Philippines

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"Philippine" redirects here. For the town in the Netherlands, see Philippine, Netherlands.
Coordinates: 13°N 122°E

Republic of the Philippines

Republika ng Pilipinas (Filipino)

Flag

Coat of arms

Motto:
"Maka-Diyos, Maka-Tao, Makakalikasan at Makabansa"[1]
"For God, People, Nature and Country"

Anthem: Lupang Hinirang

Chosen Land

Great Seal

Dakilang Sagisag ng Pilipinas (Filipino)

Great Seal of the Philippines
Capital Manilaa
14°35′N 120°58′E

Largest city Quezon City

14°38′N 121°02′E

 Filipino
Official languages
 English
Recognized
19 languages[show]
regional languages

National language Filipino

Other recognized Official and nationalsign languageb

languages Filipino Sign Language

Ethnic groups  32.9% Visayan

 29.5% Tagalog
(2015)
 10.1% Moro
 10% Ilocano
 5.8% Bicolano
 2.8% Kapampangan
 1.6% Igorot
 1.5% Pangasinense
 1.5% Chinese
 3.3% others
 [citation needed]
 Religion  80.5% Catholicism
 10.8% Protestantism
 5.5% Islam
 3.2% others[3]

Demonym(s) Filipino
(masculine or neutral)
Filipina
(feminine)
Pinoy
(colloquial masculine or neutral)
Pinay
(colloquial feminine)
Philippine

Government Unitary presidentialconstitutionalrepublic

• President Rodrigo Duterte

• Vice President Maria Leonor Robredo

• Senate President Vicente Sotto III

• House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano

• Chief Justice Lucas Bersamin

Legislature Congress

• Upper house Senate

• Lower house House of Representatives

Formation of the republic

• Independence from June 12, 1898

Spain declared
• Treaty of Paris December 10, 1898
(1898) / Spanish
cessiond

• Malolos January 21, 1899

Constitution/ First
Philippine Republic f

• Tydings–McDuffie Act March 24, 1934

• Commonwealth of May 14, 1935

the Philippines

• Treaty of Manila / July 4, 1946

Independence from
United States e

• Current constitution February 2, 1987

Area

• Total 300,000[4][5] km2(120,000 sq mi) (72nd)

• Water (%) 0.61[6] (inland waters)

• Land 300,000

Population

• 2015 census 100,981,437[7](13th)

• Density 336/km2(870.2/sq mi) (47th)

GDP (PPP) 2019 estimate

• Total $1.041 trillion[8](27th)

• Per capita $9,538[8] (119th)

GDP (nominal) 2019 estimate

• Total $354 billion[8] (36th)

• Per capita $3,246[8] (125th)

 Gini (2015) 40.1[9]
medium · 44th

HDI (2017) 0.699[10]

medium · 113th

Currency Peso (₱) (PHP)

Time zone UTC+8 (PST)

• Summer (DST) UTC+8 (not observed)

Date format  mm-dd-yyyy

 dd-mm-yyyy (AD)

Driving side right[11]

Calling code +63

ISO 3166 code PH

Internet TLD .ph

Website
National Government Portal
Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines

a. ^ While Manila proper is designated as the nation's capital, the

whole of National Capital Region (NCR) is designated as seat of
government, hence the name of a region. This is because it has
many national government institutions aside from Malacañang
Palace and some agencies/institutions that are located within
the capital city.[12]

b. ^ Article 3 of Republic Act No. 11106 declared the Filipino Sign

Language as the national sign language of the Philippines,
specifying that it shall be recognized, supported and promoted
as the medium of official communication in all transactions
involving the deaf, and as the language of instruction of deaf
education.[13][14]

c. ^ The 1987 Philippine constitution specifies "Spanish and Arabic

shall be promoted on a voluntary and optional basis."[15]
 d. ^ Filipino revolutionaries declared independence from Spain on
June 12, 1898, but Spain ceded the islands to the United States
for $20 million in the Treaty of Paris on December 10, 1898,
which eventually led to the Philippine–American War.

e. ^ The United States of America recognized the independence of

the Philippines on July 4, 1946, through the Treaty of
Manila.[16]This date was chosen because it corresponds to the
U.S. Independence Day, which was observed in the Philippines
as Independence Day until May 12, 1962,
when President Diosdado Macapagalissued Presidential
Proclamation No. 28, shifting it to June 12, the date of Emilio
Aguinaldo's proclamation.[17]

f. ^ In accordance with article 11 of the Revolutionary Government

Decree of June 23, 1898, the Malolos Congress selected a
commission to draw up a draft constitutionon September 17,
1898. The commission was composed of Hipólito Magsalin,
Basilio Teodoro, José Albert, Joaquín González, Gregorio
Araneta, Pablo Ocampo, Aguedo Velarde, Higinio Benitez, Tomás
del Rosario, José Alejandrino, Alberto Barretto, José Ma. de la
Viña, José Luna, Antonio Luna, Mariano Abella, Juan
Manday, Felipe Calderón, Arsenio Cruz and Felipe
Buencamino.[18] They were all wealthy and well educated.[19]

The Philippines (/ˈfɪləpiːnz/ ( listen) FIL-ə-

peenz; Filipino: Pilipinas [ˌpɪlɪˈpinɐs] or Filipinas [ˌfɪlɪˈpinɐs]), officially the Republic of the
Philippines (Filipino: Republika ng Pilipinas),[a] is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Situated
in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of about 7,641 islands[20] that are categorized broadly under
three main geographical divisions from north to south: Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. The capital
city of the Philippines is Manila and the most populous city is Quezon City, both part of Metro
Manila.[21] Bounded by the South China Sea on the west, the Philippine Sea on the east and
the Celebes Sea on the southwest, the Philippines shares maritime borders with Taiwan to the
north, Japan to the northeast, Vietnam to the west, Palau to the east, and Malaysia and Indonesia to
the south.
The Philippines' location on the Pacific Ring of Fire and close to the equator makes the Philippines
prone to earthquakes and typhoons, but also endows it with abundant natural resources and some
of the world's greatest biodiversity. The Philippines is the world's 5th largest island country with an
area of 300,000 km2 (120,000 sq mi).[22][4][5] As of 2015, had a population of at least 100 million.[7] As of
January 2018, it is the eighth-most populated country in Asia and the 12th most populated country in
the world. Approximately 10 million additional Filipinos lived overseas,[23] comprising one of the
world's largest diasporas. Multiple ethnicities and cultures are found throughout the islands. In
prehistoric times, Negritos were some of the archipelago's earliest inhabitants. They were followed
by successive waves of Austronesian peoples.[24] Exchanges
with Malay, Indian, Arab and Chinese nations occurred. Then, various competing
maritime states were established under the rule of datus, rajahs, sultans and lakans.
The arrival of Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese explorer leading a fleet for the Spanish,
in Homonhon, Eastern Samar in 1521 marked the beginning of Hispanic colonization. In 1543,
Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos named the archipelago Las Islas Filipinas in honor
of Philip II of Spain. With the arrival of Miguel López de Legazpi from Mexico City, in 1565, the first
Hispanic settlement in the archipelago was established.[25] The Philippines became part of
the Spanish Empire for more than 300 years. This resulted in Catholicism becoming the dominant
religion. During this time, Manila became the western hub of the trans-Pacific trade connecting Asia
with Acapulco in the Americas using Manila galleons.[26]
As the 19th century gave way to the 20th, the Philippine Revolution quickly followed, which then
spawned the short-lived First Philippine Republic, followed by the bloody Philippine–American
War.[27] The war, as well as the ensuing cholera epidemic, resulted in the deaths of thousands of
combatants as well as tens of thousands of civilians.[28][29][30][31] Aside from the period of Japanese
occupation, the United States retained sovereignty over the islands until after World War II, when the
Philippines was recognized as an independent nation. Since then, the unitary sovereign state has
often had a tumultuous experience with democracy, which included the overthrow of
a dictatorship by a non-violent revolution.[32]
The Philippines is a founding member of the United Nations, World Trade Organization, Association
of Southeast Asian Nations, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, and the East Asia
Summit. It also hosts the headquarters of the Asian Development Bank.[33] The Philippines is
considered to be an emerging market and a newly industrialized country,[34] which has an economy
transitioning from being based on agriculture to one based more on services and
manufacturing.[35] Along with East Timor, the Philippines is one of Southeast Asia's
predominantly Christian nation

Etymology
Main article: Name of the Philippines

Philip II of Spain

The Philippines was named in honor of King Philip II of Spain. Spanish explorer Ruy López de
Villalobos, during his expedition in 1542, named the islands of Leyte and Samar Felipinas after the
then-Prince of Asturias. Eventually the name Las Islas Filipinas would be used to cover all the
islands of the archipelago. Before that became commonplace, other names such as Islas del
Poniente (Islands of the West) and Magellan's name for the islands San Lázaro were also used by
the Spanish to refer to the islands.[36][37][38][39][40]
The official name of the Philippines has changed several times in the course of its history. During
the Philippine Revolution, the Malolos Congress proclaimed the establishment of the República
Filipina or the Philippine Republic. From the period of the Spanish–American War (1898) and
the Philippine–American War (1899–1902) until the Commonwealth period (1935–1946), American
colonial authorities referred to the country as the Philippine Islands, a translation of the Spanish
name.[27] Since the end of World War II, the official name of the country has been the Republic of the
Philippines. Philippines has steadily gained currency as the common name since being the name
used in Article VI of the 1898 Treaty of Paris, with or without the definite article.[41]

History
Main article: History of the Philippines

Prehistory
Further information: Prehistory of the Philippines
Discovery in 2018 of stone tools and fossils of butchered animal remains in Rizal, Kalinga has
pushed back evidence of early hominins in the archipelago to as early as 709,000 years. The
Philippines served as a connection to mainland Asia and Wallacea during the Early to Middle
Pleistocene, facilitating the spread of hominins and megafauna to what is now eastern Indonesia.[42]

Tabon Caves are the site of one of the oldest human remains found in the Philippines: Tabon Man

The oldest remains of modern humans in the islands, however, is the Tabon Man of Palawan,
carbon-dated to 47,000 ± 11–10,000 years ago.[43] The Tabon man is presumably a Negrito, who
were among the archipelago's earliest inhabitants, descendants of the first human migrations out
of Africa via the coastal route along southern Asia to the now sunken landmasses
of Sundaland and Sahul.[44][45] Previously, it was believed that the earliest putative record of modern
humans in Southeast Asia is from the Callao Cave of northern Luzon, dated to around 67,000
BP.[45][46] However, in 2019, the remains were identified as belonging to a new species of archaic
humans, Homo luzonensis.[47]
There are several opposing theories regarding the origins of ancient Filipinos, starting with the
"Waves of Migration" hypothesis of H. Otley Beyer in 1948, which claimed that Filipinos were
"Indonesians" and "Malays" who migrated to the islands. This is completely rejected by modern
anthropologists and is not supported by any evidence, but the hypothesis is still widely taught in
Filipino elementary and public schools resulting in the widespread misconception by Filipinos that
they are "Malays".[48][49]
In 1967, Filipino anthropologist Felipe Landa Jocano proposed the "Core Population" theory which
posits that ancestors of the Filipinos evolved locally, rejecting Beyer's assertion that Filipinos are the
same ethnic groups as the Malay people. His proposal roughly aligns with the more recent "Out of
Sundaland" model proposed by a minority of academics, which includes Wilhelm Solheim's
"Nusantao Maritime Trading and Communication Network". It postulates that the peopling of the
archipelago transpired via trade networks originating in the Sundaland area
(modern Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and the Malay Peninsula) which was then inundated by rising sea
levels at the end of the Last Glacial Period (around 11,700 years ago). They propose that there was
then a range of material and genetic exchanges between populations in an arc from the coasts and
islands of Papua New Guinea to Japan by around 48,000 to 5000 BC rather than by wide-scale
migration.[50][51][52]

Chronological map of the Austronesian expansion[53]

The most widely accepted theory, however, is the "Out-of-Taiwan" model which follows
the Austronesian expansion during the Neolithic in a series of maritime migrations originating
from Taiwan that spread to the islands of the Indo-Pacific; ultimately reaching as far as New
Zealand, Easter Island, and Madagascar.[53][54] Austronesians themselves originated from the
Neolithic rice-cultivating pre-Austronesian civilizations of the Yangtze River delta in coastal
southeastern China pre-dating the conquest of those regions by the Han Chinese. This includes
civilizations like the Liangzhu culture, Hemudu culture, and the Majiabang culture.[55] It connects
speakers of the Austronesian languages in a common linguistic and genetic lineage, including
the Taiwanese indigenous peoples, Islander Southeast Asians, Chams,
Islander Melanesians, Micronesians, Polynesians, and the Malagasy people. Aside from language
and genetics, they also share common cultural markers like multihull and outrigger
boats, tattooing, rice cultivation, wetland agriculture, teeth blackening, jade carving, betel nut
chewing, ancestor worship, and the same domesticated plants and animals (including dogs, pigs,
chickens, yams, bananas, sugarcane, and coconuts).[53][54][56]

Best-fit genomic mixture proportions of Austronesians in Island Southeast Asia and their inferred population
movements[44][57]

The first Austronesians reached the Philippines at around 2200 BC, settling the Batanes
Islands and northern Luzon. From there, they rapidly spread downwards to the rest of the islands of
the Philippines and Southeast Asia, as well as voyaging further east to reach the Northern Mariana
Islands by around 1500 BC.[53][58][59] They assimilated earlier Australo-Melanesian groups
(the Negritos) which arrived during the Paleolithic, resulting in the modern Filipino ethnic
groups which all display various ratios of genetic admixture between Austronesian and Negrito
groups.[57]
During the Neolithic period, a "jade culture" was prominent in the islands, as evidenced by tens of
thousands of exquisitely crafted jade artifacts found in the Philippines dated to 2000 BC.[60][61] The
jade used has been traced to deposits in Taiwan, although the jade artifacts themselves (known
as lingling-o) were manufactured locally in Luzon. These artifacts have been found in many other
areas in insular and mainland Southeast Asia, indicating long range maritime trade and
communication between prehistoric Southeast Asian societies.[62] By 1000 BC, the inhabitants of the
archipelago had developed into four kinds of social groups: hunter-gatherer tribes, warrior societies,
highland plutocracies, and port principalities.[63]

Precolonial period
Further information: History of the Philippines (900–1521), Religion in pre-colonial Philippines,
and Cultural achievements of pre-colonial Philippines
A Boxer Codex image illustrating the ancient kadatuan or tumao (noble class).

The current demarcation between the Prehistory and the Early history of the Philippines is 21 April
900, which is the equivalent on the Proleptic Gregorian calendar for the date indicated on
the Laguna Copperplate Inscription (LCI) — the earliest known surviving written record to come from
the Philippines.[64] This date came in the middle of what anthropologists refer to as the Philippines'
"Emergent Phase" (1st–14th centuries CE), which was characterized by newly emerging socio-
cultural patterns, the initial development of large coastal settlements, greater social stratification and
specialization, and the beginnings of local and international trade.[65] By the 1300s, a number of the
large coastal settlements had become progressive trading centers, and became the focal point of
societal changes, ushering complex life-ways which characterized what F. Landa Jocano called the
"Barangic Phase" of early Philippine history, beginning from the 14th century through the arrival of
Spanish colonizers and the beginning of the Philippines' colonial period.[65] "Barangay" a community
defined by personal attachment, not territorial location. The term, barangay, originally describes both
a house on land and a boat on water; containing families, friends and dependents and is currently
the basic political unit of the Philippines.[66][67]The Barangic Phase of history can be noted for its highly
mobile nature, with barangays transforming from being settlements and turning into fleets and vice
versa, with the wood constantly re-purposed according to the situation.[68] Politics during this era was
personality-driven and organization was based on shifting alliances and contested loyalties set in a
backdrop of constant inter-polity interactions, both through war and peace.[69]
The discovery of iron at around the 1st century AD created significant social and economic changes
which allowed settlements to grow larger and develop new social patterns, characterized by social
stratification and specialization.[65]

Austronesian proto-historic and historic maritime trade network in the Indian Ocean[70]
Some of these polities, particularly the coastal settlements at or near the mouths of large
rivers,[69] eventually developed substantial trade contacts with the early trading powers of Southeast
Asia, most importantly the Indianized kingdoms of Malaysia and Java, the various dynasties of
China,[69] Thailand,[71] and later, the Muslim Sultanate of Brunei.[68] They also traded with
Vietnam,[71] Japan,[72] and other Austronesian islands.[73]
Based on archaeological findings, trade with China is believed to have begun in the Tang dynasty,
but grew more extensive during the Song dynasty.[68] By the 2nd millennium CE, some (but not all)
Philippine polities were known to have sent trade delegations which participated in the Tributary
system enforced by the Chinese imperial court.[68] These "tributary states" nominally acknowledged
the Sinocentric system which saw China and the imperial court as the cultural center of the world.
Among the early Philippine polities, this arrangement fulfilled the requirements for trade with China,
but did not actually translate into political or military control.[68][69]

The Ifugao/Igorot people utilized terrace farming in the steep mountainous regions of northern Philippines over
2000 years ago.

Regarding the relations of early Philippine polities with the various state-level polities of Indonesia
and Malaysia, legendary accounts often mention the interaction of early Philippine polities with
the Srivijaya empire, but there is not much archaeological evidence to definitively support such a
relationship.[65] Considerable evidence exists, on the other hand, for extensive trade with the
Majapahit empire.[74]
The exact scope and mechanisms of Indian cultural influences on early Philippine polities are still the
subject of some debate among Southeast Asian historiographers,[65][75] but the current scholarly
consensus is that there was probably little or no direct trade between India and the
Philippines,[65][75] and Indian cultural traits, such as linguistic terms and religious practices,[74] filtered in
during the 10th through the early 14th centuries, through early Philippine polities' relations with the
Hindu Majapahit empire.[65] The Philippine archipelago is thus one of the countries, (others include
Afghanistan and Southern Vietnam) just at the outer edge of what is considered the "Greater
Indian cultural zone".[75]
The early polities of the Philippine archipelago were typically characterized by a three-tier social
structure.[65][69] Although different cultures had different terms to describe them, this three-tier
structure invariably consisted of an apex nobility class, a class of "freemen", and a class of
dependent debtor-bondsmen called "alipin" or "oripun."[65][69] Among the members of the nobility class
were leaders who held the political office of "Datu," which was responsible for leading autonomous
social groups called "barangay" or "dulohan".[65] Whenever these barangays banded together, either
to form a larger settlement[65] or a geographically looser alliance group,[69] the more senior or
respected among them would be recognized as a "paramount datu", variedly called a Lakan, Sultan,
Rajah, or simply a more senior Datu (These types of datus had power over other monarchs due to
being great characters).[68][65][76]
Early historic coastal city-states and polities
The Laguna Copperplate Inscription, c. 900. The oldest known historical record found in the Philippines,
discovered at Lumban, Laguna.

The earliest historical record of local polities and kingdoms is the Laguna Copperplate Inscription,
which indirectly refers to the Tagalog polity of Tondo (c. before 900–1589) and two to three other
settlements believed to be located somewhere near Tondo, as well as a settlement near Mt. Diwata
in Mindanao, and the temple complex of Medang in Java.[64] Although the precise political
relationships between these polities is unclear in the text of the inscription, the artifact is usually
accepted as evidence of intra- and inter-regional political linkages as early as 900 CE.[64][68][69] By the
arrival of the earliest European ethnographers during the 1500s, Tondo was led by the paramount
ruler called a "Lakan".[68][69] It had grown into a major trading hub, sharing a monopoly with the
Rajahnate of Maynila over the trade of Ming dynasty[77] products throughout the archipelago.[68] This
trade was significant enough that the Yongle Emperor appointed a Chinese governor named Ko
Ch'a-lao to oversee it.[78][79]
The next historical record referring to a location in the Philippines, is Volume 186 of the official
history of the Song dynasty which describes the purportedly Buddhist "country" of Ma-i (c. before 971
– after 1339). Song dynasty traders visited Ma-i annually, and their accounts described Ma-i's
geography, trade products, and the trade behaviors of its rulers.[80] Chinese merchants noted that
Ma-i's citizens were honest and trustworthy.[81] Because the descriptions of Mai's location in these
accounts are unclear, there is dispute about Mai's location, with some scholars believing it was
located in Bay, Laguna,[82] and others believing it was on the island of Mindoro.[83]

The Butuan Ivory Seal (c. 1002) was recovered in the 1970s in Butuan.
17th-century depiction of a Visayankarakoa, an outrigger warship, from Historia de las islas e indios de
Bisayas (1668) by Francisco Ignacio Alcina[84]

The official history of the Song dynasty next refers to the Rajahnate of Butuan (c. before 1001–1756)
in northeastern Mindanao which is the first polity from the Philippine archipelago recorded as having
sent a tribute mission to the Chinese empire—on March 17, 1001 CE. Butuan attained prominence
under the rule of Rajah Sri Bata Shaja,[73] who was from a Buddhist ruling-class governing a Hindu
nation. This state became powerful due to the local goldsmith industry and it also had commercial
ties and a diplomatic rivalry with the Champa civilization. Butuan was so wealthy, the quantity of gold
recently unearthed in Butuan surpassed that of the even more famous Srivijayastate.[85]
Historian Efren Isorena has asserted that Visayan raiding parties conducted raids on the port cities
of southern China between A.D. 1174 and 1190 which are attributed by other historians to raiders
from Formosa (today's Taiwan).[86] The Visayan raiding parties were composed of people from the
Kedatuan of Dapitan which was founded when Datu Sumangga of Leyte married princess Bugbung
Hamusanum by impressing her through his military prowess by raiding deep into the Chinese
Empire. They made their territory into a powerful and wealthy maritime state, which was eventually
deemed the "Venice of the Visayas".[87]
According to legend, the Kedatuan of Madja-as (c. 1200–1569) was founded following a civil war in
collapsing Srivijaya, wherein loyalists of the Malay datus of Srivijaya defied the invading Chola
dynasty and its puppet-Rajah, called Makatunao, and set up a remnant state in the islands of
the Visayas. Its founding datu, Puti, had purchased land for his new realms from the
aboriginal Ati hero, Marikudo.[88] Madja-as was founded on Panay island (named after the destroyed
state of Pannai as well as populated by Pannai's descendants, a constituent state of Srivijaya which
was located in Sumatra and was home to a Hindu-Buddhist Monastic-Army that successfully
defended the Strait of Malacca,[89] the world's busiest maritime choke-point,[90] which was a significant
challenge to defend due to it being surrounded by the three most populous nations of the world back
then, China, India and Indonesia. The people of Pannai policed the Strait against all odds for 727
years.) Upon their rebellion against an invading Chola Empire, the people of Madja-as, being loyalist
warriors, conducted resistance movements against the Hindu and Islamic invaders that arrived from
the west from their new home base in the Visayas islands.[91]
 Idjang

Maynila

Kedatuan of Madja-as

Rajahnate of Butuan

Sultanate of Sulu

Ma-i

Kedatuan of Dapitan

Sultanate of Maguindanao

Rajahnate of Cebu

Namayan
 Tondo

Sultanate of Lanao

Igorot Plutocracy

Cainta

Caboloan

Ibalon

Samtoy

Chiefdom of Taytay

Locations of pre-colonial principalities, polities, kingdoms and sultanates in the Philippine archipelago.

The Rajahnate of Cebu[92] (c. 1200–1565) was a neighbor of Madja-as in the Visayas led by
Rajamuda Sri Lumay, a monarch with partial Tamil descent and a member of the Chola dynasty. Sri
Lumay who was sent by the Chola Maharajah to invade Madja-as, rebelled and formed his own
independent Tamil-Malay rajahnate and even when descended from Maharajahs, humbled himself
to be a mere founding Rajah of Cebu and had associated himself with the Visayans. This state grew
wealthy by making use of the inter-island shipping within the archipelago.[93] Both the Rajahnates of
Butuan and Cebu were allied to each other and they also maintained contact and had trade routes
with Kutai, a Hindu country[94] in south Borneo established by Indian traders.[95]
The epic poem Nagarakretagama stated that the Java-based Hindu empire of Majapahit had
colonized Saludong (Manila) at Luzon and Solot (Sulu) at the Sulu Archipelago. However, they failed
to establish a foothold in the Visayas islands which was populated by Srivijayan loyalists who waged
incessant guerrilla warfare against them. Eventually, Luzon regained independence from Majapahit
after the Battle of Manila (1365) and then Sulu also reestablished independence and in
vengeance, assaulted the Majapahit province of Poni (Brunei) before a fleet from the capital drove
them out.[96] The Rajahnate of Maynila (c. 1258–1571) was established on the island of Luzon across
the Pasig River from Tondo due to the naval victory of the Bruneian Rajah Ahmad over the
Majapahit Rajah Avirjirkaya, who ruled a prior pre-Muslim settlement in the same location.[68] The
subsequent spread of Islam in Southeast Asia eventually caused the downfall of
the Majapahit empire as its provinces seceded and formed independent Sultanates upon becoming
Muslim. Eventually, in the face of these Islamic conversions, the remnants of Hindu Majapahit fled to
the island of Bali.[97][clarification needed] The Chinese also mention a polity called "Luzon." This is believed to
be a reference to Maynila since Portuguese and Spanish accounts from the 1520s explicitly state
that "Luçon" and "Maynila" were "one and the same",[68] although some historians argue that since
none of these observers actually visited Maynila, "Luçon" may simply have referred to all the
Tagalog and Kapampangan polities that rose up on the shores of Manila Bay.[98] Either way, from the
early 1500s to as late as the 1560s, this seafaring people was referred to in Portuguese Malacca
as Luções, and they set up many overseas communities across Southeast Asia where they
participated in trading ventures and military campaigns in Burma, Malacca and Eastern
Timor[99][b][101] as traders and mercenaries.[102][103][104] One prominent Luções was Regimo de Raja, who
was a spice magnate and a Temenggung (Jawi: ‫[)تمڠݢوڠ‬105] (Governor and Chief General) in
Portuguese Malacca. He was also the head of an international armada which traded and protected
commerce between the Indian Ocean, the Strait of Malacca, the South China Sea,[106] and
the medieval maritime principalities of the Philippines.[107][108]
According to historian Paul Kekai Manansala, the famed Ming admiral, Zheng He, attacked Luzon
and destroyed Manila but an alliance of local kingdoms then repulsed his army and the conquest
was forced back and limited to Pangasinan.[109] In northern Luzon, Caboloan (Pangasinan) (c. 1406–
1576) sent emissaries to China in 1406–1411 as a tributary-state,[110] and it also traded with
Japan.[111] People from Pangasinan were humble despite their immense power since when the
Mongol Empire arose, according to Moroccan explorer, Ibn Battuta[112]a Warrior-Princess from
Pangasinan (Cabaloan) named Urduja lead a nation and coalition that became a rival to the entire
Mongol Empire. However Caboloan showed their solidarity with the Anti-Mongol Ming Dynasty when
they became Ming tributaries.[113]

The Kris (or Kalis), sacred swords used by precolonial Filipinos, that were wielded as standard weapons. [114]

The 1300s saw the arrival and eventual spread of Islam in the Philippine archipelago. In 1380, Karim
ul' Makdum and Shari'ful Hashem Syed Abu Bakr, an Arab trader born in Johore, arrived
in Sulu from Malacca and established the Sultanate of Sulu by converting Sulu's rajah, Rajah
Baguinda Ali and marrying his daughter.[115][116] At the end of the 15th century, Shariff Mohammed
Kabungsuwan of Johor introduced Islam in the island of Mindanao and established the Sultanate of
Maguindanao. The sultanate form of government extended further into Lanao.[117]

1890 illustration by Rafael Monleónof a late 18th-century Iranun lanongwarship which were used
in piracy and slave raids

Islam then started to spread out of Mindanao in the south and went into Luzon in the north.[118] This
was accomplished because the Sultanate of Brunei, which was previously known as Poni, had
seceded from Majapahit and had converted to Islam and then had invited an Arab Emir from
Mecca, Sharif Ali,[119] to become Sultan and his descendant, Sultan Bolkiah set up Manila in Luzon as
an Islamic colony during his reign from 1485 to 1521.[120]Thereby again subjugating rebellious Tondo
by defeating Rajah Gambang in battle and thereafter installing the Muslim rajah, Rajah Salalila to the
throne. Thus reestablishing the Bruneian vassal-state of the Muslim Rajahnate of Maynila as its
enforcer in Luzon.[121][122][123][124] Sultan Bolkiah also married Laila Mecana, who is the daughter of Sulu
Sultan Amir Ul-Ombra of newly Islamized Sulu, to expand Brunei's influence in both Luzon island
and the Sulu archipelago.[125] Brunei was so powerful, it already subjugated their Hindu Bornean
neighbor, Kutai to the south, though it survived through a desperate alliance with Hindu Butuan and
Cebu which were already struggling against encroaching Islamic powers like Maguindanao. Brunei
had also conquered the northern third and the southern third of the
Philippines[126][127][128][129][130][131][132][133] but failed to conquer the Visayas islands even though Sultan
Bolkiah himself was half-Visayan from his Visayan mother. Sultan Bolkiah is associated with the
legend of Nakhoda Ragam the singing captain, a myth about a handsome, virile, strong, musically
gifted and angelic voiced prince who is known for his martial exploits. There is contextual evidence
that Sultan Bolkiah may indeed be Nakhoda Ragam, since he is of half Visayan-Filipino descent
since later Spanish accounts record that Filipinos, especially Visayans, were obsessed with singing
and the warrior castes were particularly known for their great singing abilities.[134]
The Muslims then proceeded to wage wars and conduct slave-raids against the
Visayans.[135] Participating in the Muslim raids, the Sultanate of Ternate, a Muslim state centered in
the vicinity of Papuan-Indonesia which grew powerful due to their monopoly of spice, consequently
destroyed the Animist Malayo-Polynesian Kedatuan of Dapitan in Bohol.[87] This forced the people of
Dapitan to reestablish their country in northern Mindanao and displace the citizens of the Sultanate
of Lanao as they conquered their territory. The Hindu Rajahnates of Butuan and Cebu also endured
slave raids from, and waged wars against the Sultanate of Maguindanao[136] while their southern
Hindu ally, the Rajahnate of Kutai, struggled with the Sultanate of Brunei for hegemony over Borneo
island. Simultaneous with these Muslim slave-raids against the Visayans, was the rebellion of
Datu Lapu-Lapu of Mactan against Rajah Humabon of Cebu.[137] There was also a simmering
territorial conflict between the Polity of Tondo and the Bruneian vassal-state, the Islamic Rajahnate
of Maynila, to which the ruler of Maynila, Rajah Matanda, sought military assistance against Tondo
from his relatives at the Sultanate of Brunei.[138]
The rivalries between the Datus, Rajahs, Sultans, and Lakans eventually eased Spanish
colonization. Furthermore, the islands were sparsely populated[139] due to consistent natural
disasters[140] and inter-kingdom conflicts. Therefore, the thinly manned territory was overpowered,
and the small states of the archipelago quickly became incorporated into the Spanish Empire and
were Hispanicized and Christianized.[141]

Colonial era
Journalist Alan Robles has opined, "Colonialism created the Philippines, shaped its political culture
and continues to influence its mindset. The 333 years under Spain and nearly five decades under
the USA decisively moulded the nation".[142] Anthropologist Prospero Covar has observed, "Our
thinking, culture, and psychology became virtually westernized, when we were, in fact, Asians."[143]
Spanish rule
Further information: History of the Philippines (1521–1898), New Spain, Spanish East Indies,
and Captaincy General of the Philippines
In 1521, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan's expedition arrived in the Philippines, claimed the
islands for Spain and was then killed at the Battle of Mactan.[144] Colonization began when Spanish
explorer Miguel López de Legazpi arrived from Mexico in 1565 and formed the first Hispanic
settlements in Cebu. After relocating to Panay island and consolidating an alliance of native Filipino
(Visayan) allies, Hispanic soldiers and Latin-American recruits, led by conquistadors such as
Mexico-born Juan de Salcedo,[145] had invaded Muslim Manila. Juan de Salcedo had inspired military
feats due to his love for the beautiful princess of Bruneian-besieged Tondo, Kandarapa, they had a
tragic forbidden romance. Yet princess Kandarapa proved the intensity of her love when she died of
a broken-heart when she heard lies that her Mexican knight had married the daughter of the Rajah
of Macabebe.[146] While the romance was still active, the Spanish-Mexican-Filipino coalition
then invaded Islamic Manila, liberated and incorporated Tondo. Luzon was then placed under
Spanish rule.
They established Manila as the capital of the Spanish East Indies (1571).[147] The former Bruneian
Muslim elite that ruled Manila was forced into Christianity and in vengeance, conspired with the
Japanese Shogunate and the Brunei Sultanate to re-invade and re-islamize Manila. Several war
fleets were raised in Brunei in order to retake Manila but all were frustrated. However,
nearby Mindoro, being a former developed Buddhist state transformed into a Muslim colony with its
own stone fort and cannons, was utterly ruined and depopulated due to it turning into a war-zone
between contesting Christian and Muslim powers, with the Moros from Mindanao attempting to Re-
islamize the place by enslaving recent Christian converts there or forcing them to revert to Islam
which was opposed by, and the situation made worse because, Christians from Manila had
repeatedly demolished and extinguished any Muslim attempt to refortify the island and had also
force converted any Muslim they encountered into becoming Christians. Thus destroying the once
wealthy and populous cities of Mindoro and transforming the province into an impoverished and
embattled military frontier zone.[148][149]

The native costumes Barong Tagalog and the earlier variants of Baro't saya of the females, were developed
during the Spanish era.

The Spanish forces also defeated the Chinese warlord Limahong.[150][151] To counteract the
Islamization of the Philippines, the Spanish then conducted the Castilian War which was aimed
against the Sultanate of Brunei[152][153] and war was also waged against the Sultanates of
Ternate and Tidore (in response to Ternatean slaving and piracy against Spain's vassal states:
Dapitan and Butuan).[154] The Castilian War was justified by a civil war in the Bruneian Empire when
the legitimate ruler, Pengiran Seri Lela was removed from power by his jealous brother, Sultan Saiful
Rijal. Pengiran Seri Lela offered vassalage under the Spanish to reclaim his crown.[155] The Spanish
forces sacked the capital and prepared to reinstall Pengiran Seri Lela to the throne, unfortunately he
died, allegedly by poisoning, and the Spanish forces were suddenly afflicted by cholera which forced
them to leave, however the Imperial princess of Brunei left with the Spanish and married the
Christian Tagalog warrior, Agustín de Legazpi of Tondo, she bravely defied the Quranic punishment
of stoning Muslim women who marry Non-Muslim men to death,[156] and the couple had a family in
the Philippines. In modern times, Bruneian-Philippine relations were symbolically restored when the
Filipino architect Leandro V. Locsin helped designed the Istana Nurul Iman which is now the largest
residential Palace in the world.[157] Brunei is also in Borneo which is simultaneously the home of the
second oldest rain forest in the world and is part of the Coral Triangle, the center of worldwide
marine biodiversity.[158] The Spanish considered their war with the Muslims in Southeast Asia an
extension of the Reconquista,[159] a centuries-long campaign to retake and rechristianize the Spanish
homeland which was invaded by the Muslims of the Umayyad Caliphate. The Spanish expeditions
into the Philippines were also part of a larger Ibero-Islamic world conflict[160] that included a just
war against the Ottoman Caliphate which had just recently invaded former Christian lands in
the Eastern Mediterranean and had a center of operations at its nearby protectorate, the Sultanate
of Aceh[161] which was the first missionary center of expanding Islam in Southeast Asia and had grew
at the expense of older Animist, Hindu or Buddhist states that had remained loyal to their religions in
the face of an encroaching Islam. These states were sought as allies by Christian
newcomers.[162] However, the Muslim Sultanates in the Philippines thought differently, to them,
preserving and propagating Islam was a merely an act of self-defense against a Christian
invader.[163] Both sides had noble justifications in their wars against each other.[164] The racial make-up
of the Christian side was diverse since they were usually made up of Mestizos, Mulattoes and Native
Americans (Aztecs, Mayans and Incans) who were gathered and sent from the Americas and were
led by Spanish officers who had worked together with native Filipinos in military campaigns across
the Southeast Asia. The Muslim side was also equally racially diverse. In addition to the native
Malay warriors, the Ottomans had repeatedly sent military expeditions to nearby Aceh. The
expeditions were composed mainly
of Turks, Egyptians, Swahilis, Somalis, Sindhis, Gujaratis and Malabars.[165] These expeditionary
forces had also spread to other Sultanates such as nearby Brunei and had taught
local mujahideen new fighting tactics and techniques on how to forge modern cannons. Ottoman
manufacturing techniques and martial organization were so ingrained, the Christian soldiers who
warred with these Malay Sultanates observed Ottoman influence in their militaries.[166][167] After, the
Spanish expedition to Brunei, the Spaniards put down the Conspiracy of the Maharlikaswhich was
mainly composed of pro-Bruneian and pro-Japanese conspirators and then the Spanish exiled these
conspirators to Guam and Guerrero.[168]In time, Spanish fortifications were also set up in Taiwan and
the Maluku islands. These were abandoned and the Spanish soldiers, along with the newly
Christianized natives of the Moluccas, withdrew back to the Philippines in order to re-concentrate
their military forces because of a threatened invasion by the Japan-born Ming-dynasty
loyalist, Koxinga, ruler of the Kingdom of Tungning.[169] However, the planned invasion was aborted.
Meanwhile, settlers were sent to the Pacific islands of Palau and the Marianas.[170] In Sharia law, only
non-Muslims were allowed to be slaves, so as the conversion of Southeast Asia to Islam went about,
the importance of the non-Muslim character of Spanish Philippines made it a factor as a source of
slave-labor for Muslim states to the west as the flow of slave labor was generally East to West.[171] In
the Mediterranean, the Spanish were also dealing with Islamic slave raiding in the Christian parts of
the sea.[172] Thus, there was a world-wide coordinated Spanish attempt to counter-act the growing
Islamic slave raids that was targeted against them.[152] However, with the few exceptions of Manila,
Mindoro, Palawan and Zamboanga; Spanish interests in Christianizing Muslim areas faded because
they were less profitable than trade with China or Japan.[173]
A sketch of a Manila galleon used during the Manila-Acapulco Trade.

Spanish rule eventually contributed significantly to bringing political unity to the fragmented states of
the archipelago. From 1565 to 1821, the Philippines was governed as a territory of the Mexico-
based Viceroyalty of New Spain and then was administered directly from Madrid after the Mexican
War of Independence. The Manila galleons, the largest wooden ships ever built, were constructed
in Bicol and Cavite.[174] The Manila galleons were accompanied with a large naval escort as it
traveled to and from Manila and Acapulco.[175] The galleons sailed once or twice a year, between the
16th and 19th centuries.[176] The Manila Galleons brought with them goods,[177] settlers[178] and military
reinforcements destined for the Philippines, from Latin America.[179] The reverse voyage also brought
Asian commercial products[180] and immigrants[181] to the western side of the Americas.[182]
Trade introduced foodstuffs such as maize, tomatoes, potatoes, chili
peppers, chocolate and pineapples from Mexico and Peru. Within the Philippines, the Marquisate of
Buglas was established and the rule of it was awarded to Sebastian Elcano and his crew, the
survivors of the first circumnavigation of the world, as well as his descendants. New towns were also
created[151] and Catholic missionaries converted most of the lowland inhabitants
to Christianity.[183] They also founded schools, a university, hospitals and churches which were built
along the Earthquake Baroque architectural style.[184] To defend their settlements, the Spaniards
constructed and manned a network of military fortresses (called "Presidios") across the
archipelago.[185] The Spanish also decreed the introduction of free public schooling in
1863.[186] Slavery was also abolished. As a result of these policies the Philippine population increased
exponentially.[187][188]

The landing of the Spanish expedition to Sulu by Antonio Brugada.

During its rule, Spain quelled various indigenous revolts. There were also several external military
challenges from Chinese and Japanese pirates, the Dutch, the English, the Portuguese and the
Muslims of Southeast Asia. Those challengers were fought off despite the hostile forces having
encircled the Philippine archipelago in a crescent formed from Japan to Indonesia. The Philippines
was maintained at a considerable cost during Spanish rule. The long war against the Dutch from the
West, in the 17th century, together with the intermittent conflict with the Muslims in the South and
combating Japanese-Chinese Wokou piracy from the North nearly bankrupted the colonial
treasury.[189] Furthermore, the state of near constant wars caused a high desertion rate among the
Latino soldiers sent from Mexico[190] and Peru that were stationed in the Philippines.[191][192] This left
only the fittest and strongest to survive and serve out their military service. The high desertion rates
also applied to the native Filipino warriors and laborers levied by Spain, to fight in battles all across
the archipelago and elsewhere or build galleons and public works. The repeated wars, lack of
wages, dislocation and near starvation were so intense, almost half of the soldiers sent from Latin
America and the warriors and laborers recruited locally either died or disbanded to the lawless
countryside to live as vagabonds among the rebellious natives, escaped enslaved Indians (From
India)[193] and Negrito nomads, where they race-mixed through rape or prostitution,[194] which further
blurred the racial caste system Spain tried so hard to maintain in the towns and cities.[195] These
circumstances contributed to the increasing difficulty of governing the Philippines. Due to these, the
Royal Fiscal of Manila wrote a letter to King Charles III of Spain, in which he advises to abandon the
colony, but this was successfully opposed by the religious and missionary orders that argued that
the Philippines was a launching pad for further conversions in the Far East.[196] The non-profitable
war-torn Philippine colony survived on an annual subsidy paid by the Spanish Crown and often
procured from taxes and profits accumulated by the Viceroyalty of New Spain (Mexico) mainly paid
by annually sending 75 tons of precious Silver Bullion[197]gathered from and mined from Potosi,
Bolivia where hundreds of thousands of Incan lives were regularly lost while being enslaved to
the Mit'a system.[198] Unfortunately, the silver mined through the cost of irreplaceable lives and being
a precious metal, meaning a finite resource, barely made it to the starving or dying Spanish,
Mexican, Peruvian and Filipino soldiers who were stationed in Presidios across the archipelago
struggling against constant invasions while it was sought after by Chinese, Indian, Arab and Malay
merchants in Manila who traded with the Latinos for their precious metal in exchange for Silks,
Spices, Pearls and Aromatics and etc. which were products which can merely be grown and
manufactured whereas American silver was finite. Thus, the 200-year-old fortifications at Manila had
not been improved much since first built by the early Spanish colonizers.[199] This was one of the
circumstances that made possible the brief British occupation of Manila.
British forces occupied Manila from 1762 to 1764 in an extension of the fighting of the Seven Years'
War yet the British were frustrated since they were unable to extend their conquest outside of Manila
as the Filipinos stayed loyal to the remaining Spanish community outside Manila. Spanish rule was
restored following the 1763 Treaty of Paris.[141][200][201] The Spanish–Moro conflict lasted for several
hundred years. In the last quarter of the 19th century, Spain conquered portions of Mindanao and
the Moro Muslims in the Sulu Sultanate formally recognized Spanish sovereignty.

Photograph of armed Filipino revolutionaries known as Katipuneros.

In the 19th century, Philippine ports opened to world trade and shifts started occurring within Filipino
society. Many Spaniards born in the Philippines (criollos)[202] and those of mixed ancestry (mestizos)
became wealthy and an influx of Hispanic American immigrants opened up government positions
traditionally held by Spaniards born in the Iberian Peninsula (peninsulares). However, ideas of
rebellion and independence began to spread through the islands. Many Latin-Americans[203] and
Criollos were mostly officers in the army of Spanish Philippines. However, the onset of the Latin
American wars of independence led to serious doubts of their loyalty, this was compounded by the
fact that in the Mexican War of Independence, a Mexican of Filipino descent, Isidoro Montes de Oca,
became a formidable captain-general to the revolutionary leader Vicente Guerrero.[204][205][206] So, to
prevent the union of forces by both Latinos and Filipinos in rebellion against the empire, the Latino
and Criollo officers stationed in the Philippines were soon replaced by Peninsular officers born in
Spain. These Peninsular officers were often less committed to the people they were assigned to
protect and were often predatory, wanting to enrich themselves before returning to Spain, putting the
interests of the metropolis over the interest of the natives. The Criollo and Latinodissatisfaction
against them spurred by their love of the land and their suffering people had a justified hatred
against the exploitative Peninsulares who were only appointed due to their race and unflinching
loyalty to the homeland. This resulted in the uprising of Andres Novales a Philippine born soldier
who earned great fame in richer Spain but chose to return to serve in poorer Philippines. He was
supported by local soldiers as well as former officers in the Spanish army of the Philippines who
were from the now independent nations
of Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, Chile, Argentina and Costa Rica.[207] The uprising was
brutally suppressed but it foreshadowed the 1872 Cavite Mutiny that was a precursor to the
Philippine Revolution.[141][208][209][210] However, Hispanic-Philippines reached its zenith when the
Philippine-born Marcelo Azcárraga Palmero became a hero as he restored the Bourbon Dynasty of
Spain to the throne during his stint as Lieutenant-General (Three Star General) after the Bourbons
have been deposed by revolutionaries. He eventually became Prime Minister of the Spanish Empire
and was awarded membership in the Order of the Golden Fleece, which is considered the most
exclusive and prestigious order of chivalry in the world.[211]

Teodora Alonso Realonda

Revolutionary sentiments were stoked in 1872 after three activist Catholic priests—Mariano
Gómez, José Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora (collectively known as Gomburza)—were accused
of sedition by colonial authorities and executed.[208][209]This would inspire a propaganda movement in
Spain, organized by Marcelo H. del Pilar, José Rizal, and Mariano Ponce, lobbying for political
reforms in the Philippines. Rizal was eventually executed on December 30, 1896, on charges of
rebellion despite his opposition for violent revolution and only advocating peaceful reform, he even
volunteered to work as a doctor for the Spanish side in the Cuban revolution. The Spanish ironically
transformed ardent loyalists into radical rebels due to the Spanish killing of a hero opposed to a
violent revolution.[212] As attempts at reform met with resistance, Andrés Bonifacio in 1892
established the militant secret society called the Katipunan, who sought independence from Spain
through armed revolt.[210]
Bonifacio and the Katipunan started the Philippine Revolution in 1896. A faction of the Katipunan,
the Magdalo of Cavite province, eventually came to challenge Bonifacio's position as the leader of
the revolution and Emilio Aguinaldo took over. In 1898, the Spanish–American War began
in Cuba and reached the Philippines. Aguinaldo declared Philippine independence from Spain in
Kawit, Cavite on June 12, 1898, and the First Philippine Republic was established in the Barasoain
Church in the following year.[141]
American rule
Further information: History of the Philippines (1898–1946), Spanish–American War, Treaty of Paris
(1898), United States Military Government of the Philippine Islands, First Philippine
Republic, Philippine–American War, Insular Government of the Philippine Islands,
and Commonwealth of the Philippines

A depiction of the Battle of Paceo during the Philippine–American War.

The islands were ceded by Spain to the United States alongside Puerto Rico and Guam as a result
of the latter's victory in the Spanish–American War.[213] A compensation of US$20 million was paid to
Spain according to the terms of the 1898 Treaty of Paris.[214] As it became increasingly clear the
United States, the Philippine's only avowed ally which then subsequently betrayed the nation by
dealing with Spain, would not recognize the nascent First Philippine Republic, the Philippine–
American War broke out. Brigadier General James F. Smith arrived at Bacolod on March 4, 1899, as
the Military Governor of the Sub-district of Negros, after receiving an invitation from Aniceto Lacson,
president of the breakaway Cantonal Republic of Negros.[215] The war resulted in the deaths of a
minimum of 200,000 and a maximum of 1 Million Filipino civilians, mostly due to famine and
disease.[216]
After the defeat of the First Philippine Republic, the archipelago was administered under an
American Insular Government.[28] The Americans then suppressed other rebellious sub-states:
mainly, the waning Sultanate of Sulu, as well as the insurgent Tagalog Republic and the Republic of
Zamboanga in Mindanao.[217][218] During this era, a renaissance in Philippine culture occurred, with the
expansion of Philippine cinema and literature.[219][220][221] Daniel Burnham built an architectural plan for
Manila which would have transformed it into a modern city.[222] In 1935, the Philippines was
granted Commonwealth status with Manuel Quezon as president. He designated a national
language and introduced women's suffrage and land reform.[223][224]
Japanese rule
Further information: Japanese occupation of the Philippines
General Douglas MacArthur landing ashore during the Battle of Leyte on October 20, 1944.

Plans for independence over the next decade were interrupted by World War II when the Japanese
Empire invaded and the Second Philippine Republic of José P. Laurel was established as a
collaborator state. Many atrocities and war crimes were committed during the war such as
the Bataan Death March and the Manila massacre that culminated with the Battle of Manila.[225] In
1944, Quezon died in exile in the United States and Sergio Osmeña succeeded him. The Allied
Forces then employed a strategy of island hopping towards the Philippine archipelago, in the
process, retaking territory conquered by Imperial Japan.
From mid-1942 through mid-1944, the Filipino guerrilla resistance[226][227] had been supplied and
encouraged by U.S. Navy submarines and a few parachute drops, so that the guerrillas could harass
the Japanese Army and take control of the rural areas, jungles and mountains— the guerrillas were
so effective, the Japanese Empire only controlled 12 out of 48 provinces.[228] While remaining loyal to
the United States, many Filipinos hoped and believed that liberation from the Japanese would bring
them freedom and their already-promised independence.
Eventually, the largest naval battle in history, according to gross tonnage sunk, the Battle of Leyte
Gulf, occurred when Allied forces started the liberation of the Philippines from the Japanese
Empire.[229][230] Allied troops defeated the Japanese in 1945. By the end of the war it is estimated that
over a million Filipinos had died.[231][232][233]

Postcolonial period
Further information: History of the Philippines (1946–65) and History of the Philippines (1965–86)

Proclamation of Philippine independence from the United States (1946).

On October 11, 1945, the Philippines became one of the founding members of the United
Nations.[234] The following year, on July 4, 1946, the Philippines was officially recognized by
the United States as an independent nation through the Treaty of Manila, during the presidency
of Manuel Roxas.[6] Disgruntled remnants of the communist Hukbalahap[235] continued to roam the
countryside but were put down by President Elpidio Quirino's successor Ramon
Magsaysay.[236][237] Magsaysay's successor, Carlos P. Garcia, initiated the Filipino First
Policy,[238] which was continued by Diosdado Macapagal, with celebration of Independence Day
moved from July 4 to June 12, the date of Emilio Aguinaldo's declaration,[239][240] while furthering
the claim on the eastern part of North Borneo.[241][242]
In 1965, Macapagal lost the presidential election to Ferdinand Marcos. Early in his presidency,
Marcos initiated numerous infrastructure projects but was accused of massive corruption and
embezzling billions of dollars in public funds.[243]Nearing the end of his term, Marcos declared Martial
Law on September 21, 1972.[244] This period of his rule was characterized by political repression,
censorship, and human rights violations but the US were steadfast in their support.[245]
On August 21, 1983, Marcos' chief rival, opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr., was assassinated on
the tarmac at Manila International Airport. Marcos eventually called snap presidential elections in
1986.[246] Marcos was proclaimed the winner, but the results were widely regarded as
fraudulent. Cardinal Jaime Sin then roused the people to rebel,[247] leading to the People Power
Revolution, "the revolution that surprised the world".[248] Marcos and his allies fled to Hawaiiand
Aquino's widow, the woman that inspired the armed men of the uprising, Corazon Aquino, was
recognized as president.[246]

Contemporary history
Further information: History of the Philippines (1986–present)

Corazon Aquino, widow of the assassinated opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr., takes the Oath of Office on
February 25, 1986

The return of democracy and government reforms beginning in 1986 were hampered by national
debt, government corruption, coup attempts, disasters, a persistent communist insurgency,[249] and a
military conflict with Moro separatists.[250] During Corazon Aquino's administration, U.S. forces
withdrew from the Philippines, due to the rejection of the U.S. Bases Extension Treaty,[251][252] and
leading to the official transfer of Clark Air Base in November 1991 and Subic Bay to the government
in December 1992.[253][254] The administration also faced a series of natural disasters, including the
eruption of Mount Pinatubo in June 1991.[255][256] After introducing a constitution that limited presidents
to a single term, Aquino did not stand for re-election.
Aquino was succeeded by Fidel V. Ramos, who won the Philippine presidential election held in May
1992. During this period the country's economic performance remained modest, with a
3.6%[257] percent GDP growth rate.[258]However, the political stability and economic improvements,
such as the peace agreement with the Moro National Liberation Front in 1996,[259] were
overshadowed by the onset of the 1997 Asian financial crisis.[260][261] On his Presidency the death
penalty was revived in the light of the Rape-slay case of Eileen Sarmienta and Allan Gomez in 1993
and the first person to be executed was Leo Echegaray in 1999.[262]

The 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo is the second largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century.

Ramos' successor, Joseph Estrada assumed office in June 1998 and managed to regain the
economy from −0.6% growth to 3.4% by 1999 amidst the 1997 Asian financial crisis.[263][264][265]The
government had announced a war against the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in March 2000 and
neutralized the camps including the headquarters of the insurgents.[266][267] In the middle of ongoing
conflict with the Abu Sayyaf,[268] accusations of alleged corruption, and a stalled impeachment
process, Estrada's administration was overthrown by the 2001 EDSA Revolutionand succeeded by
his Vice President, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on January 20, 2001.[269]
In Arroyo's 9-year administration, the economy experienced a phenomenal growth of 4-7%
averaging at 5.33% from 2002 to 2007 with the completion of infrastructure projects like Line 2 in
2004[270] and managed to avoid the Great Recession.[271] By comparison, the Philippines has been
growing an average of 3.6% from 1965 to 2001 or 3.5% (1986-2001) if we include only those years
when democracy was already achievement in the Philippines on 1986. The improvement of the
Philippine annual growth rate from her predecessors (since Marcos Regime to Estrada
Administration) was around 1.7–1.87%. And this jump-start from a sluggish economy for almost 5
decades that left it behind by its neighbors in the 1960s would prove to be the Philippines rise from
being the sick man of Asia to become one of the "Tiger Cub Economy" for the next decade after her
administration.[257] Nevertheless, it was tied with graft and political scandals like the Hello Garci
scandal pertaining to the alleged manipulation of votes in the 2004 presidential
elections.[272][273][274][275] On November 23, 2009, 34 journalists and several civilians were massacredin
Maguindanao.[276][277]
Benigno Aquino III won the 2010 national elections and served as the 15th President of the
Philippines. The first major issue he dealt with was the 2010 Manila hostage crisis that caused
deeply strained relations between Manilaand Hong Kong for a time. The Framework Agreement on
the Bangsamoro was signed on October 15, 2012, as the first step of the creation of an autonomous
political entity named Bangsamoro.[278] However, a clash that took place
in Mamasapano, Maguindanao killed 44 members of the Philippine National Police-Special Action
Force and put the efforts to pass the Bangsamoro Basic Law into law in an impasse.[279][280] Tensions
regarding the Philippines' territorial disputes in eastern Sabah and the South China
Seaescalated.[281][282][283]
On May 15, 2013, the Philippines implemented the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013,
commonly known as K–12 program. It added two more years to the country's ten-year schooling
system for primary and secondary education.[284] The country was then hit by Typhoon Yolanda
(Haiyan) on November 8, 2013, which heavily devastated the Visayas.[285][286] When the United States
President Barack Obama visited the Philippines on April 28, 2014, the Enhanced Defense
Cooperation Agreement, was signed, paving the way for the return of United States Armed
Forces bases into the country.[287][288][289][290]
Rodrigo Duterte takes his oath as he is sworn in as the 16th President of the Philippines

Former Davao City mayor Rodrigo Duterte of PDP–Laban won the 2016 presidential
election becoming the first president from Mindanao.[291] On July 12, 2016, the Permanent Court of
Arbitration ruled in favor of the Philippines in its case against China's claims in the South China
Sea.[292] After winning the Presidency, Duterte launched an intensified anti-drug campaign to fulfill a
campaign promise of wiping out criminality in six months.[293] As of February 2019, the death toll for
the Philippine Drug War is 5,176.[294][295][296][297]
Duterte initiated the "Build, Build, Build" program in 2017 that aimed to usher the Philippines into a
new "golden age" of infrastructure and was expected to create more jobs and business
opportunities, which, in turn, would sustain the country's economic growth and accelerate poverty
reduction.[298] The construction industry needs two million more workers to sustain the program.[299][300]
The Build, Build, Build program is made up of 75 projects, which includes six air transport projects,
12 rail transport projects, and four water transport projects. It also includes four major flood
management projects, 11 water supply and irrigation projects, four power projects, and three other
public infrastructure projects.[301] The country is expected to spend $160 billion to $180 billion up to
2022 for the public investments in infrastructure.[302]
In 2017, Duterte signed the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act, which provides for
free tuition and exemption from other fees in public universities and colleges for Filipino students, as
well as subsidies for those enrolled in private higher education institutions. He also signed 20 new
laws, including the Universal Health Care Act, the creation of the Department of Human Settlements
and Urban Development, establishing a national cancer control program, and allowing subscribers to
keep their mobile numbers for life.[303]