Spanish Colonization

The Spanish colonization began in 1521 when the European explorer Ferdinand
Magellan arrived at the islands of the Philippines during his expedition. Magellan failed
to take the ownership of the country but the Spaniards continue send expeditions to try
and colonize the country. In 1543, they named the islands of Leyte and Samar as Las
Islas Filipinasafter the Philip II of Spain who is to be crowned King of Spain in 1556.
In 1565, Spain successfully started to colonize the Philippines by having a blood compact
with the Rajahs of Bohol. The Spanish colonization ended on 1898.
The Spanish colonization had many influences towards the countrys land and culture.
The Spaniards where the ones who made Manila as the capital of the country and they
also renamed it to Manila. Aside from Manila, there are many other provinces, cities and
towns in the Philippines that has been renamed to Spanish names and some of them are
named using the Spanish orthography. Most of the Filipino surnames are Spanish
names and Spanish-sounding. Many words of the Filipino languages are loaned from
the Spanish language and the some of the Spanish grammatical concepts are used in the
Filipino grammar.
The Spanish colonization introduced the concept of Roman Catholic religion in the
Philippines and most of the Filipinos today have Roman Catholic religion. Most of the
customs and tradition in the Festivities of the Filipinos are influenced by SpanishMexican culture. The holidays like New Years Day, Holy Week, All Souls Day, All Saints
Day, and Christmas are celebrated today and was introduced by the Christian religion
influenced by the Spanish colonization.