While 1880 is remembered in the Philippines for a great earthquake that struck Manila and 1882 for a highly destructive typhoon that caused untold damage, the everyday disasters that happen all too often across the archipelago are soon forgotten. The interest is in the ‘big’ event, and historiography rarely focuses on less spectacular occurrences. 1881 was one such year when ‘nothing really much’ happened. And yet, a closer examination of the archival record reveals 12 months of earthquake, volcanic eruption, typhoon, storm, flood, and fire that afflicted people across the archipelago. These everyday calamities are historically such an integral part of Filipinos’ lives that they have shaped both their histories and their customs. More than the severity of the event, it is the frequency with which people have had to deal with calamity as an everyday event that has engendered socio-economic adaptation and cultural change. By examining the full range of disasters that people in the Philippines faced in 1881, this article examines the significant impact that geophysical and meteorological forces have had in influencing the daily lives of Filipinos in the past as they continue to do so in the present.

菲律宾因 1880 年袭击马尼拉的大地震和 1882 年一场造成难以估量破坏的破坏性极强的台风而被人们铭记，但群岛上经常发生的日常灾难很快就被遗忘了。兴趣在于“大”事件，而史学很少关注不太引人注目的事件。 1881 年就是这样的一年，“没有什么大事”发生。然而，对档案记录的仔细检查显示，长达 12 个月的地震、火山喷发、台风、风暴、洪水和火灾给整个群岛的人们带来了痛苦。从历史上看，这些日常灾难是菲律宾人生活中不可或缺的一部分，它们塑造了菲律宾人的历史和习俗。不仅仅是事件的严重性，人们不得不将灾难作为日常事件来应对的频率也引发了社会经济适应和文化变革。本文通过考察菲律宾人民在 1881 年面临的全方位灾难，探讨了地球物理和气象力量过去对菲律宾人日常生活的重大影响，以及现在的影响。