Philippines

Republic of the Philippines Republika ng Pilipinas (Filipino)
Flag Coat of arms[a]
Motto:  Maka-Diyos, Maka-tao, Makakalikasan at Makabansa[1] "For God, People, Nature, and Country"
Anthem: "Lupang Hinirang" "Chosen Land"
Show globe Show map of ASEAN Location of Philippines (green) in ASEAN (dark grey)  –  [Legend]
Capital	Manila (de jure) Metro Manila[b] (de facto)
Largest city	Quezon City
Official languages	Filipino English
Recognized regional languages	19 languages[4]
National sign language	Filipino Sign Language
Other recognized languages[c]	Spanish and Arabic
Ethnic groups (2020[6])	26.0% Tagalog 14.3% Bisaya 8.0% Ilocano 8.0% Cebuano 7.9% Ilonggo 6.5% Bicolano 20.3% other
Religion (2020)[7]	85.3% Christianity 78.8% Catholicism[d] 6.5% other Christian 6.4% Islam 8.2% other / none
Demonym(s)	Filipino (neutral) Filipina (feminine) Pinoy (colloquial neutral) Pinay (colloquial feminine) Philippine (adjective for certain common nouns)
Government	Unitary presidential republic
• President	Bongbong Marcos
• Vice President	Sara Duterte
• Senate President	Francis Escudero
• House Speaker	Martin Romualdez
• Chief Justice	Alexander Gesmundo
Legislature	Congress
• Upper house	Senate
• Lower house	House of Representatives
Independence  from Spain and the United States
• Declaration	June 12, 1898
• Cession	April 11, 1899
• Self-government	November 15, 1935
• Recognized	July 4, 1946
• Constitution	February 2, 1987
Area
• Total	300,000[8][9][e] km2 (120,000 sq mi) (72nd)
• Water (%)	0.61[10] (inland waters)
Population
• 2024 estimate	114,163,719[11] (12th)
• 2020 census	109,035,343[12]
• Density	363.45/km2 (941.3/sq mi) (36th)
GDP (PPP)	2024 estimate
• Total	$1.392 trillion[13] (28th)
• Per capita	$12,192[13] (116th)
GDP (nominal)	2024 estimate
• Total	$471.516 billion[13] (32nd)
• Per capita	$4,130[13] (124th)
Gini (2021)	41.2[14] medium inequality
HDI (2022)	0.710[15] high (113th)
Currency	Philippine peso (₱) (PHP)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PhST)
Date format	MM/DD/YYYY DD/MM/YYYY[f]
Drives on	Right[16]
Calling code	+63
ISO 3166 code	PH
Internet TLD	.ph

The Philippines,^[g] officially the Republic of the Philippines,^[h] is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. In the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of 7,641 islands, with a total area of roughly 300,000 square kilometers, which are broadly categorized in three main geographical divisions from north to south: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The Philippines is bounded by the South China Sea to the west, the Philippine Sea to the east, and the Celebes Sea to the south. It shares maritime borders with Taiwan to the north, Japan to the northeast, Palau to the east and southeast, Indonesia to the south, Malaysia to the southwest, Vietnam to the west, and China to the northwest. It is the world's twelfth-most-populous country, with diverse ethnicities and cultures. Manila is the country's capital, and its most populated city is Quezon City. Both are within Metro Manila.

Negritos, the archipelago's earliest inhabitants, were followed by waves of Austronesian peoples. The adoption of animism, Hinduism with Buddhist influence, and Islam established island-kingdoms ruled by datus, rajas, and sultans. Extensive overseas trade with neighbors such as the late Tang or Song empire brought Chinese people to the archipelago as well, which would also gradually settle in and intermix over the centuries.

The arrival of Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese explorer leading a fleet for Castile, marked the beginning of Spanish colonization. In 1543, Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos named the archipelago Las Islas Filipinas in honor of King Philip II of Castile. Spanish colonization via New Spain, beginning in 1565, led to the Philippines becoming ruled by the Crown of Castile, as part of the Spanish Empire, for more than 300 years. Catholic Christianity became the dominant religion, and Manila became the western hub of trans-Pacific trade. Hispanic immigrants from Latin America and Iberia would also selectively colonize. The Philippine Revolution began in 1896, and became entwined with the 1898 Spanish–American War. Spain ceded the territory to the United States, and Filipino revolutionaries declared the First Philippine Republic. The ensuing Philippine–American War ended with the United States controlling the territory until the Japanese invasion of the islands during World War II. After the United States retook the Philippines from the Japanese, the Philippines became independent in 1946. The country has had a tumultuous experience with democracy, which included the overthrow of a decades-long dictatorship in a nonviolent revolution.

The Philippines is an emerging market and a developing and newly industrialized country, whose economy is transitioning from being agricultural to service- and manufacturing-centered. It is a founding member of the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, ASEAN, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, and the East Asia Summit; it is a member of the Non-Aligned Movement and a major non-NATO ally of the United States. Its location as an island country on the Pacific Ring of Fire and close to the equator makes it prone to earthquakes and typhoons. The Philippines has a variety of natural resources and a globally-significant level of biodiversity.

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