This study is a modest attempt to offer a new framework for the writing of a "total" national history. In this perspective the study of history is framed on the role of the sea as a factor in the historical development of the Visayas region, with the aim of setting a pattern in developing a framework that will ultimately be used in the writing of a national history. The voluminous materials dealing with Visayan local history must now be synthesized to provide a history of the region with the ultimate goal of constructing a holistic history of the nation.
This paper deals with the history of the Visayas in the context of what happened in the popular national historical tradition of the country. In its narrative, the paper will try to situate the events in the islands in the context of what was happening in the region, showing parallelisms, similarities, and differences in the historical and cultural development. Moreover, it will also examine the role of the bodies of water surrounding the islands as part of the historical discourse.
In its methodology, the paper will use the proceedings from various fora and conferences dealing with Visayan history as basis for the discussion of the synthesis. The narrative will attempt to examine the texts and discourses that transpired in the Visayas region within the framework of the different regions' responses to widely accepted periods of Philippine history.
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