Why there is always the word 'The' in the word The Philippines?

The article, "the " is used before the Word, Philippines because as a general rule, countries that end in -s and consists of islands should have the article, "the". It is a shortened way of say The Phillipine Islands (there is no such place as Phillipine) in the same way as you would say The Maldives or The Scillies.