After a month of learning about the culture of Filipinos, living with residents, observing everything around me and taking plenty of notes, I am ready to share with you the most important information about this gorgeous land! Here is a list of 20 interesting facts about the Philippines.
1. The Philippines is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia that consists 7641 islands, but only around 2,000 are inhabited and more than 5,000 remain unnamed on maps.
2. The Philippines was the first country in Southeast Asia which gain independence after World War II.
2. The Philippines was explored by Portuguese and claimed by the Spanish.
3. The Philippines is the world’s second largest producer of coconuts with over 153.532,000 tones per year.
4. It is home to 70 different indigenous groups and over 170 native languages.
5. Basketball is one of the most recognizable sport activities in the Philippines. Filipinos love to play and keen to play with tourists. You can find a small basketball court at every barangay and school, when traveling in the Philippines.
6. As a result of 300 years of Spanish colonization, the Philippines has so much in common with Latin American countries. For instance, the Philippine peso, culture, temperament and music! Also, there are lot’s of Spanish words that have been adopted into the Tagalog, the national language of Filipino.
7. The Banaue Rice Terraces located in Northern Luzon are recognized as the Eighth Wonder of the World.
8. More that 85% of population in the Philippines are Christians.
9. The Philippines has been called the texting capital of the world. It is said that Filipinos send over 400 million text messages per day, which is more than text messages sent in both Europe and in the United States.
10. Jeepney is probably the most common mean of public transportation in the Philippines. It is a very cheap and quite comfortable way of traveling around each city or village. Surprisingly, it can load from 15 to 30 passengers! It is used mostly by locals, but you have to try it in the Philippines! Interesting fact is that the first jeepney was made out of a surplus jeep that US military left behind after the World War II. It is well-known for it’s vivid colors and an extraordinary design.
11. Manila, the capital of the Philippines, is one of the most overcrowded cities in the world with population density of 71263 persons per km².
12. Halo – halo is probably the most popular dessert in the Philippines! I absolutely love it! But who doesn’t? Halo – halo is basically a mix of crushed ice, nata de coco (delicious drink created through the fermentation of coconut juice), ube ice cream, different kind of beans, fresh tiny slices of coconut, jelly, weetened saba banana, leche flan and evaporated milk. Yumyyyyy!
13. The Philippines is a complex cultural mixture! A Filipino is a mix of ethnic tribes like Malay, Chinese and Spanish.
14. Known as The Island Born off Fire, Camiguin is a volcanic island covered by lush and formidable mountains. It is a home to 7 volcanoes spread over an area as small as 23 kilometers long and 14 kilometers in width. It means that the unique land shaped by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions has more volcanoes than towns!
15. Filipinos love shopping! Of the ten world’s largest shopping malls 3 are located in the Philippines (SM Megamall, SM North Edsa, and SM Mall of Asia).
16.The biggest known pearl in the world, named the Pearl of Lao Tzu, was found in Palawan in the Philippines by local diver in 1934.
17. Thinking that the Christmas season starts too early in your country?
Imagine that in the Philippines, the Christmas season begins on the first of September, which is 3,5 months before the actual day! Restaurants, shops and malls may be decorated with lights and ornaments. Also, radio stations play Christmas songs, and every place you go into will be wrapped up in Christmas magic.
18. Pope Francis offered a mass to about 6 million Filipinos at Rizal Park in Manila in 2015. It was probably the largest event in the history of the popes.
19. According to the statistics, 63.7% of Filipinos are able to speak English which makes it the 5th largest English-speaking nation, just after United States, United Kingdom, India and Pakistan.
20. The Philippines stands out from the crowd for having the highest rate of discovery of mammalian species. Within the last 10 years, 16 new animal species were discovered in the Philippines! It is said that the number of new species would be much highest, however, the animals live in high mountainous regions in the Philippines, so it is quite hard to get there.
Oh…I forgot. One of the weirdest facts about the Philippines is balut! This parboiled embryonic duck still in the egg is well-known street food in the Philippines! Are you willing to try one?