From “Bahay-Kubo” to “Bahay na Bato”…The History of “Bahay na Bato”

From “Bahay-Kubo” to “Bahay na Bato”…
The History of “Bahay na Bato”


On the latter part of the Age of Exploration, the Spaniards reached the East by traveling westward in search of spices. They docked in the Philippines, but left promptly after Ferdinand Magellan was killed in a battle among the Filipinos and the Spanish explorers. However, despite this loss, the company was still successful in that it was able to circumnavigate the world. Shortly after, many other voyages were sent to the Philippines, and thus many accounts were made of the people, its present civilization, and other details.

On a land between the Pasig River and Manila Bay (presently Manila) Martin de Goiti found a “large and wealthy settlement of about 2,000, fenced in by a log palisade, and guarded by cannons and bombardiers.” The houses were made of wood, bamboo and a nipa thatch; the materials were brittle, they easily rotted, thus the houses were prone to fire. The...