Meaning and Relevance of History PDF

MEANING AND RELEVANCE OF HISTORY MEANING AND RELEVANCE OF HISTORY OBJECTIVE At the end of the discussion, the learner should be able to: - Discuss the meaning of history from the different perspectives of various historians and historical figures 1. What is histor...

MEANING AND RELEVANCE OF HISTORY MEANING AND RELEVANCE OF HISTORY OBJECTIVE At the end of the discussion, the learner should be able to: - Discuss the meaning of history from the different perspectives of various historians and historical figures 1. What is history? 2. What are the sources of history ? 3. How do historians write history ? History (from Greek ἱστορία, historia, meaning "inquiry, knowledge acquired by investigation") is the study of the past as it is described in written documents.  Events occurring before written record are considered prehistory. It is an umbrella term that relates to past events as well as the memory, discovery, collection, organization, presentation, and interpretation of information about these events.  Scholars who write about history are called historians. Teodoro Agoncillo Fr. Horacio de la Costa, SJ Trinidad Pardo de Tavera Gregorio F. Zaide History is the sum total of everything that has actually happened in the past-every thought, every action, every event. In this sense, “history” is surely on of the broadest concepts conceived by the human intellect (Ford as cited in Furay, 2000). History as broadly defined, as encompasses the entire scope of the human experience on this planet. And this meaning of the word-things that happened in the past-is what most people have in mind when they use the term in daily conversation (Ford as cited in Furay, 2000). History is not ‘what happened in the past’; rather, it is the act of selecting, analyzing, and writing the past. It is something that is done, that is constructed, rather than an inert body of data that lies scattered through the archives (Davidson and Lyle as cited in Furay, 2000). “To be ignorant of the past is to remain always a child.” ― Marcus Tullius Cicero “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” -George Santayana History is not a burden on the memory but an illumination of the soul. -John Dalberg Acton “History is written by the victors.” -Winston Churchill  A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots. -Marcus Garvey There is no future without memory. “Qu'il n'est pas d'avenir sans memoire.” -Jacques Chirac  “The study of the past with one eye upon the present is the source of all sins and sophistries in history. It is the essence of what we mean by the word "unhistorical".” ― Herbert Butterfield.”  “I shall relate quite simply how things happened and without adding anything of my own, which is no small feat for an historian.” ― François-Marie Arouet “Voltaire”  “The historian without his facts is rootless and futile; the facts without their historian are dead and meaningless.” -Edward Hallett Carr “In your travel, learn the brief history of the place visited. History is rich knowledge.” ― Lailah Gifty Akita  “History teaches us that man learns nothing from history.” -Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel  “Life can only be understood backwards but it must be lived forward.” -Soren Kierkegaard  “Writers are historians, too. It is in literature that the greater truths about a people and their past are found.” -Francisco Sionil Jose  We are not makers of history. We are made by history. -Martin Luther King, Jr. “History is the version of past events that people have decided to agree upon.” -Napoleon Bonaparte  “History never looks like history when you are living through it.” -John W. Gardner  “Fear history, for it respects no secrets." -Gregoria de Jesus DISTINCTION OF PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SOURCES  DISTINCTION OF PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SOURCES OBJECTIVES At the end of the discussion, the learner should be able to: - Differentiate the primary sources from secondary sources - Enumerate samples of primary and secondary sources of history  Basic to historical research is utilization of sources. There are diverse sources of history including documentary sources or documents, archeological records, and oral and video accounts. 1. Documents These refer to handwritten, printed, drawn, designed, and other composed materials. These include books, newspapers, magazines, journals, maps, architectural perspectives, paintings, advertisements, and photographs. 2. Archeological Records These refer to preserved remains of human beings, their activities, and the environment where they lived. Aside from human remains, other archeological records are generally categorised as fossils and artifacts. 3. Oral and Video Account These form the third kind of historical source. These are audio-visual documentation of people, events, and places. These are usually recorded in video and audio cassettes, and compact discs. Aside from scholars, media people also use oral and video accounts as part of their news and public affairs work. These refer to documents, physical objects, and oral/video accounts made by an individual; or a group present at the time and place being described. These materials provide facts from people who actually witnessed the event. These are materials made by people long after the events being described had taken place. EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL CRITICISM  EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL CRITICISM OBJECTIVES At the end of the discussion, the learner should be able to: - Evaluate primary sources for their credibility, authenticity, and provenance - Enumerate the repositories and different kinds of primary sources Many Documents have primary and secondary segments. For instance, examining a newspaper as a historical source entails a discerning mind to identify its primary and secondary components. A news item written by a witness of an event is considered as a primary source, while a feature article is usually considered as a secondary material. Similarly, a book published a long time ago does not necessarily render as a primary source. It requires a meticulous reading of the document to know its origin. Answers concerns and questions pertinent to the authenticity of a historical source by identifying who composed the historical material, locating when and where the historical material was produced, and establishing the material’s evidential value. Deals with the credibility and reliability of the content of a given historical source. This kind of criticism focuses on understanding the substance and message that the historical material wants to convey by examine how the author frame the intent and meaning of a composed material.  There are substantial primary sources about the Philippines here and abroad. In the country, government institutions such as National Library and the National Archives are major repositories of documentary sources. It has a complete microfilm copies of the Philippine Revolutionary Records, compilation of captured documents of Emilio Aguinaldo’s revolutionary government, and Historical Data Papers, a collection of “history and cultural life” of all towns in the country. Presidential Papers of different administrations from Manuel Quezon to Joseph Estrada. It holds a substantial collection of catalogued and uncatalogued Spanish documents about the Philippines composed from 1552-1900. a. University of the Philippines b. Ateneo de Manila University c. University of Santo Tomas d. University of San Carlos a. Ayala Museum b. Lopez Museum c. Religious Congregations a. Archivo General de Indias in Spain b. US Library of Congress c. Harvard University d. US National Archives e. University of Michigan d. The Museu de les Cultures del Mon in Spain f. Penn Museum 1. What are the benefits of using primary sources? 2. Why do you think most history textbooks are secondary sources? 3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of assessing online primary sources?