BRIEF HISTORY OF THE PHILIPPINES

the philippines is an archipelago of 7,107 island in the south china sea situated between Taiwan to the nort and borneo to the sout. just 2.000 of its ilands are inhavited and only 500 are larger than the kilometre square. the nine largest iland of luzon, mindanao, palawan, panay, mindoro, samar, negros, leyte, and cebu make up 90% of the nation,sland area.

the original people of the philippines were the ancestors of the people known today asnegritos or aeta. they are an australomelanasian people with dark skin and tight, curly brown hair. they are also distinctively small and of short stature. as the pygmies in the equatorial forest of the africa, the aeta are believed to have adaptedlocally to the tropical jungles of the philippines.

the aeta are a nomadic hunting and gathing people who forage in small family bands with an informal organization and leadership. they were onece widespread throughout the philippines but are now found only in the remote highland areasof luzon, palawan, panay, negros and mindanao.