List: Parts of bahay na bato

The turn of the century bahay na bato or "stone house" -- the Old Manila
Nostalgia blog correctly renames it the bahay na bato at kahoy -- is practically
extinct. Except for Las Casas de Acuzar, which dismantles bahay na bato from
their original context and reconstructs them in a resort near the shore of Bagac,
Bataan, no one builds them anymore.
Although non-indigenous, the bahay na bato (at kahoy) has become "authentic
Filipino," to go by Fernando Nakpil-Zialcita's argument, because the original
Spanish architectural design has been repurposed to suit the native climate using
the native architectural idiom, in particular construction ideas from the bahay
kubo. The Old Manila Nostalgia blogger observantly notes these ingenious
adjustments:
- making the structure more earthquake-proof
- allowing more light into the house
- allowing more air
- shielding the house from the rain and heat of the sun
- raising the floor as a precaution against flood
Bahay na bato researcher Maria Cecilia Sunico Atienza lists the following as
among the most distinguishing features of the bahay na bato (in no particular
order): portico, porte cochere, volada, load-bearing walls, pilasters, engaged
column, stained-glass windows, capiz sliding ventanas, and ventanillas.
Note that, just like everything else in Filipino culture, the bahay na bato also has
several variations along ethnic lines, or so Imelda Marcos' Nayong Pilipino
educated us long ago. The bahay na bato in Cebu, for example, has differences
from the one in, say, Samar. Augusto Villalon, in support of this observation, has
an interesting compare-and-contrast essay on the Vigan (Ilocos Sur) bahay na
bato versus the Taal (Batangas) bahay na bato. (Unfortunately, it can't be found
via Google.)
Other observers point out another distinguishing feature: the unprecedented

mixing and matching of architectural styles, such that a bahay na bato can have
neo-gothic and neo-Mudejar (neo-Moorish) details in the same corners -- that is,
on top of the baroque (which may be of particular style, e.g. the spare-bycomparison Viennese Secessionist style). These quaint mixes give the bahay na
bato an architectural style that evolved from both East and West and thus making
it truly Filipino.
One can't help but think the bahay na bato should be a source of identity and
pride among Filipinos, and yet the realities on the ground contradict this
assumption. Instead of continuing with the construction of our houses in this
tradition, which is perfectly suited to the tropics, we now mostly prefer the
"modern Asian" or Japanese style. What we do with the fine cultural fusion that is
the bahay na bato is consign it to the status of a museum artifact, to be visited
and relished only as an afterthought. Apart from this, we obliterate it for
commercial purposes, if not leave to self-destruction.
Why has the bahay na bato fallen into disrepair and disfavor? We can only
speculate. Maybe the reason is economics: it's simply too expensive to build the
bahay na bato in the original style using original materials.
Could the reason also be sociopolitical in nature? Could it also be that its death is
only a reflection of the death of the feudalistic structure of Philippine society?
Let's not forget that, in its time, the bahay na bato is a status symbol, and
because of that, the Filipino masses could only associate it with a social status
and a way of life way beyond their means in their whole lifetime. Do the Filipino
masses regard the bahay na bato with hate, resentment, or disdain? Maybe the
left-leaning do, but I have yet to actually meet such a resentful bunch among
fellow ordinary Filipinos.
With the bahay na bato inevitably vanishing from our culture, except as museum
artifacts and themed-resort structures, these architectural and interior design
terms have practically vanished along with it. All we can do now is make this
quick requiem of a list:

Bahay na Bato at Kahoy Architectural and Home Furnishing Terms

Accessoria - "apartment-type dwelling characterized by common party walls
shared by adjoining units with separate door each in front"
Aljibe - cistern
Antesala - see Caida
Aparador de tres lunas - "armoire with three sections"
Arko - arch
Azotea - "open-air balcony beside the kitchen that housed a cistern (aljibe) and
the bathroom and was usually a work area" (Bambi Harper)
Atlas, Atlantes - "a column in the shape of a man"
Balconaje - balcony
Banggera - " a wooden dish rack that extends outside the kitchen window. After
the dishes are washed, they are placed here to be air-dried. The inverted cups
are placed on the ends of the wooden sticks and the plates are placed in
between or above the slats. On the far left is a tapayan/banga, an earthenware
jar that keeps water cool." (Old Manila Nostalgia blog)
Baera - bathtub
Bao - bathroom
Barandillas - (usually wooden) railing or balustrade
Barrigones - "buntis" (or bombere, pregnant) grillworks to accommodate planters

Brackets - series of often diagonal braces placed in support of the volada on the
second floor
Butaka - "a version of silla perezosa with no leg rests"
Caida - landing on the upper entrance hall; "foyer of the second floor"; also
called Antesala
Calado - lace-style fretwork or latticework used to adorn room dividers and to
allow air to circulate
Capilla - "long bench, a staple item in the caida"
Capital - "topmost member of a column (or pilaster) mediating between the
column and the load"
Capiz window - (often) sliding window made of capiz shells cut into squares
Caryatid - "a sculpted female figure serving as an architectural support taking
the place of a column or a pillar supporting an entablature on her head"
Clerestory - "any high windows above eye level for the purpose of bringing
outside light, fresh air, or both into the inner space"
Cocina - kitchen built separately from the house
Colonette - "a small, thin decorative column supporting a beam (horizontal
timber) or lintel (beam spanning a door or window)"
Comedor - dining room
Comun - toilet; also called Latrina
Cornice - a ledge or "generally any horizontal decorative molding that crowns a

building or furniture element"

Court, Courtyard - "a space enclosed by walls and is open to the sky; has
azotea or balconaje"
Cuartos - rooms
Cuatro aguas - "hip roof, which has more corners and angles, making it stronger
than the dos aguas (gable) or high-pitched roof due to stronger aerodynamics
(i.e., more wind resistance); also has the advantage of providing an overhang,
which is effective for protecting the house from rainwater and from direct sunlight"
Dapugan - "a platform in the kitchen where the 'kalan' or clay stove is placed"
Despacho - office; also Oficina
Dispensa - pantry
Dos aguas - "gable or high-pitched roof"
Eave - "bottom edge of a roof"
Engaged column - column in support of the roof above
Entresuelo - mezzanine; "literally meaning 'between floors, this is the area
where clients, tenants or estate managers (if the owner was a rich landowner)
wait before being admitted to the oficina (office)"
Escalera - stairway
Escritorio - "a large chest of drawers, commonly adorned with inlay work"
Faade - front

Finial - "a usually foliated ornament forming an upper extremity"

Fresquera - storage room for salted food, etc.; placed on the wall of the house
facing outside
Gable - "the part of a wall that encloses the end of a pitched roof"
Gallinera - literally, "chicken seat"; "usually found outside the oficina of a
landowner; coming from the Spanish word 'gallo' (chicken), this church benchinspired settee is used for farmers to place chickens on the cage underneath in
exchange for paying cash" (Old Manila Nostalgia blog)
Gargoyle - "a carved stone grotesque with a spout designed to convey water
from a roof and away from the side of a building, thereby preventing rainwater
from running down masonry walls and eroding the mortar between"
Gingerbread trim, Running trim - "a fancifully cut and pierced frieze metal
sheet attached to the eaves, a trimming that instantly transforms simple windows
into a piece of art"; "usually attached to the eaves to make it more decorative and
to curving iron rods that help support the media agua"
Kama - typically meaning four-poster bed
Kama ni Ah-tay - "a once popular signature four poster bed design that was
carved by a famous Chinese furniture maker named Eduardo Ah Tay. To have
this bed was considered a symbol of status during the Spanish era." (Old Manila
Nostalgia blog)
Kantoneras (Brackets) - "either plain calado cut-outs or fully carved
embellishments usually placed where beams and columns intersect especially
under the "soffit" or overhanging ceiling outside house; also seen to decorate
door or window openings, hallways or simply dividing spaces"
Lansenas - kitchen sideboards

Latrina - see Comun

Load-bearing wall - wall used in place of posts to bear weight
Machuca tiles (formerly known as baldozas mosaicas) - colorful
Mediterranean-style cement tiles used for the zaguan flooring; manufactured by
the Machuca company; another brand is Majolica
Mascaron - "an architectural ornament representing a face or head -- human or
animal -- that is often grotesque or frightening"
Media aguas - canopy or roof shed, consisting of "a piece of metal roof that
protects the window from rain or heat"; not to be confused with awning
Mirador - lighthouse
Moulding, molding - "a strip of material (such as wood or metal) with some
design or pattern that is used as a decoration on a wall, on the edge of a table,
etc."
Oratorio - prayer room with an altar of santos
Painted metal sheet ceiling - "tin or copper ceiling from maybe late Victorian to
early American colonial period, to prevent decay by moisture or worms (or even
mouse)"
Paminggalan - "a cabinet where leftover food and preserves are stored. The
doors of the cabinet have slats so that it can absorb air and room temperature
inside. To avoid ants from coming up and getting to the food, the legs of the
cabinet are placed on containers filled with kerosene or any liquid." (Old Manila
Nostalgia blog)
Pasamano - window ledge

Persiana - louver window

Piedra china - Chinese stone used to pave the floor of the zaguan
Pilaster - false pillar "used to give the appearance of a supporting column and to
articulate an extent of wall, with only an ornamental function"
Platera - aparador or cabinet for kitchenware (chiefly china)
Porte cochere - horse carriage porch or portico at the main entrance
Portico - "(from Italian) a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended
as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or
enclosed by walls"
Puerta - "door of the entrada principal (main entrance)"
Puertita - "small cut door that is part of the puerta"
Pugon - clay oven
Punkah - ceiling cloth fan
Sala mayor - main living room, place for late-afternoon parties called tertulias
and dances called bailes
Sala menor - secondary living room
Sillas Americanas - "American chairs, considered the Monobloc chairs of their
time (due to ubiquity)"
Silla perezosa - lazy chair

Solihiya - typical weave pattern in furniture

Stained glass - "glass colored or stained (as by fusing metallic oxides into it) for
decorative applications (as in windows)"
Transom - "transverse horizontal structural beam or bar"
Trompe l'oeil - "a style of painting in which things are painted in a way that
makes them look like real objects"
Tumba-tumba - Philippine rocking chair
Ventana - "wooden window panel that uses a grid pattern with flattened capiz
shell panes"; often in sliding style, as opposed to flinging out
Ventanilla - literally 'small window'; "sliding panels between the floor and
windows" to allow more air and light; "usually protected by balustrades which can
either be wooden or wrought iron grills"
Volada - "an enclosed overhanging balcony"; "a gallery (along the elaborate
system of windows) which protects the rooms from the heat of the sun"
Yerong pukpok - see Gingerbread trim
Zaguan - ground floor (literally "passageway" in Arabic) to accommodate horse
carriages and carrozas (processional carriages)

Webliography:
English Oxford Dictionary
Wikipedia

http://www.scribd.com/doc/28427065/Philippine-Spanish-Interior-Design
Bahay na Bato by Rodrigo D. Perez (2007)
http://www.librarylink.org.ph/featarticle.asp?articleid=110
Old Manila Nostalgia Facebook
page: https://www.facebook.com/oldmanilanostalgia
http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/122223/taals-19th-century-house-history-madeinteresting#ixzz2vGohlJ7D
Philippine Ancestral Houses (1810-1930) by Fernando Nakpil Zialcita and Martin
I. Tinio, GCF Books (1980)
Arkitekturang Filipino: A History of Architecture and Urbanism in the Philippines
by Gerard Lico, UP Press (2008)
Philippine Heritage Homes: A Guidebook by Jaime C. Laya, Cristina V. Turalba
and Martin I. Tinio, Jr. (2014)
Ancestral Houses in the Philippines Facebook page members Maria Cecilia
Atienza Sunico, Chris Chan, et al.
http://historyofarchitecture.weebly.com/bahay-na-bato.html
A wonderful selection of photographs
here: http://galapamore.weebly.com/ancestral-houses-in-the-philippines.html