Lifestyle of Filipino

Family is considered to be the foundation of social life for most Filipinos.

The nuclear family is the core family unit, however bonds are often tight knit among
extended family members. Indeed, people may be encouraged to have a relationship
with their aunts and uncles that is just as strong as the relationship with their parents.
Close familial relationships often go beyond one’s genetic connections or bloodlines to
incorporate distant relatives, close neighbours or friends. For example, it is common to
hear people refer to distant relatives or non-relatives with familial terms such as ‘tita’
(aunt), ‘tito’ (uncle), ‘lola’ (grandmother) and ‘lolo’ (grandfather). One instance is when a
grandchild refers to their grandparent’s friend or cousin as lola or lolo.

Filial piety is an important concept in Filipino culture. It is understood as essential

in order to maintain the collective face of the family and to avoid experiencing hiya
(see Social Interactions and Hiya in ‘Core Concepts’). Many Filipinos hold the belief that
each family member has several duties and responsibilities they must uphold.
Observing one’s duties and responsibilities is important in order to correctly respect
others and to ensure harmony among family members. For example, family members
are required to show respect to their elders at all times. The opinions of younger family
members’ and children’s opinions are considered to be secondary to their superior.
Moreover, those requiring age care are nearly always taken care of by their children or
grandchildren.

In a Filipino household, it is common to find three generations living together.

Often, grandparents play a large role in raising their grandchildren. Extended family will
often live relatively close to one another and will come together during large
celebrations. It is common to find families in the Philippines that have some members
who return to their family home during weekends after spending a week in major cities
for work or study.

Since the 1970s, the Philippines has been exporting labour abroad, with some
members engaging in paid labour abroad while many remain in their home town or
village. This means that many Filipino families are spread across the world. Filipino
society has widely adapted to the change in family structure. Some parents will leave
their child in the Philippines in order to seek labour abroad to better support their family
left behind. In turn, they will send back remittances to their parents or siblings who have
been given the duty of caring for the child. It is also common to find aunts, uncles and
godparents taking care of their nieces, nephews or godchildren, by
sending remittances back to the Philippines in order to pay for their education.

Those living abroad with left behind families will attempt to see their family once
a year by returning home to the Philippines during their break from work in another
country. This can be particularly difficult for those with children or elderly parents in the
Philippines. In order to support their families in the Philippines, Filipinos abroad will
send a ‘balikbayan box’, containing various items such as clothing, household objects
and gifts for their family. In the Australian context, it can be quite emotionally distressing
for some Filipinos in intercultural marriages to be denied the opportunity to
send remittances home or unable to visit their family, as they feel they are failing to
uphold their duty towards their family.

At times, Filipino society is tagged as patriarchal. This is in part due

to machismo attitudes and the masculine standards of many Filipino men. However, the
Philippines is closer to exhibiting a matriarchal society. The female influence is
significant throughout the country, with many women holding senior roles throughout
business and the government. In the household structure, it is often a matriarch in
charge. Generally, the head of the household is usually the oldest female, often the
grandmother (lola). Income from family members are often pooled together, then
the matriarch will look after the family finances.

In the Philippines, dating often comes in stages, beginning with courtship.

Typically, a man will try to impress a female by courting her. If the woman considers the
man to be a good suitor, they will continue dating. Individuals have a significant level of
freedom in terms of choosing marriage partners, although the choice of a spouse may
be influenced by the preferences of the family. In some families, it is expected for the
prospective partner to gain approval of their potential in-laws. However, in urban areas,
dating and marriage practices tend to be less conservative and are becoming more
influenced by the West.

Expectations and practices of marriage are heavily shaped by the Catholic

Church. Marriage is understood as a milestone and it is expected that individuals will
one day marry a suitable partner. Having children out of wedlock is generally frowned
upon in Filipino society. Thus, many couples will marry prior to giving birth to their child
to avoid social repercussions. Monogamy is the norm and divorce is both socially
stigmatised and illegal. However, views on marriage are changing. For example, there
is now more acceptance of a person’s choice to remain single if they wish to be so.
Chara Scroope(2017), with the Naming section authored by Nina Evason(2021).

Reference/s:

https://culturalatlas.sbs.com.au/filipino-culture/filipino-culture-references#:~:text=The
%20primary%20author,it-right-philippines.