The Philippines

Essay by gotasian1High School, 12th gradeA, October 2008

download word file, 4 pages 4.0

The Philippines are a fascinating country that has a rich culture and history. They refer to themselves as Pinoy if they are a male and Pinay if they are a female. There are many different languages that are spoken in the Philippines. It has two national languages, English and Pilipino, which is based on Tagalog . Numerous dialects are spoken throughout the land, but there are eight major ones; Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocan, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Bicol, Waray, Pampango, and Pangasinan .

The cultural history of the Philippines can be divided into for periods: Pre-Spanish, Spanish, American and Post Independence. The Pre-Spanish rule period started when the first inhabitants of the Philippines are believed to be the Negritos . They are believed to have first stepped onto the island about 30,000 years ago. They lived in scattered communities and traded and fished. The Spanish period started when Ferdinand Magellan claimed the chain of islands for Spain .

Following the arrival of Spanish forces, Christianity was established. The influence of the Spanish was strongest in the central area of the country. There were many uprisings against the Spanish. In 1896, a final revolt succeeded and the Philippines gained their independence from the Spanish on June 12, 1898 .

After gaining independence, a period of time known as the American Period emerged. The United States received the Philippines under the Treaty of Paris in 1898 .The Philippine-American war was started to resist US rule. Capturing of one of the war biggest revolutionaries and the Peace Proclamation of 1902 helped to end resistance. Under the Tydings-McDuffie Act, the Philippines became a self-governing country. During WWII, US forces in the Philippines surrendered to Japan, which put the country under Japanese rule. Filipinos and Americans united together working to defeat Japan; they succeeded when Japan...