Philippines Country Overview
Where is Philippines located? The Philippines is a country and an archipelago located in the Pacific Ocean. They belong to Southeast Asia. In this world time zone, which is called “Philippine Time”, there is a time difference of 8 hours to the coordinated world time. This means that clocks in the Philippines are 8 hours later than world clocks (UTC+8). This difference remains throughout the year as there is no changeover to daylight saving time.
Bordering Countries of Philippines
According to abbreviationfinder, the Philippines is bordered by the South China Sea to the west, the Philippine Sea to the east, and the Celebes Sea to the south. To the north, it is bounded by Taiwan, and further south by Malaysia and Indonesia. The boundary line between Philippines and Taiwan begins at the northernmost point of Luzon Island in the Babuyan Channel and extends southward along a line that roughly follows latitude 21° N. At this point, it turns eastward along longitude 121° E until reaching its terminus at latitude 4° N.
Malaysia has a 810 km (503 mi) border with Philippines that starts in the southwest corner of Philippine territory at latitude 4° N. This boundary follows longitude 119º E eastward until it reaches latitude 5º N where it turns northward along parallel 5º N until reaching longitude 119º E. At this point, it turns eastward along this meridian until reaching its terminus at latitude 21°N. Indonesia has a 1,780 km (1,110 mi) border with Philippines that begins in the southeast corner of Philippine territory at latitude 4°N. The boundary then follows longitude 119ºE westward until reaching its terminus at latitude 5°N. Lastly, Vietnam has a 550 km (341 mi) border with Philippines that starts in the south corner of Philippine territory at latitude 9°N. This boundary follows longitude 111½ºE eastward until it reaches its terminus at latitude 18½ °N.
Population Distribution
As of 2023, the latest population of Philippines is 109,180,815, based on our calculation of the current data from UN (United Nations).
| Total population | 109,180,815 |
| Population growth rate | 1.52% |
| Birth rate | 23.70 births per 1,000 people |
| Life expectancy | |
| Overall life expectancy | 72.21 years |
| Men life expectancy | 69.26 years |
| Women life expectancy | 75.31 years |
| Age structure | |
| 0-14 years | 33.07% |
| 15-64 years | 62.32% |
| 65 years and above | 4.61% |
| Median age | 23.20 years |
| Gender ratio (Male to Female) | 1.00 |
| Population density | 363.94 residents per km² |
| Urbanization | 61.00% |
| Ethnicities | |
| 40% Young Malay (Bisayas, Tagalen, Bicol, Ilokano), 30% Indonesian and Polynesian, 10% Old Malay (Igoroten and others) and Negritos (Aëta), 10% Chinese, 5% Indian | |
| Religions | |
| Catholics (Roman Catholic) 83%, Protestants 9%, Muslims 5%, Buddhists and other 3% | |
| Human Development Index (HDI) | 0.712 |
| HDI ranking | 106th out of 194 |
People in Philippines
More than 110 million people live in the Philippines. That is 27 million more than in Germany and the population continues to grow, much faster than here. The residents are called Filipinos.
More young than old Filipinos
35 percent of Filipinos are younger than 14 years. There are many more children in the Philippines than here. It’s not just because Filipinos are so kid-friendly. Children also serve as a pension for the parents here. In countries where there are no state pensions, people depend on someone to look after them in old age. That is why there are six children in the average Filipino family. Families with ten children are not uncommon. Imagine if you still had nine siblings, something would definitely be going on at home!
Are the people there poor?
Poverty is distributed differently across the Philippines. Poverty in rural areas is more pronounced than in the city. The poorest province is in the Muslim part of the Philippines (Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, ARMM). The poverty in this region is one of the reasons why the peace negotiations between the government and the Muslim insurgents have not yet been successful. You can read more about this in the history and politics of the Philippines.
Work abroad
Many Filipinos and Filipinas go abroad to find work. The men very often work on ships and the women as caregivers all over the world. Because of her often very good English skills, which go far beyond the knowledge of other Asian countries, her workforce is very popular. But that doesn’t mean that they are rewarded accordingly everywhere. Many of these people, who then also feed their poor families at home, are exploited.
The sea feeds the people
Many Filipinos live from the sea, which is not surprising given the location of the country: The Philippines consist of more than 7000 islands. On the one hand they live from fishing, on the other hand there are also many who earn their living with small ferry boats. They take people from island to island. These boats are called bancas.
Languages in Philippines
170 languages are spoken in the Philippines, the most common language being Filipino. Many people in the cities also speak English, which is another official language in the Philippines. By the way, it used to be Spanish, now hardly anyone speaks it anymore. 44 out of 100 residents live in cities, but most of them live in rural areas.
Religions in Philippines
83 percent of the Filipino population are Catholic Christians. 10 percent are Protestant Christians, four percent Muslim and the rest have no religion or any other religion.