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The original inhabitants of the Philippines were ancestors of
the Negritos, or Aeta, small people with dark skin and curly
brown hair, who migrated from Borneo, Sumatra, and Malaya
over 30,000 years ago. In the 14th century, Arabs introduced
Islam to the southern islands and it progressed all the way
up to Luzon, the largest island in the north of the Philippines.
Ferdinand Magellan led the Spaniards to the islands in 1521
and Spain ruled the country for the next 327 years. The Spanish
are responsible for introducing Christianity to the Philippines,
which is the most prominent religion to this day.
The Americans entered the Philippines in 1898 and bought the
country from the Spanish for 20 million dollars. Education
became the main agenda for the Americans while ruling the
Philippines and as a result, many schools were built during this time.
Japan attacked the Philippines
in 1941 without warning during World War II. The Japanese
occupied the country until they were defeated in 1944 when
General Douglas MacArthur and his fleet landed at the beaches
in Palo, Leyte. His troops along with the Filipino guerillas
claimed the Philippines again from the hands of the Japanese.
The Americans gave the Philippines its Independence on July
4th 1946.
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Population 76.5 M (based on the May 2000 census)
Unemployment 13.7%(April 2002)
Total Labor Force 35.1 M
Median Family Income 88,782 Philippine Pesos (year 2000)
Functional Literacy 83.8% (year 2004)
*the Philippines ranked as the 14th country with the largest
population
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The Philippines primarily has a tropical rainforest climate.
The 2 main characteristics of this climate are high temperatures
and high atmospheric humidity. Rainfall can be expected
in every month of the year. Heavy rains are common from
June to October because of the Southwest Monsoon. Monsoons
are rare from December through June so there is little rainfall
during these months. Strong typhoons are common from June
through November.
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 The
culture of the Philippines is a combination of Asian and Spanish
influence. The people are an ethnic mix of Malay, Chinese,
Spanish, American, and Indian. Since the Spaniards dominated
the Philippines for over 300 years, many of their traditions,
and holidays originate from the Spaniards. Over 90% of the
country is Christian and 80% of these are Catholics. Local
feasts for patron saints are some of the popular catholic
celebrations. Religion plays an important role in the lives
of the Filipinos.
Hospitality is one of
the Filipino characters that truly distinguish them from other
Southeast Asian people. A visitor is treated as the most important
person they have ever met and will be introduced to the best
the family can offer - the best food, the best place in the
table, the best things, and, if they have to stay overnight,
the best room and beddings!
Filipino character is
also distinct through the people's spirit of kinship and camaraderie
and the sense of close family relations. Filipino household
usually consists of an extended family, with two to three
families in a household.Elders are treated with deep respect
and the debt of gratitude is a lifetime commitment for having
been brought by the elders into this world. Children are expected
to serve their parents until their death. Through this system
the older citizens are provided and cared for. There is no
need for nursing homes or homes for the aged. In fact, putting
one´s parents in such home would reflect badly on the
individual and incur Hiya (shame).
Filipino characters may vary from one region to another. The Northern people or the people from Luzon are noted for their industriousness. Visayans or the people from the Visayas region are carefree and fun-loving while those from Mindanao are proud and brave people.
Filipinos are generally superstitious people. This may be due to the fact that before Christianity was introduced, the ancestors of the people believed in the powers of nature, and this belief was not totally vanquished by the church. Filipinos still adhere to numerous widely-held folk beliefs that have no scientific or logical basis. To this day, some are still practiced primarily because of "there's nothing to lose if we comply" attitude.
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Filipino,
also known as Tagalog, is the official national language in
the Philippines with English considered as the country's unofficial
one. Both English and Tagalog are taught in school starting
in grade one. In addition, there are over 111 dialects spoken
throughout the different regions of the country.
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Fiestas occur frequently throughout the year and are a
big part of the social lives of the Filipinos. Each city
and barrio has at least one local festival of its own, usually
on the feast of its patron saint, so that there is always
a fiesta going on somewhere in the country. Celebrations
usually begin a week or two before the actual fiesta, with
many cultural shows, dances, pageants, and musical performances.
On the final day of the fiesta, extended family and friends
visit each other's homes and eat a large meal throughout
the day consisting of popular dishes including lechon (roasted
pig), adobo (a pork dish), pancit (noodles) and rice, to
name a few.
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©2004 - 2010 www.visayans.org
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