Philippines

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Republika ng Pilipinas Republic of the Philippines
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Maka-Diyos, Makatao, Makakalikasan, at Makabansa (English:"For God, People, Nature and Country")
Anthem: Lupang Hinirang "Chosen Land"
Capital		Manila 14°35′N 121°0′E / 14.583, 121
Largest city		Quezon City
Official languages		Filipino and English
Recognised regional languages		Tagalog, Bikol, Cebuano, Ilocano, Hiligaynon, Kapampangan, Pangasinan, Waray-Waray[1]
Ethnic groups		Bicolano · Ibanag · Ilocano · Ivatan · Ivatan · Moro · Pangasinan · Sambal · Tagalog · Visayans · Tribal groups · Chinese
Demonym		Filipino, Pinoy
Government		Unitary presidential constitutional republic
-	President	Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
-	Vice President	Noli De Castro
Independence		from Spain from United States
-	Established	March 16, 1521
-	Declared	June 12, 1898
-	Self-government	March 24, 1934
-	Independence recognized	July 4, 1946
-	Current constitution	February 2, 1987
Area
-	Total	300,000 km² [2](72nd) 115,831 sq mi
-	Water (%)	0.61%[2]
Population
-	2008 estimate	90.5 million[3] (12th)
-	2007 census	88,574,614 [4]
-	Density	295/km² (32nd) 765/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2006 estimate
-	Total	$466.632 billion [5] (25th)
-	Per capita	$5,365.287[5] (99th)
GDP (nominal)		2006 estimate
-	Total	$117.562 billion[5] (47th)
-	Per capita	$1,351.718[5] (117th)
Gini (2003)		44.5[2] (medium)
HDI (2007/2008)		▲ 0.771[6] (medium) (90th)
Currency		Peso (Filipino: piso ) (PHP)
Time zone		PST (UTC+8)
Internet TLD		.ph
Calling code		+63
1	Spanish and Arabic are promoted on a voluntary and optional basis.
2	Rankings above were taken from associated Wikipedia pages as of December, 2007, and may be based on data or data sources other than those appearing here.

Philippines portal

The Philippines (Filipino: Pilipinas, Spanish: Filipinas), officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (Republika ng Pilipinas; RP), is an archipelagic country located in Southeast Asia with Manila as its capital city. The Philippine archipelago comprises 7,107 islands in the western Pacific Ocean, sharing maritime borders with Indonesia, Malaysia, Palau, the Republic of China (Taiwan), and Vietnam. The Philippines is the world's 12th most populous country with a population approaching 90 million people.^[3][5] Its national economy is the 37th largest in the world with a 2006 gross domestic product (GDP) of over US$117.562 billion.^[5] There are more than 11 million overseas Filipinos worldwide, the largest diaspora network in the world, about 11% of the total population of the Philippines. Ecologically, Philippines is considered to be among 17 of the most megadiverse countries in the world.^[7]

The Philippines was settled mostly by Malay people. The Philippines became a Spanish colony in the 16th century, and an American territory at the beginning of the 20th century. The Katipunan led the Philippine Revolution of 1896 that won independence from Spain. The U.S. occupation of the Philippines during the Spanish-American War led to the outbreak of the Philippine-American War. The Philippines gained its independence from the United States on July 4, 1946 after the Pacific War (the Second World War) via the Treaty of Manila. Martial law was declared in 1972 by Ferdinand Marcos. The assassination of Benigno Aquino, Jr. led to the People Power Revolution of 1986 that overthrew authoritarian rule. Political upheavals and corruption scandals alternated with the peaceful transition of power during the period that followed the restoration of democracy.^[2]

Modern Philippines has many affinities with the Western world, derived mainly from the cultures of Spain, Latin America, and the United States. Roman Catholicism is the country's predominant religion, although pre-Hispanic indigenous religious practices still exist; there are also followers of Islam.^[8] Spanish was an official language of the Philippines until 1973. Since then, the two official languages are Filipino and English.^[2]

Etymology

The name Philippines and its spanish counterpart, Filipinas, are derived from the name of Phillip II, the King of Spain in the late 16th century.^[9] Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos used the name Las Islas Filipinas in honor of the then-Crown Prince during his expedition to the Philippines, originally referring to the islands of Leyte and Samar. Despite the presence of other names, the name Filipinas was eventually adopted as the name of the entire archipelago.^[9]

History

Main article: History of the Philippines

Archeological and paleontological discoveries show that Homo sapiens existed in Palawan circa 50,000 BC. The aboriginal people of the Philippines, the Negritos, are an Australo-Melanesian people, which arrived in the Philippines at least 30,000 years ago. The Austronesians, who originated from populations of Taiwanese aboriginals that migrated from mainland Asia approximately 6000 years ago, colonized the Philippine islands and eventually migrated to Indonesia, Malaysia and, soon after, to the Polynesian islands and Madagascar.^{[citation needed]}

The Philippines had cultural ties with Malaysia, Indonesia, India in ancient times, and trade relations with China and Japan as early as the 9th century.

Islam was brought to the Philippines by traders and proselytizers from Malaysia and Indonesia. The Islamization of the Philippines is due to the strength of then-Muslim India.^[10] By the 13th century, Islam was established in the Sulu Archipelago and spread from there to Mindanao; it had reached the Manila area by 1565. Muslim converts established Islamic communities and states ruled by rajas or sultans. However, no Islamic state exercised sovereignty over much of the archipelago, and the indigenous maritime and agricultural societies ruled by datus or apos remained autonomous. When the Spanish arrived in the 16th century, the majority of the estimated 500,000 people in the islands lived in independent settlements called 'barangay' or networks of settlements.

The Banaue Rice Terraces, they are part of the Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras, ancient sprawling man-made structures from 2,000 to 6,000 years old, which are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

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