The Philippines (

i
/ f l p i n z /; FI -l-peenz; Filipino: Pilipinas [ p l pin s] ), officially known as
the Republic of the Philippines (Filipino: Repblika ng Pilipinas), is a sovereign island contry in
!otheast "sia sitated in the western #acific $cean% &t consists of ',()' islands that are categorized
*roadly nder three +ain geographical divisions: ,zon, -isayas, and .indanao% &ts capital city is
.anila while its +ost poplos city is /ezon 0ity; *oth are part of .etro .anila%
To the north of the #hilippines across the ,zon !trait lies Taiwan; -ietna+ sits west across the !oth
0hina !ea; sothwest is the island of 1orneo across the !l !ea, and to the soth the 0ele*es !ea
separates it fro+ other islands of &ndonesia; while to the east it is *onded *y the #hilippine !ea and
the island2nation of #ala% &ts location on the #acific 3ing of Fire and close to the e4ator +akes the
#hilippines prone to earth4akes and typhoons, *t also endows it with a*ndant natral resorces and
so+e of the world5s greatest *iodiversity% "t appro6i+ately 7)),))) s4are kilo+eters (((8,97( s4 +i),
the #hilippines is the :;th2largest contry in the world%
<ith a poplation of at least == +illion people, the #hilippines is the seventh2+ost poplated contry
in "sia and the (>th +ost poplated contry in the world% "n additional (> +illion Filipinos live
overseas, co+prising one of the world5s largest diasporas% .ltiple ethnicities and cltres are fond
throghot the islands% &n prehistoric ti+es, ?egritos were so+e of the archipelago5s earliest
inha*itants% They were followed *y sccessive waves of "stronesian peoples% -arios nations were
esta*lished nder the rle of @ats, 3aAahs, !ltans or ,akans% Trade with 0hina, .alay, &ndian, and
&sla+ic states occrred%
The arrival of Ferdinand .agellan in (8>( +arked the *eginning of !panish colonization% &n (8;7,
!panish e6plorer 3y ,Bpez de -illalo*os na+ed the archipelago Las Islas Filipinas in honor of #hilip
&& of !pain% <ith the arrival of .igel ,Bpez de ,egazpi in (8:8, the first !panish settle+ent in the
archipelago was esta*lished, and the #hilippines *eca+e part of the !panish C+pire for +ore than 7))
years% This reslted in the predo+inant religion in the contry *eing 3o+an 0atholicis+% @ring this
ti+e, .anila *eca+e the "sian h* of the .anilaD"caplco galleon trade%
"s the (=th centry gave way to the >)th, there followed in 4ick sccession the #hilippine 3evoltion,
which spawned the short2lived First #hilippine 3ep*lic, and the #hilippineD"+erican <ar% "side
fro+ the period of Eapanese occpation, the Fnited !tates retained sovereignty over the islands% "fter
<orld <ar &&, the #hilippines was recognized as an independent nation% !ince then, the #hilippines has
had an often t+ltos e6perience with de+ocracy, which incldes a #eople #ower 3evoltion
overthrowing a dictatorship% The nation5s large poplation size and econo+ic potential have led it to *e
classified as a +iddle power% &t is a fonding +e+*er of the Fnited ?ations, <orld Trade $rganization,
"ssociation of !otheast "sian ?ations, and Cast "sia !++it%