Analyze the

Significance of
Cultural, Social,
Political, and
Economic Symbols
and Practices
UCSP Quarter 1 – Module 4
 Cultural, Social, Political, and
Economic Symbols and Practices
Symbol is an object, word, or action that
stands for something else, without natural
relationship, that is culturally defined. Symbols
such as gestures, signs, objects, signals, and
words, help people understand the world.
Symbols provide clues to understanding
experiences.
 Cultural, Social, Political, and
Economic Symbols and Practices
They relay recognizable meanings that
are shared by societies. Symbolism, on the
other hand, is when something represents
abstract ideas or concepts, it assigns names,
denominations, and defines relations between
various elements factors, actions, goals,
means, objects, values, etc.) articulated within
a narrative.
Functions of
Symbols and
Symbolism
 Functions of Symbols and
Symbolism
1. Social symbols are used to transfer culture,
ideologies, or beliefs from group to another
group of people.
2. Symbols are also used to preserve traditions
or beliefs of a certain group of people
 Functions of Symbols and
Symbolism
3. All symbols contain the "face" and "hidden"
values, the hidden value, in a functional
perspective, holds greater meaning and
importance than the face value.
4. Symbols and symbolism have been used to
create movements, spread ideas, and share
advocacies that surpasses time and
distance.
Types of Symbols
Types of Symbols
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Symbols Symbols
01
Cultural
Symbols
- manifestation that signifies
ideology or particular culture
that has meaning within that
culture.
Types of Symbols
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Symbols Symbols
02
Social
Symbols
- relating to human societies
and its modes of organization
(i.e., social classes, social
problems, social issues, etc.)
Types of Symbols
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03
Political
Symbols
- used to represent a political
standpoint; seen in various
media and forms such as
banners, flag, motto, etc.
Types of Symbols
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04
Economic
Symbols
- used in production,
distribution, and consumption of
goods and services like
currency, market, labor,
demands and other economic
activities.
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 General
Examples of
Cultural Symbols
and Practices
 General Examples of Cultural
Symbols and Practices

Objects, figures, sounds and colors.

Facial expressions, word interpretations, or

gestures such as handshakes and hand signals,
instead of symbols and signs.
Types of Symbols
& Practices
Types of Symbols & Practices
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 Cultural Symbols &
01 Practices

Cultural Practices are the

manifestation of a culture or sub-culture,
especially concerning the traditional and
customary practices of a particular ethnic
or other cultural group.
 Cultural Symbols &
01 Practices

Examples: religious and spiritual, medical

treatment, forms of artistic expressions,
culinary, housing and child-rearing
practices.
01

Some Religious
Symbols Around
the World
01 Some Religious
Symbols Around
the World
Christion Cross – The
Christian cross has
traditionally been a symbol
representing Christianity or
Christendom as a whole, and
is the best known symbol of
Christianity.
01 Some Religious
Symbols Around
the World
Star and Crescent - The
star and crescent symbol
was used as the flag of the
Ottoman Empire from 1844.
It was only gradually
associated with Islam, in
particular, due to its
ubiquitous use in the
01 Some Religious
Symbols Around
the World
Star and Crescent - It was
only occasionally adopted as
an emblem of Islamic
organizations, such as the
All-India Muslim League in
1940 (later becoming the
Flag of Pakistan), and the US
American Nation of Islam in
01 Some Religious
Symbols Around
the World
Jewish flags - featuring
hexagrams alongside other
devices appear from As early
as the 14th or 15th century
CE. Use of the Star of David
as representing the Jewish
community is first recorded
in Vienna in the 17th century
01
Some Cultural
Symbols in the
Philippines
01 Some Cultural Symbols in the
Philippines
01 Some Cultural Symbols in the
Philippines
01
Some Cultural
Practices in the
Philippines
01 Some Cultural Practices in
the Philippines
Traditional Medical Practices - belief in
“albularyo”, herbal medicines, alternative
medicines, and other home remedies.
01 Some Cultural Practices in
the Philippines
Religious/Spiritual Practices – Obando
Festival in Bulacan for fertility, Panaad sa
Camiguin as act of penance and pilgrim.
Feast of the Black Nazarene in Manila, etc.
01 Some Cultural Practices in
the Philippines
Culinary Practices - Rice 3 meals a day,
Adobo, Sinigang, street foods, Balut, rice
cakes, etc. Child- rearing Practices- respectful
(used of the words mano, po at opo),
obedience to parents and elders, no talking
back to elders, removing footwear before
entering the house, family mealtime,
ninong/ninang, ate/kuya, punishment using
Types of Symbols & Practices
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02 Social Symbols & Practices

It is a visible, external denotation of

one’s social position, indicator of one’s
social or economic status.
02 Social Symbols & Practices

Status Symbol relates to how

individuals and groups interact and
interpret various cultural symbols. It can
be seen in clothing and possessions,
societal recognition, material possessions
and other recognized symbols used
worldwide such as white dove for peace,
red heart for love, etc.
02
Examples of
Common Social
Symbols (Colors)
02 Examples of Common
Social Symbols (Colors)
Black - evil, death
White - purity, peace
Red - blood, war, possession, danger
Purple - royalty
02
Some Social
Symbols are
Informative or
Instructive
02 Some Social Symbols are
Informative or Instructive
Types of Symbols & Practices
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Symbols & Symbols &

Practices Practices
 Political Symbols &
03 Practices

The artifacts or objectifications of

different political meanings especially
related to power. Political symbols are
usually used to embody an ideology, an
advocacy, or a group of people with
same principles.
 Political Symbols &
03 Practices

Political practices are common

things that are done within a state or
country. It is related to the practices done
in the administration, distribution and
attainment of power, bureaucratic
composition, etc.
03
Examples of
Common Social
Symbols (Colors)
03 Examples of Common
Political Symbols (Colors)

Black – anarchism, facism, Catholicism, Cristian

democracy
Blue – conservatism, Judaism, men,
monarchism, liberalism
Brown – Nazism, facism
Gold – capitalism, liberalism
02
Example of
Common Political
Symbols in the
Philippines
03 Example of Common
Political Symbols in the
Philippines
03
Political
Practices in the
Philippines
 Political Practices in the
03 Philippines

•Political Dynasties - it is the

concentration, consolidation or
perpetuation of public office and
political power by persons related to one
another.
• Filipino Clans
• Celebrities turned Politicians.
• Power Revolt
 Political Practices in the
03 Philippines

•Palakasan System - refers to a system of

getting an advantage when having or
knowing someone powerful from the
office that can recommend you. This
usually happens within government
offices.
• Trapo (Traditional Politics)
• Catholic Church Influence
Types of Symbols & Practices
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Symbols & Symbols &

Practices Practices
 Economic Symbols &
04 Practices

This represents economic

standpoint. It can be seen in various
media such as Stock Exchange, Money,
and Currency, Gold and Petroleum, Life
Insurance, Banking, etc.
 Economic Symbols &
04 Practices

Example
s: New Zealand $ New Zealand
Dollar
Philippines ₱ Philippine Peso
South Korea ₩ South Korean
Won
Thailand ฿ Thai Baht
04
Philippine
Economic
Practices
 Philippine Economic
04 Practices

In terms of savings, one of the

traditional ways of saving money in Filipino
is using “alkansya”. It is where they
Filipino use bamboo as a vault to their
money until it becomes full and ready to
be withdrawn by its owner.
 Philippine Economic
04 Practices

Another way of economic practice of

Filipino is “paluwagan”. It is a group
savings where group of people agrees to
give money to a money manager who is
also part of this group and manages the
money. The money will cycle throughout
the group.
Significance of
Symbols and
Symbolism
 Significance of Symbols and
Symbolism

As rational thinkers, we have been

making and giving meaning to symbols for
a long time. Symbols have been part of
our lives and growth as humankind.
 Significance of Symbols and
Symbolism

The usage of symbols and

symbolism have given mankind an avenue
to communicate with different groups of
people, influence others of different
ideologies, and preserve values that were
transferred from generations to
generations.
THANK YOU!
 Assessment
1. Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a
symbol?
a. It has a natural relationship to the thing it
represents.
b. It is culturally defined.
c. It can be an object, word, or action.
d. It helps people understand the world. A
2. What is the purpose of symbolism?
e. To create a visual representation of an idea.
f. To make abstract concepts understandable.
g. To define relationships between elements within a
 Assessment
3. Which of the following is NOT a types of symbols?
a. Cultural symbols
b. Economic symbols
c. Traditional symbols
d. Political symbols
4. It is used to transfer culture, ideologies, or beliefs
from a group to another group of people.
e. Economic symbol
f. Social symbol
g. Political symbol
h. Cultural symbol
 Assessment
5. It is a visible, external denotation of one's social position,
indicator of one's social or economic status.
a. Cultural Symbols & Practices
b. Social Symbols & Practices
c. Political Symbols & Practices
d. Economic Symbols & Practices
6. It relates to how individuals and groups interact and
interpret various cultural symbols.
e. Cultural symbols
f. Religious symbols
g. Economic symbols and practices
h. Status symbol
Assessment

7-10. Types of Symbols and Practices