Filipinos are the citizens of the Philippines, located in Southeast Asia. The term (feminine: Filipina) may also refer to people of Philippine descent, regardless of citizenship (i.e. Chinese Filipinos, Filipino Americans, British Filipinos, Canadians of Filipino descent, etc.).
Some genetic studies, based upon very small samples of the population, have begun to provide clues to the origins of Filipino peoples. Much remains to be learned by larger studies of valid statistical significance about the ancestry of the various Austronesian Philippine ethnic groups.
A Stanford University study conducted during 2001 revealed that Y-chromosome Haplogroup O3-M122 (labeled as "Haplogroup L" in this study) predominates among Filipino males. This particular haplogroup is also predominant among Chinese and Korean males. That finding is consistent with the theory that people migrated from China south into the Philippines.
Filipino culture is primarily based on the cultures of various native tribes, plus influences from Spain and Mexico, as well as China and India. The customs and traditions of the Roman Catholic faith are Spain's lasting legacy. As Christianity is syncretic, Filipinos incorporated tribal traditions through time and created their own form of religious practice.
Unlike its Muslim majority neighbors, Malaysia and Indonesia, the Philippines is an overwhelmingly Christian country. As a result of Spanish colonization and evangelization spanning three centuries, most contemporary Filipinos, regardless of native ethnic group, are Christians. More than 83% are Roman Catholic, and others follow various smaller Christian denominations.