Imagining the seventeenth century Philippine physical environment based on the Vocabulario Tagalo of Francisco de san antonio, OFM
Issue Date
1-2011
Abstract
Dictionaries are primary sources which are useful in exploring the cultural and physical dimensions of past societies. As research materials, they enjoy a high level of credibility. Contemporary readers can discern the degree of linguistic change and continuity in a particular language. This paper aims to imagine the seventeenth century Philippine environment using the manuscript of a priest stationed in the province of Laguna by the name of Francisco de San Antonio. Originally, he was from Leon, Spain and he received his commission to do missionary work in the Philippines in 1606. He died in the colony in 1624. His compilation is deemed important in Philippine historiography. It was an enrichment of the Vocabulario de Lengua Tagala (1613) of Pedro de San Buenaventura, a fellow Franciscan who was his senior. Tagalog is one of the major languages in the Philippines. The wordlist of San Antonio reveals a rich vocabulary on flora and fauna, topographical features and physical mapping of the native world of the Tagalogs of the Laguna Lake region. The native economy was founded on agriculture, fishing and handicrafts as reflected in the various terminologies that have been gathered. It was a complex and variegated society that the Spaniards came to influence during the lifetime of San Antonio. © Rushing Water Publishers Ltd. 2011.
Source or Periodical Title
Asia Life Sciences
ISSN
0117-3375
Page
31-43
Document Type
Article
Language
English
Subject
Environmental history, Fauna, Flora, Historiography, Physical environment, Seventeenth century philippines, Tagalog dictionary
Recommended Citation
Diestro, D.D.A., Mata, R.C., Ferrer, A.S., & Castro, A.H.T. (2011). Imagining the seventeenth century Philippine physical environment based on the Vocabulario Tagalo of Francisco de San Antonio, OFM. Asia Life Sciences, pp. 31-43.
Digital Copy
yes