The
history of the Philippines, many argue, did not begin with the
coming of the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan in 1521.
Rather, it began in the 13th century, when 10 Datus from Borneo,
each with a hundred of his kinsmen, landed in what is now known
as Panay Island in the Visayas. Yet, it was Magellan, and the
succeeding expeditions from Spain, who put the Philippine archipelago
on the map of the world. The intrepid Magellan was dubbed the
"discoverer" of the Philippines after he landed upon the island
of Homonhon, near Samar, on March 16, 1521, he then claimed
these islands in the name of King Philip II of Spain and named
them Felipinas, the Philippines. The missionaries introduced
Christianity and attempted to unify the many peoples and islands
under a central government. Ferdinand Magellan was later killed
in Mactan Island of Cebu in a clash with native warriors led
by a chieftain named Lapu-lapu.
The Philippine archipelago has 7,107 islands which lies between
21 degrees and 5 degrees north latitude in the Western Pacific.
She has a land area of 298,170 square kilometers. It extends
northward toward Taiwan and Borneo to the south. On the west
is the China Sea and on the east is the Pacific Ocean.
Government: The Philippine government
is composed of three governing bodies: the Executive, Legislature,
& Judicial. The Executive is composed of the President, elected
by the people for a term of six years. The Philippine Constitution
has the bicameral system, which includes the Senate and the
House of Representatives. The Senate serves for a minimum of
six years with 24 members lead by the Senate speaker. The House
of Representatives is composed of 250 members serving for 3
years. The Speaker of the House leads the Congress. The judicial
system is composed of the Chief justice and 14 associate justices.
The Supreme Court is the highest court in the country.
Population: 66,117,284 in July 1990;
average population density 220 persons per square kilometer;
annual growth rate 2.5 percent; birth rate 29 per 1,000 (in
1991); death rate 7 per 1,000 (in 1991).
Language: Pilipino (based on Tagalog)
and English (official languages). Eleven languages including
Cebuano or Visaya which is also widely spoken in the southern
parts of the Philippines and eighty-seven dialects indigenous
to archipelago.
Education: In 1989 six years of compulsory,
free elementary education provided to approximately 15 million
students, more than 96 percent of age-group. Approximately 290,000
teachers in 34,000 elementary schools. Beginning at age 13,
approximately 4 million students, more than 55 percent of age-group,
enrolled in 5,500 secondary schools with approximately 80,000
teachers; 1.6 million enrolled in 1,675 institutions of higher
education with 56,380 instructors. Supervised by Department
of Education, Culture, and Sports. Literacy rate nearly 90 percent
in 1990.
Religion: In 1989 approximately 82
percent Roman Catholic, approximately 9 percent associated with
Iglesia ni Kristo and various Protestant denominations, 5 percent
Muslim, remainder Buddhist, Daoist (or Taoist), or other religions.
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