Names of the Philippines at different times in history In so far as recorded history is concerned, Ma-i seems to be the earliest name

under which the Philippines was known to the Chinese traders, who were coming here in the tenth century A.D., attracted by such articles of commerce as yellow wax, cotton, pearls, tortoise shell, betel nuts, abaca, and so forth. For these Chinese would barter porcelain, trade gold, iron censers, lead, colored glass, beads, and iron needles. The natives enjoyed the reputation of being exceptionally honest in their their business dealings with the celestials. The name Ma-i was still very frequently used in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, and probably long thereafter. According to Jose Rizal (national hero), on Ptolemy's map, which was made before the second century A.D., the group of islands now known as the Philippines was called Tawalisi. Ptolemy got his knowledge from a sailor named Hippalus, the same man who discovered the monsoons in the southeastern Asiatic regions. In later editions, however, there is group of islands in about the location of the Philippine group which bears in different editions the names ofManiolas, Barusas or Baroussai and Puloan or Palawan. In connection with these different names it is often stated that they were used in turn to designate the whole group. But according to Rizal, Baroussai is the Visayas in Ptolemy's maps. The name Puloan in the edition of 1540 must have been the name originally borne by the island of Palawan, while Maniolas, whch is very similar to Maynilad, must have been the name given to the vast region around Manila. Magellan, on seeing Samar and the neighboring islands from the Ladrones on March 16, 1521, gave to the new country the name of "The Archipelago of San Lazaro," it having been discovered on the Sabbath of St. Lazarus. The Archipelago was also called Val Seu Parigne or Valley Without Peril, in view of the hospitality and brotherly love shown by the natives to the discoverers, giving signs of joy because of their arrival, as distinguished from the hostile attitude under the cover of a seemingly hospitable but dishonest entertainment received from the people of the Ladrones Islands. In Spain, however, the Archipelago, soon after its discovery by Magellan, became popularly known the Islands of the West or Islas del Poniente, because Magellan came here by a westerly route from Spain The Portuguese, on contrary, called the group the Islands of the East or Islas del Oriente, because they came here by an easterly route from Portugal. By the Japanese the Achipelago was more often called the Luzon Islands, very clearly in accordance with the name of the island most familiar, because closest, to them. This form of the name of the island was more frequently written in other countries as the Luzones or Lucones. To the south Archipelago was often identified as the Celebes Archipelago or Islas de Liquios Celebesbecause of the Celebes Sea south of Mindanao. In 1542, Rui Lopez de Villalobos conceived the beautiful and very appropriate idea of baptizing the Archipelago with the name Felipinas,or Philipinas, as recorded by Alvarado, in honor of "our fortunate Prince," the man who saved it for Christendom, Rey Felipe II or King Philip II of Spain. Tis is the name which has been rendered into English as Philippines. Montero y Vidal says that the island first to receive the name Filipinas was Leyte, and the this name was given in July or August of the year 1543 to include some of the smaller islands in the group. Urdaneta used Las Islas Filipinas as we do now, standing for the whole Philippine group. Official Name: Republic of the Philippines Ophir- Oldname - Land that supplies King Solomon with Golds. Chinese name Ma-yi - (appear in Sung Dynasty) Chin-san - Mountain of Golds Liu sum - Land adjacent to the mainland (China) San Tao - Three Island Spanish La Agunda dela Buenas Senales - watering place of the good omen Archipelago de San Lazaro - Archipelago of San Lazaro Islas del Poniente -Western Island ( due to the ancient belief that world is flat ) Islas del Oriente - Eastern Island Archipelago de Magajaes - Archipelago of Magellan Archipelago de Celebes Las Islas Filipinas Other name: Island of mortars Pearl of the Orient Sea - given by Rizal

Rizaline Republic - Artemio Ricarte Maharlika - proposed by President Marcos Gems of the East Emerald Island Isles of Hope Orphans of the Pacific Land of the Morning Isles of Sorrow Isles of Fear The following are the names given to the Philippines before the country got it's official name: "Republic of the Philippines" 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Felipinas Las Islas Filipinas Islas del Poniente San Lzaro Repblica Filipina (Malolos Congress proclamation) Philippine Islands (by American colonial authorities)

NAMES OF THE PHILIPPINES The following names refer to the Philippines:

Pearl of the Orient Seas Ma-i or Mayi (from Chinese records. It means Land of the Barbarians) Chin-San (also from Chinese records. It means Mountain of Gold) Liu-Sung (also from Chinese records. It means Land Adjacent to the Mainland) San Tao (also from Chinese records. It means Three Islands). Maniolas (by Claudius Ptolemy, the Greek mapmaker in 90-168 AD) Archipelago of St. Lazarus (by Magellan) Filipinas (by Ruy Lopez de Villalobos in honor of King Philip II of Spain) Philippine Islands (by the Americans) Republic of the Philippines (after its independence from American occupation) Historical Names

Ma-i. According to the Chao Ju-kua's Zhufan Zhi (, or Chu-fan-chi, literally "Description of the Peoples") written around 1225 AD the Annam and South Sea islands of China during the Song Dynasty, there was a group of islands Chinese found in southern South Sea China called Ma-i orMa-yi, known to local Chinese as Mait. The islands groups were later invaded and renamed and identified by the Spanish to be the island ofMindoro.[4] This was further proved by Ferdinand Blumentritt in his 1882 book, Versuch einer Ethnographie der Philippinen (An Attempt to the Study of Ethnography of the Philippines) that Mait, which means "country of the Blacks" was the Chinese local name of present-day Mindoro.[5] On the other hand, historians claimed that Ma-i was not an island, but all the south of South Sea islands groups and Manila itself,[6] which was known to be the Chinese settlements and in constant contact with the China Government as early as the 9th century CE and earlier.[7]

Ma-i consists of the San-s ("Three islands") group of islands: Kia-ma-yen (Calamian), Pa-lau-yu (Palawan) and Pa-ki-nung (Busuanga).[8] Aside from San-s, Ma-i also consists of the islands of Pai-p'u-yen (Babuyan), P'u-li-lu (Polillo), Li-kintung (Lingayen), Liu-sung (Luzon) andLi-ban (Lubang).[9] It was said that these islands had contacts with Chinese traders from Canton (Guangdong) as early as 982 AD.[5][6]

Liu-sung was the name given by the Chinese to the present-day island of Luzon, originated from the Tagalog word lusong, a wooden mortar that is used to pound rice. When the Spanish produced

maps of the Philippines during early 17th century, they called the island Luonia which was later respelled as Luzonia, then Luzon.[10]

Las islas de San Lzaro (St. Lazarus' Islands). Named by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521 when he reached the islands of Homonhon in the island ofSamar (now present-day Eastern Samar) at the feast day of St. Lazarus of Bethany.[4] Las islas de Poniente (Islands to the West). Another name from Ferdinand Magellan in 1521 when he learned that the Las islas de San Lzaroalso included Cebu and Leyte islands.[11] However, various sources claimed that Magellan was not the one who renamed the area, but his chroniclers instead. The name came from the fact that the islands were reached from Spain en route approaching the left part of the globe.[4]Conversely, the Portuguese called the archipelago Ilhas do oriente (Islands to the East) because they approached the islands from the east ofPortugal in late 1540s.[12]

The Portuguese referred the whole island of Luzon as ilhas Lues, or Luzones Islands.[12] Mindanao was formerly called ilhas de Liquos Celebes because of the existence of Celebes Sea south of Mindanao.[12] Las islas Felipenas (Philippine Islands/Islands belonging to Philip). Named by Ruy Lpez de Villalobos in 1543 to Samar and Leyte, honoring thePrince of Asturias, the then Philip II of Spain.[13][14] Caesarea Caroli was the name given by Villalobos to the island of Mindanao when he reached the sea near it. This was named after the Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire (and I ofSpain).[15][16][17] The island of Sarangani was renamed by Villalobos as Antonia, in honor of Antonio de Mendoza y Pacheco, the Viceroy of New Spain who commissioned Villalobos expedition to the Philippines.[14] Villalobos also named the littoral zone between the islands of Samar and Leyte as Tendaya.[18]

Las islas Filipinas, or simply Filipinas (Philippines). Vernacular piracy of Las islas Felipenas, irrevocably became the archipelago's name.[4] Pearl of the Orient/Pearl of the Orient Seas (Spanish: Perla de oriente/Perla del mar de oriente) is the sobriquet of the Philippines. The term originated from the idea of Spanish Jesuitmissionary Fr. Juan J. Delgado in 1751.[19] In his last poem Mi ltimo adis, Dr. Jos Rizal referred the country with this name.[20] In the 1960 revision of the Philippine national anthem"Lupang Hinirang", the Tagalog version of this phrase was included as the translation from the original Spanish. [21]

Proposed Names

Haring Bayang Katagalugan (Sovereign Tagalog Nation). Andrs Bonifacio's suggested name for the Filipino nation, intended to be governed by the 1896-1897 Republika ng Katagalugan(Tagalog Republic). This was later used by Macario Sakay for his 1902-1906 government that was suppressed by the Americans.[25][26] Kapatiran ("Brotherhood"), or its semi-equivalent Katipunan ("Assembly"/"Gathering").[27] Luzviminda. Portmanteau of the first syllables of the country's three major island groups: Luzon; Visayas; and Mindanao. Appears more nowadays as a dated female given name. Mahrlika. In Pre-Hispanic Philippines, the mahrlika was the "noble warrior" class whose members were essentially the same as the common man, albeit with the duty to serve the ruler in battle. The word mahrlika came to mean "nobility" due to its Spanish translation. In 1978, former President Ferdinand Marcos supported a House Bill mandating the country's renaming toMahrlika.[27] Rizalia. Named after national hero Jos Rizal in a similar fashion to Bolivia being named after its hero (Simn Bolivar).[27]

While exiled in Japan, former revolutionary general Artemio Ricarte proposed the name Repblica Rizalina ("Rizaline Republic") and had already drafted a constitution for this attempt at a revolutionary government.[28] Disputed Names

Maniolas. According to Fr. Francisco Colin in 1663, a Jesuit friar and an early historian of the Philippines, Maniolas was the name used by Claudius Ptolemy to refer to the group of islands south of China.[24][29] Colin quoted Ptolemy's writings speaking about the Maniolas islands, which is probably Manila. This theory was further supported by Jos Rizal and Pedro A. Paterno. Rizal also said that the country was recorded to Ptolemy's maps when a sailor named Hippalus told him the existence of "beautiful islands" in southeastern Far East.[12][30] However, Trinidad Pardo de Tavera rejected this notion on his 1910 book, Notas para una cartografia de Filipinas (Notes for the Philippine Cartography).[31] Ophir (Hebrew: ) is a region of islands mentioned in the Bible, most famous for its wealth. Accounts mention that King Solomon received the riches of the region every three years. At the emergence of the hydrography of Spanish colonies in Asia in the early 17th century, Dominican Gregorio Garca wrote that Ophir was indeed located in the Moluccas and the Philippines.[32] In 1609, Juan de Pineda wrote a diverse collection of literature relating Biblical accounts of Solomon, Ophir and the islands.[32] Former Prime Minister Pedro A. Paterno said in one of his works on conjectural anthropology that Ophir is the Philippines because the scented wood Solomon received from Ophir also exists in the Islands.[33] This notion was however, later dismissed by modern historians as merely alluding and comparing the Philippines' position to the Spanish economy with that of Ophir to Solomon's kingdomthe sudden discovery and colonisation of the Islands bringing wealth and prosperity to the realm. [34]