"The Philippines"
(By: The "Hawaiian WebMaster")

The Philippines (Republika ng Pilipinas) is an archipelago of 7,107 islands north of the equator. It is reputed to be the world's second largest archipelago after Indonesia. The country has an area of about 300,076 sq km and an estimated population in 1996 of 74,480,848. By the year 2000, its population projection is 78,414,000. It is about the size of Italy but larger than Cuba, Costa Rica or the British Isles.

It lies between latitude 5 deg N and 21 deg N and longitude 116 deg E and 127 deg E. The archipelago stretches 1,854 kilometers from north to south. At its widest point, it spans 1,100 kilometers. The Philippines is about 805 km off the southeast coast of Asia. The northernmost island, Y'ami in the Batanes group, is 240 km south of Taiwan; the southernmost island, Saluag in the Tawi-Tawi group, is 50 km east of Malaysian Borneo.

On the north it is bounded by the Bashi Channel, on the south by Sulu Sea and Celebes Sea, on the east by the Pacific Ocean, and on the west by the South China Sea. Only 46 are larger than 100 square km. Many of the 7,107 islands are little more than rocks, reefs, or sandbanks. Some 4,600 are named and 1,000 are inhabited. The Philippine archipelago is divided into three major island groups:

  1. Luzon
  2. Visayas
  3. Mindanao

The largest island, Luzon, occupies the northern portion. In the middle, the Visayas consist of about 6,000 islands, including Samar, the third largest in the country. Mindanao, the second largest island, is in the south. The two largest islands, Luzon (104,687 sq km) and Mindanao (94,631 sq km), account for 65 percent of the total land area and 60 percent of the country's population of more than 74 million people.

Many of the islands are of volcanic origin. There are more than 50 volcanoes distributed throughout the archipelago but only 18 of these are active. Located in the central plain of Northern Luzon, Mount Pinatubo which has been dormant for 600 years erupted on June 12, 1991. It continued erupting for five days and gained notoriety for being the most devastating volcanic explosion of the 21st century.

Numerous fault lines crisscross the archipelago, making it one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world. In July 1990 one of the worst earthquakes struck the country with a magnitude of 7.7 on the Richter Scale. It's epicenter was in Baguio City in the island of Luzon. The country is also regularly visited by an average of 20 typhoons annually. There was a year when 32 different typhoons ravaged different parts of the country.

The Philippines consist of majestic mountain peaks, white sand beaches, lush green countrysides, and a generally warm climate. We also do have very friendly, beautiful and hospitable people. There are only two pronounced seasons in most parts of the country - wet and dry.

The capital and largest city of the Philippines is Manila, which has been expanded into what is now called Metro Manila. It encompasses Manila, seven other cities, and nine municipalities. Metro Manila is the seat of the national government, and the heart of the country's business, economic, social, cultural, and educational activity. It is the major crossroads of international trade and commerce.

Local government units are the province, city, municipality, and barangay. The Philippines is officially subdivided into:

  1. Sixteen (16) Regions
  2. Seventy-seven (77) Provinces
  3. Sixty-seven (67) Cities
  4. One Thousand Five Hundred Forty (1,540) Municipalities, and
  5. Forty-One Thousand Nine Hundred Thirty-Five (41,935) Barangays

Fernando Magellan, the Portuguese navigator in the service of Spain, discovered the Philippines in 1521. Twenty-one years later, a Spanish exploration party named the group of islands in honor of Prince Philip, later Philip II of Spain. Spain retained possession of the islands for the next 350 years.

We have also been under American rule and briefly under the Japanese regime during World War II. The U.S. forces led by Gen. Douglas MacArthur reinvaded the Philippines in Oct. 1944, and after the liberation of Manila in Feb. 1945, the Philippine government was re-established. The country achieved full independence on July 4, 1946.

Its form of government is a unitary republic with two legislative houses - the Senate with 24 seats and the House of Representatives with 250 seats. The chief of state and head of government currently is President Fidel V. Ramos who was elected in 1992. According to the amended 1987 Philippine Constitution, the president can only serve one six-year term and can't be re-elected. Prior to Pres. Ramos there were 11 other Philippine presidents:

  1. Emilio Aguinaldo
  2. Manuel Luis Molina Quezon
  3. Jose P. Laurel
  4. Sergio Osmena
  5. Manuel A. Roxas
  6. Elpidio Quirino
  7. Ramon Magsaysay
  8. Carlos P. Garcia
  9. Diosdado Macapagal
  10. Ferdinand Edralin Marcos
  11. Corazon Cojuangco Aquino

The official languages are Pilipino and English. The major regional languages include: Tagalog, Ilocano, Cebuano, Ilongo, Bicol, Pampango, Pangasinan, and Waray-waray. Although the country does not have an official religion, about 84% of the population are Roman Catholics. There are also Protestants, Muslims, Buddhists and others.

The Philippines joined the United Nations in 1945 and its national (independence) day is now celebrated on June 12. For its monetary unit, the Philippine peso (equivalent to more than P35 pesos per U.S. $1) is used. In 1994, the gross domestic product was estimated at $161.4 billion. It had a $2,310 per capita with a real growth rate of 4.3% and inflation at 7.1%.

Its principal products are: textiles, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, food processing, and electronics assembly. The natural resources include: forests, crude oil, metallic and non-metallic minerals.

The average household size is 5.3 and the literacy rate in 1994 was estimated at 95%, inspite of its free and compulsory kindergarten and elementary education for ages 6-13. In 1995, the active duty military personnel was 106,500 (army, 63.8%; navy, 21.6%, and air force, 14.6%).

This is the Philippines, the pearl of the orient seas, the land of my birth, and the home of my people.

"Mabuhay at maraming salamat po!"