FILIPINO BACKGROUND

The background of the people is Austronesians who originated from eastern Taiwan and settled the Philippines. There are Chinese and Spanish ethnic elements from colonizations and settlements as well. The history of American rule and contact with merchants and traders culminated in a unique blend of East and West, both in the appearance and culture of the people of the Filipinos, or people of the Philippines. ^[15][16][17]

Human fossil records indicate that the Philippines may have been inhabited as early as 50,000 years ago. After these early settlers, the Negrito arrived, whose ancestors include the Ati and the Aeta. The Negritos were related to the first groups out of Africa and reached the Philippines about 30,000 years ago.

Two other Australoid groups followed, the proto-Malay, probably Murrayans (proto-Ainu) from Thailand, and the Australoid-Sakais, who were probably Carpinterians from South India. Murrayans probably came to the Philippines 17,000 YBP and Carpinterians probably came 13,000 YBP. (Both groups went on to Australia and were descendants of the Australian Aborigines.)

The next people to settle in the Philippines were the Nesiots, of unknown origin - some say Taiwan; others say Indonesia - who came in two waves, the first starting about 5000 years ago. These earlier settlers - Negritos, proto-Malay, Australoid-Sakais, and Nesiots - today represent only a tiny fraction of the Filipino population.

Starting about 2300 years ago, two waves of Austronesians came from Taiwan, both waves almost exclusively related to the Ami aborigine tribe originating from eastern Taiwan. They are traditionally called Malays, but they were from Taiwan, not from Malaysia, nor from Indonesia. The majority of Philippine people today are descendants of these Malays who migrated to the islands in successive waves over many centuries and largely displaced the Negritos, proto-Malays, Australoid-Sakais, and Nesiots. The overwhelming majority of present-day Filipinos, including, for example, Tagalogs, Ilocanos, Bicolanos, and Visayans, are descended from the second wave, which came from about 1900 years ago to 700 years ago. There is also a heavy southern Chinese admixture in the current-day population, resulting from a large wave of southern Chinese who came on boats about 900 years ago and mixed in with the Ami-descended groups. The Filipinos of today are primarily a Southern Chinese people, genetically related to the aboriginal eastern Taiwanese tribe, the Ami, and to the Guangdong Han from around Hong Kong.

The largest ethnic minority now is the mainland Asians (called Chinese), who have played an important role in commerce for many centuries since they first came to the islands to trade. Arabs and Indians also traveled and traded in the Philippines in the first and early second millennium. As a result of intermarriage, many Filipinos have some Asian mainland, Spanish, American, Arab, or Indian ancestry.

Ethnic Groups: 91.5% Christian Malay, 4% Muslim Malay, 1.5% Chinese and 3% other. 

The Filipino character is actually a little bit of all the cultures put together. The bayanihan or spirit of kinship and camaraderie that Filipinos are famous for, is said to be taken from Malay forefathers. The close family relations are said to have been inherited from the Chinese. The piousness comes from the Spaniards who introduced Christianity in the 16th century. Hospitality is a common denominator in the Filipino character and this is what distinguishes the Filipino. Filipinos are probably one of the few, if not the only, English-proficient Oriental people today. Filipino and English are constitutionally established as official languages in the country, and Filipino is designated as the national language, with English also in wide use.

Culturally, the Philippines is a country of diverse influences in Asia/Pacific. Reflecting its 333 years of Spanish rule, many Filipinos have given Hispanic surnames (see: Catálogo alfabético de apellidos), have numerous occasions titled 'fiestas', and the enfused practice of the Catholic religion representing close to 90% of the entire archipelago. Some Filipinos still retain native surnames, which are characterized by repeating syllables (e.g., Cayubyub) or more frequently multi-syllabic (e.g., Lingayan). The other major religion, Islam, prevalent in the Southern Philippines (Mindanao) and represents nearly 5% of the total Philippine population. Many Filipinos speak English due to American colonial influence in the country's education system.

 (Source: Wikipedia)

Major Concentrations of Filipinos*
in the United States
Source: 2000 U.S. Census

 NOTE: *Filipinos pertain to "persons who indicate their race as Filipino or Filipino America*; this is self-identification of race, ethnicity or heritage, not citizenship or nationality.