Filipinos, Who Are They?
Filipinos, Who Are They? Southeast Asia is the location of a small country called the Philippines. Formally, Republic of the Philippines, the archipelago consists of roughly 7,100 islands that are located in the southwest Pacific Ocean just Southeast of China. Natives of the country are called Filipinos. The term formerly originated when lowland Christian Spaniards, called indios, began referring to themselves as "Filipinos" (Dolan 76). The ethnic background of a modern day Filipino is as complex as a typical American's; it is a combination of numerous cultures. So the term "Filipino" means little more than does the term "American" (Bullen 36). The first known settlers on the islands were the Negritos, the aboriginal Filipinos, who arrived about 30,000 years ago (Guillermo 2). Since then, many different types of people have continuously inhabited the islands such as Chinese, Malaysian, Indonesian, Japanese, Spanish, as well as American for over 25,000 years (Levinson 153). Therefore, through centuries of interracial mating, the modern Filipino has become a unique blend of various cultures, resulting in a diverse population.The Land: Pre-History of the Philippine Arch
The discovery was made by Manuel Elizalde, a local hunter, while he was hunting for wild boar in the rain forest. Anthropologists believe they arrived from the Southeast Asian mainland by way of land bridges, that no longer exist, through the Malay peninsula about 30,000 years ago, during the last glacial period. The third region is a group of nine islands located in the center between Luzon and Mindanao called the Visayas or the Visayan group. Colonial Intrusions: Chinese The Chinese first arrived into the islands about 1000 AD as traders. Since the arrival of the Spanish in the early 16th century, the Negritos have been pushed toward assimilation and extinction, decreasing the total population of Negritos. In essence, most Filipinos today have the slightest clue of their ethnic background; these people are part of a confused race, ignorant of their heritage, raped of their true identity. First and Early Migrations of Humans onto the Land: Migrations by Land Known as the aboriginal Filipinos, the Philippine Negritos were the original settlers on the land. They still live in the mountainous regions of the country or in the vast and luscious rain forests. Permanent Spanish settlement was finally established in 1565 when Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, the first royal governor, arrived in Cebu from New Spain, what is now called Mexico. Lapu-Lapu was eventually killed, nevertheless, for his successful defiance of the Spanish, Lapu-Lapu is known all over the country as a national folk hero (230). The eleven islands are divided into three primary regions. During the Spanish rule, the archipelago was named Islas Filipinas, or Philippine Islands, in honor of Philip II of Spain. As newcomers arrived, the earlier settlers moved inland and formed small communities. Today, various ethnic tribes still choose to live isolated from modern civilization, preserving their culture and abiding by their traditional laws. Spanish-Filipino, also known as Spanish Mestizo, is an offspring of the two joint races, and can be distinguished by their fairer complexion, taller stature, and aquiline nose structure.
Common topics in this essay:
Harbor Japanese,
Southeast Asia,
Southeast Asian,
Manuel Elizalde,
Malaysian Indonesian,
Filipinos Dolan,
Island Regions,
Ultimately Spain,
Plate Tectonics,
Mestizos Mestizo,
southeast asia,
colonial intrusions,
square miles,
philippine archipelago,
southeast asian,
rain forests,
7100 islands,
rain forests mindanao,
30000 ago,
land bridges,
onto land migrations,
mestizo offspring,
honor philip ii,
themselves filipinos dolan,
philip ii spain,
|