EARLY PH HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS PT. 2

Chao Ju-Kua

Wang Ta-Yuan

- A Chinese traveler, trader and writer from Hongzhou during the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty (Present-day Nanchang, Jiangxi Province).

- Wrote Daoyi Zhilüe/Tao I Chih Liieh or the "Description of the Barbarians of the Isles," that depicted firsthand accounts of the active pre-colonial maritime trade networks involving Filipinos.

Chinese Accounts

Scott's work was part of the Pantayong Pananaw movement during the post-Marcos period, focusing on intellectual decolonization and debunking of eurocentric narratives and theories.

Targeted H. Otley Beyer's Wave Migration Theory and his eurocentric assumptions about the pre-colonial history of the Philippines.

This work is also associated with Scott's mission to deconstruct primary sources on the pre-colonial Philippine

societies.

Historical Context

A: Until the Tang dynasty (618-907 AD), Chinese records had little to no knowledge of the group of islands between Taiwan and Java. Waters beyond the Champa coast (Vietnam) were viewed as dangerous and remote.

(EARLY MARITIME CONTACTS AND MA-I) What was known about the islands between Taiwan and Java before the Tang dynasty?

A: An edict from 972 AD mentioned Ma-i as part of a trade network with Song China, alongside Java, Achen, Borneo, and Srivijaya.

When was Ma-i mentioned in relation to the Song trade network?

A: The Song Shi (History of the Song Dynasty) recorded that by 982 AD, traders from Ma-i sailed directly to Guangzhou (Canton) to trade local goods. They came as merchants, not as tributary envoys.

What does the Song Shi say about Ma-i's trade with China?

A: Tributary states were not considered part of the Chinese Empire. They remained independent states but occupied positions within the broader Chinese cosmic order. Tributes, often exotic goods such as pearls, were not taxes or payments but an acknowledgment of the emperor's primacy among regional rulers.

What was the role of tributary states in the Chinese cosmic order?

A: According to the Song Shi, the earliest known mission was from Butuan (P'u-Tuan) in 1001 AD. Butuan was farther from China than Ma-i, taking about 30 days to reach China, compared with Ma-i's 17-day voyage.

(EARLY BUTUAN MISSIONS AND THE SONG DYNASTY) What was the earliest known pre-colonial Philippine mission to China?

A: Sanmalan, identified with Zamboanga, was also mentioned as participating in tribute missions to Song China.

What other Philippine polity was mentioned in the Song tribute missions?

A: King Chi'ling (Kiling) of Butuan sent annual missions for four years. In 1003, envoys Li-ihan and Gaminan were sent to the imperial court with local products and red parrots.

Who was King Chi'ling of Butuan, and what did he do?

A: In 1007, Butuan sent I-hsü-han to request the same privileges given to Champa, one of China's oldest tributary states. The request was denied because Butuan was considered beneath Champa in status.

What happened to Butuan's request in 1007?

A: In 1011, the new ruler Sri Bata Shaja sent Li-kan-hsieh with a gold-engraved memorial tablet and regional tributes. This successfully secured direct trading status and recognition from the emperor.

What happened when Sri Bata Shaja became ruler of Butuan?

A: Li-kan-hsieh of Butuan received the title "Cherished Transformed General," while Ali Bakti, representing King Chiilan of Sanmalan, received "Gracious-to-Strangers General."

What titles were given to the representatives of Butuan and Sanmalan?

A: Near the end of the 12th century, the Pi-she-ya or Visayans raided the Fukien coast and gathered in the Pescadores Islands. However, about 400 raiders were captured, and their leaders were killed.

(VISAYAN RAIDS AND EMERGING DIPLOMACY) What happened when the Visayans (Pi-she-ya) raided the Fukien coast?

A: They were known for raiding and capturing metals and slaves, which they used for trade.

What were the Visayans known for during this period?

A: According to Fr. Alcina, 17th-century Visayan bards still recited the epic "Kandu," which tells of Datu Sumangga raiding the coast of South China. The story was part of Princess Bugbung Humayanun of Bohol's challenges for the courting of Sumangga.

What does Fr. Alcina's Historia de las Islas e Indios de Bisayas say about Visayan raids?

True

Q: What new trading partners or places emerged in the Philippine archipelago by 1206? A: By 1206, new places included Mindoro, Palawan, Basilan, and San-Su/San-hsii.

Q: What additional places became known by 1225? A: By 1225, Babuyanes/Babuyan Islands, Lingayen, Lubang, and Mali-lu (Manila) were also known.

Q: What happened to Malilu, Ma-i, Butuan, and Sulu by the 14th century? A: By the 14th century, Malilu, Ma-i, Butuan, and Sulu were known to have become dependencies of Brunei.

A: Wang Dayuan noted that pre-colonial Filipinos, particularly tattooed people, were using Chinese junks for trade and other economic activities.

What did Wang Dayuan note about pre-colonial Filipinos?

A: The Hongwu Emperor (Zhu Yuanzhang), founder of the Ming Dynasty, sent envoys to neighboring states in East and Southeast Asia to encourage and demand tributary relationships and diplomatic ties.

(PHILIPPINE POLITIES IN THE 14TH CENTURY AND THE MING DYNASTY) What was the Ming Dynasty's approach to neighboring states?

A: Various Philippine polities responded, including Mao-li-wu (Marinduque) and Fengchia-hsi-lan (Pangasinan).

Which Philippine polities responded to the Ming Dynasty?

A: Taonu Makaw, a Muslim representative of Mao-li-wu (Marinduque), went as an emissary to the Ming court.

Who represented Mao-li-wu (Marinduque) in the Ming court?

A: Fengchia-hsi-lan (Pangasinan) appeared five times in the records through its chieftains Kamayin, Taymey, and Liyu. They were also honored by the Yongle Emperor through a state banquet.

How was Pangasinan represented in Ming records?

A: It described Mao-li-wu as the country of Ho-mao-li, with small and barren land, mountainous interiors, and open sea beyond the mountains. Its waters were rich in seafood, while its people also practiced farming.

How did Chang Hsieh's Tung Hsi Yang K'ao describe Mao-li-wu?

A: In the third year of Yongle (1405), the king of Mao-li-wu sent the Muslim emissary Tao-nu-ma-kao to the Ming court. He presented his credentials and offered native products as tribute.

What happened to Mao-li-wu during the Yongle period?

A: Sulu was mentioned in 1368, when it attacked Borneo but was driven off by Majapahit forces.

(SULU AND THE "GOLDEN AGE" OF COMMERCE AND DIPLOMACY WITH CHINA) When was Sulu first mentioned in Chinese records?

A: Sulu's first tributary mission was in 1417. Three rulers arrived with a 340-member party, including their wives, children, and retinues. They presented maritime products such as pearls and shells, along with a memorial inscribed in gold.

When did Sulu send its first tributary mission to China?

A: They were:

Paduka Batara - ruler of the eastern country

Maharaja Kolamating - ruler of the western country

Paduka Prabhu

They registered with the Board of Rites on September 12, and Paduka Batara was made the superior of the three.

Who were the three Sulu rulers who arrived in China in 1417?

A: They traveled through the Grand Canal with military escorts and received many gifts, including chinaware, court costumes, ceremonial insignia, decorated horses, 200 bolts of patterned silk, hundreds of thousands of copper coins, and enough gold and silver to cover their travel expenses.

What happened when the Sulu delegation left China?

A: Paduka Batara contracted a mysterious illness called "autumn fever" and died during the journey home. A tomb was quickly constructed, and the Yongle Emperor gave him the posthumous name "Reverent and Steadfast" (Gong Ding).

What happened to Paduka Batara on the way home?

A: The emperor's memorial praised Batara as a brilliant, sagacious, gentle, and honest king who showed sincere respect for the Way of Heaven by traveling thousands of miles with his household, tribute officials, and fellow countrymen to China in loyal obedience.

How did the Te-chou Chih (Tehchow Gazetteer) describe Paduka Batara?

A: Tumahan was proclaimed his successor. Batara's concubine, two younger sons, and 18 attendants were given accommodations and pensions so they could observe the proper three-year mourning rites.

Who succeeded Paduka Batara, and what happened to his family?

A: Wenhali and Antulu, Batara's second and third sons, stayed in China with 18 followers to care for his tomb. They eventually became part of the Chinese community, adopting the surnames Wen and An. Their descendants continued to live in China, particularly in Tenchow/Dezhou, Shandong, with thousands reportedly carrying these surnames today.

What happened to Batara's sons Wenhali and Antulu?

A: Chinese envoys could directly influence the affairs of tributary states. For example, High Commissioner Chang Ch'ien sailed with Tumahan and persuaded Kanlai Ipentun, ruler of Kumalarang (Zamboanga del Sur), to join the Ming tributary system.

How did Chinese envoys influence the affairs of tributary states?

A: Ipentun became close to the Ming court and was officially recognized by the emperor as a legitimate ruler, while Kumalarang was recognized as a legitimate partner of Ming China. However, like Paduka Batara, Ipentun died during his voyage home and was honored with the name "Vigorous and Peaceful."

What happened to Kanlai Ipentun after joining the tributary system?

A: In 1421, Paduka Suli, the brother of Paduka Batara, returned to Ming China and presented a seven-ounce (about 220-gram) pearl to express gratitude and strengthen Sulu's relationship with the Ming emperor.

What did Paduka Suli do in 1421?≈

A: According to William Henry Scott, these missions created a direct trade route between pre-colonial Philippine polities and China, bypassing the Brunei-Mai-Luzon trade network. As a result, Sulu polities appeared more frequently in Chinese annals and reports than any other Philippine polity.

How did tributary and diplomatic missions affect Philippine trade?

A: The Sulu were given the standard price for their goods and products, minus tariff duties. In the 15th year of Yongle (1421), the Sulu king came to the Ming court, received a banquet, and was provided with food and maintenance while traveling through the imperial waystations.

What did the Da Ming Huidian say about the treatment of Sulu traders?

A: In the mid-14th century, Wang Dayuan noted products such as abaca, beeswax, tortoise shells, and pearls. By the 15th century, formal tribute missions brought pearls, tortoise shell, and precious stones. In return, the emperor gave them Chinese pearls.

What products did Sulu traders bring to China?

A: Sulu's trading goods included brazilwood, black pepper, cubebs (piper longum), foreign tin, first-class "plum blossom camphor," and "rice-grain camphor."

What valuable goods did Sulu trade in 1421?

A: Maritime trade and diplomacy with China declined with the arrival of the Spanish colonizers. Later Chinese reports reportedly stopped referring to Philippine rulers as "monarchs" and instead called them "hostages," reportedly to avoid angering the Spanish colonial government.

What happened to Sulu's maritime trade and diplomacy with China?

Scott demonstrates that indigenous people from the Philippine archipelago were active, sophisticated maritime traders who proactively initiated contact and traveled to major Chinese ports like Canton (Guangzhou) centuries before Spanish colonization.

Scott highlights that these tribute missions were strategic economic maneuvers by Filipino chieftains to secure direct access to the lucrative Chinese market, effectively cutting out regional trade middlemen like Borneo or Champa.

Scott was able to challenge and debunk eurocentric theories and narratives by the colonial powers and Western scholars.

ANALYSIS

Sino-centric Sources

- Sources mainly reflect a Chinese/tribute perspective.

- Limited records on Sulu trade during the Yuan Dynasty due to trade restrictions and focus on land routes like the Silk Road.

- Lacks enough native/Filipino perspectives on the political and social realities.

Geographical Ambiguity

- Chinese records may group different Filipino places or peoples together.

- Terms like Ma-I, San-su, and Sulu have uncertain locations and identities.

- Historians still debate their exact geographical and cultural origins.

LIMITATIONS