Are Filipinos Asian or Pacific Islander?
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Time to read 3 min
As a Filipino in America, you're often labeled as a Pacific Islander rather than Asian. Your neighbors, perhaps chinito with lighter skin, are considered Asian, but not you.
This topic even sparked an argument with my husband. He argued that I couldn't possibly be Asian because I resemble a Pacific Islander more, noting that the Philippine Islands are in the Pacific.
Hmm, he might have a point.
This led me to question my identity.
Have I been living a lie?
Am I really a Pacific Islander?
What exactly is going on?
This debate has been highly contentious among Filipinos and our Asian neighbors. Where do we truly belong? Let’s explore what people around the globe are saying on the world wide web.
In the United States, it is taught in some schools that Filipinos are not Asians—that we are Pacific Islanders. Despite significant backlash, many educated Filipinos abroad have accepted this classification without question.
A quick breakdown
A map guide
The Pacific Islands, including Samoa, Hawaii, Tahiti, Guam, Cook Islands, and the Mariana Islands, share a common trait: most lack their own national and political identities—they are territories under the jurisdiction and protection of more powerful countries like the USA, France, and New Zealand. These islands are often referred to as "indigenous natives" with very small populations and minimal global influence or historical civilizations. They did not fight and stand for their own race.
Clearly, the Philippines lies between the Pacific Islands and the larger Asian nations like China, Korea, and Japan. See the map below and notice our proximity to the Pacific Islands—quite close indeed. But we do NOT belong there.
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Some Pacific Islands are Somoa, Hawaii, Tihiti, Guam, Cook Island, Mariana Islands, Papua, etc.
East Asia consists of China, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam etc.
South East Asia has Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand etc.
South Asia covers India, Pakistan, Nepal, etc.
Filipino’s aren’t considered as Asian but Pacific Islanders by some because the Philippines used to be part of the Spanish East Indies, which includes Marianas (Guam and Northern Mariana today), and Carolinas (Palau and FS Micronesia today). And if you look at the native peoples of these Pacific Islands, they look like us. So if you say, Guam, Northern Marina, Palau, and Micronesian natives are Pacific Islanders, why can’t us?
The confusion really stems from from the fact that geographic-derived demonyms seldom describe people in terms of ethno-linguistic groupings. These denonyms require the definition of exact borders so one can be sure of correct usage of these denonyms. It has been long established that Philippines is part of Asia, so we should be considered as Asians. Furthermore, ethno-linguistically speaking, Filipinos are more closely-related to some ethnic groups in Borneo and Suluwesi, than the natives of Marianas and Carolinas. Borneo and Suluwesi natives are either Malaysians or Indonesians. And Malaysians and Indonesians are considered Asians.
Speaking of geography, we are Asians (like the Japanese, and Chinese). But speaking of ethno-linguistic grouping, we are Malayo-Polynesians (like Malaysians, most Indonesians, and all Poynesians). Now, can we redefine the borders of Asia and the so-called Pacific Island Group so we can be considered Pacific Islanders instead? I dunno. I would remind you though it isn’t Pacific Ocean to our North, West, and South, only the East. We’re unlike all these they consider as Pacific Islands which are completely surrounded by the Pacific Ocean in all directions.
On paper, we are officially Asian. We belong to southeast ASIA. But did you know that those who consider us Pacific Islanders are not entirely incorrect? I can see people’s eyes rolling at this statement.
But it’s true!Believe it or not, the Philippines used to be called The Philippine Islands of the Pacific.When the Americans first arrived in the Philippines more than a century ago, they called us the “orphans of the Pacific.”
They might have reached this conclusion because of the geographical distance of the country from mainland Asia. They considered us Pacific Islanders.
The Philippine archipelago, which consisted of 7,107 Islands, was a political creation of Western colonizers. Spain united the major islands of the Philippines during the 16th century when they colonized us. If Spain had not occupied the Philippines, we may not be what we are today.
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