THM 104 – Chapter 1 -It is, for instance, the second most-crowded

Asian Nation (China) with English as an official

Philippine Culture and Tourism Geography language and one of just two overwhelming
Philippines- Island country of Southeast Asia Roman Catholic nations in Asia (the other
in the Western Pacific Ocean. being East Timor).

-It is an archipelago comprising od - The nation was wracked by political strife in

somewhere in the range of 7,140 island and the last quarter of the 20th century. In the
islets lying around 500 miles (800 km) off the wake of suffering over a time of dictator rule
shore of Vietnam. under Pres. Ferdinand Marcos, the extensively
famous People Power development in 1986
-Manila is the capital, but nearby drove a bloodless uprising against the system.
Quezon City is the country’s most populous
city. -The confrontation resulted not only in the
restoration of democratic government to the
President of the Philippines Philippines.
-The president of the Philippines is *The Philippines emerged as a regional leader
the head of state of the Philippines. in education during the late 20th century, with
a well-established public school and university
Government
system, and by the early 21st century had one
-The Philippines has a democratic of the highest literacy rates in Asia.
government in the form of a constitutional
Philippine Culture
republic with a presidential system.
-influenced by the east and the west.
The Flag of the Philippines
*The Philippines is commonly referred to as a
-The national flag of the Philippines is
melting pot of western and eastern cultures.
a horizontal bicolour flag with equal bands of
royal blue and crimson red, with white, *The traditional culture of Philippines is
equilateral triangle at the hoist. In the center heavily influenced by the traditions of the
of the triangle is a golden-yellow sun with indigenous Austronesian people.
eight primary rays, each representing a
province. Religion, Festivals, and Holiday

*The coat of arms of the Philippines -Islam is the second largest religion in the
country with about 6.0% of citizen identifying
-features the eights-rayed sun of the as Muslim.
Philippines with each ray representing the
eight provinces (Batangas, Bulacan, Cavite, -The majority of the Muslim Filipinos are Sunni
Manila, Laguna, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga and Muslims, but there is also a small number of
Tarlac) that were placed under martial law Ahmadiyya Muslims.
during the Philippine Revolution, and the 3 -The cultural diversity in the Philippines is
five-pointed stars representing the 3 major showcased in numerous festivals, locally
island groups (Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao) known as fiestas.
The History of the Philippines Religion
-The Philippines takes its name from Philip II, -The Philippines is a secular state which
who was king of Spain during the Spanish protects freedom of religion. Christian is the
colonization in the 16th Century. dominant faith, shared by 89% of the
population.
88.7% - Christianity Dance- ranges from traditional indigenous-
inspired dances to modern “western-inspired”
6.0% - Islam
dances.
5.3% - Other/None
Literature- ancient Filipino literature was
Festivals primarily made up of legends and folklore,
the main forms of literature before the
-Due to the predominance of the Roman Spanish colonization of the country.
Catholic faith. Most cities and towns in the
Philippines have patron saints who are -while most of the folktales existed as oral
honoured through festivals: literature, written publications did exist
particularly during the Spanish colonial era
-Silmugi Festivals (Saint Sebastian)
*Ibong Adarna- Jose de la Cruz
-Sinulog “” (Santo Niňo de Cebu)
*Florante at Laura- Francisco Balagtas
-Kuraldal “” (Saint Lucy)
*Noli Me Tangere- Jose P. Rizal
Holidays
Art- earliest form of art is traced back to 500
-While most festivals are only observed in BC through pottery discovered in the sanga-
particular regions or towns, some are public sanga cave, (sulu archipelago)
holidays which are celebrated all over the
country. -Ancient Filipinos were also gifted tattoo
artists who decorated their bodies in multi-
-New Year’s Day- January 1 coloured pigmentation with environment-
-Holy Week –march and April inspired designs.

-Independence Day- June 12 -The tattoo work on these ancient Filipino was
done so well that Portuguese explorers called
-Christmas Day- December 25 them as “Painted People” or the “Pintados”
-Rizal Day- December 30 Modern Artist:
Music and Dance  Damian Domingo
-The music composed in the Philippines is  Juan Luna
influence by all the cultures in the Country.  Fernando Amorsolo

-Traditional folk songs are primarily inspired *Elito Circa- known worldwide for painting
by the indigenous customs and beliefs. using blood

-Some notable composers of Filipino folk -National Art Gallery and Metropolitan
music include: Museum of Art

-Lucio San Pedro- from the National Cuisine- in the Philippines is influenced by
Artist for music local and foreign cultures.

-Antonio Buenaventura- a renowned *Rice- is the staple meal in the country.

patriotic music composer. -Rice is also ground into rice flour which is
-Original Pinoy Music or Philippine used in the preparation of pastries and sweets
Pop Music- music composed in the urban *Tilapia, Clam, Mussels, Squid, and catfish
regions of the Philippines, targeting the youth. being salted, fried, and served with rice and
vegetables.
  Lechon mountain ranges dividing the archipelago
 Mechado along with significant foreign influences.
 Afritado
 Visayan- 33.7%
*The country is also home to many “western”  Tagalog- 24.4%
fast food franchises including Pizza Hut, KFC,  Ilocano- 8.4%
and McDonald’s.  Bicolano- 6.8%

Clothing Climate

*The Maria Clara- is a traditional dress worn November to February- is the coolest month
by Filipino women. and a good time to visit the Philippines as far
as a weather is concerned.
-The traditional attire gets its name from
famous character known as Maria Clara in the March to May- is the summer months in the
epic 19th century narrative, “Noli Me country and are classified as hot and dry.
Tangere” written by Jose Rizal
June to October- is rainy, with the months
*Four Components of the Maria Clara attire between July and September characterized by
typhoons.
 Saya- a long dress
 Tapis- a knee-long skirt Some parts of the country such as Cebu and
 Camisa- a collarless chemise its neighbouring provinces in the Visayas are
 Panuelo- a stiff scarf warm and comfortable in all seasons and can
be visited throughout the year.
*Terno
Tourism- the Philippines is a popular
 The Barong Tagalog-
retirement destination for foreigners because
Linguistic Affiliation of its climate and low cost of living.

Official languages are Filipino- which is based *The travel and tourism sector contributed
on Tagalog with words from other native 10.6% of the country’s GDP in 2015 and
languages, and English (second language) providing 1,226,500 jobs in 2013.

*English is used in colleges, universities, the Map- the Philippines is an emerging market
courts, and the government. Since not all are and a newly industrialized country whose
fluent in speaking Filipino. economy is transitioning from being
agriculture centered to services and
*Spanish was taught as a compulsory manufacturing centered. It is a founding
language until 1968 but is seldom used today. member of the United Nations, WTO, ASEAN.
*Spanish numbers and some Spanish words The Apec Forum, and the EAS
are included in dialects.

 Tagalog- 24.44%
 Cebuano-21.35%
 Ilokano- 8.77%
 Hiligaynon- 8.44%
 Waray- 3.97%
 Other dialects- 26.09%

Ethnicity- there is substantial ethnic diversity

with the Philippines, a product of the seas and