GEC 2

Readings in Philippines History

CHAPTER 1- Introduction to History and It’s Sources
A. Meaning and relevance of History
B. Distinction of Primary and Secondary Sources
C. External and Internal Criticism of the Sources
D. Repositories of primary sources and different kinds of Primary Sources

Objectives:
At the end of the Chapter 1 lesson the students will be able to:
 Discuss the meaning and relevance of history.
 Distinguish Primary and Secondary Sources.
 Identified the meaning of Internal and External Criticism of the
Sources
 Recognize the different repositories of primary sources

A. Meaning and Relevance of History

What is HISTORY?
History is…
- A recitation of unrelated facts that do not contribute to a larger story
- A simple acceptance of what is written about a historical topic, event or a
person
- A story of past events, traces of past conditions arranged in chronological
order
- A guide of action in the present and for plans in the future
- A continuous and unending process of interaction between the historian and
his facts and between the past and the present.

-It is a study of man and his achievements from the beginning of written records to
the present time (Gray, in De Vianna, 2017).

-History is the study of the beliefs and desires, practices, and institutions of human
beings (Torres, 2018,)
History was derived from the Greek word historia, which means “knowledge
acquired through inquiry or investigation.”
When the term Historia is adapted to Latin, it became known as the account of the
past of a person or of a group of people through written documents and/or historical
evidences.
HISTORY CAN BE DEFINED IN MANY WAYS:
• As a documented record of man and society.
• As a field of study, “it is a study of man and his achievements from the
beginning of the written records to the present time” (Gray, 1956 in De Viana,
2015)OTHER DEFINITIONS OF HISTORY:

TRADITIONAL DEFINITIONS
a. History is the record of the past.
b. History is a record of the human past from the time written records
began to appear. (The above definitions are weak for they view history
as merely a written record.)
c. According to Gottschalk, history is actuality; hence it must study the
past as it happened (the practical value of studying and using the past
to understand the present is lost.)
d. Interviews or oral history and oral traditions, and cultural artifacts are
not considered.

Do you agree that if there’s no written document, there’s no HISTORY?

Why History is Important?

1. Bridging the gap between the present and the Past
2. Explaining causes of things and events
3. Projecting the future
4. Interpreting conditions of a given space and time
5. . Promoting nationalism and patriotism

Why we need to study History?

1. To Learn about the past
2. To understand the Present
3. To appreciate your heritage
4. To broaden your perspectives
5. To acquire background for critical thinking and analysis
 To further emphasize
To further understand
HISTORY HISTORIOGRAPHY

Historiography- is the history of history

“Lessons from the past can help people to not repeat them”

HISTORICAL METHOD is the process of critically analyzing the records and

survivals of the past.

HISTORICAL ANALYSIS/METHODS
Four headings:
Selection of a subject for investigation;
Collection sources;
Examination of the genuineness of sources;

Extraction of credible sources

HISTORICAL SOURCES
- are materials used by the historians
that are not books; i.e. archaeological,
epigraphical, or numismatistical
materials in which they have to depend
largely on museums where they are
official records (such as archives,
courthouses, governmental libraries,
etc.);
 B. Distinction of Primary and Secondary Sources

Written and oral sources are divided into two kinds: Primary and secondary.
1) A primary source is the testimony of an eyewitness, or of a witness by any
other of the senses, or of a mechanical device like a Dictaphone – that is, of
one who or that present at the events of which he or it tells.
2) A secondary source is the testimony of anyone who is not an eyewitness – that
is, of one who was not present at the events of which he tells.

Classification of Sources
Primary Sources Secondary Sources
- are materials - are those sources
produced by people which were produced
or groups directly by an author who used
involved in the event primary sources to
or topic being produce the material
studied. These - as “the testimony
people are either anyone who is not an
participants or eyewitness-that is of
eyewitnesses of one who is not present
event (Torres, 2018). at the event of which
(e.g. Reports, records, he tells.”
photographs, archives, ( e. g books, articles, research
artifacts etc. ) papers, documentaries etc.)

What are Primary Sources?

• Testimony of an eyewitness
• A primary source must have been produced by people or groups directly
involved in the event or topic being studied.
• They are either participants or witness
Formally there are 8 Types of these primary sources:
1. Autobiographies and memoirs
2. Diaries, personal letters, and correspondence
3. Interviews, surveys and fieldwork
4. Photographs and posters
5. Works of arts
6. Literature
7. Speeches
8. Oral Histories
What are Secondary Sources?
- Gottschalk simply defines secondary sources as the testimony of anyone who
is not an eyewitness that is one who was not present at the event of which he
tells. Secondary information is filtered through someone else’s perspective.
These are books, articles and scholarly journals that had interpreted primary
sources or had used them to discuss certain subjects of history.

Types of Secondary Sources

1. Bibliographies
2. Biographical works
3. Periodicals (newspaper, magazine and journal)
4. Literature Review and Review Article

C. External and Internal Criticism of the Sources

Two Kinds of Criticism of Document
Historical data has to be examined to verify it’s authenticity and truthfulness
through External and Internal Criticism.
EXTERNAL CRITICISM – is the practice of verifying the authenticity of evidence
by examining its physical characteristics; consistency with the historical
characteristic of time when it was produced; and the materials used for evidence (i.e.
the quality of paper, the type of ink, the language and words used, etc.)
- Its refers to the genuineness of the documents . It is looking into the
authenticity of evidence by examining the physical characteristics and
historical characteristics of the documents.
Examples;
 Authorship
 Date and Origin
 Provenance
INTERNAL CRITICISM – is the examination of truthfulness and factuality of the
evidence by looking at the author of the source, its context, the agenda behind its
creation, knowledge which it formed, and its intended purpose. Its refers to the
meaning and truthfulness of the documents. It talks about the value and worth of its
contents. For example, Japanese reports and declarations during the period of the
war should not be taken as a historical fact hastily. Internal criticism entails that the
historian acknowledge and analyze how such reports can be manipulated to be used
as war propaganda. Validating historical sources is important because the use of
unverified, falsified, and untruthful historical sources can lead to equally false
conclusions. Without thorough criticisms of historical evidences, historical
deceptions and lies will be highly probable.
Examples;
 Bias
 Accuracy
 Consistency
 Completeness

D. Repositories of Primary Sources and different kinds of Primary

Sources

Repositories of Primary Sources

- Sources of history, whether primary or secondary, come from the past and
gives insight into the period being studied. Instead of viewing history as a list
of dates and facts, primary sources provide the original artifacts of historical
interpretation. They are stored, preserved and accessed from institutions and
sites tasked and dedicated to give an accurate and clear perspective of the
past.
- For the conduct of historical research there are a lot of repositories of primary
sources. Although it is the toughest part of studying history, it is also most
rewarding, especially when sources collected the solid foundation for a
scholarly work. Both physical, personal and online repositories of sources
abound. The real challenge is to produce a well-curated collection of materials.
As an advice would be the use of the right terminology from the era under
study in order to properly locate significant materials.
Examples;
 National Archives of the Philippines
 National Library of the Phils.
 National Historical commission of the Phils.
 National Museum of the Philippines
 UP Main Library
 ADMU Rizal Library
 Ayala Museum
 UST Library
 DLSU Library
 Library of Congress

Kinds of Primary Sources

- Primary Sources defined as the evidence of history. They are the first-hand
accounts of an event or period of time created by participants or observers.
There are many kinds of primary sources including texts (letters, diaries,
government reports, newspaper accounts, novels, autobiographies), images
(photographs, paintings, advertisements, posters), artifacts (buildings,
clothing, sculpture, coins), and audio/visual(songs, oral history interviews,
films).
Examples;
 Human Fossil
 Artifacts
 Official Reports
 Chronicles
 Maps
 Personal Account
 Newspaper
 Magazines
 Blogs
 Court Records

References:
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/university-of-antique/readings-in-
philippine-history/gec-2-chapter-1-bc50c57c695d27f00843-
e6e339dd6ca9/77686460
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/polytechnic-university-of-the-
philippines/readings-in-the-philippine-history/repositories-of-primary-sources/
26987962
https://guides.lib.uw.edu/research/history/bytype
https://lib.guides.umd.edu/filipinos