What is History? Flashcards
TOPIC 1
What is history?
Everything that happened in the past
It is also an account of the past.
Define history in simple terms.
Both the past and the study of the past.
What is the Greek origin of the word ‘history’?
Derived from the Greek word ‘historia’, meaning ‘inquiry’ or ‘knowledge from inquiry’.
What does the term ‘scientia’ refer to in the context of history?
Non-chronological systematic accounts of natural phenomena.
What is a common definition of history?
The past of mankind.
What are the three concepts of history?
- History-activity *
- History-as-record *
- History-as-historiography *
Why study history?
Ignorance of history deprives us to comprehend about the past.
What can an examination of the past tell us?
A great deal about how we came to be who we are.
What is the role of a historian?
Endeavors to reconstruct as much of the past of mankind as he can.
What must a historian ensure about their records?
That they really come from the past and are factual.
Fill in the blank: History is a systematic account for a set of natural phenomena, whether or not chronological ordering was a factor in the account, as stated by _______.
[Aristotle]
True or False: The word ‘history’ was historically reserved for accounts of human affairs in non-chronological order.
False
What are the limitations of a historian’s imagination?
It is directed towards recreation and not creation.
What is the importance of lessons from history?
They help us understand the past.
What does the historian’s task involve?
Recording causal relations and developments of past human events.
What is historiography?
The imaginative reconstruction of the past from the data derived by that process
Historiography refers to the writing of history and encompasses various methodologies and approaches to historical research.
What does positivism emphasize?
Empirical and observable evidence before one can claim that particular knowledge is true
Positivism emerged between the 18th and 19th centuries as a school of thought.
What is post-colonialism?
A school of thought that emerged in the early 20th century when formerly colonized nations grappled with creating their identities against their colonial past
Post-colonialism critically examines the effects of colonization on cultures and societies.
What are the two main goals in writing history according to post-colonialism?
- To tell the history of their nation that highlights their identity, free from colonial discourse
- To criticize the methods, effects, and ideas of colonialism
These goals reflect the desire for self-definition and critique of colonial narratives.
What is the Annales School of History?
A school of history born in France that challenged the canons of history
Scholars like Lucien Febvre and Fernand Braudel integrated history with other disciplines.
What disciplines did Annales thinkers incorporate into history?
- Geography
- Anthropology
- Archaeology
- Linguistics
This interdisciplinary approach aimed to provide a more comprehensive understanding of historical events.
What significant changes occurred in Philippine historiography?
Several changes since the pre-colonial period until the present
Filipino historian Zeus Salazar introduced new guiding philosophy for writing and teaching history.
Fill in the blank: The writing of history is called _______.
[historiography]
True or False: Positivism requires theoretical knowledge over empirical evidence.
False