Culture of the Philippines

The culture of the Philippines is a combination of cultures of the East and West.[1] Filipino identity was created primarily as a
result of pre-colonial cultures, colonial influences and foreign traders intermixing and gradually evolving together. In pre-colonial
times, the Philippines was a divided set of nations, islands and tribes being ruled by their own kings, chieftains, lakans, rajahs,
datus and sultans. Every nation has its own identity and some are even part of a larger empire outside of what is now the
Philippines. Manila, for example, was once part of the Islamic Sultanate of Brunei, and the Sulu Archipelago was also part of the
Hindu Majapahit. The advent of colonial rule in the islands marked the beginning of the Philippines as an entity, a collection of
Southeast Asian countries united under Spanish East Indies.

Chinese influence has been felt throughout Southeast Asia through trade, specifically by the Ming dynasty and other earlier
dynasties from as early as the 9th century. The blending of indigenous, colonial and external influence is very evident in the
historic arts and traditions of the country.

The Philippine archipelago was first settled by Negritos; today, although few in numbers, they preserve a very traditional way of
life and culture. After them, the Austronesians arrived on the archipelago. The Austronesian culture is strongly evident in the
ethnicities, languages, cuisine, music, dance and almost every aspect of the culture. These Austronesians engaged in trading with
other Austronesians, particularly in the neighbouring nations in Maritime Southeast Asia. They also traded with the Mainland
Southeast Asia, as well as Japan, China, the Indian subcontinent and Arabia. As a result, some of these cultures marked their
influences on Filipino culture. This gradually evolved with indigenous belief systems and developed into Anitism, which became
the dominant religion for more than a millennium.[2][3]

The Spanish Empire, via the Viceroyalty of New Spain,

conquered the islands between the 16th and 19th centuries
(Batanes 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 Current logo for the Philippine Registry of Cultural
Property
manifested in the wide use of the English language, media and in
the modern culture and clothing of present-day Philippines.[4]

Contents
Architecture
Religion
Christianity
Anitism
Indigenous religions or shamanism
Islam
Others
Rites of passage
Visual arts
Performing arts
Dancing
 Music
Literature
Cinema and media
Cuisine
Education
Sports
Martial arts
Traditional Filipino games
Indigenous groups
Intangible Cultural Heritage
Filipino diaspora
Festivals
Holidays
Regular holidays
Special holidays
Philippine Heritage Towns and Cities
See also
Further reading
References
External links

Architecture
Being a colony of the Spanish Empire for 333 years, the Spaniards introduced
European colonial architecture to the Philippines. The introduction of Christianity
brought European churches and architecture which subsequently became the center
of most towns and cities in the nation. The Spaniards 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, Bahay na bato is a traditional
government buildings around the nation. The best collection of Spanish colonial era Filipino colonial house.
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, Pampanga, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, Batangas, Quezon, Iloilo, Negros,
Cebu, Bohol and Zamboanga del Sur also boasts colonial-era buildings.

In the past, before the Spanish colonization, the Nipa hut (Bahay Kubo) was the common form of housing among the native
Filipinos. It is characterized by use of simple materials such as bamboo and coconut 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 are a variant of Nipa Hut that emerge during the colonial era.
The University of Santo Tomas Main Building in Manila is an example of Renaissance Revival architecture. The building was
built on 1924 and was completed at 1927. The building, designed by Fr. Roque Ruaño, O.P., is the first earthquake-resistant
building in the Philippines that is not a church .[5] Islamic and other Asian architecture can also be seen depicted on buildings
such as mosques and 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.

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.
Kalesa, a traditional Philippine
The proposal advocates for the usage and reinterpretations of indigenous, colonial,
urban transportation in front of
and modern architectural and landscaping styles that are prevalent or used to be Manila Cathedral entrance.
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. Furthermore, the singular
architectural proposal has yet to be manifested into an actual policy due to the lack of a Department of Culture. 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, senator
Loren Legarda filed a bill establishing the Department of Culture. The bill was introduced in the Senate in January 2017 and is
expected to be passed into law in late 2018 or early 2019. The bill is backed by 9 other senators from different political parties,
namely, Bam Aquino, Nancy Binay, Francis Escudero, Juan Zubiri, Joseph Ejercito, Joel Villanueva, Sherwin Gatchalian, Risa
Hontiveros, and Sonny Angara. Three counterpart bills that aim to establish a Department of Culture has also been filed in the
House of Representatives, authored by Christopher de Venecia, Evilina Escudero, and Jose Antonio Sy-Alvarado.[6][7]

Architecture of the Philippines

 Vigan City in Ilocos Sur Aguinaldo Shrine in Cavite Loboc Church in Bohol Paoay Church in Ilocos Norte

Liliw Church in Laguna

Religion

Christianity
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 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, which accounts for around 2%
of the national population. Other Christian churches are divided among a variety of Christian sects and
Original Image
cults. From the census in 2014, Christianity consisted of about 90.07% of the population and is largely
of the Santo
Niño de Cebú present throughout the nation.[8]

Anitism
Anitism (Anitismo; Aniteria),[9][10] simply referred as Philippine mythology or indigenous Philippine ancestral religions, is a
body of myths, tales, and superstitions held by Filipinos (composed of more than a hundred ethnic peoples in the Philippines),
mostly originating from beliefs held during the pre-Hispanic era. Some of these beliefs stem from pre-Christian religions that
were specially influenced by Hinduism and were regarded by the Spanish as "myths" and "superstitions" in an effort to de-
legitimize legitimate precolonial beliefs by forcefully replacing those native beliefs with colonial Christian myths and
superstitions. Today, some of these precolonial beliefs are still held by many Filipinos, both in urban and rural areas.

Philippine mythology is incorporated from various sources, having similarities with Indonesian and Malay myths, as well as
Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, and Christian traditions, such as the notion of heaven (kaluwalhatian, kalangitan, kamurawayan, etc.),
hell (kasamaan, sulad, etc.), and the human soul (kaluluwa, kaulolan, etc.). Philippine mythology attempts to explain the nature
of the world through the lives and actions of deities (gods, goddesses), heroes, and mythological creatures. The majority of these
myths were passed on through oral tradition, and preserved through the aid of community spiritual leaders or shamans (babaylan,
katalonan, mumbaki, baglan, machanitu, walian, mangubat, bahasa, etc.) and community elders.

The term 'Philippine mythology' has been used since the 20th century by successive generations as a general term for all
mythologies within the Philippines. These "mythologies" are practiced as valid religions by the native people, the same way
Shintoism is practiced as a valid religion in Japan or Christianity is practiced as a valid religion in Europe. Each ethnic group in
the Philippines has their own distinct mythologies (or religion), pantheon of deities, and belief systems. For example, the
mythology of the Maranao people is completely different from the mythology of neighboring Subanon people, while the
mythology of the Hiligaynon people is also completely different from the mythology of the neighboring Suludnon people. The
Philippines is composed of more than a hundred distinct ethnic peoples, according to a 21st-century map published by the
Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino, the Atlas Filipinas.[11][12][13][14]

Philippine mythologies and indigenous religions have historically been referred as Anitism,[9] meaning "ancestral
religion".[15][16] Today, many ethnic peoples continue to practice and conserve their unique indigenous religions, notably in
ancestral domains, although foreign and foreign-inspired Hispanic and Arabic religions continue to interfere with their life-ways
through conversions, land grabbing, inter-marriage, and/or land-buying. Various scholarly works have been made regarding
Anitism and its many topics, although much of its stories and traditions are still undocumented by the international
anthropological and folkloristic community.[15][17][9][18] Unlike dead religions such as Norse mythology, living religions such as
Anitism, Shintoism, and Hinduism continue to develop up to this day due to inevitable dynamics in belief systems in the modern
century. Because of this natural phenomenon, folk literature or oral stories on a variety of Philippine mythologies concerning the
deities, heroes, and creatures have sustainably been multiplying since the pre-colonial era up to the 21st century. Presently, around
2% of the population are Anitists, concentrating in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Palawan, Mindoro, Western Visayas,
and Mindanao. Specific communities throughout the Philippines also adhere to Anitism, while more than 90% of the Philippine
national population continue to believe in certain Anitist belief system, despite adhering to another religion.[19][20] Most Anitism,
Indiegenous religions and Shamanism in the Philippines in the modern days are melted with Christianity.

Indigenous religions or shamanism

Due to the influx of Christianity, Islam, and other world religions in traditional
communities, the indigenous practices, rituals, and spiritual performances and
knowledge of indigenous Filipinos are fast disappearing. Cultural workers in the
country suggest the Paiwan Model, which was made by the Taiwanese
government to preserve indigenous religions, to save the Philippines' own
indigenous religions. The indigenous practices and shamanism of the Paiwan
people of Taiwan was the fastest declining religion in the country. This prompted
the Taiwanense government to preserve the religion and to push for the
A performer depicting a babaylan
establishment of the Paiwan School of Shamanism where religious leaders teach (shaman).
their apprentices the native religion so that it will never be lost. It became an
effective medium in preserving, and even uplifting the Paiwan people's
indigenous religion. In the Philippines, shaminism is referred as dayawism, meaning 'gallant religions that give thanks to all
living and non-living things'. As of 2018, there is no established school of dayawism in the Philippines, making the hundreds of
indigenous religions in the country in great peril from extinction due to the influx of colonial-era religions. Each indigenous
religion in the Philippines is distinct from each other, possessing unique epics, pantheons, belief systems, and other intangible
heritage pertaining to religious beliefs. Due to this immense diversity in indigenous religions, a singular school of dayawism is
not feasible. Rather, hundreds of schools of dayawism pertaining to an ethno-linguistic tribe is a better supplement to the current
religious landscape in the Philippines.[21]
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.[8]

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 is also found in
the Philippines.[22][8]

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 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.[23]

Visual arts
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.
Tampuhan by Juan Luna.
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.[24][25] 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 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. Some indigenous
materials are also used as a medium in different kinds of art works especially in
painting by Elito Circa, a folk artist of Pantabangan and a pioneer for using
indigenous materials, natural raw materials including human blood. Many Filipino
painters were influenced by this and started using materials such as extract from The kut-kut art from Samar.
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 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, multi-layered
texture and an illusion of three-dimensional space.

Islamic art in the Philippines have two main artistic styles. One is a curved-line woodcarving and 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, 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.

Performing arts

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.[26][27]

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 Panderetas dance
Antonio J. Molina, the composer Felipe P. de Leon, known for his
nationalistic themes and the opera singer Jovita Fuentes.

Modern day Philippine music features several styles. Most music genres are contemporary such as Filipino rock, Filipino hip hop
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-colonial 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 of the well known work of literature were created from the 17th to
19th century. The Ibong Adarna is a famous epic about an magical bird which
was claimed to be written by José de la Cruz or "Huseng Sisiw".[28] 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 Noli Me Tángere (novel)

epic during his imprisonment.[29] José Rizal, 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).

There have been proposals to revive all indigenous ethnic scripts or suyat 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. If the ethnic majority is Hanunuo
Mangyan, then the script that will be taught is hanunu'o, and so on.[30]

Cinema and media

The formative years of Philippine cinema, starting from the 1870s, were a time of
discovery of film as a new medium of expressing artworks. Scripts and characterizations
in films came from popular theater shows and Philippine literature.

The advent of the cinema of the Philippines can be traced back to the early days of
filmmaking in 1897 when a Spanish theater owner screened imported moving pictures.

In the 1940s, Philippine cinema brought the consciousness of reality in its film industry.
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,[31][32] with the emergence of
Mila del Sol starred in one of more artistic and mature films, and significant improvement in cinematic techniques
the earliest Filipino movies, among filmmakers. The studio system produced frenetic activity in the Philippine film
Giliw Ko (1939), along with industry as many films were made annually and several local talents started to gain
Fernando Poe Sr.. 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. By the 1960s, the artistry established in the
previous years was in decline. This era can be characterized by rampant commercialism in films.

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.[32]

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.[33][34] 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.[33][34] 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.

Cuisine
Filipinos cook a variety of foods influenced by of main Indian, Chinese, influences indigenous ingredients.[35]

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.
La Paz Batchoy is a noodle soup
Other popular dishes brought from Southeast Asian, and Spanish influences made with pork organs, crushed pork
cracklings, chicken stock and beef
include afritada, asado, chorizo, empanadas, mani (roasted peanuts), paksiw (fish
loin.
or pork, cooked in vinegar and water with some spices like garlic and pepper),
pan de sal (bread of salt), pescado frito (fried or grilled fish), sisig, torta
(omelette), kare-kare (ox-tail stew), kilawen, pinakbet (vegetable stew), pinapaitan, and sinigang (tamarind soup with a variety of
pork, fish, or prawns). Some delicacies eaten by some Filipinos may seem unappetizing to the Western palate include balut
(boiled egg with a fertilized duckling inside), longanisa (sweet sausage), and dinuguan (soup made from pork blood).

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 and
salted eggs), ensaymada (sweet roll with grated cheese on top), polvoron (powder
candy), and tsokolate (chocolate) are usually eaten outside the three main meals.
Popular Philippine beverages include San Miguel Beer, Tanduay Rhum, coconut
arrack, and tuba.

Every province has its own specialty and tastes vary in each region. In Bicol, for
A Filipino Lechon.
example, foods are generally spicier than elsewhere in the Philippines. Patis (fish
sauce), suka (vinegar), toyo (soy sauce), bagoong, 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, 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.[36][37]

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, then
after, they graduate. Since the Philippines has already implemented the K-12 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 The University of Santo Tomas,
located in Manila, was
HUMSS (Humanities and Social Sciences) other tracks are included like TECH-
established in 1611.
VOC (Technical Vocational). Students can make a choice if they will take the
college entrance examinations (CEE) for which they enter college or university (3 to
5 years) or find a work after they graduate on 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.

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 Japan, and US$852 in
Thailand.[38][39]

Sports
Arnis, a form of martial arts, is the national sport in the Philippines.[40] Among the most popular sports include basketball,
boxing, football, billiards, chess, ten-pin bowling, volleyball, horse racing, Sepak Takraw and cockfighting. Dodgeball,
badminton and Tennis are also popular.

Filipinos have gained international success in sports. These are boxing, football, 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, Robert Jaworski, and Ramon Fernandez in basketball, Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante in billiards, Rafael
Nepomuceno in ten-pin bowling, Eugene Torre and Renato Naranja in chess, and Mark Munoz 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 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, 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 (the boxing component of Filipino martial arts).

Traditional Filipino games

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. Sungka 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 A grandmaster of Arnis.
most shells at the point when all small pits become empty.[41] 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, who traveled to
Negros and discovered a toy using beetles to create a periodic gong effect on a kerosene can as the beetle rotates above the
contraption.[42] Piko is a Philippine version of the game hopscotch. 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 toss easily.

Indigenous groups
The Indigenous peoples of the Philippines consist of a large number of Austronesian
ethnic groups. They are the descendants of the original Austronesian inhabitants of the
Philippines, that settled in the islands thousands of years ago, and in the process have
retained their Indigenous customs and traditions.[43]

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
An Ivatan woman in
creativity such as the production of bowls, baskets, clothing, weapons and spoons. These
Batanes.
peoples ranged from various groups of Igorot people, a group that includes the Bontoc,
Ibaloi, Ifugao, 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.

Intangible Cultural Heritage

The Philippines, with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts as the de facto Ministry of Culture,[44] ratified the 2003
Convention after its formal deposit in August 2006.[45]

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 the
Hudhud chant of the Ifugao (https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/hudhud-chants-of-the-ifugao-00015) in 2001 and Darangen epic chant
of the Maranao (https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/darangen-epic-of-the-maranao-people-of-lake-lanao-00159) in 2005. After the
establishment of the 2003 Convention, all entries to the Proclamation of Masterpieces were incorporated in the Representative
List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (https://ich.unesco.org/en/00011?type=00002) 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
the Tugging Rituals and Games (https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/tugging-rituals-and-games-01080), wherein the Punnuk, tugging
ritual of the Ifugao 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 with ICHCAP (http://www.ichcap.org/eng/index/), published the Pinagmulan:
Enumeration from the Philippine Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage (http://www.ichcap.org/eng/ek/sub3/sub2.php#self) 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.[46] 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.[47]

Between 2015 and 2017, UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage Courier of Asia and the Pacific featured the darangen epic
chant,[48] punnuk tugging ritual,[49] 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,[50] the baglan and mandadawak healing practices and stone beliefs of the Itneg people in Abra,[50] and the
mantatawak healing practices of the Tagalog people of Marinduque.[50]

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.[51] 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.[52]

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.[53]

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,[54] 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 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, parades, theatrical play and reenactments, religious or cultural rituals, trade fairs, exhibits, concerts,
pageants and various games and contests.
Flores de Mayo

The MassKara Festival of Bacolod.

The Sinulog Festival is held to

commemorate the Santo Niño
Pahiyas Festival in Lucban Quezon
 Month Festival Place
January Ati-Atihan Kalibo, Aklan
Sinulog Cebu
Dinagyang Iloilo
Dinagsa Cadiz, Negros Occidental
Coconut San Pablo, Laguna
Hinugyaw Koronadal, South Cotabato
February Panagbenga Baguio
Kaamulan Bukidnon
Paraw Regatta Iloilo and Guimaras
Pamulinawen ilocos
March Pintados de Passi Passi, Iloilo
Araw ng Dabaw Davao
Kariton Licab, Nueva Ecija
Kaamulan Bukidnon
April Moriones Marinduque
Sinuam San Jose, Batangas
Pana-ad Negros Occidental
Aliwan Pasay
May Magayon Albay
Pahiyas Lucban, Quezon
Sanduguan Calapan, Oriental Mindoro
Sumakah Antipolo City, Rizal
Butwaan Butuan
June Baragatan Palawan
Sangyaw Tacloban
Pista Y Ang Kagueban Puerto Princesa, Palawan
July T'nalak Koronadal, South Cotabato
August Kadayawan Davao
Higalaay Cagayan de Oro
Pavvu-rulun Tuguegarao
Sabutan Festival Baler, Aurora
September Peñafrancia Naga City
Sandurot Dumaguete
Padul-ong Borongan, Eastern Samar
Bonok-Bonok Surigao City
Banigan Basey, Samar
Diyandi Iligan City
 October Fiesta Pilar Zamboanga City
Masskara Bacolod
Buglasan Negros Oriental
Pangisdaan Navotas City
November Itik Victoria, Laguna
December Paru-Paru Dasmariñas, Cavite

Holidays

Regular holidays

Date
(Gregorian Filipino language English language
Calendar)
January 1 Araw ng Bagong Taon New Year's Day
Mahal na Araw including Holy Week including
March–
Biyernes Santo and Good Friday and
April
Huwebes Santo Maundy Thursday Parol (Christmas lanterns) being sold
during the Christmas season
April 9 Araw ng Kagitingan Day of Valour
May 1 Araw ng Manggagawa Labour Day
June 12 Araw ng Kalayaan Independence Day
August 27 Araw ng mga Bayani National Heroes' Day
November
Araw ni Bonifacio Bonifacio Day
30
December
Bisperás ng Pasko Christmas Eve
24
December
Araw ng Pasko Christmas
25 Good Friday observance in
December Pampanga
Araw ni Rizal Rizal Day
30

Special holidays

Date (Gregorian
Filipino language English language
Calendar)
January–February Bagong Taong Pang Tsino Chinese New Year
Anibersaryo ng Rebolusyon ng Lakas ng mga People Power Revolution
February 25
Tao Anniversary
August 21 Araw ni Ninoy Aquino Ninoy Aquino Day
November 1 Araw ng mga Santo All Saints Day
November 2 Araw ng mga Kaluluwa All Souls' Day
December 31 Bisperás ng Bagong Taón New Year's Eve
Philippine 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,[55] 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.[56] Because of the
minimal reach of the current governmental culture agency and the lack of awareness on the importance of Filipino sites, a bill
establishing a Department of Culture was formally filed in 2016. The bill is expected to pass into law by late 2018 or early 2019
as it was declared a priority legislation by both houses of Congress. If the bill reaches its deadline, a secretary of culture will be
appointed by June–July 2019.[57]

Throughout the nation, there are many heritage cities and towns.[58] The following are in:

Greater Manila Area

Metro Manila
Malabon
Manila (UNESCO City)
Quezon City
San Juan
Cavite
Cavite City
Kawit
Maragondon
 Laguna
Alaminos de Laguna
Biñan
Cabuyao
Calamba
Liliw
Los Baños
Magdalena
Majayjay
Nagcarlan
Paete
Pagsanjan
Pakil
Pila
San Pablo
Santa Rosa
Rizal
Angono
Antipolo
Baras
Morong
Tanay

Luzon

Northern Luzon Central Luzon

Batac Alaminos
Laoag Angat
Mahatao Angeles
Paoay (UNESCO Town) Bacolor
Sabtang Baler
San Nicolas Baliuag
Santa Maria Bustos
Vigan, Ilocos Sur (UNESCO Town) Guagua
Sarrat Lingayen
Tuguegarao Malolos
Uyugan Plaridel
The Cordilleras San Fernando
Baguio (UNESCO City) San Miguel
Banaue (UNESCO Town) Santa Cruz
Hungduan (UNESCO Town) Santa Rita
Kiangan (UNESCO Town) Southern Luzon
Mayoyao (UNESCO Town) Balayan
Sagada Batangas City
Boac
Calaca
Lucban
Lucena
San Juan de Batangas
Sariaya
Taal
Tayabas
 Bicol Region
Camalig
Daet
Daraga
Legazpi
Naga
Tabaco

Visayas

Western Visayas Central Visayas

Iloilo City Argao
Miag-ao (UNESCO Town) Baclayon
Panay Bantayan
Romblon Carcar
Roxas Cebu City
Palawan Dalaguete
Culion Dauis
Cuyo Oslob
Puerto Princesa (UNESCO City) Panglao
Taytay Tagbilaran
Negros Island Lazi
Bacolod Eastern Visayas
Bacong Capul
Dumaguete Guiuan
Silay
Victorias

Mindanao

Zamboanga Peninsula
Dapitan
Zamboanga City
Northern Mindanao and A.R.M.M.
Balingasag
Cagayan de Oro
Iligan
Jasaan
Jimenez
Marawi
Oroquieta
Ozamiz
Tugaya (UNESCO Town)
Caraga
Butuan
Cabadbaran
Davao Region
Davao City
Mati (UNESCO Town)
SOCCSKSARGEN
Glan
Lake Sebu
See also
Art of the Philippines
Filipino values
Fashion and clothing in the Philippines
List of museums in the Philippines
Warfare in pre-colonial Philippines
History of the Philippines
History of the Philippines (before 1521)
History of the Philippines (Pre-Colonial Era 900–1521)
History of the Philippines (Spanish Era 1521–1898)
History of the Philippines (American Era 1898–1946)
History of the Philippines (Third Republic 1946–65)
History of the Philippines (Marcos Era 1965–86)
History of the Philippines (Contemporary Era 1986–present)
Demographics of the Philippines

Further reading
Kathleen Melissa Martinez (2007). FINDING A HOME FOR FILIPINO-AMERICAN DUAL CITIZENS:
MEMBERSHIP AND THE FILIPINO NATIONAL IDENTITY (https://web.archive.org/web/20111005035941/http://c
ct.georgetown.edu/research/thesisdatabase/Kay%20Martinez.pdf) (PDF) (Master of Arts in Communication,
Culture and Technology thesis). Georgetown University. Archived from the original (http://cct.georgetown.edu/res
earch/thesisdatabase/Kay%20Martinez.pdf) (PDF) on 2011-10-05.

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External links
"Culture of the Philippines" (http://www.everyculture.com/No-Sa/The-Philippines.html). Everyculture.com.

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