DESCRIPTION OF THE PHILIPPINES
By Chao Ju-kua, a Chinese official and geographer, ca. 1280.
Source: This document is obtained from the Filipino paper Periódico Hebdomadario Escolar, issue of November 9, 1901.
Translation: This is by James Alexander Robertson.
CHAO JU-KUA’S DESCRIPTION OF THE PHILIPPINES
[The following description is translated from a copy of the Periódico Hebdomadario Escolar (i.e., “Students’ Weekly Paper”) for November 9, 1901, being no. 6 in order of issue of that paper. It was there published by Clemente J. Zulueta (now deceased), then professor of history, and later engaged in archival researches in Spain for the Philippine branch of the United States government, who was a man of real ability. He himself communicated the existence of this publication to us; the copy of the paper, which is rare, was lent us by James A. LeRoy. An editorial note at the beginning of the chapter reads as follows: “As we consider it of some importance to the historical, or rather pre-historical, cartography of Filipinas, we transcribe the following lines, which are a Spanish translation of chapter xl of the geography of the Chinese writer Chao Ju-kua.[1] Professor Blumentritt translated it from the English, and Dr. Hirth translated directly into English the MS. of Chao Ju-kua [ca., 1891] who according to Blumentritt, flourished in the thirteenth century—that is, three centuries before Magallanes’s expedition.” Our search for the translation by Dr. Hirth has been unavailing, and we are therefore compelled to retranslate Blumentritt’s translation. Concerning this translation we are furnished the following information in a letter from James A. LeRoy, dated January 27, 1904: “Zulueta owns the original letter and the translation of this chapter as written out by Ferdinand Blumentritt and sent to Rizal while the latter was in exile in 1894. Blumentritt made the annotations to the chapter, as is proved by his letter. In his letter to Rizal enclosing the translation of the chapter, Blumentritt tells Rizal that the previous year (1893) a friend of his in Madrid had published (how or where is not told) his hastily-made version of this chapter, with hasty notes, which he had sent this friend for his own use in a study of the prehistoric Philippines, but had no idea that it would be used independently.” A Spanish version with parallel English translation appeared in Revista historica de Filipinas (i.e., “Filipino Historical Review”) for June, 1905 (vol. 1, no. 2), which is signed by P. L. Stangl. His version differs from that of Blumentritt given by Zulueta, being divided into two chapters—xl, called “Ma-yi,” and xli, called “San-Hsii.” We have, however, preferred to use Zulueta’s version, as we do not know whence Stangl’s version has proceeded. We subjoin Blumentritt’s notes accompanying Zulueta’s version, signing such notes “B.”]