ARCH 327

HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE 4
ARCHITECTURE IN THE PHILIPPINES

The history and culture of the Philippines are reflected in its architectural heritage, in the dwellings of its
various people, in churches and mosques, and in the buildings that have risen in response to demands of
progress and the aspirations of people.

Architecture in the Philippines today is the result of a natural growth enriched with the absorption of
varied influences. It developed from the pre-colonial influences of our neighbouring Malay brothers,
continuing on the Spanish colonial period, the American Commonwealth period, and the modern
contemporary times. As a result, the Philippines has become an architectural melting pot – uniquely
Filipino with a tinge of the occidental.

EARLY PERIOD or Pre-Spanish

ARCHITECTURE
900 AD

EARLY PERIODS

• The indigenous tribes of the Philippines that were quite a diverse group and of nomadic nature had
little art of building to speak of.

• Their architectural art was revealed in their houses of nipa, cogon and bamboo.

• Suitable to the tropical conditions of the islands.

• During this period, Filipinos established their villages near bodies of water where mostly food were
taken from the sea, also from agricultural environment.

• In both environment houses were not built permanently & therefore light & flexible materials were
used.

• 25,000 B.C. Ancient Negroid people immigrate to the Philippines over a land bridge then still
connecting the archipelago with the Asian mainland.

• They are food gatherers and hunters, and the forefathers of today's Negritos. These people use
bows and arrows and stone made implements. They live in caves.

Fig 1. The Negritos

CAVE DWELLINGS

• Cave dwellings are the earliest form of human habitation.

- The Tabon Cave, Palawan had been inhabited for 30,000 years

- The Tabon cave was the site to first establish the presence of humans in the Philippines during the
Pleistocene.

- Tabon cave are a set of caves in Quezon, Palawan, Philippines. They are famous for the found skullcap
remains of the Tabon Man, which are 22,000 years old. Bones of elephants have also been found in the
area signifying that the Philippines was once connected to mainland Asia.

Fig 2. The Tabon Cave

Fig 3. The Angono Petroglyphs

- Caves in Angono, Rizal with ancient

petroglyphs

- the earliest known Philippine Mural

LEAN-TO

• However, earliest type of shelter which

man built is called Lean-To, consisted of a
simple, single pitched roof resting on an
inclined series of rafters made- up of tree
branches w/ the end resting of the ground
& the other end resting horizontal wooden
lintel supported by tree trunks and roofed
with grass.

• The floor can be ground itself or bed of leaves or a

platform slightly above the ground.

•it is light enough to be carried to another site, or

the dweller can simply abandon it and build another.

• a pair of lean-tos can be joined together to form a

tentlike shelter or double slope roof, which in effect
is the beginning of a house.

Fig 4. Lean-To Houses

TREE HOUSES

• Perched on forked branches of trees, up to

60 feet above the ground

• Prevent attack by animals and human

enemies

Fig 5. Early Tree Houses

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PRE-COLONIAL ARCHITECTURE
Before 1521

BAHAY KUBO, Nipa Hut/House

Lowlands in the Philippines

• Bahay evolved from the word “balai” which means house

• Kubo derived from “cubo”, a Spanish word for cube

• The height of the walls is equal to its width and this gives a boxy appearance or a cube-shaped house.

Fig 6. A typical Bahay Kubo

• In the 16th century, bahay kubo were used only for few years then abandoned.
EXAMPLE:
Tagbanuas of Palawan:
-Agricultural soil wears out
-Abandon the house when a member dies to avoid misfortune

• Varies across regional and ethnic lines

• Structure of light materials supported by posts elevated from 2.50m to 5.00m from the ground.
 Fig 7. Parts of Bahay Kubo

TERMINOLOGIES
• Gililan – floor sills run around the outermost periphery of the soleras to support walls
• Halige – house posts
• Kahab-an – connects the bottom ends of the rafters together
• Kilo – rafters
• Palatpat – bamboo strips tied on to the rafters with rattan vines as the main support of the roofing
• Palupo – ridge pole
• Patukaran – beam laid over the yawi at right angle, thus completing the perimeter.
• Pawid – nipa shingles made by stripping leaves from the petiole and bending them
• Sahig – slatted floor. Rattan or bamboo strips tie the different parts to each other.
• Sikang – poles which cross the rafters halfway down the slope
• Soleras – floor joists are laid
• Tarugo – wooden peg over a narrow bamboo slats
• Yawi – master beam, which runs from one, post to the other and is lashed to with rattan

• Construction method and features:

1. Assembling is like basket making

2. Parts are woven, fitted, inserted, coiled, tied or basket, stitched together using nearly the same
materials in producing a basket.

3. Consists of various kinds of wood, rattan, cane, bamboo, palm, nipa, bark or cogon.

4. Steep roofs either of gable (dos aguas) or hip (quatro aguas) type made extensively of nipa shingles
or cogon thatched

5. Molave is the favored wood for house post (haligi)

6. Post stand in variety of ways:
i. Holes may be dug and posts inserted in, sometimes kept firmly in place by a circle of buried rocks.
ii. Mount the posts on flat stone slabs.

7. Floor is of bamboo slats spaced from each other at regular intervals

i. Light and air to pass through even of the windows are closed
ii. Vegetables to ripen
iii. Conducive for sleeping
iv. Even to throw waste matter out through the gaps

8. Wall sidings are assembled in the ground and are made of:
i. Flattened split bamboo woven together into herringbone patterns to form sawali
ii. Papangkol– two panels of vertical split bamboo are clamped together for the panels to grip each
other, keeping the rain from coming in.
iii. Samil refers to several layers of nipa leaflets that have been combed lengthwise over bamboo
slats
iv. Coconut leaves, cogon grass and anahaw palm leaves
v. Wall sidings surround grass and anahaw palm leaves
vi. Sidings of the walls are kept in place with the help of the rattan lashings, horizontal bamboo
studs clamp the sidings together on both sides and at the same time, the studs enter through holes
into the sidings’ vertical support: the bamboo poles that stand between the roof beams
and the floor sill

9. Silong, the space underneath the house is and airy siding woven by passing bamboo strips that are
long and thin over and under horizontal studs in alternate sequence, called “sala”

10. Doors are of “sala” and are attached to post with rattan hinges

11. Windows of the awning-type have nipa or buri-palm window coverings that can either slide from
side to side or pushed out by a pole that serves also as support when at rest.

12. Usually no ceilings and room divisions, however when required, room p
artitions are low and do not reach underside of the roof or the ceiling to allow the circulation of air
within the house.

PARTS OF THE BAHAY KUBO:

1. Bulwagan (Living Room)

The custom was sit on mats spread out on the floor, sometimes around the dulang, low table. Chairs
and tables were still unknown.

2. Silid (Sleeping Area)

Sawali partition divides the bulwagan and silid where chestsand woven trunks (tampipi) keep clothes
and personal belongings. Some houses have no furnishings except for a few:
i. papag - built in bed,
ii. dulang - a low table
iii. bangko – bench

3. Paglutuan or “gilir”
May sometimes be a separate structure where food is being prepared
4. Dapogan
Consists of table, river stones and a shoeshaped stove (kalan)

5.Bangahan
Later hispanized into a banguerra, where pots, dishes and other utensils are kept

6. Batalan
Porch that opens from paglutuan

Fig 8. The kalan on top of a batalan

7. Silong
The lower part of the house used as an enclosure for keeping domesticated animals such as swine and
fowl and storage for household implements, goods, crops and is some cases as burial grounds for the
dead

8. Kamalig
A separate storehouse on stilts where unhulled rice is kept

SUMMARY
• The bahay kubo is well adopted to the tropical condition
• The idea of a bahay kubo connotes a one room or an open space which can be
• It is common to see an altar with religious icons and photos of deceased family members adorned by
candles, flowers and other offerings
• Bahay kubo has evolved during the Spanish period and at the present
MANGYAN HOUSE
In the mountains and hillsides of Mindoro

Fig 9. The traditional Mangyan House

• Elevated at 1.50m to the surrounding platform

• One room structure of 6.00m x 10.00m (or sometimes even smaller)
• Rectangular in plan
• Palaganan is a passageway from the main door, set much lower than the platforms. Made of large
logs laid parallel to each other where visitors can sleep or used for extra storage space.
• Walls are made of the bark of the trees and were constructed a meter or less above the floor.
• The opening allowed the occupants to observe the exterior without being seen from the outside.

IVATAN HOUSE
Region 2: Chavayan, Sabtang Island, Batanes

BATANES
• Composed of main islands of Sabtang, Bataan and Ibayat
• Strong typhoons and earthquakes
• Magnificent vistas and people
• Ivatans – locals live in the place long before the Spaniards colonizers arrived.
• Savidug Ijang
- Ancient fortifications on a high promontory giving a strategic view of the sea and surrounding land
areas
- Curved out hard limestone rock and gaps filled with built-up walls of rocks
• Ivatan House

- Slope of cliffs and villages built along the sides and tops of
rocky hills of Batanes
- Houses are constructed or repaired through a cooperative
system known as kaybaybanaan or kamanyidugan
- Ensemble of compact structures:
i. Main House
ii. Cooking house, sometimes a storage house double
as sleeping quarters during cold months from
November to March
iii. Toilet and bathroom
Fig 10. Ivatan House
• Sinadumparan or Maytuab
- Depending on the roof configuration
- One-storey main house with a partially submerged basement used as storage
- Very thick stone and lime masonry walls are topped with dos aguas or quarto aguas roof
- Elaborately crafted wooden truss system with bamboo, reed (runo). Rattan, and thatch (cogon or
vuchid) roof cover
- Distinctive roof system – built up of 6 layers, a meter of cogon bundles together by 12 persons. Some
houses use roof nets called panpe made of strong ropes thrown over the roof and fastened to the
ground by pegs.

• Rakuh (Two-storey house of Batanes)

- Bigger in floor area with the lower level used as

storage
- Walls are constructed of lime mortar binder with
stones of graduated sizes usually, biggest at the
bottom
- Two doors and windows are located on the three
walls
- Blank wall is placed against the direction of the
strongest wind that hits Batanes

Fig 11. Rakuh

• Jin-jin
- Walls are of woven cogon thatched with bamboo or wood framework
- Roof is multilayered cogon system

SUMMARY
• Perfect compliment to the grandeur of the natural environment of Batanes
• The evolution of what is traditional Ivatan house is the story of the people’s struggle to defend
themselves against every kind of weather
• Assimilation and creative use of locally available materials
ISNEG HOUSE
Northwesterly end of northern Luzon, in the upper half of the Cordillera province of Apayao

Fig 12. Isneg House

• The Isneg have always built their settlements on the small hills that lie along the large rivers of the
province.

• Also known as the Binuron house, it appears to have been influenced by boat design

• The roof resembles in an inverted hull; gable type; half-section of bamboo laid on like shingles

• It has a total number of 15 posts wherein 8 inner posts support the floor, 6 posts support the roof
and 1 post “atobtobo” support the end of the ridge

• Tarakip- an annex attached to one or both end of the ridge

• The side walls’ vertical planks may be removed to make a window

• The flooring is made of reed mat which can be rolled up for washing
KALINGA HOUSE

Fig 13. Binayon House (Octagonal)

• Binayon or Finaryon
- Octagonal house (the house of the rich)

- Supported by 12 posts, wherein it has 4 inner posts and 8 outer posts to form an octagon

- The roof is hipped, not high and steep, made of bamboo

- The flooring is made of reed mat, on one side, the floor is removed leaving a space that extends from
the ground level to the roof

• Upper Kalinga
- The floor area is divided into one wide middle section “dattagon” and slightly narrow elevated side
sections “sipi”

- “kinimpal” is the roof system using several layers of bamboo

- “tinalob” has only 2 layers of bamboo (for poor) it has

4 inner posts constitute the house’s core support; outer
posts at each corner of the house support the roof

Fig 14. Tinalob House (Rectangular)

BONTOC HOUSE

Fig 15. Fayu House

• Fayu House
- Basic form is like the Ifugao house except that the quarters are on ground level and the house cage
serves as the granary

- The walls are up to waist level, leaving a continuous opening protected by the eaves

- A “Falig” is granary for richer people adjacent to their house

- The Fayu has a lot of sections having specific names for its area is quite bigger
IFUGAO HOUSE
CAR: Banga-an, Banau, Ifugao

• An enclosed structures resting on four tree trunks as columns

• Square in plan, covered by four steeply pitched roof made of thatch.A stair w/c can be drawn & kept
from the ground for protection

• The floor height is about 1.50m to 2.00 m can be found in the mountains of Cordillera

Fig 16. Fale House

• Fale House

- A three-level structure which include a stone pavement, house cage and roof

- The posts are of shoulder height, which only support the girders

- The 3-level space within the house are: floor, shelf, loft (granary)

- The walls are slanting outwards

- It has rat guards, a thin cylinders placed on the posts

- The roof were thatched, pyramidal, extends up to floor level

- There is a basket under second level, a detachable stairs

- Slaughtered carabaos and human heads are being displayed on front of their house.

- “hagabi” is a bench under their house for socialization

• Kiangan House

- The roof is not as steep and does not extend up to floor level, hipped
- The wall sidings could be made of wood or sawali and has no rat guards

• Mayoyao House

- The roof is steeper and completely conceals the house cage; has no ratguards
- It is eminent for its pure, classic outline and fine craftsmanship

KANKANAY HOUSE

Fig 17. Kankanay House

• Binangiyan House

- A high, steep, hipped roof, which conceals the house cage

- It has 4 posts which support the house cage; wherein the roof is supported by the upper frame of the
house

- The walls are primary made of narra or pine

- The living quarters consist of main area where the fireplace is located and a small room at the rear

- The house has only one entrance and the door is decorated with flutings

- It has no rat guards

T’BOLI HOUSE
High elevation of the mountain ranges of South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat Provinces, South of Mindanao

• Live in harmony with nature with a colorful lifestyle through their outfits, dances and music
• T’boli house are fully ornamented
• T’boli house in general:
- Located near the banks of scenic Lake Sebu or on a hilly portions
- House vary according to difference in economic stability
- Polygamy is practiced and adds to the number of residents in a house
- Three or four houses form a cluster
- Remain cool in tropical weather because it is elevated on stilts and has a roof with overhang

• Gunu-bong House

Fig 18. T’Boli House

- Large, two level

- Home to extended family averaging between 8-16 persons
- Bamboo stilts or timber poles support
- 2 meters above ground with additional posts for stability
- Tree stumps are used as posts for inner portion of the house
- Laid out on rectangular plan of about 14 x 8m
- Lower central space is integrated with the elevated side areas
i. Area for honor
ii. Sleeping area
iii. Vestibule
- Shape of house is appropriate for the weaving area of the sacred tinalak fabric
- Dos aguas roof made of bamboo frames and thatch, not steep
- Walls are of slit bamboo finely worked into a flat wall
- Few openings, awning doors and window opening outward with hinge at the bottom
- Bamboo ladders are drawn up at night
KOTA/KUTA or Fortress
An early Filipino constructed forts in Mindanao, Sulu as well as in Manila and Mindoro against enemy
attacks. Inside the kota is the Torogan.

TOROGAN
Region 10: Pagalunan, Taraka, Maranatao, Lanao del Sur

Fig 19. Torogan House

• Marananos live in settlements of the shores of Lake Lanao road an the hilly ‘dry rice areas’
• Homes are lined along rivers, lake shores and roads
• Ranggar - small Islamic prayer housed would be located in the community
• Three major house typology:
- Lawig - small houses
- Mala-a walai - large house, a necessity in the polygamous culture
- Torogan
• Torogan (place for sleeping)
- Serve many purposes such as the residences of the royal family, the warrior’s den, storage house,
ammunition areas as well as ceremonial

• Character and Method of Construction

- Has a soaring, salakot shaped or ceremonial umbrella design roof, ornate beams and massive posts, to
identify status of its occupants.
- Huge posts made from tree trunks signify power.
- Plain and massive or may be carves to look like clay pots or huge chess pieces.
- Posts rest on round stones to allow the house flexibility to sway with earthquake tremor.

Panolong - one of the most important

features. Row of carves projecting beamends in ornate
motifs. Protrude from the side with configuration of
giant nagas (snakes) outline in fernlike motifs. Appear in
high-spirited wavelike patterns of okir design and are
sculptured to look like the prow of a boat. It gives the
Torogan the appearance of a floating royal vessel.

Fig 20. Panolong

SULU HOUSES
Sea Nomads of the Philippines—Samal, Tausog, Yakan and Badjao

• The Philippines being an archipelago have naval architecture

• Inhabitants who live in maritime regions have for centuries constructed boats and watercrafts for travel and
fishing purposes

• Houses varies among the different Muslim communities in the form of houses:
- On stilts along the shoreline
- Land houses built completely over the sea with no attachment to the shoreline
- Houseboats which is home and fishing boat to Badjao

• TAUSUG HOUSE

Fig 21. Tausug House

- Tausugs are known as seafarers, but build their houses on land.

- A site is considered lucky of it is flat and fry or gently slopes westwards towards Mecca

- Traditional house rests on nine posts each signifying a part of the body— neck, shoulders, navel, ribs, groin, and
Hips

- One-room house includes a porch and separate kitchen

- Distinguishing feature of the house is an elaborately carved wooden finial, Taju Pasung placed at one or both
ends of the roof ridge
• YAKAN HOUSE
- Majority of the Muslim group were originally from the island province of Basilan

Fig 22. Yakan House

- Known for traditional hand-weaving skills that produced Yakan blankets

- Lumah, a traditional house is a rectangular about 50.00m to 100.00sq.m elevated on timber posts
about 2.00m above the ground
- Cluster around the langgal or local prayer house.
- Houses face east and beliefs mandate that building materials be stockpiles also on the east.

THREE MAJOR PARTS

i. Main house - single room dwelling, partionless with various functions such as social affairs, weaving
area for women and sleeping quarters

ii. Kitchen – both for cooking and dining. A bridge connects the kitchen to the main house

iii. Porch or Pantan – main entry to the house that may be open or roofed. The main wooden ladder to
the house is located here. Water jars or dagtung, large bamboo crafted as water containers are placed
here.

• Character and Method of Construction

- Sapiaw or roof is steeply pitched cogon on bamboo or timer frames.

- Wall are woven bamboo strips or Sawali

- No ceilings and only one window or tandiwan, is allowed into the main house

- Another tandiwan and ladder are allowed in the kitchen house

• SAMAL HOUSE

Fig 23. Samal House

- Source if livelihood and also their home

- Build houses on stilts over water, along the shore or farther out

- Supported by piles embedded into the reef floor

- Joined together to the shore or to one another by a maze of catwalks and bridges of timber and split
bamboo

- Elevation of the house depend on the maximum high tide level in order to allow the storage of the
outrigger boat underneath the house when not in use

- After fishing, the Samals could easily enter the house from their boats

• Character and Method of Construction

- Recent houses is 4.00m x 6.00m and 3.00m high

- Simply designed to have one single room and in the upper level—sleeping, living, cooking and eating

- Silong or space underneath serve as shed for the boat and area for bathing

- Pantan or open porch is important to the Samal tribe. Also used as a workplace, accept visitors and
hold rituals and allow children to play.
• BADJAO HOUSE

- True sea gypsies of the south

- Spotted in channels of Tawi-tawi

province on where fishes and corals
abound their livelihood

- Use shelter as a means of travel which

they usually do in groups

- Mobile shelter which allows them to

flee to safe grounds in the event of
typhoon or pirate attacks

Fig 24. Badjao House

- The dapang, one of the many types of

house boats, comes in varied sizes and
lengths and is fitted with outriggers and
used not only for shelter but also for
fishing

- The boat prows are usually decorated

with okir designs

- Unlike the Samal House, the Badjao

land house stands alone on an expanse
of water and is reached only by boat.

- Bridges or catwalks to the shore or

other houses do not join it.

Fig 25. Badjao Boat House

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