Cultural influences during pre spanish period

This site contains quotes, articles, ebooks, and other related documents on Philippine historical studies. In ancient times the inhabitants of the Philippines were a diverse agglomeration of peoples who arrived in various waves of immigration from the Asian mainland and who maintained little contact with each other.

Early people of what is now the Philippines were skilled agriculturists. In addition, there were also large quantities of cotton and colored clothes, wax, honey, and date palms produced by the native peoples. In the Visayas —according to another early report—rice, cotton, swine, fowl, wax and honey were plentiful.

Leyte was said to produce two rice crops a year, and the historian Pedro Chirino commented on the great rice and cotton harvests that were sufficient to feed and clothe the people. Duck husbandry was also practiced by the natives, particularly those around Pateros and Taguig City.

The practice resembled the Chinese methods of artificial incubation of eggs and the knowledge of every phase of a duck's life. This is still practiced today. Filipino martial arts Metal casting, artillery, and other metal works have been traditions throughout the ancient Philippines.

The smith, or panday piray, of Pampanga was skilled at making weapons, and many individuals with the surnames Viray and Piray are said to be descendants of members of the guild of smiths, who followed the tradition of the panday pira.

Larger cannons, on the other hand, were made of iron and, resembling culverinsprovided heavier firepower. The iron cannon at Rajah Sulaiman III 's house was about 17 feet long, and it was made from clay and wax molds.

Among these native guns was the lantakaor swivel gun, which allowed the gunner to quickly track a moving target. For instance, one weapon was the prototype of the modern-day yo-yoreturning to its owner after being flung at an opponent.

Swords were also part of the native weaponry. Making of swords involved elaborate rituals that were based mainly on the auspicious conjunctions of planets.

The passage of the sword from the maker entailed a ceremony that was coupled with spiritual beliefs of the makers. The Moros, in particular, had armor that covered the entire body from the top of the head to the toes. The Igorots built forts made of stone walls that averaged several meters in width and about two to three times the width in height around BC.

Ancient Philippine scripts and Enrique of Malacca Prehistoric people devised and used their own system of writings from BC, which derived from the Brahmic family of scripts of Ancient India. Baybayin became the most widespread of these derived scripts by the 11th century.

Early chroniclers, who came during the first Spanish expeditions to the islands noted the proficiency of some of the natives, especially the chieftain and local kings, in SanskritOld JavaneseOld Malayand several other languages.

Caption cropped out read: One of those in which the Astor Battery landed sank in the surf just before reaching shore.

Philippine History Source Materials: Pre-Spanish Period

The natives carried the men ashore on their shoulders. The lower boat is a fisherman's craft used by the Negritos, who shoot fish in the clear water with bows and arrows. Some of them used compasses similar to those used among maritime communities of Borneo and traders of Chinaalthough most had no need for such devices.

In modern times, some fishermen and traders in the VisayasMindanaoSulu and Palawan are still able to navigate long distances over open water without the use of modern navigational instruments.

Some of the larger rowed vessels held up to a hundred rowers on each side besides a contingent of armed troops. Despite their large size, these ships had double outriggers.

Some of the larger sailing ships, however, did not have outriggers. Communities of the ancient Philippines were active in international trade, and they used the ocean as natural highways. The uncanny resemblance of complex body tattoos among the Visayans and those of Borneo also suggest some connection between Borneo and ancient Philippines.

While Magellan's crew were with the king, a representative from Siam was paying tribute to the king. The natives made use of the salambao, which is a type of raft that utilizes a large fishing net which is lowered into the water via a type of lever made of two criss-crossed poles.

Night fishing was accomplished with the help of candles made from a particular type of resin similar to the copal of Mexico. Use of safe pens for incubation and protection of small fry from predators was also observed, a method that interested the Spaniards at that time.

The early Filipinos worked in various mines containing goldsilvercopper and iron. Jewels, gold ingots, chains, calombigas and earrings were handed down from their ancestors and passed from generation to generation.The Philippines takes its name from Philip II, who was king of Spain during the Spanish colonization of the islands in the 16th century.

Because it was under Spanish rule for years and under U.S. tutelage for a further 48 years, the Philippines has many cultural affinities with the West. During the Spanish colonial period, Intramuros was considered Manila itself. PACO PARK Paco Park was once a cemetery during the Spanish period and was constructed in the late 18th century and was used to inter victims of the cholera epidemic which ravaged Manila in Spanish settlement in the Philippines first took place in the s, during the Spanish colonial period of the islands.

The conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi founded the first Spanish settlement in Cebu in , and later established Manila as the capital of the Spanish East Indies in Spanish settlement in the Philippines first took place in the s, during the Spanish colonial period of the islands.

The conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi founded the first Spanish settlement in Cebu in , and later established Manila as the capital of the Spanish East Indies in PRE-SPANISH AND SPANISH PERIOD BY: riddles and proverbs which we still enjoy today and which serve to show to generations the true culture of our people.

Pre-Spanish Literature is characterized by: A. LEGENDS. B. FOLK TALES. C. THE EPIC AGE. D. FOLK SONGS. E.

Epigrams SPANISH INFLUENCES ON PHILIPPINE LITERATURE 1. The first Filipino. Philippine Dance in the Spanish Period. Posted on April 14, Many of these dances would have been obscured with the influx of American influence at the turn of the Century.

But with the pioneering research of Francisca Reyes Aquino and her followers, may of these dances were revived and documented. Culture and Arts Events. Like .