Basic facts
- OFFICIAL NAME: Republic of the Philippines
- ANTHEM: Lupang Hinirang (also known as Bayang Magiliw [Nation Beloved] ).
- FORM OF GOVERNMENT: Republic
- CAPITAL CITY: Manila-located on the island of Luzon
- POPULATION: approximately 107,668,231 people
- OFFICIAL LANGUAGE: Filipino (based on Tagalog), English
- MONEY: Philippine peso
- AREA: About 115,831 square miles (300,000 square kilometres)
GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURES
The Philippines is a string of over 7,100 islands in the south east of Asia between South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean.
Luzon and Mindanao are the two largest islands and make two-thirds of the total land area. Only about one third of the islands are inhabited.
The Philippines borders several seas: to the east there is the Philippine Sea and the Pacific Ocean, to the south there is the Celebes Sea, in the south west lies the Sulu Sea and on the west we have the South China Sea. In total, the Philippines has a total coastline of 36,289 km (22,549 mi).
The highest mountain is called Mt. Apo measuring 2,954m/9,692 ft high and is located in Mindanao.
Major rivers include: the Cagayan, Agno, Abra, Bicol, and Pampanga in Luzon and the Cotabato and Agusan in Mindanao.
PEOPLE AND CULTURE
Filipinos are mainly of Malay descent, frequently with Chinese and sometimes American or Spanish ancestry.
Most Filipinos have Spanish names because of a 19th-century Spanish decree that required them to use Spanish surnames, or last names. Parents often name their children after the saint whose feast day was on the day of their birth.
Elementary education in the Philippines starts at age seven by law and lasts for 6 years. High school education begins at the age of 13 and lasts for four years. College begins there after and takes four years.
About 81% of the population are Roman Catholics.
There are more than 80 indigenous languages and dialects spoken in the Philippines.
NATURE
The islands in the Philippines are home to many species of flowering plants and ferns, including hundreds of orchids species. The diverse flora includes 8,000 species of flowering plants, 1,000 kinds of ferns, and 800 species of orchids.
The Philippines are inhabited by more than 200 species of
mammals, including monkeys, squirrels, lemurs, mice, pangolins, chevrotains, mongooses, civet cats, and red and brown deer, among others.
Hundreds (196) of species of
birds live in the Philippines, either for all or part of the year, including peacocks, pheasants, doves, parrots, kingfishers, sunbirds, tailorbirds, weaverbirds, and hornbills.
There are 190 different reptile species. Crocodiles and the larger snakes include the python and several varieties of cobra.
The Philippine eagle, which eats monkeys, is an endangered species due to deforestation.
GOVERNMENT
Filipinos elect their president who serves a 6 year term. The president is the head of state and the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
The economy is based on agriculture, light industry, and services. The country produces bananas, rice, coconuts, corn, fish, mangos, pineapples, sugarcane, pork, and beef.
HISTORY
In 1951, Ferdinand Magellan arrived in the Philippines. The name Philippines comes from Philip II who was the king of
Spain during the 16th century when the country became a Spanish colony.
The Philippines was given up to the
United States in 1898 following the Spanish-American War. In 1935 the Philippines became self-governing, but their independence was delayed by World War II and the invasion of Japanese troops.
The islands were liberated by U.S. forces in 1944-45, and the Republic of the Philippines was proclaimed in 1946, with a government patterned on that of the United States.
In 1965, Ferdinand Marcos was elected president. He declared martial law in 1972, which lasted until 1981. After ruling for 20 years, Marcos was driven from power in 1986. Corazon Aquino became president and instituted a period of democratic rule in the country.
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