing proceeded from left to right, with the succeeding lines written below the previous line; while the axis of the symbols was rotated to a ninety degree
Spanish
language
to
the
natives, they reasoned that it would be easier for them to learn the local languages first than trying to teach Spanish to all the population. The Spanish missionaries
position, in which the symbols for i and u in composition with any consonant became above and below, respectively. In the traditional position, the i and u were on the right and left,
established schools immediately on reaching wherever church together. Christian the they and islands and
penetrated, school was without went no its
There village
respectively, of the consonant with which they are composed." In general, there features are of two the
school and all young people attended. The Augustinians opened school arriving immediately in Cebú in a upon 1565.
observable
ancient Philippine scripts. These include: the curvi-linear character -
The Franciscans arrived in 1577, and they, too, immediately
Tagbanwa Tagalog script Iloko
taught the people how to read and write, besides imparting to them important industrial and agricultural techniques.
the lineo-angular trait Hanunó'o script
The Jesuits who arrived in 1581 also concentrated on teaching the young. When
The scripts found in the SamarLeyte area as reported by Alzina straddle the two categories-they show both lineo-angular and
the Dominicans arrived in 1587, they did the same thing in their first mission inBataan.[3] Within months of their arrival in Tigbauan which is located in the island of Panay, Pedro
curvi-linear features.
Chirino and Francisco Martín had
established a school for Visayan boys in 1593 in which they
taught not only the catechism but reading, writing, Spanish, and liturgical music.
The Spaniards of Arévalo heard of the school and wanted
Chirino to teach their boys too. Chirino at once and put up a
dormitory
school
house Spanish
(1593-1594)
for the
boys near his rectory. It was the first Jesuit boarding school to be established in the Philippines. Juan de Plasencia was one of those friars who wrote a
Spanish-to-Tagalog Christian Doctrine in 1593, from which Roman
transliterated
characters to Tagalog Baybayin characters. Eventually, the
Baybayin script was replaced by the Roman alphabet, providing in this way the indigenous
people with more leverage when dealing with the local Spanish colonial administrators. There were also Latin schools where that language was taught together since it with was some a Spanish,
mandatory
requirement for the study of philosophy, theology and
jurisprudence in schools like the University of Santo Tomás, run
by
the Dominicans.
The
Philippine priests and lawyers of that time, with the exception of the sons and daughters of
Spaniards, Principalías and Ladinos, well knew Latin perfectly the educational
because
system was wholly religious. The friars also medical and opened many
pharmaceutical
schools. The study of pharmacy consisted of a preparatory
course with subjects in natural history and general chemistry and five years of studies in subjects such as pharmaceutical operations at the school of
pharmacy. At the end of this period, the degree of Bachiller en Farmacia was granted. By the end of the 16th century, several religious orders had
established charity hospitals all over the archipelago and
provided the bulk of this public service. became These the hospitals setting also for
rudimentary scientific research work on pharmacy and
medicine, focusing mostly on the problems of infectious Spanish
diseases.
Several
missionaries cataloged hundreds of Philippine plants with
medicinal properties.
5. Religion
The pre-Hispanic belief system of Filipinos consisted of a pantheon of gods, spirits, creatures, and men that guarded the streams, fields, trees, mountains, forests, and houses. Bathala, who created earth and man, was superior to these other gods and spirits. Regular sacrifices and prayers were offered to placate these deities and spirits--some of which were benevolent, some malevolent. Wood and metal images represented ancestral spirits, and no distinction was made between the spirits and their physical symbol. Reward or punishment after death was dependent upon behavior in this life. Anyone who had reputed power over the supernatural and natural was automatically elevated to a position of prominence. Every village had its share of shamans and priests who competitively plied their talents and carried on ritual curing. Many gained renown for their ability to develop antinganting, a charm guaranteed to make a person invincible in the face of human enemies. Other sorcerers concocted love potions or produced amulets that made their owners invisible.
Catholicism was the main religion during this period. Church and state were inseparably linked in Spanish policy, with the state assuming responsibility for religious establishments. One of Spain's objectives in colonizing the Philippines was the conversion of Filipinos to Catholicism. The work of conversion was facilitated by the absence of other organized religions, except for Islam, which predominated in the south. The pageantry of the church had a wide plea, reinforced by the incorporation of Filipino social customs into religious observances. The eventual outcome was a new Christian majority of the main Malay lowland population, from which the Muslims of Mindanao and the upland tribal peoples of Luzon remained detached and separated. They introduced doctrina Christiana which based on tagalog language with baybayin scripts.
Categories Pre-Colonial
Barangay-well-organized independent village which functioned much like a city-state was the dominant organizational pattern among indigenous communities in the Philippine archipelago. The name barangay originated from balangay, a Malay word meaning "sailboat". Historically, a barangay is a relatively small community of around 50 to 100 families. Most villages have only thirty to one hundred houses and the population varies from one hundred to five hundred persons. A datu is the chief leader of the barangay. He is the resposible for making his barangay peaceful and to keep it safe. He also makes laws that a umalokohan annouced throughout the barangay.
Spanish Period
1. Political System-The Spanish quickly organized their new colony according to their model. The first task was the reduction, or relocation of native inhabitants into settlements. The earliest political system used during the conquista period was the encomienda system, which resembled the political system known as Feudalism in Medieval Europe. The conquistadores, friars and native nobles were granted estates, in exchange for their services to the King, and was given the privilege to collect tribute from its inhabitants. In return, the person granted the encomienda, known as an encomendero, was tasked to provide military protection to the inhabitants, justice and governance. In times of war, the encomendero was duty bound to provide soldiers for the King, in particular, for the complete defense of the colony from invaders such as the Dutch, British and Chinese. The encomienda system was abused by encomenderos and by 1700 was largely replaced by administrative provinces, each headed by an alcalde mayor (provincial governor)[10] The most prominent feature of Spanish cities was the plaza, a central area for town activities such as the fiesta, and where government buildings, the church, a market area and other infrastructures were located. Residential areas lay around the plaza. During the conquista, the first task of colonization was the reduction, or relocation of the indigenous population into settlements surrounding the plaza. As in Europe, the church always had control over the state
1. Government
affairs of the colony. The friars controlled the sentiments of the native population and was more powerful than the governorgeneral himself. Among the issues that resulted to the Philippine revolution of 1898 that ended Spanish rule was the abuse of power by the religious orders. 2. National Government-On the national level, the King of Spain, through his Council of the Indies (Consejo de Indias), governed through his sole representative in the Philippines: the GovernorGeneral (Gobernador y Capitán General). With the seat of power in Intramuros, Manila, the Governor-General was given several duties: he headed the Supreme Court (Real Audiencia), was Commander-inchief of the army and navy, and was the economic planner of the country. All known executive power of the local government stemmed from him and as viceregal patron, he had the right to supervise mission work and oversee ecclesiastical appointments. His yearly salary was P40,000. For obvious reasons, the Governor-General was usually a Peninsular (Spaniard born in Spain) to ensure loyalty of the colony to the crown. 3.Provincial Government On the provincial level, heading the pacified provinces (alcaldia), was the provincial governor (alcalde mayor). The unpacified military zones (corregidor), such as Mariveles and Mindoro, were headed by the corregidores. City governments (ayuntamientos), were also headed by an alcalde mayor. Alcalde mayors and corregidores exercised multiple prerogatives as judge, inspector of encomiendas, chief of police, tribute collector, capitan-general of the province and even vice-
regal patron. His annual salary ranged from P300 to P2000 before 1847 and P1500 to P1600 after it. But this can be augmented through the special privilege of "indulto de commercio" where all people were forced to do business with him. The alcalde mayor was usually an Insulares (Spaniard born in the Philippines). In the 19th century, the Peninsulares began to displace the Insulares which resulted in the political unrests of 1872, notably the execution of GOMBURZA, Novales Revolt and mutiny of the Cavite fort under La Madrid. 4.Municipal Government The pueblo or town is headed by the gobernadorcillo or little governor. Among his administrative duties were the preparation of the tribute list (padron), recruitment and distribution of men for draft labor, communal public work and military conscription (quinto), postal clerk and judge in minor civil suits. He intervened in all administrative cases pertaining to his town: lands, justice, finance and the municipal police. His annual salary, however, was only P24 but he was exempted from taxation. Any native or Chinese mestizo, 25 years old, literate in oral or written Spanish and has been a cabeza de barangay of 4 years can be a gobernadorcillo. Among those prominent is Emilio Aguinaldo, a Chinese Mestizo and who was the gobernadorcillo of Cavite El Viejo (now Kawit). Early officials of the pueblo were taken from the Maharlika class or nobles of pre-colonial society. Their names are survived by prominent families in contemporary Philippine society such as Tupas, Gatmaitan, Liwanag, Pangilinan, Panganiban and Agbayani to name a few.
5.Barrio Government Barrio government (village or district) rested on the barrio administrator (cabeza de barangay). He was responsible for peace and order and recruited men for communal public works. Cabezas should be literate in Spanish and have good moral character and property. Cabezas who served for 25 years were exempted from forced labor. In addition, this is where the sentiment heard as, "Mi Barrio", first came from. 6.The Residencia Visita and The
To check the abuse of power of royal officials, two ancient castilian institutions were brought to the Philippines. The Residencia, dating back to the 5th century and the Visita differed from the residencia in that it was conducted clandestinely by a visitadorgeneral sent from Spain and might occur anytime within the official¶s term, without any previous notice. Visitas may be specific or general. 7.Maura Law The legal foundation for municipal governments in the country was laid with the promulgation of the Maura Law on May 19, 1893. Named after its author, Don Antonio Maura, the Spanish Minister of Colonies at the time, the law reorganized town governments in the Philippines with the aim of making them more effective and autonomous. This law created the municipal organization that was later adopted, revised, and further strengthened by the American and Filipino governments that succeeded Spanish.
2. Social Status
Women became relegated to second position in society. Their place was considered to be in the home or in the church. After the colonization, the only education available to women was through the convent, and this was only open to upper class girls. Education largely consisted of domestic subjects such as embroidery, and teaching was the only career possible.
3. Economic System
Manila-Acapulco Trade
Galleon
The Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade was the main source of income for the colony during its early years. Service was inaugurated in 1565 and continued into the early 19th century. The Galleon trade brought silver from New Spain, which was used to purchase Asian goods such as silk from China, spices from the Moluccas, lacquerware from Japan and Philippine cotton textiles. These goods were then exported to New Spain and ultimately Europe by way of Manila. Thus, the Philippines earned its income through the trade of the Manila-Acapulco Galleon. The trade was very prosperous and attracted many merchants to Manila, specially Chinese. However, initially it neglected the development of the colony's local industries which affected the Indios since agriculture was their main source of income. In addition, the building and operation of galleons put too much burden on the colonists' annual polo y servicio. However, it resulted in cultural and commercial exchanges between Asia and the Americas that led to the introduction of new crops and animals to the Philippines
such as corn, potato, tomato, cotton and tobacco among others, that gave the colony its first real income. The trade lasted for over two hundred years, and ceased in 1815 just before the secession of American colonies from Spain. Royal Society of Friends of the Country José de Basco y Vargas, following a royal order to form a society of intellectuals who can produce new, useful ideas, formally established the Real Sociedad Economica de Amigos del Pais. Composed of leading men in business, industry and profession, the society was tasked to explore and exploit the island's natural bounties. The society led to the creation of Plan General Economico of Basco which implemented the monopolies on the areca nut, tobacco, spirited liquors and explosives. It offered local and foreign scholarships and training grants in agriculture and established an academy of design. It was also credited to the carabao ban of 1782, the formation of the silversmiths and gold beaters guild and the construction of the first papermill in the Philippines in 1825. It was introduced on 1780, vanished temporarily on 1787-1819, 1820±1822 and 1875-1822 and ceased to exist in the middle of the 1890s. Royal Company Philippines of the
On March 10, 1785, Charles III created the Royal Philippine Company with a 25 year charter.It was granted exclusive monopoly of bringing to Manila, Philippines; Chinese and Indian goods and shipping them directly to Spain via the Cape of Good Hope. It was stiffly objected by the Dutch and English who saw it as a direct
attack on their trade of Asian goods. It was also vehemently opposed by the traders of the Galleon trade who saw it as competition. This gradually resulted into the death of both institutions: The Royal Philippine Company in 1814 and the Galleon trade in 1815. Taxation To support the colony, several forms of taxes and monopolies were imposed. The buwis (tribute), which could be paid in cash or kind (tobacco, chickens, produce, gold, blankets, cotton, rice, etc., depending on the region of the country), was initially was fixed at 8 reales (one real being 8 centavos) and later increased to 15 reales, apportioned as follows: ten reales buwis, one real diezmos prediales (tithes), one real to the town community chest, one real sanctorum tax, and three reales for church support. Also collected was the bandalâ (from the Tagalog word mandalâ, a round stack of rice stalks to be threshed), an annual enforced sale and requisitioning of goods such as rice. Custom duties and income tax were also collected. By 1884, the tribute was replaced by the Cedula personal, wherein colonists were required to pay for personal identification. Everyone over the age of 18 was obliged to pay. Forced Labor servicios) (Polo y
The system of forced labor otherwise known as polo y servicios evolved within the framework of the encomienda system, introduced into the South American colonies by the Conquistadores and Catholic priests who accompanied them. Polo y servicios is the forced
labor for 40 days of men ranging from 16 to 60 years of age who were obligated to give personal services to community projects. One could be exempted from polo by paying the falla (corruption of the Spanish Falta, meaning "absence"), a daily fine of one and a half real. In 1884, labor was reduced to 15 days. The polo system was patterned after the Mexican repartimento, selection for forced labor.
4. Education
In pre-Spanish times, education was informal unstructured in some areas. Children were provided more vocational training and less academics (3 Rs) by their parents and in the houses of tribal tutors. When the Spanish arrived in Manila, though, they were surprised to find a population with a literacy rate using a system of writing known as baybayin which was higher than the literacy rate of Madrid. The most interesting peculiar of ancient
The Early Period During the early years of
Spanish colonization, education was mostly religion-oriented and controlled by the Roman
Catholic Church. Spanish friars and missionaries educated the natives through religion with the aim of converting indigenous
populations to the Catholic faith. King Philip II's Leyes de Indias (Laws of the Indies) mandated Spanish Philippines authorities to in the the
paleographic characteristic
Philippine scripts is its being traditionally written from bottom to top, with the succeeding lines following on the right. However, when theSpaniards attempted
educate
natives, to teach them how to read and write and to the
learn Spanish.
However,
to use the script in their desire to like spread Roman printing the and Catholicism, the Doctrina Tagalog script, the
latter objective was well-nigh impossible given the realities of the time.[2] The early friars
Cristiana in language
learned the local languages and the Baybayin script to better
direction of writing was changed and consequently the axis of the symbols also changed. These changes may be described in
communicate with the locals. Although by royal decree the friars were required to teach the
brief: "the direction of writing proceeded from left to right, with the succeeding lines written below the previous line; while the axis of the symbols was rotated to a ninety degree
Spanish
language
to
the
natives, they reasoned that it would be easier for them to learn the local languages first than trying to teach Spanish to all the population. The Spanish missionaries
position, in which the symbols for i and u in composition with any consonant became above and below, respectively. In the traditional position, the i and u were on the right and left,
established schools immediately on reaching wherever church together. Christian the they and islands and
penetrated, school was without went no its
There village
respectively, of the consonant with which they are composed." In general, there features are of two the
school and all young people attended. The Augustinians opened school arriving immediately in Cebú in a upon 1565.
observable
ancient Philippine scripts. These include: the curvi-linear character -
The Franciscans arrived in 1577, and they, too, immediately
Tagbanwa Tagalog script Iloko
taught the people how to read and write, besides imparting to them important industrial and agricultural techniques.
the lineo-angular trait Hanunó'o script
The Jesuits who arrived in 1581 also concentrated on teaching the young. When
The scripts found in the SamarLeyte area as reported by Alzina straddle the two categories-they show both lineo-angular and
the Dominicans arrived in 1587, they did the same thing in their first mission inBataan.[3] Within months of their arrival in Tigbauan which is located in the island of Panay, Pedro
curvi-linear features.
Chirino and Francisco Martín had
established a school for Visayan boys in 1593 in which they
taught not only the catechism but reading, writing, Spanish, and liturgical music.
The Spaniards of Arévalo heard of the school and wanted
Chirino to teach their boys too. Chirino at once and put up a
dormitory
school
house Spanish
(1593-1594)
for the
boys near his rectory. It was the first Jesuit boarding school to be established in the Philippines. Juan de Plasencia was one of those friars who wrote a
Spanish-to-Tagalog Christian Doctrine in 1593, from which Roman
transliterated
characters to Tagalog Baybayin characters. Eventually, the
Baybayin script was replaced by the Roman alphabet, providing in this way the indigenous
people with more leverage when dealing with the local Spanish colonial administrators. There were also Latin schools where that language was taught together since it with was some a Spanish,
mandatory
requirement for the study of philosophy, theology and
jurisprudence in schools like the University of Santo Tomás, run
by
the Dominicans.
The
Philippine priests and lawyers of that time, with the exception of the sons and daughters of
Spaniards, Principalías and Ladinos, well knew Latin perfectly the educational
because
system was wholly religious. The friars also medical and opened many
pharmaceutical
schools. The study of pharmacy consisted of a preparatory
course with subjects in natural history and general chemistry and five years of studies in subjects such as pharmaceutical operations at the school of
pharmacy. At the end of this period, the degree of Bachiller en Farmacia was granted. By the end of the 16th century, several religious orders had
established charity hospitals all over the archipelago and
provided the bulk of this public service. became These the hospitals setting also for
rudimentary scientific research work on pharmacy and
medicine, focusing mostly on the problems of infectious Spanish
diseases.
Several
missionaries cataloged hundreds of Philippine plants with
medicinal properties.
5. Religion
The pre-Hispanic belief system of Filipinos consisted of a pantheon of gods, spirits, creatures, and men that guarded the streams, fields, trees, mountains, forests, and houses. Bathala, who created earth and man, was superior to these other gods and spirits. Regular sacrifices and prayers were offered to placate these deities and spirits--some of which were benevolent, some malevolent. Wood and metal images represented ancestral spirits, and no distinction was made between the spirits and their physical symbol. Reward or punishment after death was dependent upon behavior in this life. Anyone who had reputed power over the supernatural and natural was automatically elevated to a position of prominence. Every village had its share of shamans and priests who competitively plied their talents and carried on ritual curing. Many gained renown for their ability to develop antinganting, a charm guaranteed to make a person invincible in the face of human enemies. Other sorcerers concocted love potions or produced amulets that made their owners invisible.
Catholicism was the main religion during this period. Church and state were inseparably linked in Spanish policy, with the state assuming responsibility for religious establishments. One of Spain's objectives in colonizing the Philippines was the conversion of Filipinos to Catholicism. The work of conversion was facilitated by the absence of other organized religions, except for Islam, which predominated in the south. The pageantry of the church had a wide plea, reinforced by the incorporation of Filipino social customs into religious observances. The eventual outcome was a new Christian majority of the main Malay lowland population, from which the Muslims of Mindanao and the upland tribal peoples of Luzon remained detached and separated. They introduced doctrina Christiana which based on tagalog language with baybayin scripts.
