Island Mountains

Everyone knows the Republic of the Philippines is an island nation -- but do you know how many islands? Incredibly, the Philippines encompasses more than 7,000 (seven thousand) of them, spread across more than a thousand miles of the western Pacific between the Philippine Sea and the South China Sea. They’re the caps of an underwater mountain range. Naturally, it’s a mountainous habitat -- and yes, some of the islands are active volcanoes. In fact, they form part of the infamous “Ring of Fire,” the Pacific volcanic zone where many eruptions over time have claimed thousands of lives.

Most native Filipinos are of ancient Malayan descent. Spain held the Philippines as a colony from the mid-16th Century until 1898. (Remember the fabled Manila galleons laden with treasure for the homeland, harried along their routes by pirates of various stripes?). The Spanish-American War ended Spanish rule in 1898. After almost a half century as an American territory, the independent republic was established at the end of World War II.