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Welcome to the Philippines Portal / Maligayang pagdating sa Portal ng Pilipinas

The Philippines (/ˈfɪlɪpiːnz/ ^ⓘ; Filipino: Pilipinas), officially the Republic of the Philippines (Filipino: Republika ng Pilipinas), is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. In the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of 7,641 islands 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, Islam and Hinduism established island-kingdoms ruled by datus, rajas, and sultans. The arrival of Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese explorer leading a fleet for Spain, 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 settlement 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. The Philippine Revolution began in 1896, which 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 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. (Full article...)

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The principalía or noble class was the ruling and usually educated upper class in the pueblos of Spanish Philippines, comprising the gobernadorcillo (later called the capitán municipal and had functions similar to a town mayor), tenientes de justicia (lieutenants of justice), and the cabezas de barangay (heads of the barangays) who governed the districts. Also included in this class were former gobernadorcillos or municipal captains, and municipal lieutenants in good standing during their term of office.

The distinction or status of being part of the principalía was originally a hereditary right. However, a royal decree dated December 20, 1863 (signed in the name of Queen Isabella II by the Minister of the Colonies, José de la Concha), made possible the creation of new principales under certain defined criteria, among which was proficiency in the Castilian language. Later, wider conditions that defined the principalía were stipulated in the norms provided by the Maura Law of 1893, which was in force until Spain lost the Philippines to the United States in 1898. The Maura Law also redefined the title of the head of municipal government from gobernadorcillo to capitán municipal, and extended the distinction as principales to citizens paying 50 pesos in land tax. (Full article...)

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... that Jason Robertson is only the second Filipino American to play in the National Hockey League?
... that at the height of the war between Iraq and the Islamic State, diplomats of the Philippine embassy in Baghdad agreed to die together rather than be taken hostage?
... that the judiciary of the Philippines has recognized the legal standing of dolphins?
... that although the Philippines and Denmark established relations in 1946, the Philippine embassy in Copenhagen only opened in 2019?
... that Gwendolyn Garcia, the governor of the Philippine province of Cebu, has a signature song?
... that the Manila Standard described the concert Two for the Knight as the "biggest team-up of a foreign and local artist" in the Philippines?
... that the Philippines' Department of Foreign Affairs said that it will not arrest communist leader Jose Maria Sison if he visits the Philippine embassy in The Hague?
... that Chicago's Kasama is the world's first Filipino restaurant to be awarded a Michelin star?

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Image 1A skyline view of Manila
Image 2Picture of a Carabao in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental, Philippines
Image 3The Bangui Wind Farm is a wind farm in Bangui, Ilocos Norte, Philippines
Image 4A map of the Philippines showing the location of all the regions and provinces
Image 5Shipping on the Pasig River, 1899
Image 6Banaue, Philippines: A man of the fugao tribe in traditional costume
Image 7A selection of dishes found in Filipino cuisine
Image 8A view at Francisco Bangoy International Airport, 2019
Image 9A view of Barlas Island, Honda Bay, Palawan, Philippines
Image 10Banaue, Philippines: a view of Banaue Municipal Town
Image 11A leaning belfry of St. Andrew Church, in Bacarra town, province of Ilocos Norte

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apl.de.ap in 2006

Allan Pineda Lindo (born November 28, 1974), known professionally as apl.de.ap (IPA: /ˌæpəldiˈæp/ AP-əl-dee-AP), is a Filipino-American rapper, singer and record producer. He is a founding member of the hip hop group Black Eyed Peas. (Full article...)

Welcome to the Philippines Portal / Maligayang pagdating sa Portal ng Pilipinas

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