MONKAYO COLLEGE OF ARTS, SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
Poblacion, Monkayo, Davao de Oro
HAND OUTS
READINGS IN PHILIPPINE HISTORY
GEN.ED 2
HISTORICAL SOURCES
With the past as history’s subject matter, the historian’s most important research tools are historical sources. In
general, historical sources can be classified between primary and secondary sources. The classification of sources
between the two categories depends on the historical subject being studied.
3 Categories of Historical Sources
1. Written sources- It can be literal (the interpretation of the writer which involves his
subjectivity; and official (the record produced when transacting business).
2. Traditional sources- these are folklore, oral tradition, epic and indigenous material
which were also used as sources of history.
3. Material object- such as money, guns, church bells and other materials which served as
part of the events are undeniably important sources of history.
2 Classification of Historical Sources
PRIMARY SOURCE
Either be written or non-written (sound,
artifacts, art work, etc.
Provide direct or first hand evidence
It is an original document or other material that If a historian wishes to study the
has not been changed in any way. COMMONWEALTH CONSTITUTION
These are sources produced at the same time as CONVENTION OF 1935 his primary sources
the event, period, or subject being studied. can include:
Immediate firsthand account of a topic from
people who had a direct connection with it. *Minutes of the convention;
Examples are:
- Historical and legal documents *Newspaper clippings;
-eyewitness accounts
-data Ex. *Philippine Commission reports of the
-pieces of creative writing U.S. Commissioners;
- audio and video recordings *Draft of the Constitution;
-speeches
- art objects
- photographs
-films
- journals
- letters, etc.
SECONDARY SOURCE
On the subject of the Philippine Revolution of
1896, students can :
*Read Teodoro Agoncillo’s Revolt of the
Masses: The Story of Bonifacio and the
Katipunan published originally in 1956
(The Philippine Revolution happened in the
last years of 19th century while Agoncillo
published his work in 1956, which makes the
Revolt of the Masses a secondary source)
Ex.
In writing the book, Agoncillo used primary
sources with his research like:
*Documents of the Katipunan;
Benjamin (1994) referred to primary source as also primary evidence which records the actual words of someone who
participated in, or witnessed the events described, while secondary evidence records the findings of someone who did
not observe the event but who investigated primary evidence.
INTERNAL CRITICISM VS. EXTERNAL CRITICISM
History is a science, therefore it should remain faithful to the tradition of producing knowledge based on scientific
methodology which is highly objective. That is why it is imperative for you to understand internal and external criticism.
INTERNAL CRITICISM EXTERNAL CRITICISM
It is the examination of the truthfulness and
factuality of the evidence by looking at the
author of the source, its context, the agenda
V It is the practice of verifying the authenticity of
evidence by examining its physical characteristics
(quality of the paper); consistency with the
behind its creation, the knowledge which historical characteristic of the time when it was
S
informed it, and its intended purpose, among produced (the language and words used in the
others. material); and the materials used for the evidence
(type of the ink). \
It deals with the analysis of the content of the
document. To ensure that the source is not fabricated.
The historian should evaluate the relevance of It deals with analysis on the form of the
the content of the documents to the time and documents.
place of the phenomenon.
Historians give importance to the author of the
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document and the time when the document was
written.
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.
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