Yes, Filipinos Are Asian!

Wednesday, 8th February 2006  

philippinesThis article is a direct reply to those who have been putting down Filipinos and calling them “Fake Asians”.

Are you Filipino and wondering if you are Asian or not?

Stop worrying… you are! But you are also unique!

Filipinos are Southeast Asian

You may not be East Asian like the Japanese, Koreans and Chinese, but you ARE Asian. Specifically, Southeast Asian, like the Singaporeans, Indonesians, Malaysians, Vietnamese and Thai peoples. And, here is where I provide sound factual information, not misleading opinions promoted by people who seem to just hate Filipinos. We are a unique people, with a colorful history and rich culture. And we are Asian.

Note: Please read my companion posts , Are Filipinos Asian? AND Are Filipinos Asian? (part 2), which cover this topic with a bit more depth.

I know I will be giving this person undeserved hits to his blog, but I just wanted to straighten this person out. Because he accuses Filipinos of being Fake Asians, which is utterly false!

Definitely not a nice person, he says:

The bottom line is I dont give a f**k about the Filipinos. I don’t care if they exist or not. If you are a Filipino and you have nothing to be proud of then too bad, don’t go around claiming you are Asian, it makes us look bad.

Links To Reliable Sources

No long explanation needed from my end. I’m wasting my time. Instead, all I need to do is point to a few sources that settle this matter once-and-for-all:

The “Asian” versus “Pacific Islander” Debate

And this person claims that Filipinos are “Pacific Islanders” which is also false:

Over the last decade or so, more and more Filipinos are refusing to be correctly labeled as Pacific Islander.

Check out the following information, taken from the U.S. Census Bureau:

Use Summary Tape File 1, Table P7. This table provides counts for the following Asian and Pacific Islander population groups:

ASIAN
Chinese
Filipino
Japanese
Asian Indian
Korean
Vietnamese
Cambodian
Hmong
Laotian
Thai
Other Asian

PACIFIC ISLANDER
Polynesian
Hawaiian
Samoan
Tongan
Other Polynesian
Micronesian
Guamanian
Other Micronesian
Pacific Islander, not specified

I REST MY CASE!!!



Tweet This Tweet This Post!

Category: Culture
Tags: , , , , , ,

Related Posts

FOLLOW ME... on these social networks!

Join The Discussion

  • Wow. There are some pretty outspoken posts there. Interesting to read how different people view different things...

    Don't let it bother you too much. You made your point, and I don't see (logically) any posibble way to group Filipinos as Pacific Islanders.
  • double that wow.

    i don't know what makes a person to write like that. i don't get that he doesn't care about filipinos but yet feels so strongly about whether or not they are "asians". obviously he cares... why else would he write?

    seriously people like him in the world who concentrate on drama over nothing.... really saddens me. there is so much bad in the world as is... no need to add to it. gah.

    *HUGS* carlos... my favorite asian friend! :-)
  • Annie: thank you, thank you, thank you! :)

    *HUGS*

    Fishlamp: and thank you so very much! yes, it's so logical isn't it... otherwise, we'd have to call Japanese people 'pacific islanders' too, which also doesn't sound right.

    Peace & Love
  • ok i just read the whole site. i think this person is just plain.... racist.

    and i refuse to talk about that blog anymore because it's just disgusting. *pukes*

    carlos... don't take anything that person said to heart cuz it's a complete waste of time and i don't know one person that would agree with it.
  • annie... i'll definitely take your advice to heart. thank you.
  • i don't really care if this person thinks that filipinos aren't asians. the thing that bothers me about this post is the pictures and examples that the person uses to make his or her point.

    I mean, if you're going to post something about what "category" some race belongs to, post information (like the things you posted) supporting your position. don't use stupid examples and pictures that'll make you look like an asshat who just hates filipinos.
  • Denise: i couldn't have said that better. ;)

    thank you!
  • Oh annie! you're my favorite Asian friend too! thank you! :)
  • [ UPDATE ]

    The blogger who accused Filipinos of being Fake Asians (in other words, saying that we Filipinos are NOT Asians but pretending to be (or aspiring to be) Asians, has closed down his blog...

    All I have to say is that there is overwhelming documentation that Filipinos have always been classified as Asians, the Philippines is part of the group of countries in the region of Southeast Asia, and that the Asian Pacific Islander label came about as a way to classify Filipino Americans.

    It is a fact that Filipinos and their culture is unique, a combination of Spanish, Chinese and Malay cultural heritage, and this uniqueness does not take away from the fact that Filipinos are still Asian.

    The blogger who was dumping on Filipinos, trashing us and our cultural heritage is a total coward. He closed down his blog because he knows he is wrong, and not only wrong but has proven to all that he is just a complete jerk and not a very nice person.

    Anyone who is a coward like that has no business stating his opinions if he can't stand by them, and thus, he has proven to us that he is not credible.
  • Aikawa
    Some Chinese girl told me Japanese are not Asian they are islanders.I was like What?! Japanese are Asian we just happen to live on bunch of Islands.So I guess Philippine people have the same problem.

    Maybe because we are unique they think only Chinese are Asian.
    Japanese originated from the asian mainland and Se asia.Bunch of migrants came to Japan and wala japanese were made.

    I read that Philippine are an Austronesian people.We are altaic-austonesian mix apprently. So we could be related.Lots of okinawans look like philippine.
  • Aikawa: thank you for your thoughts. there are definitely a lot of misconceptions as to the origins of people.

    i read about filipinos originating from Austronesian people. and taiwanese people have origins from Austronesian race as well.

    filipinos have problems sometimes being labeled. pacific islander is really meant to identify hawaiians, samoans, etc. people from oceania. the philippines is really part of southeast asia, just like malaysians and indonesians.
  • Kuno
    Fhillipino Peepz are ASIANS, Not Pacific Islanders!!
    The filipinos that claim they are Pacific Islanders is only trying to deny that they are a part of South East Asia, that really sucks
  • Anonymous
    The Philippines is apart of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations). Now why in the world would they be apart of this is they weren't considered Asian?

    It's sad how people enforce stereotypes through ignorance. NEWSFLASH, not all ASIANS look like EAST ASIANS. Anyone who says Filipinos aren't Asian clearly has not traveled to countries like Indonesia, Malaysia, heck I would even say Cambodia. People use the most stupid excuses to discriminate against other groups. Filipinos are not necessarily like Japanese, Chinese, or Koreans but there are OTHER ASIANS who aren't like that either.

    People if you can not see through your own ignorance and how you let stereotypes brainwash you, then no can help you.

    ENOUGH SAID.
  • Anonymous
    The Filipinos being Austronesian is a weakass excuse too. First and foremost, most of the Filipinos who claim "Pacific Islander" over "Asian" are Filipino-Americans. It's really sad how Filipino-Americans have basically denied many things. Heck there are Filipino-Americans who are embarrassed and reject other Filipinos because they may have accents. The real issue is not amongst Filipinos from the Philippines because the majority realize that their nation is considered as part of SouthEast Asia.

    The issue here is with Fil-Ams. Youtube the video "Speak Out: Filipinos vs Americans". You will see the discussion between both groups.

    If you think that Filipinos don't look Asian, Youtube the video "Learn about SE ASIA". All the information of Filipinos being Asian is not that difficult to understand.

    Also "Austronesians" can be found throughout Asia, so that is a stupid excuse to say you are not Asian. Asian is not exclusive to EAST ASIA.

    For all the people who say Filipinos don't eat with chopsticks either, there are other Asians who don't eat with chopsticks. Look it up, you might learn something new instead of generalizing and make yourself look even more ignorant.

    Enough said.
  • Christine
    There was actually a big filipino issue raised on youtube over the America's Best Dance Crew thing because two of the top crews were predominantly Asian and one of those groups was predominantly Filipino. It got ridiculous.

    I don't know the motives for some Filipinos saying that they're not asian. As a Filipino, I recognize that I'm asian. While I'm proud of being Filipino, I sometimes feel ashamed to be asian. There's a lot of inter-asian racism against Filipinos that I don't understand. A friend of mine (he's white) dated a Japanese girl one time, her dad had to take a moment and then he told her it was ok as long as she didn't date any Blacks, Hispanics, or FIlipinos. Another time, when my sister was rushing for an asian sorority and at a party the asian guys looked at her as though she didn't belong there. With some asians acting that way, it could make anyone feel like they wouldn't want to be a part of that. It's already bad enough to get the "ching-chang-chong" treatment from non-asians, but getting the "you shouldn't be a part of our race" treatment from other asians makes me want to abandon it as a part of my identity.

    I recognize that not all asians are like that. I have friends that are Chinese. They're open-minded and nice people. Any form of racism should be addressed on an individual basis. It's just hard to not be mad sometimes.
  • Kyberos
    If Japanese are "Asian," then Filipinos are definitely "Asian." 'nuff said.
  • Kyberos: thank you for your input. :o)

    Everyone: please check out my newer article in which I further explore this issue: Are Filipinos Asian?
  • CaliStunna818
    The America's Best Dance Crew issue wasn't about the groups being Asian, it's the fact that one of the groups was named after a Filipino group but consisted of no Filipinos. This group was Kaba Modern. It wasn't really about the members being Asian, heck if that group was all black or white. People would of still complained, because they were expecting FILIPINOS because the name itself.

    However if people actually took the time and did some research. It was posted that initially two members of Kaba Modern, who were going to audition with the Kaba Modern team that was on MTV, had to stay in UC Irvine because they became the new coordinators of the actual Kaba Modern dance team. Those two members were of Filipino descent.

    On the other hand, JabbaWockeez got much support because they had Asians which included Filipino members.

    I also think it works both ways. Fil-Ams who don't think their Asian, and other Asians who think Filipinos aren't Asian. It's all bullshit really. It's like when Fil-Ams talk shit about Filipinos because of their accents, or Filipinos who criticize Fil-Ams just because they might not know Tagalog (which isn't the only language in the Philippines btw).
  • LeaH
    Thank you very much!
  • Leah: You're welcome! :o)

    To the last Anonymous who wrote a lot of awful stuff about us Filipinos... who are you, and why are you hiding? You don't want anyone to know how much of a racist and bigot you are. Hey, those are your own words that tells us who you are.

    You can lay a lot of negative crap on any ethnic group, but the fact remains that Filipinos are Asian. I suggest you do further reading to open and free your mind.
  • Anonymous
    Wikipedia is biased

    RULE #1 IN UNIVERSITY

    NEVER TRUST SOURCE THAT IS FROM WIKIPEDIA
  • Wikipedia is actually the 7th most popular website in the world. It is by far the most popular encyclopedia on the Internet. It's even more popular than Facebook.com.

    AS FOR FREE SPEECH HERE. I GIVE EVERYONE THE RIGHT TO EXPRESS THEMSELVES AND COMMENT. BUT, I STILL RESERVE THE RIGHT TO EDIT OR DELETE ANY COMMENTS THAT I FEEL DO NOT CONTRIBUTE TO THE TOPIC OR ENTRY BEING DISCUSSED. ESPECIALLY IF THEY ARE DEROGATORY TOWARD ANY ETHNIC GROUP!

    I WILL TAKE DOWN ANY COMMENTS THAT ARE NOT FACTUAL AND NOT INTELLIGENTLY WRITTEN.
  • Nicole
    You know, as a full-blooded filipina or whatever you want to call me.... Why should race define who we are as people anyway? I've been asked many times my ethnic background and when i've responded, i've gotten.. "Oh, you look Hawaiian to me" or "I thought you were Cambodian" or I even got "You look a bit Hispanic!" Oh well.. In your mind, I am whatever you want me to be, whether fact or fiction. I see race as part of me, but not who I am as a person. In the grand scheme of things, it's a small unimportant trait we define people by.
  • Nicole: Thank you for your thoughts. I get the same thing, actually. I've been mistaken for Hawaiian and Latino. And one colleague I have worked with for more than 10 years had thought I was Mexican the entire time. I guess I never told him I'm Filipino-American.
  • Marcelo
    Of course Filipinos are Asian. Most people of Austronesian descent are also Asian.

    However, here is the interesting point. Most of the people in Madagascar (off the coast of Africa) and most Pacific Islanders (Polynesians, Micronesians and many Melanesians) are also of Austronesian ancestry.

    So, while Filipinos are Asian, we are also linguistic and probably ethnic cousins of most Pacific Islanders and some Africans (which no other Asians are, or not as closely as we are, as far as I know)

    Have a good day!
  • CaliStunna
    Actually if you knew anything about linguistics and ethnic cousins of Filipinos....

    It's very apparent that Filipinos share lots of similarities with Indonesians and Malaysians, which are in fact Asian.

    If you're talking about Africans that share lineage with Filipinos...then you obviously haven't researched Cambodia.

    Again, it seems to me that people who have this whole debate if Filipinos are Asian or Pacific Islander are completely oblivious to SE ASIANS or South Asians...and only view Asians as East Asians.

    The similarities, whether it's with ethnicities, culture, or language...it's very apparent that Filipinos share these with SE ASIANS, more specifically Malaysians and Indonesians.

    I think people really need to do due their research beyond East Asia, before they even make this stupid debate of Filipinos...Asian or Pacific Islander.
  • CaliStunna: Thank you for your thoughts.
  • omg... ok i know there is straight controversy over this shiiit.. cuz im filipino and i hate when people call me asian... i believe that we are islanders. we dont stay in asia we are in our own island. when you take tests and apply for jobs or what not when they ask for you nationality most of the time they put filipino in there own category or even filipino with another category excluding us from asians
  • the U.S. Census Bureau, ASEAN, and the United Nations all acknowledge that the Philippines is an Asian country. The reason why Filipinos had been classified separately from other Asian groups on application forms is that:

    1. We have more of a connection to the U.S. than other Asian countries, because the Philippines used to be a "colony" of the U.S. A territory, before gaining our independence from the U.S.

    2. Also, Filipinos have been the largest Asian group, and in the past other Asian groups were much smaller in number. Thus, making Filipinos distinct from the other Asian groups.

    3. Lack of knowledge on the part of those people creating application forms and such have helped to cause much confusion as to the fact that Filipinos are actually Asian. Plus the confusion that East Asians were the only people considered true Asians.

    True Pacific Islanders comprise peoples from Oceania: Micronesia, Melanesia and Polynesia. Though there may be remote ethnic ties to Asians, true Pacific Islanders have very unique customs, genetic differences, etc. that set them apart from Asians.

    Of course, any Filipino can deny that they are Asian, and proclaim they are Pacific Islander. Though that would be like me proclaiming I'm Tibetan simply because I want to be. But genetically I am Filipino-Asian.
  • Akio
    I'm totally with you Carlos...I am Filipino, but I'm actually Tsinoy (with some Spanish blood). I have been researching about our people and the cultural heritage for the past 5 years. I use to live in the bay area in a suburb called Union City (a huge Filipino Community). When I was living there, Filipinos left and right (in my old high school) are arguing about whether we're Asian or Pacific Islander. Majority of them said that we're Pacific Islanders. All of a sudden, a Filipino student in my high school started a petition about that we should be categorized as Pacific Islanders. I got totally offended about their actions and denied their petition, so this is where i start the 5 years of research. What I got so far, the Island of Luzon was actually inhabited by the Chinese, long before the Spanish came. The first Chinese settlers formed their little empire and had diplomatic ties with China in that region since the Ming dynasty. Also, during that time, Japanese merchants also settled in the Philippines along with the Malays. So as of today, most Filipinos have Chinese blood (some may have Japanese blood) in them. Overall, i might leave out some other ethnic groups during the early civilizations of the
    Philippines, but this gives a general view of what Filipinos are.
  • REILYN
    FIRST AND FOR MOST DON'T use wikipedia as a resource, b/c the info. is not always right.. People can write whatever they want, it's a free website that people can right anything...


    FILIPINO are ASIAN... Philippines is Located in SOUTH EAST ASIA, a member of ASEAN, always present in ASIA SONG FESTIVAL, and REGINE VELASQUEZ titled as (ASIA's SONGBIRD). Those are somethings that people can HEAR and SEE....


    >>>Does it have to be being ASIAN knows how to eat with CHOPSTICK and must have CHINKY eyes (I'm not a racist)???<<< NOPE... you don't have to. <<<<>> PHILIPPINES, CHINA, JAPAN, and etc. are made of ISLANDS... And you guys know that right??? THAT'S why they call it REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES and PEOPLES REPUBLIC OF CHINA <<<<<<<<<<

    FILIPINO or PEOPLE from the PHILIPPINES are ASIAN.
  • CaliStunna
    "ok i know there is straight controversy over this shiiit.. cuz im filipino and i hate when people call me asian… i believe that we are islanders. we dont stay in asia we are in our own island. when you take tests and apply for jobs or what not when they ask for you nationality most of the time they put filipino in there own category or even filipino with another category excluding us from asians "

    LOL! These two are the most common pathetic excuses I've seen used by some of these ignorant Fil-Ams. If Filipino have their own category separating them from Asians, that also means they have their own category separated from "PACIFIC ISLANDERS". Think about that!

    Filipinos having their own category is usually in CA and this is because it is detrimental to Filipinos statistically trying to apply to schools that consider race as a factor. Since Filipinos make up one of the largest Asian groups in CA, Filipinos who apply to CA schools would be affected by the schools that take race into consideration.

    Philippines being an island? PLEASE! The Philippines is made up of many islands, the Philippines is considered a archipelago. That is like saying "CUBANS" should no longer be considered as "LATINO or HISPANIC" because their country is an island! Pathetic reasoning! Not only that, people who make comments about "having their own island" still seem to oblivious about ASIA in general.

    Indonesia
    Malaysia
    Japan
    Borneo/Brunei
    East Timor
    Singapore

    heck even China and Vietnam has islands.....

    Again, it seems to me that this topic really is more about Filipino-American identity rather than "Asian or Pacific Islander". Look up Speak Out. Notice how they even discuss Filipino-Americans who discriminate against Filipinos. So spare me with the "I HATE BEING CALLED ASIAN" when in fact there are Filipino-Americans who don't even want to associate themselves with FILIPINOS.

    Oh ya don't be reading the ASIANJOURNAL or watching LA18TV anytime soon, that will probably really upset you since both consider Filipinos as Asian.
  • Akio
    Well said CaliStunna! =)
  • Empress
    So freaking dumb. We're not saying filipinos are pacific islanders because it's an island. We are saying that filipinos are pacific islanders because of their culture and what they look like! Dont take the word "pacific islands" literally. Dont tell me you look more chinese than palauan, austranesian, guamanian, and hawaiian people. And dont tell me you're asian because you guys have chinese influence. There is chinese influence all over the world, even in italy. Influence from china does not make you asian.

    The other misleading statement earlier.....which says that the philipines is part of ASEAN, which makes them asian. Again, dont take words literally. I am a heterosexual and is part of the GSA( Gay Straight Alliance), does this make me gay then? So dont conclude based on assumptions. Again......please impress me with your analytical skills.

    Someone also said filipinos have the 2nd highest income. When you look at the details it will say otherwise. Yeah, 20 Mcdonalds workers/maids/ rare white collar/ janitors living in the same house does contribute to a high income. And dont tell me this is not a secret of yours.

    The only reason filipinos are labeled as asian is because of their geographic location. Period. Nothing else. Ive observed filipinos and their priorities and family values is nothing like us chinese/jap/korean/viets. They dont even value education like how they present in this forum. I challenge everyone to visit Hawaii, phillipines, guam, taiwan, japan, honk kong. Learn first hand what a filipino life is like. No asian would call a filipino their brother or sister.

    Man... I cant believe people are presenting these useless facts that supposingly proves filipinos are asian. There is not one convincing proof that ive heard in this forum, except from misleading stuff. This forum is intended to trick the naive people into thinking that filipinos are something they are not.
  • JRC
    To address Empress' tirade:

    "We are saying that filipinos are pacific islanders because of their culture and what they look like! "

    So then, by that logic, Indonesians, who resemble Filipinos, and therefore Pacific Islanders, should be classified as P.I.'s?

    " There is chinese influence all over the world, even in italy."

    Yes, but the Philippines is close to China. Italy doesn't even come close. And if you think that Chinese influence doesn't make one Asian, then I guess Korea and Japan and Vietnam, and heck even Cambodia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia, all of which have Chines influence, aren't Asian then.

    The Philippines not only has influence from China, it's also close by, and those two nations have been having relations with each other throughout history.

    " I am a heterosexual and is part of the GSA( Gay Straight Alliance), does this make me gay then"

    It's Gay STRAIGHT Alliance, which INCLUDES THE STRAIGHTS, so it's no bother if you, a heterosexual, are a part of it, because it's for homosexuals AND heterosexuals. Therefore, your argument fails.

    The Philippines is not only a member of ASEAN, it's also a founding member (keyword, *founding member*), and it that'd only make sense if it was an Asian country to begin with.

    "The only reason filipinos are labeled as asian is because of their geographic location. Period."

    This is by far the most ignorant, uneducated, misinformed, misguided statement I've heard regarding the "Are Filipinos Asian" issue.

    The Philippines is not only in close proximity to those nations of East and Southeast Asia, it share similarities with them, and it's been having contact with them for a long time. It's all a matter of being linked and connected culturally and historically.

    And the Philippines does have it family values. In the Philippines, the elderly aren't thrown into the retirement house like in America, but they're taken care of by their children.

    Like it or not, we Filipinos are your brothers and sisters.

    Honestly, you sound so desperate.
  • Empress: well, you are working on the assumption that only Chinese, Japanese, Koreans and Vietnamese are the only Asians? Spare me!

    First off, your extremely bigoted statements against Filipinos negate everything you say. And, facts are facts, plain and simple. If the U.S. Census Bureau says that Filipinos households have the 2nd highest income, that I'm pretty sure that's a pretty close fact. You put us Filipinos down like all we do is maid service or work at McDonalds. There are many Filipinos who are nurses, doctors, lawyers, engineers, accountants who bring that statistic up to 2nd. If you have better facts that are BETTER than the U.S. Census Bureau's AND strong evidence that suggests Filipinos are NOT Asian, then write your own article.

    But, DON'T come here spewing out your racist and bigoted drivel that is just your own opinion and doesn't reflect any factual data to back your statements up.

    Everything I've present here has been based on facts and the general consensus from a variety of areas (academic, governmental, political)....

    Plus, I think I smell a TROLL. And I thank you for that...

    Anyway, enough's been said on both sides of the argument, let's just leave it at that and comments are closed.
  • Keep in mind that any comments that fall into the realm of being hate mail WILL be deleted right away. These comments are moderated so, TROLLS, you are just wasting your time.
blog comments powered by Disqus






Mutual Love

Reading List