Overview

The Philippines is a country consisting of 7,641 islands in southeast Asia. It is known to have an especially diverse and unique ‘melting pot’ culture, with 170 languages spoken within its population of 105 million, most significantly Filipino, English, Spanish, and Arabic. Its customs and traditions reflect its complex history, heavily influenced by Austronesion people, but also Spanish, Mexican, American, and more.

Daily Life

Due to the thousands of islands that the Philippines consist of, there are many different lifestyles and living conditions that the country contains. The different types of housing are farmhouses, apartment complexes, condominiums, etc. Though a large portion of the Philippines live in poverty, Filipinos are known for their enthusiastic, hard-working, and friendly spirits. Outside of the resorts, there are villages packed with marketplaces, vendors, and lively people around many of the corners. In the rural area, the day starts early to start doing chores, preparing breakfast, and children to go to school. Overall, Filippinos put value on their close extended family bonds and the enjoyment of life.

Art

Filippino art is a strong reflection of its diverse culture. Traditionally, the Philippines is known for its ancient folklore and legends that reveal how their society was like before Spanish colonization. The ancient lifestyle is also reflected in the literature, architecture, dance, plays and more. Ancient Filippinos are also known for their excellent skill in the art of tattooing, with detailed connections to nature and a multitude of colors, which many of the modern artists take influence from. Filippino art has a significant place in its history, illustrating their daily life, times of war, fashion, and more. Other Filippino art forms include pottery, calligraphy, sculptures, weaving, and more.

Cuisine

Phillippine cuisine takes influence from its roots and foreign cultures. Like many asian dishes, rice is a key element in many of the meals. The rice is paired with a variety of seafood, vegetables, and meats. Some significant dishes are fried salted catfish, mussels, clams, squid, cod, lechon (a whole roasted pig), mechado (larded beef with tomato sauce), and more. You can see influences of Spanish cuisine through ingredients like olive oil, paprika, sausage, influences of the United States with popularization of sandwiches, salads, burgers, and many other countries too!

Fashion

For traditional attire, Filippino women wear something called the Maria Clara, which is composed of a long dress, a skirt, a collarless chemise, and a rectangular cloth around the skirt. The interesting thing is that the name was inspired by a piece of literature, “Noli me tangere” epic from the 1800’s, revealing the connection that clothing has on history and literature. The men traditionally wear the Barong Tagalog, which is a formal embroidered long long-sleeved shirt. You can see the mixed influence that this article of clothing has from natives and Spanish culture. These traditional attires of clothing have recently become more modernized and are a strong inspiration for Filippino fashion designers.. Today, Filippinos usually wear clothing that is most comfortable concerning their working and climate conditions. Because the country can be very hot and humid, it is common to wear t-shirts, light hoodies, sleeveless tops, skirts, and capris.

Music

Since the Philippines is a very diverse country in culture, the music also reflects that diversity. While traditional songs are influenced by purely native Filippinos, other types of music have strong influence from Spanish and American cultures. Traditional music, from instruments like flutes, pipes, and gongs made from wood, bamboo, and metal are centered around traditional epics, daily life (fishing, working, etc.), victory at war, celebrations, and more. Music influenced by Western culture is more centered on religion, classical, jazz, and more. Filippino popular music today includes artists like Christian Bautista, Yano, True Faith, and also latino, hip hop, jazz, and reggae music, especially popular among the youth.

Transportation

Public transportation is not as commonly used as it is in other countries. When public transportation is used, it is usually very crowded and used only to travel in between major cities. The most popular type of transportation in the country is a Jeepney, which is a small, public vehicle that is known to be unique to Philippine culture, with kitsch design, very popular in metro areas. You can often see around 2 people riding on motorcycles as well. For shorter distances of travel, Filippinos can use tricycles, pedicabs, and habal-habal, which are motor vehicles used for small travel usually filled with people beyond its capacity, sometimes holding up to 10 people. The ways that people travel reflects the concentrated population that this country holds.