The culture of the Philippines is characterized by cultural diversity. Although the multiple ethnic groups of the

Philippine archipelago The islands of the Philippines, also known as the Philippine Archipelago, comprises about 7,641 islands, of which only about 2,000 are inhabited.Filipino national identity, their cultures were all shaped by the geography and history of the region, and by centuries of interaction with neighboring cultures, and colonial powers. In more recent times, Filipino culture has also been influenced through its participation in the

global community The term world community is used primarily in political and humanitarian contexts to describe an international aggregate of nation states of widely varying types. In most connotations, the term is used to convey meanings attached to consensus or ...

. "

History

Among the contemporary ethnic groups of the Philippine archipelago, the Negritos are generally considered the earliest settlers; today, although few in numbers, they preserve a very traditional way of life and culture. After those early settlers, the Austronesians arrived on the archipelago. The Austronesian culture is strongly evident in the ethnic majority and languages. Before the arrival of European colonizers in the 1500s, the various ethnic groups of the Philippines were organized into various independent polities, which historians have come to call " barangays".The actual historical use of the term "barangay" and its applicability to polities throughout the archipelago has been questioned in recent scholarship. See Woods, 2017. These polities consisted of about thirty to a hundred households, and were ruled by leaders with titles. The largest of these, such as Butuan, Tondo and the Sultanate of Sulu were complex political formations based on the deltas of the archipelago's biggest river systems, with political and trade relationships with polities further upstream on one hand, and with the political and trading powers of Maritime Southeast Asia and East Asia such as the

Sultanate of Brunei This article includes a list of successive Islamic states and Muslim dynasties beginning with the time of the Islamic prophet Muhammad (570–632 CE) and the early Muslim conquests that spread Islam outside of the Arabian Peninsula, and continui ...

, the

Majapahit Majapahit ( jv, ꦩꦗꦥꦲꦶꦠ꧀; ), also known as Wilwatikta ( jv, ꦮꦶꦭ꧀ꦮꦠꦶꦏ꧀ꦠ; ), was a Javanese people, Javanese Hinduism, Hindu-Buddhism, Buddhist thalassocracy, thalassocratic empire in Southeast Asia that was ba ...

empire, the

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speaki ...

and Ming Dynasties of China, and even

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. Indirect cultural exchange and some trade also took place with the Indian subcontinent and Arabia. Current logo of the Philippine Registry of Cultural Property

The advent of Spanish colonial rule in the islands marked the beginning of the Philippines as an entity, a collection of Southeast Asian countries united under Spanish Empire. The empire ruled, via the Viceroyalty of New Spain and later directly from Madrid (after 1821 Mexican independence), the islands between the 16th and 19th centuries (

Batanes Batanes, officially the Province of Batanes ( ivv, Provinsiya nu Batanes; Ilocano: ''Probinsia ti Batanes''; fil, Lalawigan ng Batanes, ), is an archipelagic province in the Philippines, administratively part of the Cagayan Valley region. It i ...

being one of the last places to be colonized in the mid-1800s), resulting in Christianity to spread and dominate throughout the archipelago and influenced the religion and beliefs of the natives. Then, the Philippines became a U.S. territory for almost 50 years. Influence from the United States is manifested in the wide use of the English language, media and in the modern culture and clothing of present-day Philippines.

Geography and ethnic groups

The Philippines' culture is shaped by its archipelagic geography, topography and physical location within Maritime Southeast Asia, all of which defined the cultural histories of the country's 175 Ethnolinguistic groups.

Influence of geography

The cultural diversity of Philippines is the result of the fact that it is an

archipelagic state An archipelagic state is an island country that consists of an archipelago. The designation is legally defined by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). In various conferences, The Bahamas, Fiji, Indonesia, Papua New Guine ...

. It is the world's fifth largest island country and is one of the five original archipelagic states recognized under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). It is made out of 7,641 islands with a total land area of , and an exclusive economic zone that covers of sea, covering an area from its shores. Settlement on the islands by its many ethnic groups and the cultural exchanges that shaped the cultural histories of those groups was enabled and defined by maritime and riverine transport - with travel by oceans and rivers serving as these cultures' main way of relating to each other, and long inland mountain ranges being the major physical hindrance to cultural linkages between various groups.

Ethnic groups of the Philippines

The Philippines is inhabited by more than 182 ethnolinguistic groups, many of which are classified as "Indigenous Peoples" under the country's

Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act of 1997 The Indigenous People's Rights Act of 1997 (IPRA), officially designated as Republic Act No. 8371, is a Philippine law that recognizes and promotes the rights of indigenous cultural communities and indigenous peoples in the Philippines. History ...

. Traditionally-Muslim peoples from the southernmost island group of Mindanao are usually categorized together as Moro peoples, whether they are classified as Indigenous peoples or not. About 142 are classified as non-Muslim Indigenous People groups, and about 19 ethnolinguistic groups are classified as neither indigenous nor moro. Various migrant groups have also had a significant presence throughout the country's history. The

Muslim-majority The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is practiced. In ...

ethnic groups ethnolinguistic groups of Mindanao,

Sulu Sulu (), officially the Province of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Wilāya sin Lupa' Sūg''; tl, Lalawigan ng Sulu), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines in the Sulu Archipelago and part of the Bangsamoro, Bangsamor ...

, and Palawan are collectively referred to as the Moro people, a broad category which includes some indigenous people groups and some non-indigenous people groups. About 142 of the Philippines' Indigenous People groups are not classified as moro peoples. Some of these people groups are commonly grouped together due to their strongly association with a shared geographic area, although these broad categorizations are not always welcomed by the ethnic groups themselves.National Statistics Office. “Statistics on Filipino Children.” Journal of Philippine Statistics, vol. 59, no. 4, 2008, p. 119. For example, the indigenous peoples of the

Cordillera Mountain Range The Cordillera Central or Cordillera Range is a massive mountain range 320 km (198 miles) long north-south and 118 km (73 miles) east-west. The Cordillera mountain range is situated in the north-central part of the island of Luzon, in the Phili ...

in northern Luzon are often referred to using the exonym "Igorot people," or more recently, as the

Cordilleran peoples The indigenous peoples of the Cordillera Mountain Range of northern Luzon, Philippines are often referred to using the exonym Igorot people, or more recently, as the Cordilleran peoples. There are nine main ethnolinguistic groups whose domains ar ...

. Meanwhile, the non-Moro peoples of Mindanao are collectively referred to as the Lumad, a collective autonym conceived in 1986 as a way to distinguish them from their neighboring indigenous Moro neighbors. About 86 to 87 percent of the Philippine population belong to the 19 ethnolinguistic groups are classified as neither indigenous nor moro. These groups are sometimes collectively referred to as "Lowland Christianized groups," to distinguish them from the other ethnolinguistic groups. The most populous of these groups, with populations exceeding a million individuals, are the Ilocano, the Pangasinense, the

Kapampangan Kapampangan, Capampañgan or Pampangan may refer to: *Kapampangan people of the Philippines *Kapampangan language Kapampangan or Pampangan is an Austronesian language, and one of the eight major languages of the Philippines. It is the primary ...

, the Tagalog, the

Bicolano Bikol or Bicol usually refers to: *Bicol Region, the administrative region in the Philippines Bikol or Bicol may also refer to: Languages and people *Bikol languages, the languages spoken in the Bicol region in the Philippines **Albay Bikol lang ...

, the Visayans and Cebuanos, the Boholano, the Hiligaynon/Ilonggo, and the

Waray Waray may refer to: * Waray people of the Philippines * Waray language, the fifth most spoken native language of the Philippines, spoken by the Waray people * Waray literature * Warray language Warray (Waray) was an Australian language spoken ...

. Many of these groups converted to Christianity, particularly both the native and migrant lowland-coastal groups, and adopted foreign elements of culture throughout the country's history. Due to the history of the Philippines since the Spanish colonial era, there are also some historical migrant heritage groups such as the Chinese Filipinos and Spanish Filipinos, both of whom intermixed with the above lowland Austronesian-speaking ethnic groups, which produced

Filipino Mestizos In the Philippines, Filipino Mestizo ( es, mestizo (masculine) / mestiza (feminine); Filipino/ tl, Mestiso (masculine) / Mestisa (feminine)) or colloquially ''Tisoy'', is a name used to refer to people of mixed native Filipino and any forei ...

. These groups also comprise and contribute a considerable proportion of the country's population, especially its

bourgeois The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...

, and economy and were integral to the establishment of the country, from the rise of Filipino nationalism by the '' Ilustrado''

intelligentsia The intelligentsia is a status class composed of the university-educated people of a society who engage in the complex mental labours by which they critique, shape, and lead in the politics, policies, and culture of their society; as such, the in ...

to the Philippine Revolution. Other peoples of migrant and/or mixed descent include those such as, American Filipinos,

Indian Filipino Indian Filipinos are Filipinos of Indian descent who have historical connections with and have established themselves in what is now the Philippines. The term refers to Filipino citizens of either pure or mixed Indian descent currently residing ...

s,With a sample population of 105 Filipinos, the company of ''Applied Biosystems'', analysed the Y-DNA of average Filipinos and it is discovered that about 0.95% of the samples have the Y-DNA Haplotype "H1a", which is most common in South Asia and had spread to the Philippines via precolonial Indian missionaries who spread Hinduism.
/ref> Japanese Filipinos, and many more.

Indigenous peoples

The Indigenous peoples of the Philippines are groups of people that were only fully annexed to the borders of the Philippines later in history, especially during the post war modern era. They are not fully absorbed by centuries of Spanish and United States colonization of the Philippines, and in the process, have developed their cultures, customs and traditions distinct from the lowland Christianized people of the Filipino culture. They consist of full or partial Negritos tribes scattered throughout the archipelago, and a large number of Austronesian ethnic groups. They are the descendants of the original

Austronesian Austronesian may refer to: *The Austronesian languages *The historical Austronesian peoples The Austronesian peoples, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples in Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, M ...

inhabitants of the Philippines, that settled in the islands thousands of years ago. Some of these tribes, have partial populations who converted to Christianity and even integrated to the lowland Christian populations. In the interest of clarity, the term ''indigenous'' as used in the Philippines refers to ethnolinguistic groups or subgroups that maintain partial isolation, or independence, throughout the Spanish and American colonial era. The term ''indigenous'' when applied to the Philippine population can be a deceptive misnomer, connoting alien migrant populations who have over time become the majority ethnolinguistic and cultural group in the land and thereby pushing indigens to the fringes of socio-cultural inclusion, such as in the Americas, Middle East, Australia, or New Zealand. Contrarily, the majority of people in the Philippines descend from the same Austronesian ancestral populations indigenous to the archipelago, regardless of cultural, religious, ethnolinguistic or tribal affiliations. (

Ethnic groups in the Philippines The Philippines is inhabited by more than 182 ethnolinguistic groups, many of which are classified as "Indigenous Peoples" under the country's Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act of 1997. Traditionally-Muslim peoples from the southernmost island gr ...

). In the context of Philippine population, the term is used to refer to a group of people who have developed their culture away from the Christianized lowland culture of Filipinos whose population, though, overwhelmingly Austronesian, had partial mestizos, Insulares, Chinese and few other foreign populations, and is characterized by a hybrid of east and west culture. In 1990, more than 100 highland peoples constituted approximately three percent of the Philippine population. Over the centuries, the isolated highland peoples have retained their Indigenous cultures. The folk arts of these groups were, in a sense, the last remnants of Indigenous traditions that flourished throughout the Philippines before the Islamic and Spanish contacts. The highland peoples are a primitive ethnic group like other Filipinos, although they did not, as a group, have as much contact with the outside world. These peoples displayed a variety of native cultural expressions and artistic skills. They showed a high degree of creativity such as the production of bowls, baskets, clothing, weapons and spoons. These peoples ranged from various groups of

Igorot The indigenous peoples of the Cordillera Mountain Range of northern Luzon, Philippines are often referred to using the exonym Igorot people, or more recently, as the Cordilleran peoples. There are nine main ethnolinguistic groups whose domains ar ...

people, a group that includes the

Bontoc Bontoc may refer to: * Bontoc, Mountain Province, Philippines * Bontoc, Southern Leyte, Philippines * Bontoc people, an ethnic group from Central Luzon, Philippines * Bontoc language Bontoc (Bontok) (also called Finallig) is the native language ...

, Ibaloi,

Ifugao Ifugao, officially the Province of Ifugao ( ilo, Probinsia ti Ifugao; tl, Lalawigan ng Ifugao), is a landlocked province of the Philippines in the Cordillera Administrative Region in Luzon. Its capital is Lagawe and it borders Benguet to the wes ...

, Isneg, Kalinga and Kankana-ey, who built the Rice Terraces thousands of years ago. They have also covered a wide spectrum in terms of their integration and acculturation with Christian Filipinos. Other Indigenous peoples include the Lumad peoples of the highlands of Mindanao. These groups have remained isolated from Western and Eastern influences.

Filipino psychology

A formal field interpreting Psychology as rooted on the experience, ideas, and cultural orientation of the Filipinos, called Filipino Psychology, was established in 1975.

Values

As a general description, the distinct value system of Filipinos is rooted primarily in personal alliance systems, especially those based in kinship, obligation, friendship, religion (particularly Christianity), and commercial relationships.''Social Values and Organization''
Philippines, Country Studies US. Online version of print book Ronald E. Dolan, ed. ''Philippines: A Country Study''. Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress, 1991. Filipino values are, for the most part, centered around maintaining social harmony, motivated primarily by the desire to be accepted within a group. The main sanction against diverging from these values are the concepts of "''Hiya''", roughly translated as 'a sense of shame', and "''Amor propio''" or 'self-esteem'. Social approval, acceptance by a group, and belonging to a group are major concerns. Caring about what others will think, say or do, are strong influences on social behavior among Filipinos.Hallig, Jason V
''Communicating Holiness to the Filipinos: Challenges and Needs''
, The Path to a Filipino Theology of Holiness, pp. 2, 10. Other elements of the Filipino value system are optimism about the future, pessimism about present situations and events, concern and care for other people, the existence of friendship and friendliness, the habit of being hospitable, religious nature, respectfulness to self and others, respect for the female members of society, the fear of God, and abhorrence of acts of cheating people financially and thievery. File dated April 8, 2000. In

Arts

Architecture

Casa Mexico, Las Casas Filipinas de Acuzar, Bataan

Before the arrival of European colonizers,

Austronesian architecture The Austronesian peoples, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples in Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar that speak Austrone ...

was the common form of housing on the archipelago. During the Spanish era, the new Christianized lowland culture collectively evolved a new style known as the Nipa hut (''Bahay Kubo''). It is characterized by use of simple materials such as bamboo and

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...

as the main sources of wood. Cogon grass, Nipa palm leaves and coconut fronds are used as roof thatching. Most primitive homes are built on stilts due to frequent flooding during the rainy seasons. Regional variations include the use of thicker, and denser roof thatching in mountain areas, or longer stilts on coastal areas particularly if the structure is built over water. The architecture of other indigenous peoples may be characterized by an angular wooden roofs, bamboo in place of leafy thatching and ornate wooden carvings. The Bahay na bato architecture is a variant of Nipa Hut that emerged during the Spanish era. Spanish architecture has left an imprint in the Philippines in the way many towns were designed around a central square or ''plaza mayor'', but many of the buildings bearing its influence were demolished during World War II. Some examples remain, mainly among the country's churches, government buildings, and universities. Four Philippine

baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

churches are included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the San Agustín Church in Manila, Paoay Church in Ilocos Norte, Nuestra Señora de la Asunción (Santa María) Church in Ilocos Sur, and Santo Tomás de Villanueva Church in Iloilo. Vigan in Ilocos Sur is also known for the many Hispanic-style houses and buildings preserved there. The introduction of Christianity brought European churches and architecture which subsequently became the center of most towns and cities in the nation. The

Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance peoples, Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of National and regional identity in Spain, national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex Hist ...

also introduced stones and rocks as housing and building materials and the Filipinos merged it with their existing architecture and forms a hybrid mix-architecture only exclusive to the Philippines. Filipino colonial architecture can still be seen in centuries-old buildings such as Filipino baroque churches, Bahay na bato; houses, schools, convents, government buildings around the nation. The best collection of Spanish colonial era architecture can be found in the walled city of Intramuros in Manila and in the historic town of Vigan. Colonial-era churches are also on the best examples and legacies of Spanish Baroque architecture called Earthquake Baroque which are only found in the Philippines. Historic provinces such as Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur,

Pangasinan Pangasinan, officially the Province of Pangasinan ( pag, Luyag/Probinsia na Pangasinan, ; ilo, Probinsia ti Pangasinan; tl, Lalawigan ng Pangasinan), is a coastal province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region of Luzon. Its capit ...

, Pampanga, Bulacan, Cavite,

Laguna Laguna (Italian and Spanish for lagoon) may refer to: People * Abe Laguna (born 1992), American DJ known as Ookay * Andrés Laguna (1499–1559), Spanish physician, pharmacologist, and botanist * Ana Laguna (born 1955), Spanish-Swedish ballet d ...

Rizal Rizal, officially the Province of Rizal ( fil, Lalawigan ng Rizal), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region in Luzon. Its capital is the city of Antipolo. It is about east of Manila. The p ...

, Batangas, Quezon, Iloilo,

Negros Negros is the fourth largest and third most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of . Negros is one of the many islands of the Visayas, in the central part of the country. The predominant inhabitants of the island region a ...

, Cebu, Bohol and Zamboanga del Sur also boasts colonial-era buildings. The American occupation in 1898 introduced a new breed of architectural structures in the Philippines. This led to the construction of government buildings and Art Deco theaters. During the American period, some semblance of city planning using the architectural designs and master plans by Daniel Burnham was done on the portions of the city of Manila. Part of the Burnham plan was the construction of government buildings that resembled Greek or Neoclassical architecture. In Iloilo, a lot of the colonial edifices constructed during the American occupation in the country can still be seen. Commercial buildings, houses and churches in that era are abundant in the city and especially in

Calle Real Calle means "street" in Spanish and Venetian. Calle may also refer to: Places *Calle-Calle River, southern Chile *Stations of the TransMilenio mass-transit system of Bogotá, Colombia: **Suba Calle 95 (TransMilenio) ** Suba Calle 100 (TransMilen ...

. The

University of Santo Tomas Main Building The Main Building of the University of Santo Tomas (UST) in Manila, Philippines functions as the university's administrative center, and home of the Faculty of Civil Law, Faculty of Pharmacy, and the College of Science. The Main Building is al ...

in Manila is an example of Renaissance Revival architecture. The building was built in 1924 and was completed at 1927. The building, designed by Fr. Roque Ruaño, O.P., is the first earthquake-resistant building in the Philippines . Islamic and other Asian architecture can also be seen depicted on buildings such as

mosques A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, i ...

and

temples A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

. Pre-Hispanic housing is still common in rural areas. Contemporary-style housing subdivisions and suburban-gated communities are popular in urbanized places such as Metro Manila, Central Visayas, Central Luzon, Negros Island and other prosperous regions. However, certain areas of the country like

have slight differences as both Spanish and Filipino ways of architecture assimilated differently due to the climate. Limestones and coral were used as building materials. Calesa

There have been proposals to establish a policy where each municipality and city will have an ordinance mandating all constructions and reconstructions within such territory to be inclined with the municipality or city's architecture and landscaping styles to preserve and conserve the country's dying heritage sites, which have been demolished one at a time in a fast pace due to urbanization, culturally-irresponsible development, and lack of towns-cape architectural vision. Such policies are used by countries which have preserved their architectural marvels, and entire cities as a whole, for hundreds of years, such as Italy, France, Romania, Germany, and Spain. The proposal advocates for the usage and reinterpretations of indigenous, colonial, and modern architectural and landscaping styles that are prevalent or used to be prevalent in a given city or municipality. The proposal aims to foster a renaissance in Philippine landscaping and townscaping, especially in rural areas which can easily be transformed into new architectural heritage towns within a 50-year time frame. Unfortunately, many Philippine-based architecture and engineering experts lack the sense of preserving heritage townscapes, such as the case in Manila, where business proposals to construct structures that are not inclined with Manila's architectural styles have been continuously accepted and constructed by such experts, effectively destroying Manila's architectural townscape one building at a time. Only the city of Vigan has passed such an ordinance, which led to its declaration as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999 and awarding of various recognition for the conservation and preservation of its unique architectural and landscaping styles. In 2016, bills proposing to establish a Department of Culture were filed in both chambers of Congress to help formulate policy on architecture. File:JC Balingasag 52.JPG,

Vega Ancestral House The Vega Ancestral House is one of the 1st Transition Bahay na Bato inspired houses that has remained standing and has witnessed the different colonial periods of the Philippines through its estimated 200 years of existence. Sculpted wooden Atlase ...

Misamis Oriental Misamis Oriental ( ceb, Sidlakang Misamis; tl, Silangang Misamis), officially the Province of Misamis Oriental, is a province located in the region of Northern Mindanao in the Philippines. Its capital, largest city and provincial center is th ...

File:Calle Crisologo, Vigan City, Ilocos Sur.JPG, Vigan City in Ilocos Sur File:Pic geo photos - ph=cavite=kawit=aguinaldo shrine - front view -philippines--2015-0611--ls- (1).JPG, Aguinaldo Shrine in Cavite File:Loboc church - panoramio.jpg, Loboc Church in Bohol File:Saint Augustine Church of Paoay, Ilocos Norte.jpg, Paoay Church in Ilocos Norte File:The Philippine National Museum of Natural History.jpg, Museum Agrifina Circle

Traditional clothing

Baro evolved from its forerunner garment worn by the

Tagalogs The Tagalog people ( tl, Mga Tagalog; Baybayin: ᜋᜅ ᜆᜄᜎᜓᜄ᜔) are the largest ethnolinguistic group in the Philippines, numbering at around 30 million. An Austronesian people, the Tagalog have a well developed society due to their cu ...

of Luzon Prior to the

Spanish Era The Spanish era ( la, Æra Hispanica), sometimes called the era of Caesar, was a calendar era (year numbering system) commonly used in the states of the Iberian Peninsula from the 5th century until the 15th, when it was phased out in favour of the ...

. When the Spaniards came and settled into the islands, the fashion changed drastically as the Spanish culture influenced the succeeding centuries of Philippine history. The Spanish dissolved the kingdoms and united the country, resulting in a mixture of cultures from different ethnic groups of the conquered archipelago and Spanish culture. A new type of clothing called Barong tagalog (for men) and Baro't saya (for women) began to emerged and would ultimately define the newly formed Filipino culture. Throughout the 16th century up to the 18th century, women wore a more updated version of the Baro't saya, composed of a bodice – called a

Camisa Camisa or Kamisa ( grc, τὰ Κάμισα), also known as Comassa and possibly as Eumeis, was a town of Lesser Armenia, inhabited during Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine times. It loaned its name to the surrounding district of Camisene or Comisen ...

, often made in pineapple fiber or muslin – and a floor length skirt, while the '' Barong Tagalog of men'', was a collared and buttoned lace shirt or a suit. Aside from Barong, men also wore suits. Most Visayan lowland women wear ''Kimona'', a type of Baro't Saya blouse matching with a knee-length or floor-length skirt printed with the

Patadyong The patadyong (pronounced ''pa-tad-jóng'', also called patadyung, patadjong, habol, or habul), is an indigenous Philippine rectangular or tube-like wraparound skirt worn by both men and women of the Visayas islands and the Sulu Archipelago, si ...

pattern, hence getting the name ''Patadyong'' skirt. The dress is often accompanied with a handkerchief called ''tubao'' also printed with patadyong pattern and is often placed above the right shoulder. These traditions was brought by the Visayans to Mindanao where they also dominate the Christian lowland culture. Salakot hat is a Filipino general term for a range of related traditional headgear used by virtually all ethnic groups of the Philippines and is a Filipino variation of the Asian conical hat of East and Southeast Asia. It is usually dome-shaped or cone-shaped, but various other styles also exist, including versions with dome-shaped, cone-shaped, or flat crowns with a flat or gently sloping brim. It can be made from various materials including bamboo, rattan, nito, bottle gourd, buri straw, nipa leaves, pandan leaves, carabao horn, and tortoiseshell. In addition to Salakot and western hats, Buntal hat, Buri hat and

calasiao hat Calasiao, officially the Municipality of Calasiao ( pag, Baley na Calasiao; ilo, Ili ti Calasiao; tgl, Bayan ng Calasiao), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Pangasinan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...

are another traditional hats worn by Filipinos. By the 19th century, due to the continuing influence of the Western culture, the rising economy, globalization, and exposure from the European fashion scene, the women's clothing began to have a change; by the 1850s, women's clothing was now full wide skirts that usually have long train rather than the simple floor length skirts, a bodice called ''camisa'' which means blouse in English and a '' pañuelo'', The attire is composed of four pieces, namely the camisa, the saya, the pañuelo (a scarf, also spelled panuelo) and the Tapis this would later be called Maria Clara. The men also continued to wear a more intricate version Barong Tagalog. Underneath the transparent Barong Tagalog is the ''Camisa de Chino'' a type of shirt, usually in white. When the Americans arrived baro't saya started to change again and became more modern in contrast to the conservative style. The women then wore the new version called, ''Traje de Mestiza'', the more modern version of the Maria Clara. By the 1920s, the style of the skirt still remained, influenced by the flapper dress; however, the wide sleeves had been flattened to butterfly sleeves and the big ''pañuelo'' reduced its size. Men wore suit and coat worn in the West, mostly Americans hence the name it was called, the ''Americana'', It was more popularly white or light in color than western counterpart. By the 1930s, young adult women and children embraced the more American style, but the typical "Traje de Mestiza" was not fully gone. By 1940's onward baro't saya was still evolving. But people started wearing more updated modern clothing and fully turned away from baros as everyday clothing. Though it became a symbol of traditional culture to be preserved for traditional ceremonies and cultural occasions, from the modern more globalized culture of the post war era. Cultures that are un-hispanized like the Negritos, Igorot, Lumad and Moro etc. was mostly only fully absorbed into the Filipino borders much later in history, especially during the post-war's modern and globalized culture when the hispanized lowland Filipinos are modernized. As a result, they were mostly unaffected by the traditional lowland Christian Filipino culture and clothing. What influenced them instead was the modern culture and fashions. Though traditional clothing are retained for traditional ceremonies and cultural occasions as well. Pineapple fiber is used to create traditional Philippine garments. Piña-Seda- Pineapple and Silk Cloths from the Philippines 2.jpg Piña-Seda- Pineapple and Silk Cloths from the Philippines 10.jpg Piña-Seda- Pineapple and Silk Cloths from the Philippines 9.jpg Piña-Seda- Pineapple and Silk Cloths from the Philippines 11.jpg Piña-Seda- Pineapple and Silk Cloths from the Philippines 12.jpg Piña-Seda- Pineapple and Silk Cloths from the Philippines 5.jpg Piña-Seda- Pineapple and Silk Cloths from the Philippines 3.jpg

Visual arts

Early pottery has been found in the form of mostly anthropomorphic earthenware jars dating from c. 5 BC to 225 AD. Early Philippine painting can be found in red slip (clay mixed with water) designs embellished on the ritual pottery of the Philippines such as the acclaimed Manunggul Jar. Evidence of Philippine pottery-making dated as early as 6000 BC has been found in Sanga-Sanga Cave, Sulu and Cagayan's Laurente Cave. It has been proven that by 5000 BC, the making of pottery was practiced throughout the archipelago. Early Austronesian peoples, especially in the Philippines, started making pottery before their Cambodian neighbors, and at about the same time as the Thais and Laotians as part of what appears to be a widespread Ice Age development of pottery technology. Further evidence of painting is manifest in the tattoo tradition of early Filipinos, whom the Portuguese explorer referred to as ''Pintados'' or the 'Painted People' of the Visayas. Various designs referencing flora and fauna with heavenly bodies decorate their bodies in various colored pigmentation. Perhaps, some of the most elaborate painting done by early Filipinos that survive to the present day can be manifested among the arts and architecture of the Maranaos who are well known for the Nāga dragons and the Sarimanok carved and painted in the beautiful Panolong of their Torogan or King's House. Filipinos began creating paintings in the European tradition during 17th-century Spanish period. The earliest of these paintings were Church frescoes, religious imagery from Biblical sources, as well as engravings, sculptures and lithographs featuring Christian icons and European nobility. Most of the paintings and sculptures between the 19th and 20th centuries produced a mixture of religious, political, and landscape art works, with qualities of sweetness, dark, and light. The Itneg people are known for their intricate woven fabrics. The ''

binakol ''Binakol'', also spelled ''binakoe'', is a Filipino chicken soup made from chicken cooked in coconut water with grated coconut, green papaya (or chayote), leafy vegetables, garlic, onion, ginger, lemongrass, and '' patis'' (fish sauce). It can a ...

'' is a blanket which features designs that incorporate optical illusions.Other parts of Highlands in the Cordillera Region or in local term " KaIgorotan" displays their art in tattoing, weaving bags like the "sangi" a traditional backpack and carving woods. Woven fabrics of the Ga'dang people usually have bright red tones. Their weaving can also be identified by beaded ornamentation. Other peoples such as the Ilongot make jewelry from pearl, red hornbill beaks, plants, and metals. Many Filipino painters were influenced by this and started using materials such as extract from onion, tomato, tuba, coffee, rust, molasses and other materials available anywhere as paint. The Lumad peoples of Mindanao such as the ''B'laan'', Mandaya, Mansaka and T'boli are skilled in the art of dyeing abaca fiber. Abaca is a plant closely related to bananas, and its leaves are used to make fiber known as Manila hemp. The fiber is dyed by a method called ''ikat''. ''Ikat'' fiber are woven into cloth with geometric patterns depicting human, animal and plant themes. ''Kut-kut'', a technique combining ancient

Oriental The Orient is a term for the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of ''Occident'', the Western World. In English, it is largely a metonym for, and coterminous with, the ...

and European art process. Considered lost art and highly collectible art form. Very few known art pieces existed today. The technique was practiced by the indigenous people of Samar Island between early 1600 and late 1800 A.D. It is an exotic Philippine art form based on early century techniques: sgraffito, encaustic and layering. The merging of the ancient styles produces a unique artwork characterized by delicate swirling interwoven lines, Islamic art in the Philippines have two main artistic styles. One is a curved-line

woodcarving Wood carving is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculptural ornamentation ...

and multi-layered texture and an illusion of three-dimensional space.metalworking called '' okir'', similar to the Middle Eastern Islamic art. This style is associated with men. The other style is geometric tapestries, and is associated with women. The Tausug and Sama–Bajau exhibit their okir on elaborate markings with boat-like imagery. The Marananaos make similar carvings on housings called torogan. Weapons made by Muslim Filipinos such as the '' kampilan'' are skillfully carved. Early modernist painters such as Haagen Hansen was associated with religious and secular paintings. The art of Lorenzo Miguelito and Alleya Espanol showed a trend for political statement. The first American national artist Jhurgen D. C. Pascua used post-modernism to produce paintings that illustrated Philippine culture, nature and harmony. While other artists such as Bea Querol used realities and abstract on his work. In the 1980s,

Odd Arthur Hansen Odd means unpaired, occasional, strange or unusual, or a person who is viewed as eccentric. Odd may also refer to: Acronym * ODD (Text Encoding Initiative) ("One Document Does it all"), an abstracted literate-programming format for describing X ...

, popularly known as ''ama ng makabayan pintor'' or father of patriotic paint, gained recognition. He uses his own white hair to make his own paintbrushes and signs his painting using his own blood on the right side corner. He developed his own styles without professional training or guidance from professionals. Traditional dance during pamulinawen

Dancing

Philippine folk dances include the Tinikling and Cariñosa. In the southern region of Mindanao, Singkil is a popular dance showcasing the story of a prince and princess in the forest. Bamboo poles are arranged in a tic-tac-toe pattern in which the dancers exploit every position of these clashing poles.

Music

The early music of the Philippines featured a mixture of Indigenous, Islamic and a variety of Asian sounds that flourished before the European and American colonization in the 16th and 20th centuries. Spanish settlers and Filipinos played a variety of musical instruments, including flutes, guitar, ukulele, violin, trumpets and drums. They performed songs and dances to celebrate festive occasions. By the 21st century, many of the folk songs and dances have remained intact throughout the Philippines. Some of the groups that perform these folk songs and dances are the Bayanihan, Filipinescas, Barangay-Barrio, Hariraya, the Karilagan Ensemble, and groups associated with the guilds of Manila, and Fort Santiago theatres. Many Filipino musicians have risen prominence such as the composer and conductor Antonio J. Molina, the composer Felipe P. de Leon, known for his nationalistic themes and the opera singer

Jovita Fuentes Jovita Flores Fuentes (February 15, 1895 – August 7, 1978) was a Filipina soprano singer. Background She was born in Capiz (now Roxas City) to a well-off couple named Canuto and Dolores Fuentes. At an early age, she displayed interest in music ...

. Modern day Philippine music features several styles. Most music genres are contemporary such as

Filipino rock Pinoy rock, or Filipino rock, is the brand of rock music produced in the Philippines or by Filipinos. It has become as diverse as the rock music genre itself, and bands adopting this style are now further classified under more specific genres or c ...

Filipino hip hop Filipino hip-hop or Pinoy hip hop (also known as Pinoy rap) is hip hop music performed by musicians of Filipino descent, both in the Philippines and overseas, especially by Filipino-Americans. The Philippines is known to have had the first hi ...

and other musical styles. Some are traditional such as Filipino folk music.

Literature

The Philippine literature is a diverse and rich group of works that has evolved throughout the centuries. It had started with traditional folktales and legends made by the ancient Filipinos before Spanish colonization. The main themes of Philippine literature focus on the country's pre-Hispanic cultural traditions and the socio-political histories of its colonial and contemporary traditions. The literature of the Philippines illustrates the Prehistory and European colonial legacy of the Philippines, written in both Indigenous and Hispanic writing system. Most of the traditional literatures of the Philippines were written during the Spanish period, while being preserved orally prior to Spanish colonization. Philippine literature is written in Spanish, English, or any indigenous Philippine languages. Some well known works of literature were created in the 17th to 19th centuries. The Ibong Adarna is a famous epic about a magical bird which was claimed to be written by José de la Cruz or "

Huseng Sisiw José de la Cruz (December 21, 1746 – March 12, 1829), more popularly known as Huseng Sisiw, was one of the great Tagalog writers during the Spanish colonization of the Philippines. Biography De la Cruz was born in Tondo, Manila on December 21, ...

". Francisco Balagtas is one of the country's prominent Filipino poets, he is named as one of the greatest Filipino literary laureates for his contributions in Philippine literature. His greatest work, the '' Florante at Laura'' is considered as his greatest work and one of the masterpieces of Philippine literature. Balagtas wrote the

epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film with heroic elements Epic or EPIC may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and medi ...

during his imprisonment.

José Rizal José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda (, ; June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896) was a Filipino nationalist, writer and polymath active at the end of the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. He is considered the national he ...

, the national hero of the country, wrote the novels '' Noli Me Tángere'' (''Touch Me Not'') and '' El Filibusterismo'' (''The Filibustering'', also known as ''The Reign of Greed'').

Nínay ''Nínay '' is a novel in the Spanish language written by Pedro Alejandro Paterno, and is the first novel authored by a native Filipino people, Filipino. Paterno authored this novel when he was twenty-three years oldPedro Paterno, explores the tragic life of a female protagonist Ninay. There have been proposals to revive all indigenous ethnic scripts or ''

suyat Suyat (''Baybayin:'' , '' Hanunó'o:'' , '' Buhid:'' , '' Tagbanwa:'' , '' Modern Kulitan:'' '' Jawi (Arabic):'' ) is the modern collective name of the indigenous scripts of various ethnolinguistic groups in the Philippines prior to Spanish c ...

'' in the Philippines, where the ethnic script of the ethnic majority of the student population shall be taught in public and private schools. The proposal came up after major backlash came about when a bill declaring the Tagalog baybayin as the national script of the country. The bill became controversial as it focuses only on the traditional script of the Tagalog people, while dismissing the traditional scripts of more than 100 ethnic groups in the country. The new proposal that came after the backlash cites that if the ethnic majority is Sebwano, then the script that will be taught is badlit. If the ethnic majority is Tagalog, then the script that will be taught is

baybayin (, ''pre-kudlít'': , ''virama-krus-kudlít'': , ''virama-pamudpod'': ; also formerly commonly incorrectly known as alibata) is a Philippine script. The script is an abugida belonging to the family of the Brahmic scripts. Geographically, it ...

. If the ethnic majority is Hanunuo Mangyan, then the script that will be taught is hanunu'o, and so on.

Cinema and media

''Salón de Pertierra'' was the first introduced moving picture on January 1, 1897, in the Philippines. All films were all in Spanish since Philippine cinema was first introduced during the final years of the Spanish era of the country. Antonio Ramos was the first known movie producer. He used the Lumiere Cinematograph when he filmed ''Panorama de Manila'' (Manila landscape), ''Fiesta de Quiapo'' (Quiapo Fiesta), ''Puente de España'' (Bridge of Spain), and ''Escenas Callejeras'' (Street scenes). Meanwhile, Jose Nepomuceno was dubbed as the "Father of Philippine Cinema". Dubbed as the "Father of Philippine Cinema", his work marked the start of cinema as an art form in the Philippines.Armes, Roy
"Third World Film Making and the West"
p.152. University of California Press, 1987. Retrieved on January 9, 2011. His first film produced was entitled ''

Dalagang Bukid ''Dalagang Bukid'' (English: ''Country Maiden'') is a 1919 Filipino silent film. Directed by José Nepomuceno, it is recognized as the first full-length Filipino produced and directed feature film. An adaptation of the Tagalog sarsuwela of th ...

'' (Country Maiden) in 1919. Film showing resumed in 1900 during the American period. Walgrah, a British entrepreneur, opened the ''Cine Walgrah at No. 60 Calle Santa Rosa'' in Intramuros. It was also during this time that a movie market was formally created in the country along with the arrival of silent movies. These silent films were always accompanied by

gramophone A phonograph, in its later forms also called a gramophone (as a trademark since 1887, as a generic name in the UK since 1910) or since the 1940s called a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogu ...

, a piano, a

quartet In music, a quartet or quartette (, , , , ) is an ensemble of four singers or instrumental performers; or a musical composition for four voices and instruments. Classical String quartet In classical music, one of the most common combinations o ...

, or a 200-man choir. During the Japanese occupation, filmmaking was put on hold. Nonetheless, it was continued on 1930s up until 1945 replacing the Hollywood market with Japanese films but met with little success. Postwar 1940s and the 1950s were known as the first golden age of

Philippine cinema The Cinema of the Philippines ( Filipino: ''Pelikulang Pilipino'' or ''Sine Pilipino'') began with the introduction of the first moving pictures to the country on August 31, 1897, at the ''Salón de Pertierra'' in Manila. The following year, local ...

with the resurgence of mostly Visayan films through Lapu-Lapu Pictures. Nationalistic films became popular, and movie themes consisting primarily of war and heroism and proved to be successful with Philippine audiences. The 1950s saw the first golden age of Philippine cinema, with the emergence of more artistic and mature films, and significant improvement in cinematic techniques among filmmakers. The studio system produced frenetic activity in the Philippine film industry as many films were made annually and several local talents started to gain recognition abroad. Award-winning filmmakers and actors were first introduced during this period. As the decade drew to a close, the studio system monopoly came under siege as a result of labor-management conflicts. During the 1960s, James Bond movies, ''bomba'' (soft porn) pictures and an era of musical films, produced mostly by Sampaguita Pictures, dominated the cinema. The second golden age occurred from the 1970s to early 1980s. It was during this era that filmmakers ceased to produce pictures in black and white. A rise in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

films dominated theater sales during the late 1980s until the 2000s.A bleak storyline for the Filipino film industry
Conde, Carlos H. ''International Herald Tribune''. February 11, 2007. (archived fro
the original
on April 1, 2007) The dawn of this era saw a dramatic decline of the mainstream Philippine movie industry.
. Vanzi, Sol Jose. ''Newsflash''. January 15, 2006. The 1970s and 1980s were considered turbulent years for the Philippine film industry, bringing both positive and negative changes. The films in this period dealt with more serious topics following the Martial law era. In addition, action, western, drama, adult and comedy films developed further in picture quality, sound and writing. The 1980s brought the arrival of alternative or independent cinema in the Philippines. The 1990s saw the emerging popularity of drama, teen-oriented romantic comedy, adult, comedy and action films. The mid-2010s also saw broader commercial success of films produced by independent studios. The Philippines, being one of Asia's earliest film industry producers, remains undisputed in terms of the highest level of theater admission in Asia. Over the years, however, the Philippine film industry has registered a steady decline in movie viewership from 131 million in 1996 to 63 million in 2004. From a high production rate of 350 films a year in the 1950s, and 200 films a year during the 1980s, the Philippine film industry production rate declined in 2006 to 2007. The 21st century saw the rebirth of independent filmmaking through the use of digital technology and a number of films have once again earned nationwide recognition and prestige. With the high rates of film production in the past, several movie artists have appeared in over 100+ roles in Philippine Cinema and enjoyed great recognition from fans and moviegoers.

Protest art

Protest art has played an important part in Philippine history, and in the development of Philippine culture. The

Propaganda Movement The Propaganda Movement encompassed the activities of a group of Filipinos who called for political reforms in their land in the late 19th century, and produced books, leaflets, and newspaper articles to educate others about their goals and is ...

had been key in the formation of the Philippine national consciousness in the 19th century. In the 20th century, the proclamation of

Martial law under Ferdinand Marcos At 7:17 pm on September 23, 1972, President Ferdinand Marcos announced on television that he had placed the entirety of the Philippines under martial law. This marked the beginning of a 14-year period of one-man rule that would effectively last ...

- and the subsequent

human rights abuses Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hum ...

which came with it - led to the prominence of protest art in Filipino popular culture.

Folklore

Philippine mythology

Philippine mythologies are the first literature of the Philippines, usually passed on through generation via traditional and oral folk literature. Written texts recording the stories have also been made. These literary stories are mostly chanted as part of a dynamic Philippine epic poetry. While each unique ethnic group has its own stories and myths to tell, Hindu and Spanish influences can nonetheless be detected in many cases. Philippine mythology mostly consists of creation stories or stories about supernatural creatures, such as the '' aswang'', the '' manananggal'', the '' diwata/

engkanto Engkanto (from Spanish '' encanto'', ) are mythical environmental spirits that are said to have the ability to appear in human form. They are often associated with the spirits of ancestors in the Philippines.* They are also characterized as spiri ...

'', and nature. Some popular figures from Philippine mythologies are Makiling, Lam-Ang, and the Sarimanok.

Religion

Christianity

Original Image of the Santo Niño de Cebu

The arrival of the Spanish colonizers in the 16th century brought the beginning of the Christianization of the people in the Philippines. This phase in history is noted as the tipping point for the destruction of a variety of Anitist beliefs in the country, which were replaced by colonial belief systems that fitted the tastes of the Spanish, notably

Christian beliefs Christianity is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism, monotheistic religion based on the Life of Jesus in the New Testament, life and Teachings of Jesus, teachings of Jesus, Jesus of Nazareth. It is the Major religious groups, world's ...

. Christianity in form of has influenced Filipino culture in almost every facet, from visual arts, architecture, dance, and music. Presently, the Philippines is one of the two predominantly Catholic (80.58%) nations in Asia-Pacific, the other being East Timor. The country also has its own independent Philippine church, the

Aglipayan , native_name_lang = fil , icon = Logo of the Philippine Independent Church (Aglipayan Church).svg , icon_width = 80px , icon_alt = Coat of arms of the Philippine Independent Church , image ...

, which accounts for around 2% of the national population. Other Christian churches are divided among a variety of Christian sects and cults. From the census in 2014, Christianity consisted of about 90.07% of the population and is largely present throughout the nation.

Indigenous folk religions

Indigenous Philippine folk religions Indigenous Philippine folk religions are the distinct native religions of various ethnic groups in the Philippines, where most follow belief systems in line with animism. Generally, these indigenous folk religions are referred to as Anito or An ...

, also referred collectively as Anitism,} meaning ancestral religions,https://www.asj.upd.edu.ph/mediabox/archive/ASJ-09-02-1971/hislop-anitism-survey-religious%20beliefs-native-philippines.pdf are the original faiths of the diverse ethnic groups of the Philippines. Much of the texts of the religions are stored through memory which are traditionally chanted, rather than written in manuscripts. Written texts, however, have been utilized as well in modern times to preserve aspects of the religions, notably their stories which are important aspects of

Philippine mythology Philippine mythology is the body of stories and epics originating from, and part of, the indigenous Philippine folk religions, which include various ethnic faiths distinct from one another. Philippine mythology is incorporated from various ...

and traditional rites and other practices. These stories consist of creation stories or stories about important figures such as deities and heroes and certain

creatures Creature often refers to: * An animal, monster, or Extraterrestrial life, alien Creature or creatures may also refer to: Film and television * Creature (1985 film), ''Creature'' (1985 film), a 1985 science fiction film by William Malone * Creat ...

. Some popular, but distinct, figures include the Tagalog's Bathala and Makiling, the Ilocano's Lam-Ang, and the Maranao's Sarimanok.

Islam

Islamic mythology arrived in the Philippines in the 13th century through trade routes in Southeast Asia. The spread of Islam established a variety of belief systems, notably in the southwestern portions of the archipelago, where the sultanate system was embraced by the natives without the need for forced conversions, as the religious traders did not intended to colonize the islands. Presently, around 6% of the population are Muslims, concentrating in the Bangsamoro region in Mindanao. Most Filipino Muslims practice Sunni Islam according to the Shafi'i school.

Others

Hinduism arrived in the Philippines in 200–300 AD while Vajrayana Buddhism arrived around 900 AD. Most adherent of Hinduism have Indian origins while those practicing Buddhism have Chinese or Japanese origins, notably those who immigrated in the Philippines in the last few decades. Shintoism arrived prior to the 12th century due to Japanese traders, while Judaism arrived in the 16th century due to the Inquisition. Taoism is also practiced by some Chinese immigrants.

Atheism Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no d ...

is also found in the Philippines.

Cuisine

Filipinos cook a variety of foods influenced by of main Indian,

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

, influences indigenous ingredients. The Spanish colonizers and friars in the 16th century brought with them produce from the Americas such as chili peppers, tomatoes, corn, potatoes, and the method of sautéing with garlic and onions. Eating out is a favorite Filipino pastime. A typical Pinoy diet consists at most of six meals a day; breakfast, snacks, lunch, snacks, dinner, and again a midnight snack before going to sleep. Rice is a staple in the Filipino diet, and is usually eaten together with other dishes. Filipinos regularly use spoons together with forks and knives. Some also eat with their hands, especially in informal settings, and also Filipinos use chopsticks when eating seafood. Rice, corn, and popular dishes such as '' adobo'' (a meat stew made from either pork or chicken), '' lumpia'' (meat or vegetable rolls), '' pancit'' (a noodle dish), and '' lechón baboy'' (roasted pig) are served on plates. Other popular dishes include afritada,

asado ' () is the technique and the social event of having or attending a barbecue in various South American countries, especially Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay where it is also a traditional event. An ''asado'' usually consists of beef, po ...

, ''

tapa Tapa, TAPA, Tapas or Tapasya may refer to: Media *Tapas (website), a webtoon site, formerly known as Tapastic * ''Tapas'' (film), a 2005 Spanish film * ''Tapasya'' (1976 film), an Indian Hindi-language film * ''Tapasya'' (1992 film), a Nepalese f ...

'', empanada, ''mani'' (roasted peanuts), '' paksiw'' (fish or pork, cooked in vinegar and water with some spices like garlic and

pepper Pepper or peppers may refer to: Food and spice * Piperaceae or the pepper family, a large family of flowering plant ** Black pepper * ''Capsicum'' or pepper, a genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae ** Bell pepper ** Chili ...

), '' pandesal'' (bread of salt), '' laing'', '' sisig'', ''torta'' ( omelette), kare-kare (ox-tail stew), '' kilawen'',

pinakbet Pinakbet (also called pakbet or pinak bet) is an indigenous Filipino dish from the northern regions of the Philippines. Pinakbet is made from mixed vegetables sautéed in fish or shrimp sauce. The word is the contracted from the Ilokano wo ...

(vegetable stew), pinapaitan, and '' sinigang'' ( tamarind soup with a variety of pork, fish, or

prawns Prawn is a common name for small aquatic crustaceans with an exoskeleton and ten legs (which is a member of the order decapoda), some of which can be eaten. The term "prawn"Mortenson, Philip B (2010''This is not a weasel: a close look at nature ...

). Some delicacies eaten by some Filipinos may seem unappetizing to the Western palate include '' balut'' (boiled egg with a fertilized duckling inside), longganisa (sweet sausage), and dinuguan (soup made from pork blood). Lechon

Popular snacks and desserts such as chicharon (deep fried pork or chicken skin), halo-halo (crushed ice with evaporated milk, flan, sliced tropical fruit, and sweet beans), puto (white rice cakes), bibingka (rice cake with butter or

margarine Margarine (, also , ) is a spread used for flavoring, baking, and cooking. It is most often used as a substitute for butter. Although originally made from animal fats, most margarine consumed today is made from vegetable oil. The spread was orig ...

and salted eggs), ensaymada (sweet roll with grated cheese on top), '' pulburon'' (powder candy), and '' tsokolate'' (chocolate) are usually eaten outside the three main meals. Popular Filipino beverages include Beer,

Tanduay Rhum Tanduay Distillers, Inc. () is a Philippine alcoholic beverage company. It is a subsidiary of LT Group, a conglomerate owned by Filipino business magnate Lucio Tan. As of 2019, it is the world's largest rum brand. History Tanduay traces its or ...

, lambanog, and tuba. Every province has its own specialty and tastes vary in each region. In Bicol, for example, foods are generally spicier than elsewhere in the Philippines. '' Patis'' (fish sauce), '' suka'' (vinegar), '' toyo'' (soy sauce), ''

bagoong ''Bagoóng'' (; ) is a Philippine condiment partially or completely made of either fermented fish (''bagoóng'') or krill or shrimp paste (''alamáng'') with salt. The fermentation process also produces fish sauce known as ''patís''. The pre ...

'', and '' banana ketchup'' are the most common condiments found in Filipino homes and restaurants. Western fast food chains such as McDonald's, Wendy's,

KFC KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) is an American fast food restaurant chain headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that specializes in fried chicken. It is the world's second-largest restaurant chain (as measured by sales) after McDonald's, with 2 ...

, and Pizza Hut are a common sight in the country. Local food chains such as Jollibee, Goldilocks Bakeshop, Mang Inasal and Chowking are also popular and have successfully competed against international fast food chains.

Education

Education in the Philippines has been influenced by Western and Eastern ideology and philosophy from the United States, Spain, and its neighbouring Asian countries. Philippine students enter public school at about age four, starting from nursery school up to kindergarten. At about seven years of age, students enter elementary school (6 to 9 years) this include Grade 7 to Grade 10 as

junior high school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school ...

, then after, they graduate. Since the Philippines has already implemented the

K-12 K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993, well known worldwide mainly for its heavyweight division fights and Grand Prix tournaments. In January 2012, K-1 Global Holdings Limited, a company registered in Hong Kong, acquired ...

system, students will enter SHS or senior high school, a 2-year course, to be able to prepare college life with their chosen track such as ABM (Accountancy Business Management), STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and HUMSS (Humanities and Social Sciences) other tracks are included like TECH-VOC (Technical Vocational). Students can make a choice if they will take the college entrance examinations (CEE) in order to attend college or university (3 to 5 years) or find work after they graduate senior high school. Other types of schools in the country include private schools, preparatory schools, international schools, laboratory high schools, and science high schools. Of these schools, private Catholic schools are the most famous. Catholic schools are preferred in the Philippines due to their religious beliefs. Most Catholic schools are co-ed. The uniforms of Catholic schools usually have an emblem along with the school colors. International schools follow different curricula, such as Singaporean, American, and British. With this, their approach differs depending on the overall programs that these curricula offer. The school year in the Philippines starts in June and ends in March, with a two-month summer break from April to May, two-week semestral break in October and Christmas and New Year's holidays. Changes are currently being made to the system and some universities have copied the Westernized academic calendar and now start the school year in August. In 2005, the Philippines spent about US$138 per pupil compared to US$1,582 in Singapore, US$3,728 in

, and US$852 in Thailand.

Sports and recreation

Arnis, a form of martial arts, is the national sport in the Philippines. Among the most popular sports include basketball, boxing,

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, billiards, chess, ten-pin bowling, volleyball,

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic p ...

, Sepak Takraw, cockfighting and

Bullfighting Bullfighting is a physical contest that involves a bullfighter attempting to subdue, immobilize, or kill a bull, usually according to a set of rules, guidelines, or cultural expectations. There are several variations, including some forms wh ...

. Dodgeball, badminton and Tennis are also popular. Filipinos have gained international success in sports. These are boxing,

, billiards, ten-pin bowling, and chess. Popular sport stars include Manny Pacquiao, Flash Elorde, and Francisco Guilledo in boxing, Paulino Alcántara in football,

Carlos Loyzaga Carlos "Caloy" Matute Loyzaga (August 29, 1930 – January 27, 2016) was a Filipino basketball player and coach. He was the most dominant basketball player of his era in the Philippines and is considered as the greatest Filipino basketball playe ...

Robert Jaworski Robert Vincent Salazar Jaworski Sr. (; born March 8, 1946) is a Filipino former professional basketball player, head coach and politician who served as a Senator of the Philippines from 1998 to 2004. He played 23 seasons in the Philippine Bas ...

, and Ramon Fernandez in basketball,

Efren Reyes Efren Manalang Reyes (born August 26, 1954), popularly known by the nickname "Bata" (English: "Kid"), is a Filipino professional pool player. Reyes is widely considered one of the greatest pool players of all time. A winner of over 100 inte ...

and

Francisco Bustamante Francisco Bustamante (born December 29, 1963) is a Filipino professional pool player from Tarlac, Central Luzon and the 2010 World Nine-ball Champion, nicknamed "Django", after the lead character of the 1966 film of the same name,Rafael Nepomuceno Rafael "Paeng" Villareal Nepomuceno (born January 30, 1957 in Quezon City) Filipino bowler and coach who is a six time World bowling champion. He is a World Bowling Hall of Famer and is the first and only bowling athlete to be awarded w ...

in ten-pin bowling, Eugene Torre and Renato Naranja in chess, and Mark Muñoz in MMA. The Philippine National Basketball Team is a powerhouse in Asia and has the best performance of all Asian teams in the Olympics and the

FIBA World Cup The FIBA Basketball World Cup, also known as the FIBA World Cup of Basketball or simply the FIBA World Cup, between 1950 and 2010 known as the FIBA World Championship, is an international basketball competition contested by the senior men's nat ...

. The Palarong Pambansa, a national sports festival, has its origin in an annual sporting meet of public schools that started in 1948. Private schools and universities eventually joined the national event, which became known as the "Palarong Pambansa" in 1976. It serves as a national Olympic Games for students, competing at school and national level contests. The year 2002 event included football, golf,

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

, badminton, baseball, chess, gymnastics, tennis, softball, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo, track and field, and volleyball.

Martial arts

There are several forms of Filipino martial arts that originated in the Philippines (similar to how Silat is the martial arts practiced in Asia) including Eskrima (weapon-based fighting, also known as ''Arnis'' and in the West sometimes as ''Kali''), Panantukan (empty-handed techniques), and

Pananjakman Arnis, also known as Kali or Eskrima/Escrima, is the national martial art of the Philippines. The three are roughly interchangeable umbrella terms for the traditional martial arts of the Philippines ("Filipino Martial Arts", or FMA), which emp ...

(the boxing component of Filipino martial arts).

Traditional Filipino games and pastimes

COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Speelbord voor mancala spel TMnr 45-318

Traditional Philippine games such as '' luksong baka'', ''

patintero ''Patintero'', also known as ''harangang-taga'' or ''tubigan'', (''Intl. Translate:'' Escape from the hell or Block the runner) is a Filipino traditional children's game. Along with ''tumbang preso'', it is one of the most popular outdoor games ...

'', ''piko'', and ''

tumbang preso ''Tumbang preso'' ("knock down the prisoner"), also known as ''tumba lata'' ("knock down the can") or ''bato lata'' ("hit the can ith a stone), is a Filipino traditional children's game. The game involves throwing a slipper at a can or bottle ...

'' are still played primarily as children's games among the youth. ames One Grows Up With Hagonoy.com. (archived fro
the original
on November 6, 2007)
hilippine Games (2009). ''Tagalog at NIU''. Retrieved December 19, 2009, from the Northern Illinois University, Center for Southeast Asian Studies, SEAsite Project. (archived fro
the original
on June 28, 2014)

Sungka Southeast Asian mancalas are a subtype of mancala games predominantly found in Southeast Asia. They are known as congklak ( VOS Spelling: tjongklak), congkak, congka, and dakon in Indonesia, congkak in Malaysia and Brunei, and sungkâ in the P ...

is played on a board game using small sea shells in which players try to take all shells. The winner is determined by who has the most shells at the point when all small pits become empty. One traditional Filipino game is '' luksong tinik'', a very popular game to Filipino children where one has to jump over the ''tinik'' and cross to the other side unscathed. Other traditional Filipino games include yo-yo, piko, patintero, bahay kubo, pusoy, and sungka. Tong-its is a popular gambling game. Individuals play the game by trying to get rid of all the cards by choosing poker hands wisely. Card games are popular during festivities, with some, including ''pusoy'' and ''tong-its'', being used as a form of illegal gambling.

Mahjong Mahjong or mah-jongg (English pronunciation: ) is a tile-based game that was developed in the 19th century in China and has spread throughout the world since the early 20th century. It is commonly played by four players (with some three-play ...

is played in some Philippine communities. Sabong or cockfighting is another popular entertainment especially among Filipino men, and existed prior to the arrival of the Spanish. Antonio Pigafetta, Magellan's chronicler, first documented this pastime in the kingdom of Taytay. The yo-yo, a popular toy in the Philippines, was introduced in its modern form by Pedro Flores with its name coming from the Ilocano language.Yo-yo
(2010). In Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Retrieved January 10, 2010. Filipinos have created toys using insects such as tying a beetle to string, and sweeping it circular rotation to make an interesting sound. The "Salagubang gong" is a toy described by Charles Brtjes, an American

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

, who traveled to

and discovered a toy using beetles to create a periodic gong effect on a kerosene can as the beetle rotates above the contraption. ''Piko'' is a Filipino version of the game

hopscotch Hopscotch is a popular playground game in which players toss a small object, called a lagger, into numbered triangles or a pattern of rectangles outlined on the ground and then hop or jump through the spaces and retrieve the object. It is a ch ...

. Children will draw a sequence rectangles using chalk on the ground. With various level of obstacle on each rectangle, children will compete against one another or in a team. Players use ''pamato;'' usually a flat stone, slipper or anything that could be tossed easily.

Rites of passage

Every year, usually in April and May, thousands of Filipino boys are taken by their parents to be circumcised. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) about 90% of Filipino men are circumcised, one of the world's highest circumcision rates. Although the roots of the practice date back to the arrival of

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

in 1450, the succeeding 200 years of Spanish rule obviated the religious reasons for circumcision. Nevertheless, circumcision, called '' tuli'', has persisted. The pressure to be circumcised is evidenced even in the language: the Tagalog word for 'uncircumcised', ''supot'', also means 'coward'. It is commonly believed that a circumcised eight or ten year-old is no longer a boy and is given more adult roles in the family and society.

Intangible cultural heritage

The Philippines, with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts as the de facto Ministry of Culture, ratified the 2003 Convention after its formal deposit in August 2006. Prior to the 2003 Convention, the Philippines was invited by UNESCO to nominate intangible heritage elements for the inclusion to the Proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. This prompted the proclamation of th
Hudhud chant of the Ifugao
in 2001 an
Darangen epic chant of the Maranao
in 2005. After the establishment of the 2003 Convention, all entries to the Proclamation of Masterpieces were incorporated in th
Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity
in 2008. A third inscription was made in 2015 through a multinational nomination between Cambodia, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea and Viet Nam for th
Tugging Rituals and Games
wherein the ''Punnuk'', tugging ritual of the

was included. As part of the objective of the 2003 Convention, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts through the Intangible Cultural Heritage unit and in partnership wit
ICHCAP
published th
''Pinagmulan'': Enumeration from the Philippine Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage
in 2012. The publication contains an initial inventory of 335 ICH elements with elaborate discussions on 109 ICH elements. The elements listed are the first batch of continuous updating process initiated by the government, UNESCO, and other stakeholders. In 2014, the Pinagmulan was a finalist under the category of the Elfren S. Cruz Prize for Best Book in the Social Sciences to the National Book Awards organized by the

National Book Development Board The National Book Development Board, abbreviated as NBDB, is an agency of the Philippine government under the Department of Education formed througRepublic Act No. 8047or the Book Publishing Industry Development Act, which was responsible for prom ...

. The Philippine inventory is currently being updated as a measure to safeguard more intangible cultural heritage elements in the country. The updating began in 2013 and results may be released in 5–10 years after the scientific process finishes the second batch of element documentations. According to UNESCO, it is not expected by a country or state party to have a completed inventory. On the contrary, the development and updating of inventories is an ongoing process that can never be finished. Between 2015 and 2017, UNESCO's ''Intangible Cultural Heritage Courier of Asia and the Pacific'' featured the ''darangen'' epic chant, ''punnuk'' tugging ritual, and at least three kinds of traditional healing practices in the Philippines, including the '' manghihilot'' and ''albularyo'' healing practices and belief of ''buhay na tubig'' (living water) of the Tagalog people of 20th century Quezon city, the ''baglan'' and ''mandadawak'' healing practices and stone beliefs of the Itneg people in Abra, and the ''mantatawak'' healing practices of the Tagalog people of

Marinduque Marinduque (; ), officially the Province of Marinduque, is an island province in the Philippines located in Southwestern Tagalog Region or Mimaropa, formerly designated as Region IV-B. Its capital is the municipality of Boac. Marinduque lies be ...

By 2016, according to the ICH Unit, National Commission for Culture and the Arts, there were 367 elements listed under the Philippine Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage (PIICH), the official ICH inventory of the Philippines. All elements under the PIICH are listed in Philippine Registry of Cultural Property (PRECUP), the official cultural property inventory of the country which includes both tangible and intangible cultural properties. In April 2018, the ''buklog'' of the Subanen people was nominated by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts in the list for urgent safeguarding.

Filipino diaspora

An Overseas Filipino is a person of Filipino origin, who lives outside of the Philippines. This term is applied to people of Filipino ancestry, who are citizens or residents of a different country. Often, these Filipinos are referred to as Overseas Filipino Workers. There are about 11 million overseas Filipinos living worldwide, equivalent to about 11 percent of the total population of the Philippines. Each year, thousands of Filipinos migrate to work abroad through overseas employment agencies and other programs. Other individuals emigrate and become permanent residents of other nations. Overseas Filipinos often work as doctors, nurses, accountants, IT professionals, engineers, architects, entertainers, technicians, teachers, military servicemen, students, caregivers, domestic helpers, and household maids. International employment includes an increasing number of skilled Filipino workers taking on unskilled work overseas, resulting in what has been referred to as brain drain, particularly in the health and education sectors. Also, the employment can result in underemployment, for example, in cases where doctors undergo retraining to become nurses and other employment programs.

Festivals

Festivals in the Philippines, locally known as ''fiestas'', originated dating back to the

Spanish colonial period Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

when the Spaniards introduced Christianity to the country. Most Philippine towns and cities has a patron saint assigned to each of them. Fiestas in the Philippines serve as either religious, cultural, or both. These festivals are held to honor the patron saint or to commemorate history and culture, such as promoting local products and celebrate a bountiful harvest. Fiestas can be categorized by Holy Masses, processions,

parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, float (parade), floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually ce ...

s, theatrical play and reenactments, religious or cultural rituals, trade fairs, exhibits, concerts,

pageant Pageant may refer to: * Procession or ceremony in elaborate costume * Beauty pageant, or beauty contest * Latter Day Saint plays and pageants, run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or by members local to the area of the pageant * ...

s and various games and contests.

Holidays

Regular holidays

Special holidays

Heritage towns and cities

The Philippines is home to numerous heritage towns and cities, many of which have been intentionally destroyed by the Japanese through fire tactics in World War II and the Americans through bombings during the same war. After the war, the government of the Empire of Japan withheld from giving funds to the Philippines for the restoration of the heritage towns they destroyed, effectively destroying any chances of restoration since the pre-war Philippines' economy was devastated and had limited monetary supply. On the other hand, the United States gave minimal funding for only two of the hundreds of cities they destroyed, namely, Manila and Baguio. Today, only the centres (poblacion or downtown areas) of Filipino heritage towns and cities remain in most of the expansive heritage cities and towns in the country. Yet, some heritage cities in their former glory prior to the war still exist, such as the UNESCO city of Vigan which was the only heritage town saved from American bombing and Japanese fire and kamikaze tactics. The country currently lacks a city/town-singular architectural style law. Due to this, unaesthetic cement or shanty structures have taken over heritage buildings annually, destroying many former heritage townscapes. Some heritage buildings have been demolished or sold to corporations, and have been replaced by commercial structures such as shopping centers, condominium units, or newly furnished modern-style buildings, completely destroying the old aesthetics of many former heritage towns and cities. This is one of the reasons why UNESCO has repeatedly withheld from inscribing further Filipino heritage towns in the World Heritage List since 1999. Only the heritage city of Vigan has a town law that guarantees its singular architecture (the Vigan colonial style) shall always be used in constructions and reconstructions. While Silay, Iloilo City, and San Fernando de Pampanga have ordinances giving certain tax exemptions to owners of heritage houses. In 2010, the Philippine Cultural Heritage Act passed into law, effectively giving protections to all cultural heritage properties of the Philippines. However, despite its passage, many ancestral home owners continue to approve the demolition of ancestral structures. In certain cases, government entities themselves were the purveyors of such demolitions.

List of heritage cities and towns

Throughout the nation, there are many heritage cities and towns. The following are in:

Greater Manila area

* Metro Manila ** Malabon ** Manila (UNESCO City) ** Quezon City **

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to: Places Argentina * San Juan Province, Argentina * San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province * San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province * San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...

* Bulacan **

Angat Angat may refer to: * Angat, Bulacan Angat, officially the Municipality of Angat ( tgl, Bayan ng Angat), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 65,617 people. ...

** Baliuag **

Bustos Bustos may refer to: People * Bustos (surname) Places * Bustos, Bulacan, Philippines * Corral de Bustos, Córdoba, Argentina * Bustos, Oliveira do Bairro, Aveiro, Portugal Other uses * Bustos Media Bustos Media L.L.C. is a media corporation ...

** Malolos ** Plaridel ** San Miguel * Cavite ** Cavite City **

Kawit Kawit, officially the Municipality of Kawit ( tgl, Bayan ng Kawit), is a first-class municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population ...

** Maragondon *

** Alaminos de Laguna **

Biñan Biñan (), officially the City of Biñan ( fil, Lungsod ng Biñan), is a 1st class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city in the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Laguna (province), Laguna, Philippines. According ...

** Cabuyao ** Calamba **

Liliw Liliw, officially the Municipality of Liliw ( tgl, Bayan ng Liliw), is a 4th class municipality in the province of Laguna, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 39,491 people. It is one of the highland towns forming ...

** Los Baños ** Magdalena ** Majayjay **

Nagcarlan Nagcarlan, officially the Municipality of Nagcarlan ( tgl, Bayan ng Nagcarlan), is a 2nd class municipality in the province of Laguna, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 64,866 people. It is northeast of San P ...

Paete Paete, officially the Municipality of Paete ( tgl, Bayan ng Paete), is a 4th class municipality in the province of Laguna, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 24,945 people. The town, is located at the north-east ...

** Pagsanjan **

Pakil Pakil, officially the Municipality of Pakil ( tgl, Bayan ng Pakil), is a 5th class municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Laguna (province), Laguna, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it h ...

Pila Pila may refer to: Architecture * Pila (architecture), a type of veranda in Sri Lankan farm houses Places *Pila, Buenos Aires, a town in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina *Pila Partido, a country subdivision in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina * ...

** San Pablo **

Santa Rosa Santa Rosa is the Italian, Portuguese and Spanish name for Saint Rose. Santa Rosa may also refer to: Places Argentina *Santa Rosa, Mendoza, a city * Santa Rosa, Tinogasta, Catamarca * Santa Rosa, Valle Viejo, Catamarca *Santa Rosa, La Pampa * Sa ...

Angono Angono ( or ), officially the Municipality of Angono ( tgl, Bayan ng Angono), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Rizal, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 130,494 people. It is best known as the "Art ...

** Antipolo ** Baras ** Morong ** Tanay

Luzon

* Bicol Region ** Camalig ** Daet ** Daraga ** Legazpi **

Naga Naga or NAGA may refer to: Mythology * Nāga, a serpentine deity or race in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions * Naga Kingdom, in the epic ''Mahabharata'' * Phaya Naga, mythical creatures believed to live in the Laotian stretch of the Mekong Riv ...

** Tabaco ** Iriga * Central Luzon ** Alaminos ** Angeles **

Bacolor Bacolor, officially the Municipality of Bacolor ( pam, Balen ning Bakúlud; tgl, Bayan ng Bacolor), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Pampanga, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 48,066 people. Bacolor ...

Baler A baler or hay baler is a piece of farm machinery used to compress a cut and raked crop (such as hay, cotton, flax straw, salt marsh hay, or silage) into compact bales that are easy to handle, transport, and store. Often, bales are configured ...

** Guagua ** Lingayen **

San Fernando San Fernando may refer to: People *Ferdinand III of Castile (c. 1200–1252), called ''San Fernando'' (Spanish) or ''Saint Ferdinand'', King of Castile, León, and Galicia Places Argentina *San Fernando de la Buena Vista, city of Greater Buenos ...

** Santa Cruz ** Santa Rita * Northern Luzon ** Batac ** Laoag **

Mahatao Mahatao, officially the Municipality of Mahatao ( ivv, Kavahayan nu Mahatao; tl, Bayan ng Mahatao), is a 6th class municipality in the province of Batanes, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 1,703 people. History ...

** Paoay (UNESCO Town) **

Sabtang Sabtang, officially the Municipality of Sabtang ( ivv, Kavahayan nu Sabtang; tl, Bayan ng Sabtang), is a 6th class municipality in the province of Batanes, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 1,696 people. The south ...

** San Nicolas ** Santa Maria ** Vigan, Ilocos Sur (UNESCO Town) ** Sarrat ** Tuguegarao **

Uyugan Uyugan, officially the Municipality of Uyugan ( ivv, Kavahayan nu Uyugan; tl, Bayan ng Uyugan), is a 6th class municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Batanes, Philippines. According to the 2020 cens ...

** Baguio (UNESCO City) **

Banaue Banaue (or alternatively spelled as Banawe), officially the Municipality of Banaue is a 4th class municipality in the province of Ifugao, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 20,652 people. It is widely known as t ...

(UNESCO Town) **

Hungduan Hungduan, officially the Municipality of Hungduan is a 4th class municipality in the province of Ifugao, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 8,866 people. It is bounded on the north-east by the town of Banaue in the ...

(UNESCO Town) **

Kiangan Kiangan, officially the Municipality of Kiangan is a 4th class municipality in the province of Ifugao, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 17,691 people. Kiangan is the oldest town in the province. It derives its na ...

(UNESCO Town) **

Mayoyao Mayoyao, officially the Municipality of Mayoyao is a 4th class municipality in the province of Ifugao, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 15,621 people. History Battle of Mayoyao Ridge From July 26, to August 9, 1 ...

(UNESCO Town) **

Sagada Sagada, officially the Municipality of Sagada is a 5th class municipality in the province of Mountain Province, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 11,510 people. Sagada is from Bontoc, the provincial capital, ...

* Southern Tagalog ** Balayan ** Batangas City **

Boac British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the British state-owned airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II. After the passi ...

Calaca A calaca (, a colloquial Mexican Spanish name for skeleton) is a figure of a skull or skeleton (usually human) commonly used for decoration during the Mexican Day of the Dead festival, although they are made all year round. Description Tracing t ...

** Lucban ** Lucena ** San Juan de Batangas ** Sariaya ** Taal ** Tayabas

Visayas

* Central Visayas **

Argao Argao, officially the Municipality of Argao ( ceb, Lungsod sa Argao; tgl, Bayan ng Argao), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Cebu, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 78,187 people. Geography The munic ...

** Baclayon ** Bantayan ** Carcar ** Cebu City **

Dalaguete Dalaguete, officially the Municipality of Dalaguete ( ceb, Lungsod sa Dalaguete; tgl, Bayan ng Dalaguete), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Cebu, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 74,596 people. Lo ...

** Dauis **

Oslob Oslob, officially the Municipality of Oslob ( ceb, Lungsod sa Oslob; tgl, Bayan ng Oslob), is a 4th class municipality in the province of Cebu, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 29,264 people. Oslob is bordered ...

** Panglao **

Tagbilaran Tagbilaran, officially the City of Tagbilaran ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Tagbilaran), is a 3rd class component city and capital of the province of Bohol, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 104,976 people. Encompassing a la ...

** Lazi *

Eastern Visayas Eastern Visayas ( war, Sinirangan Kabisay-an; ceb, Sidlakang Kabisay-an; tl, Silangang Kabisayaan or ''Silangang Visayas'') is an administrative region in the Philippines, designated as Region VIII. It consists of three main islands, Samar, ...

Capul Capul, officially the Municipality of Capul ( war, Bungto han Capul; tl, Bayan ng Capul), is a 5th class island municipality in the province of Northern Samar, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 12,323 people. A li ...

** Guiuan * Western Visayas ** Iloilo City ** Miag-ao (UNESCO Town) **

Panay Panay is the sixth-largest and fourth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of and has a total population of 4,542,926 as of 2020 census. Panay comprises 4.4 percent of the entire population of the country. The City o ...

** Romblon ** Roxas * Negros Island **

Bacolod Bacolod, officially the City of Bacolod (; hil, Dakbanwa/Syudad sang Bacolod; fil, Lungsod ng Bacolod), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the region of Western Visayas, Philippines. It is the capital of the province of Negros Occidenta ...

Bacong Bacong, officially the Municipality of Bacong, is a 4th class municipality in the province of Negros Oriental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 41,207 people. Bacong was the hometown of the Visayan hero of the ...

** Dumaguete ** Silay ** Victorias * Palawan ** Culion ** Cuyo **

Puerto Princesa Puerto Princesa, officially the City of Puerto Princesa (Cuyonon: ''Siyudad i'ang Puerto Princesa''; fil, Lungsod ng Puerto Princesa), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Mimaropa region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, ...

(UNESCO City) ** Taytay

Mindanao

* Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao ** Marawi **

Tugaya Tugaya, officially the Municipality of Tugaya (Maranao: ''Inged a Tugaya''; tl, Bayan ng Tugaya), is a 5th class municipality in the province of Lanao del Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 24,778 people. The ...

(UNESCO Town) *

Northern Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ra ...

and Western Mindanao ** Dapitan ** Zamboanga City **

Balingasag Balingasag, officially the Municipality of Balingasag ( ceb, Lungsod sa Balingasag; tl, Bayan ng Balingasag), is a 2nd class municipality in the province of Misamis Oriental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 74, ...

Cagayan de Oro Cagayan ( ), officially the Province of Cagayan ( ilo, Probinsia ti Cagayan; ibg, Provinsiya na Cagayan; itv, Provinsiya ya Cagayan; fil, Lalawigan ng Cagayan), is a province in the Philippines located in the Cagayan Valley region, covering ...

** Iligan ** Jasaan ** Jimenez **

Oroquieta Oroquieta,(formerly known as Layawan), officially the City of Oroquieta ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Oroquieta; fil, Lungsod ng Oroquieta), is a 4th class component city and capital of the province of Misamis Occidental, Philippines. According to the 20 ...

Ozamiz Ozamiz, officially the City of Ozamiz ( ceb, Dakbayan sa Ozamiz; fil, Lungsod ng Ozamiz), is a 3rd class component city in the province of Misamis Occidental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 140,334 people. A ...

* Southern Mindanao ** Butuan ** Cabadbaran ** Davao City ** Mati (UNESCO Town) ** Glan ** Lake Sebu

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Culture Of The Philippines 01

History

Geography and ethnic groups

Influence of geography

Ethnic groups of the Philippines

Indigenous peoples

Filipino psychology

Values

Arts

Architecture

Traditional clothing

Visual arts

Dancing

Music

Literature

Cinema and media

Protest art

Folklore

Philippine mythology

Religion

Christianity

Indigenous folk religions

Islam

Others

Cuisine

Education

Sports and recreation

Martial arts

Traditional Filipino games and pastimes

Rites of passage

Intangible cultural heritage

Filipino diaspora

Festivals

Holidays

Regular holidays

Special holidays

Heritage towns and cities

List of heritage cities and towns

Greater Manila area

Luzon

Visayas

Mindanao

See also

Further reading

Notes

References

External links