• The Philippines ranks 12th among the most populous countries in the world, with the population of this country now over 100 million people.
• The Philippines has more than 200 volcanoes, although only some of them are active.
• The flag of the Philippines is the only flag in the world where colors can be reversed: in wartime, the upper band is red, the bottom blue; and in times of peace –the opposite.

Interesting fact about the Philippines: Tabon Cave Complex

• In the Philippine cave complex Tabone (Tabon Cave Complex) were found fossils of Homo sapiens. According to studies, this area was inhabited by about fifty thousand years ago.
• There are Rice Terraces on the slopes of the Philippine Cordilleras, whose history is two thousand years old. They are considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• The first European who visited the Philippines is Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan.
• The highest point in the Philippines – Mount Apo, located on Mindanao, reaches a height of 2,954 meters.
• About 80% of the total population are Catholics.
• Filipinos have different ethnic backgrounds, commonly a mixture of Malay, Chinese, Spanish, American, etc.
• The country got its name in honor of the Spanish King Philip II.
• The capital city of the Philippines Manila is named in honor of a mangrove tree with white flowers (nilad).
• From 1521 to 1898, the Philippines was a Spanish colony. Afterwards, the archipelago became a property of the United States.
• he Philippines was the first country in South-East Asia that gained independence after the Second World War, in 1946.
• The Philippine area covers about 300,000 square kilometers, which corresponds approximately to the area of Italy.
• Filipinos are the world’s largest network of diasporas, which covers more than 11 million people.
•  The world’s deepest ocean trenches are at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. Mindanao Trench, which is near the Philippines, reaches a depth of six and a half miles.
• The Philippines is considered the “text capital of the world.” Every day, 35 million mobile subscribers in the country send about 450 million short text messages (SMS). This is more than the total number of daily text messages sent in the United States and Europe together.
• Despite the fact that the land area of the Philippines is about 1/30th of the U.S. Area, the coastline of the Philippines extends for 36,289 kilometers, while in the U.S. – Only 19,924 kilometers.

• Despite popular belief, karaoke was invented in the Philippines, not in Japan. Karaoke was invented by Roberto Del Rosario, calling it “Sing along with the system”. And the name “karaoke” came later, translated from the Japanese it means “singing without accompaniment.”
• The most rare and expensive shell in the world «Conus Gloriamaris» – one of the 12,000 species of seashells is found in the Philippines. In addition, of the 500 known coral species in the world, about 488 have been found on the archipelago.
• Tribes Tianjin and Integ, living in the mountainous areas of the northern Philippines, kissing each other in a special way. They pucker lips together and quickly inhale.
• The traditional ancient Philippine toy “yo-yo” was first used as a weapon.
• Aurora – the only Philippine province, was named in honor of a first lady.
• “Palawan”is the safest area in the Philippines, as it is most distant from the volcanoes and earthquake areas.
• The most popular month for weddings in the Philippines is December (until early January), and not June.
• The first representatives of the Philippines who reached the top of the hit parade “Top 100 songs of the “Billboard” was the band “Rocky Fellers of Manila”.
• There are only two seasons – a warm wet season and cool dry season in the Philippines. The dry season lasts from October to June, and wet – for the remainder of the year.
• In the course of the history, the Philippines had early contact with China, some of the Arab countries, and Cambodia, but the archipelago was not known to the Western world until the 17th of March 1521, when Magellan arrived in the island of Samar. Since then, the Philippines had been a colony of many countries such as: Spain, the United States, and Japan.
• The Philippine University of San Carlos in Cebu City, founded by the Spanish in 1595, is older than Harvard University and is the oldest university in Asia. The second-oldest institution of higher education in Asia the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, founded in 1611.
• Filipino doctor Abelardo Aguilar discovered the antibiotic “erythromycin.”
• A video camera with a single chip was first created by Marc Loinaz – a Filipino inventor from New Jersey.
• The first International Grandmaster from Asia was Eugenio Torre, who won the Chess Olympiad, held in 1974 in Nice (France).
• The fluorescent lamp was invented by Agapito Flores, a Filipino scientist from the island of Cebu.
• Two Filipina beauties, Gloria Diaz and Margie Morgan received the title of Miss Universe beauty pageants in 1969 and 1973.

Source: http://www.philippines.hvu.nl/facts1.htm