§ — — Reading in Philippine History
The Age of Exploration (roughly the 15th and 16th centuries) marked a turning point for the Philippines. In 1521, Ferdinand Magellan's expedition inadvertently reached the Philippine archipelago, setting off a chain of subsequent voyages that would result in the conquest by Miguel López de Legazpi beginning in 1564–1565.
Background on Pigafetta
Antonio Pigafetta (c. 1491–1531) was an Italian scholar and explorer who became the official chronicler of the Magellan-Elcano expedition. He was among only 18 of the roughly 270 original crew members who returned to Spain, making his account extraordinarily rare.
His account is important because it is a primary source (he was aboard the expedition) and remains the most detailed surviving firsthand narrative of the first circumnavigation of the globe.
The Manuscripts
Four known manuscript versions survive:
Key Events from Pigafetta's Account
Magellan's fleet — five ships (Victoria, Concepción, San Antonio, Santiago, Trinidad) and approximately 270 crew — left Seville on August 10, 1519.
Key narrative highlights:
Fray Juan de Plasencia, a Franciscan friar who arrived in the Philippines in 1577, wrote Customs of the Tagalogs (c. 1589) — one of the earliest and most detailed descriptions of Tagalog religious beliefs, social practices, and daily life.
His account reflects the perspective of a Spanish missionary, which creates significant bias: Plasencia consistently frames indigenous religious practices as idolatrous or superstitious. His purpose was partly descriptive and partly evangelical — he documented practices in order to help other missionaries understand and eventually replace them.
Key Topics in Plasencia's Account
On their religious beliefs: The Tagalogs recognized a supreme deity they called Bathala ("the maker of all things"), who dwelled in heaven. They also venerated the moon (especially during its new phase), certain stars (the morning star, called Tala, and the Pleiades, called Mapolon and Balatic), various idols called lic-ha, and crocodiles (buaya) out of fear.
On rites of passage: During a girl's first menstrual period, she was blindfolded for four days and four nights while relatives gathered for a feast. After this period, a ritual figure called the catalonan bathed her, washed her head, and removed the blindfold, reportedly to bring her good fortune in marriage and fertility.
On religious specialists (listed by Plasencia as "Priests of the Devil"):
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| Catalonan | Chief religious officiator; male or female; held in high esteem |
| Mangagauay | Healer-witch capable of inducing and curing illness |
| Manyisalat | Specialist in matters of love, capable of causing separation between couples |
| Mancocolam | One believed to emit fire from themselves at night |
| Hocloban | More powerful witch, said to kill with a glance |
| Silagan | Found in Catanduanes; believed to eat human livers |
| Magtatangal | Said to walk at night without a head or entrails |
| Osuang | Sorcerer among the Visayans, said to fly and eat human flesh |
| Mangagayoma | Made love charms from herbs, stones, and wood |
| Sonat | A kind of bishop figure who assisted the dying and predicted the fate of souls |
| Pangatahojan | Soothsayer, predictor of the future |
| Bayoguin | A person whose nature inclined toward that of the opposite gender |
On beliefs about death and burial: The deceased was buried beside their house. The Tagalogs believed in an afterlife: maca (a place of rest, like paradise) for the just and valiant, and casamaan (a place of punishment) for the wicked.
Note: The term "Priest of the Devil" reflects Plasencia's colonial-Christian framing. These roles were understood very differently within Tagalog culture itself.
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