Names of the Philippines

There have been several names of the Philippines (Filipino: Pilipinas, [pɪlɪˈpinɐs]; Spanish: Filipinas) in different cultures and at different times, usually in reference to specific island groups within the current archipelago. Even the name Philippines itself was originally intended to apply only to Leyte, Samar, and nearby islands. It was bestowed by the Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos or one of his captains Bernardo de la Torre in 1543 in honor of the crown prince Philip, later Philip II. Mindanao, which they reached first and assumed to be the greater land, they named after the reigning emperor Charles V, who was also Spain's king Carlos I. Over the course of Spanish colonization, the name was eventually extended to cover the entire chain. It has survived with minor changes. The Philippine Revolution called its state the Philippine Republic (Spanish: República Filipina). The US military and civilian occupations called their territory the Philippine Islands (Spanish: Islas Filipinas). During the Third Philippine Republic, the state's official name was formally changed to the Philippines.