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Content and Contextual Analysis of

Selected Primary Sources

MODULE OVERVIEW

During the 10th century, a number of political entities were in existence in Southeast
Asia. One of the most famous of these was the Khmer Empire, which dominated much of
the Southeast Asian mainland. To its east, the modern country of Vietnam was divided
between the Chinese in the north, and the Kingdom of Champa in the south. The seas
below the Southeast Asian mainland were beyond the reach of the Khmers and were
largely controlled by a maritime empire known as Srivijaya.

However, there is little information on the area in the part of this region where the
modern country of the Philippines is now situated. This lack of information led many
scholars to believe that it was isolated from the rest of the region. Thus, the Laguna
Copperplate Inscription is an important artifact, as it has allowed scholars to re-evaluate the
situation in this part of Southeast Asia during the 10th century AD.

MODULE LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Demonstrate the ability to formulate arguments in favor or against a particular issue

using primary sources.
2. Effectively communicate using various techniques and genres historical analysis of a
particular event or issue that could help others understand the chosen topic;
3. Propose recommendations or solutions to present day problems based on their
understanding of the root causes, and their anticipation of future scenarios;
4. Display the ability to work in a multidisciplinary team and contribute to a group endeavor.

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LEARNING CONTENTS

LEARNING ACTIVITY 1
LAGUNA COPPERPLATE TRANSLITERATION

The Laguna Copperplate Inscription:

An Ancient Text That Changed the Perception of the History of the Philippines
An Incomplete Artifact

Origins of the Inscription on the Laguna Copperplate

The inscription on the surviving copperplate is in itself intriguing, and has provided
enough material for scholars to analyze. For instance, the type of script used in the Laguna
Copperplate Inscription has been identified as the so-called ‘Early Kawi Script,’ a writing
system that originated in the Indonesian island of Java, and was used across much of
maritime Southeast Asia during the 10th century AD. In fact, this script is said to have been
derived from the Pallava script, which has its origins in India. As for the language of the
inscription, it has been found to be heavily influenced linguistically by Sanskrit, Old Malay,
and Old Javanese. Both the type script, and the language of the Laguna Copperplate
Inscription, therefore, shows that this area was not actually isolated from the rest of
Southeast Asia, as had been previously assumed.

The Inscription

The inscription begins by providing a date:

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“Hail! In the Saka-year 822; the month of March-April; according to the astronomer: the
fourth day of the dark half of the moon; on Monday.”

The Saka era has its origins in India (supposedly marking the ascension of the Kushan
emperor Kanishka), and the year 822 is said to correspond with the year 900 AD in the
Gregorian calendar. The use of this calendrical system is further evidence that there were
cultural links between this area of Southeast Asia and its neighbors, which at that time,
were largely under the cultural influence of India.

As for the subject matter of the Laguna Copperplate Inscription, it has been
suggested that the inscription is a “semi-official certificate of acquittal of a debt incurred by
a person in high office, together with his whole family, all relatives and descendants.”

This acquittal is also said to be confirmed by other officials/leaders, some of whom

have been mentioned by name, along with their area of jurisdiction. These officials include
“His Honor the Leader of Puliran, Kasumuran; His Honor the Leader of Pailah, representing
Ganasakti; (and) His Honor the Leader of Binwangan, representing Bisruta.” The recording
of these names suggests that there was some sort of political and social organization in the
Philippines of the 10th century AD.
To conclude, the Laguna Copperplate, which would probably not attract instant public
attention as gold or silver artifacts would, is in fact an immensely important object. This
seemingly insignificant artifact has sparked a re-assessment of the history of the
Philippines prior to the coming of the Spanish, in particular the 10th century AD, and the
archipelago’s relationship with

LEARNING CONTENTS

History of the Philippine Islands

Dr. Antonio de Morga

Sucesos delas Islas Filipinas (1609)

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One of the important works on the early history of the Spanish colonization of the
Philippines published in Mexico in 1609 by Antonio de Morga later on in 1890, to be
reprinted with anotation by Jose Rizal with a prologue by Dr. Ferdinand Blumentritt.

Relación de las Islas Filipinas (1604)

Father Chirino wrote Relacion de las Islas Filipinas in 1604 (Rome), which he later
transformed into a longer and more detailed account of Jesuit work in the Philippines.
Father Chirino's work is the first history, not just of the Jesuit missions, but also of the
Catholic missions in the Philippines and served as the source for later histories.

Antonio de Morga Sanchez Garay

(1159-1636)
• Spanish lawyer
• high-ranking colonial official for 43 years, in the Philippines, New Spain and Peru,
• president of the Royal Audiencia for 20 years.
• Historian

Fr. Pedro Chirino, SJ (1557-1635)

• Spanish priest and historian who served as a Jesuit missionary in the Philippines.
• most remembered for his work, Relación de las Islas Filipinas (1604), one of the
earliest works about the Philippines and its people that was written.

Observations of Antonio de Morga in his Sucesos delas Islas Filipinas (Chapter 8)

• Luzon
 a number of Natives black in color
 woolly hair
 stature is not very great (read: short)
 strong and robust
 barbarians (not trustworthy)
 little capacity
 no permanent residence
 hunters

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 plant rice (temporarily)

 attack other settlements
 cannot be stopped in attacking other groups (relentless)

• Clothing
 Men
 Cangan: upper garment short collarless garments (blue/ black); chiefs (red/called
chinanas); below the waist bahaques (bahag); potong; gold necklaces; calombigas
(armlets); unshod; strings of precious stones.

• Leadership
 Succession: male line; father and son
 In the absence: brothers and collateral relatives
 Duties: rule and govern their subjects
 Leaders are held with veneration and respect
 Subjects: they serve their leader in the following areas:
i. Wars/voyages
ii. Tilling/sowing/fishing
iii. Building of the leader’s house
iv. The natives also pay their buiz (tribute) varying quantities; in the crops that they
gathered
v. The relatives of the rulers are given the same regard/respect

LEARNING ACTIVITY
Direction: Discuss the observations of Antonio de Morga in his Sucesos delas Islas
Filipinas

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SUMMARY

Investigations by Antoon Postma, a Dutch anthropologist, have revealed that the

inscription on the Laguna Copperplate is incomplete, and it is highly likely that there was
another similar piece of copperplate with inscriptions on it that has been lost. In an article
published in 1992, Postma wrote that:“Moreover, certain persons, after viewing a photo of
the LCI (Laguna Copperplate Inscription), alleged, without being asked, that they had seen
a similar piece of copperplate with inscriptions around the same time (1987). Its
importance, however, was not realized then, and the possible second page of the LCI might
have ended up in a local junk yard and been irretrievably lost to posterity.”
This chapter also introduced the observations from the foreign lenses: Taga-
labas. They presented early customs and beliefs. A view of pre-colonial view family life and
interesting and mundane beliefs that was written by early Spanish historians/scholars. It
will served as some useful reference for analysis of the early pre-colonial behavior of the
native and in addressing the question of identity prior to western hegemony and other
hegemonies

REFERENCE
Sources:
Cryer, A. B., 2015. Laguna Copperplate Inscription Explained. [Online]
Available at: http://everything.explained.today/Laguna_Copperplate_Inscription/

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Morrow, P., 2006. The Laguna Copperplate Inscription. [Online]

Available at: http://www.mts.net/~pmorrow/lcieng.htm
Postma, A., 1992. The Laguna Copper-Plate Inscription: Text and Commentary. Philippine
Studies, 40(2), p. 183–203.
Santos, H., 1996. The Laguna Copperplate Inscription. [Online]
Available at: http://www.bibingka.com/dahon/lci/lci.html
Source: Antonio de Morga, History of the Philippine Islands

PANGASINAN STATE UNIVERSITY 7