Summary
Highlights
The history of the Philippines began with the arrival of humans around 60,000 years ago. Early groups, including Austronesians and speakers of Malayo-Polynesian languages, settled the archipelago, developing into tribal groups, warrior societies, plutocracies, and harbor civilizations. Metallurgy reached the islands through trade with India, leading to Indianized kingdoms and the adoption of Buddhist and Hindu influences. The Laguna Copperplate Inscription from 900 A.D. provides early evidence of mathematics and standardized weights and measures, indicating a Hindu-Old Malay cultural amalgamation in Manila Bay.
Before the year 1000, the Philippines comprised numerous semi-autonomous city-states influenced by larger Asian empires like Majapahit. The Buddhist state of Mai flourished around 1225, engaging in trade with Japan and other regions. The Hindu Majapahit empire ruled parts of Luzon and the Sulu archipelago in the 1300s, leading to conflicts before local kingdoms regained independence. The collapse of Majapahit due to the spread of Islam led to the rise of independent sultanates. Islam was introduced to the Philippines in 1380 by Makdum Kareem and further established by Sharif ul Hashem, who founded the Sultanate of Sulu. The Sultanate of Maguindanao also gained prominence, with Islam spreading through missionaries and traders from Malaysia and Indonesia.
In 1521, Ferdinand Magellan reached the archipelago, claiming the islands for Spain and introducing Roman Catholicism. Magellan was killed in the Battle of Mactan. Subsequent Spanish expeditions led to the naming of the islands as the Philippines in honor of King Philip II. European colonization intensified in 1565 with Miguel López de Legazpi, who established permanent settlements in Cebu and made Manila the capital of the Spanish East Indies. The Castilian War (1578) occurred between Christian Spaniards and Muslim Bruneians over control of the archipelago. The Spanish rule introduced Christianity, a code of law, and the oldest modern university in Asia, unifying much of the archipelago but also leading to revolts against Spanish authorities.
Spanish rule ended with the Spanish-American War in 1898, and the Philippines became a U.S. territory. The U.S. established insular governments, and in 1907, an elected assembly was set up. The Jones Act promised independence, leading to the establishment of the Philippine Commonwealth in 1935 as a step towards full independence. However, World War II interrupted this process with the Japanese occupation from 1942-1945. After liberation by the U.S., the Treaty of Manila in 1946 established an independent Philippine Republic, with Manuel Roxas as its first president. The country's economy remained dependent on the U.S. market.
Following Roxas's death in 1948, Elpidio Quirino ruled until 1953, dealing with communist partisans. Ferdinand Marcos took power in 1965, ruling until 1986. His era included the final years of the Third Republic and a period of martial law, marked by dictatorship and instability. In 1986, Marcos was removed from power and replaced by Maria Corazon Aquino, followed by five other presidents who have governed the Philippines to the present day.