Costums of The Tagalog

 

 Relacion de las Costumbres Costumbres de Los Tagalogs (1589)  Las Costumbres de los Indios Tagalos Tagalos de Filipinas (other sources)

 

Historical Context - during the 1st Century of Spanish rule, difficulty running local politics - Filipinos hold the position of Gobernadorcillo - Friars were instructed to supervise and monitor 

in

 

- supervised the election, helped in collection of taxes - educating the youth, performed other civic duties - the friars became the most knowledgeable and influential figure in the pueblo

 

Friars who were assigned in mission territories: - inform their superiors,

- prepared reports on the numbers they converted - people’ people’ss way of life, socio-economic conditions conditions,,  problems they they encounter  encounter  -submitted letters, observations, experiences

 

Plasencia’ss work is an example that contains Plasencia’

numerous

information historians the  political andthat and socio-cultural socio-c ultural could historyuse of in thereconstructing Tagalog region. region. A primary source

 

Other Friars and colonial officials who also wrote about Filipinos which can further enrich our knowledge… Miguel de Loarca (Panay)(1582) - Relacion de las Islas Filipinas  - way of life of the Western Visayas area Lt. Gov. Antonio de Morga - Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas  - state of the Philippines in the ltter part of the 16th  century

 

Fr. Pedro Chirino S. J. (1604) Fr. - Relacion de las Islas Filipinas  Fr. Juan Delgado S. J. (1751) - Historia General  Fr. Francisco Fr. Franc isco Ignacio I gnacio Alcina S. J. J . (1668) - Historia natural del sitio, fertilidad de las Islas

e Indios de Bisayas 

 

About the text

- The original document of Customs of the Tagalogs   is kept in the Archivo General de Indias  (A.G.I.)  (A.G.I.) in Seville, Spain duplicate copy is kept in the Archivo Franciscano - A Ibero-Oriental  (A.F.I.  (A.F.I. O.) in Madrid, Spain

 

About the text

- An English translations appeared in Volume VII of the Blair and Robertson’s “The Philippine Islands.” 

- Another English translations from Filipiniana Book Guild 

 

Relevance

- Plasencia’s work is a very popular primary source as it vividly describes Filipinos way of life before Spanish and Christian influences - it contains information on social classes, political  stratification and legal system of the th e Tagalog Tagalog region r egion

 

Relevance

 property operty rights, marriage rituals, burial - it tackles pr  practices, and the manner in which justice is dispensed.

- preserves and popularizes the unwritten customs and tradition, religious and superstitious beliefs of the Filipino

 

- Priest and also read Plasencia’s “Customs ofmissionaries the Tagalog and Doctrina Christiana that can help and inspire them to become effective evangelizers. - Plasencia’s historical writing also disprove the claim of some Spaniards about Filipinos being uncivilized and lacking in culture

 

1.Who Fr. Juan de Plasencia? When did he serve in theisPhilippine islands? 2.How did he describe the hierarchy of people in the barangay? 3.Which particular precolonial policy or rule stood out to you ? Why? 4.What does Fr. Plasencia’s account reveal about the religious and spiritual beliefs of the early Filipinos? 5.What are the reasons of the natives for offering sacrifices?