History

Many groups of people are believed to have reached the Philippines by crossing a land bridge that is no longer in existence.

From about 7000 BC to 2000 BC, larger groups of people from present-day China and Vietnam arrived in the Philippines.  It is believed that the largest migration to the islands occurred after the 3rd century BC.

The Indonesian and Malay archipelagos are where the latest arrivals to the Philippines originated.  Seafaring skills, along with iron tools and technologies (including glassmaking and weaving) were brought with these migrants.

With the diverse mixture of cultures a new civilization emerged by the 5th century AD.   There were influences from other countries as well, primarily the Middle East, India and China, bringing economic and social changes.

The Spaniards arrived in the 15th century and colonized the Philippines for 300 years. Thus we still see the Spanish influence in culture, food and religion in present times.

Americans liberated the Philippines in the second world war.