I'm half Filipino. What box do I check on applications? ?

Question

Do I check the Pacific Islander box? or Do I check the Asian box?

The Philippines is a group of islands in the pacific ocean that is part of Asia.

I've met Filipinos who consider themselves Asian and I've met some who consider themselves Pacific Islander. I'm confused. Which one is correct?

Answer 1

pacific islander.  more benifits from affirmative action.

Answer 2

If you`re that confused, ask your father.

Answer 3

What does it say on you birth certificate or passport.  I'm mixed English and Choctaw, but I am first and foremost American.

I loved every version and the book Mutiny On the Bounty.  So I see my Girl as an Island Princess dancing in the sun.

It's really up to you.

Answer 4

If you are Filipino then you are ASIAN.  But, you can put anything you like in that box

Answer 5

You said your half Filipino, but why is it you don't mention what your other half is? It's common sense check whatever your look closer too the most. I have a friend that is half white and half Filipino but looks more like Filipino so he checks Asian.  

Answer 6

Surely its where you are born that determines your nationality regardless of your parentage, unless its different here in the Philippines than everywhere else that I know.

Answer 7

What ever one you prefer,  as the person reviewing your application probably wouldn't know the difference

Answer 8

Check the Asian box.  Filipinos are not considered to be Pacific Islanders although the country is situated in the Pacific Ocean (as are Japanese and Indonesians).  The country is outside the geopolitical region called Oceania in the Pacific Ocean north and east of Australia.

Don't compare yourself with other Filipinos because their situations may be different from yours - they may actually be Pacific Islanders if they are Guamanians or Samoans of Philippine ancestry.

Answer 9

What your other half? For the Filipino-half...thats Asian! I dont understand why most are saying that Filipinos are pacific islander. There is such a thing as MAP that would could verify which continent the country is in. Imposing to be Pacific islanders would not give us free ticket to the 'no-discrimination' zone.  

Answer 10

if there's a box that says "OTHER" check that box.

but between asian and pacific islander, choose "ASIAN" (even the US government consider filipinos as asian)

but if you're half-filipino, half- pacific islander, you can choose either.

sometimes, BIRACIAL and MULTI-RACIAL box is available.

there are also times that there's only one box for asian and amerisian(like in US social security)

Answer 11

The purpose of the question is usually just to determine demographical statistics.There really is no right or wrong answer. Do you consider yourself Asian or whatever your other half is? And by the way no matter how many people tell you that a Filipino is a pacific islander, that's just wrong. A Filipino is Asian.

Answer 12

Gawd, I can't believe someone above me thinks Philippines is not in the Asian continent, get a world map and check what are the neighbor countries of the Philippines. Would you say that Indonesia and Malaysia are not part of the Asian continent too? Edit 1: She deleted her answer so it's not anyone above me now.

I'm a quarter Filipino (both Asian parents) and I always declare Asian or Oriental as my ethnicity. Never would I conclude that I'm a Pacific Islander because Philippines is in the Pacific Ocean.

Here's how Pacific Islander is defined:

Pacific Islander (or Pacific Person, pl: Pacific People, also called Oceanic[s]), is a geographic term to describe the Austronesian inhabitants of any of the three major sub-regions of Oceania: Polynesia, Melanesia and Micronesia.

Or to make it easy for you to choose,

Who issued your passport? Is it Philippines or Oceania? If it's the former then you're Filipino and an Asian but if it's the latter then you're a Pacific Islander.