Felicity DeWeese

Logan
Issues in the 21st Century Period 1
16 May 2016
Step 5 Questions
The United States, Indonesia, and Spain have influenced the people and ideas of the
Philippines. Indonesians were the first to live in the Philippines and established trading. Spain
introduced the religion of Christianity in 1512 and ruled the Philippines until 1898. Then, the
United States introduced a democratic government and the English language when they took
over the Philippines in 1898. The Philippines has been ruled by both Spain and the United States,
but in 1946 became an independent republic. As for the economy, the Philippines tropical and
humid climate has created a great place for agriculture. The most important crops include corn,
rice, coconut, sugarcane, tobacco, and abaca. The Philippines as export electronics, clothing,
minerals, chemicals, and furniture. The United States, Japan, and Singapore are the country's top
trading partners.
The Philippines has been influenced by many other cultures in order to create its own
unique culture. Spain and the United States have contributed the most to the culture of the
Philippines. Both have contributed to the language, arts, religion, celebrations, sports, and much
more. For example, Spanish, Christianity, and many musical instruments, all came from Spain.
The United States also introduced English, many sports like basketball or football, and the
democratic government. Aside from Spain and America, there has also been many influences
from Asia, especially in food. All of these influences have created a very unique and interesting
culture. The Filipino culture has also influenced other countries, mostly because of the unique
food. There are many other countries that use cuisine created by Filipinos.
Over 7,000 islands make up the Philippines, most of the population lives on the 11 main
islands. Many of these islands are mountainous, and tropical. They also have a potential for
volcanos, earthquakes, and typhoons. Large cities are located on the larger islands, and most
small cities and villages are located on the smaller islands. Urban houses are typically made of
wood and have a concrete foundation. These houses usually include a living room, where
families spend most of their time, a kitchen, a bathroom, and two to three bedrooms. Most
families living in urban areas have a television, radio, stove, telephone, and a refrigerator. As for
people living in rural areas, houses are usually made of bamboo and have one main room and
two smaller rooms. These families typically have an outhouse and an outdoor kitchen, but they
usually have a water supply and electricity.
There is an abundant amount of resources in the Philippines, including many crops, fish,
timber, nickel, copper, gold, silver, and chromium. These goods are very important to the
economy and are shipped to many places in the world. The Philippines major trading partners

include the United States, Japan, China, the Netherlands, and Singapore. Major exports in the
Philippines are fruits, copper, electronics, clothing, minerals, chemicals, and furniture. Major
imports include electronics, mineral fuels, machinery and transport equipment, iron, steel, textile
fabrics, grain, chemicals, and plastic. The movement of goods in the Philippines consisted mostly
of these items and trade usually happens with these countries. As for the culture in the
Philippines, it is very unique and interesting. Like most in most cultures, Filipinos typically eat
three meals a day. These meals usually consist of rice as the main staple food, meat, usually fish,
and some vegetables and fruits. Families will usually eat together, and are very polite when they
have guests over for meals. Filipinos are very polite and enjoy visiting as much as possible.
They love to socialize, go to movies, and watch videos. Many boys love to play basketball, and
girls love volleyball and track. Filipinos are very active and fun people. Ideas often move
throughout the people of the Philippines. And the people often move from island to island.

Works Cited
EconomyWatch Content. "Philippines Trade, Exports and Imports." Economywatch.com.
`EconomyWatch, 29 Mar. 2010. Web. 15 May 2016.
<http://www.economywatch.com/world_economy/philippines/export-import.html>.

"The Philippines: Culture and Tradition." Globalizationpartners.com. GPI Translation Blog, 20

Feb. 2015. Web. 15 May 2016. <http://blog.globalizationpartners.com/the-philippinesculture-and-tradition.aspx>.
"Republic of the Philippines." CultureGrams. 2008 ed. Northampton: Society of Homeopaths,
2007. N. pag. CultureGrams. ProQuest, 2007. Web. 15 May 2016.
<https://www2.viu.ca/homestay/host/CultureGrams/Philippines.pdf>.