Batanes

From Free net encyclopedia

Batanes is the northernmost and the smallest province of the Philippines, both in terms of population and land area. The province lies on a group of islands (called the Batanes Islands) in the Luzon Strait and is part of the Cagayan Valley region in Luzon. Its capital is Basco and is separated from the Babuyan Islands of Cagayan Province by the Balintang Channel and from Taiwan by the Bashi Channel. The northenmost island is Mavudis Island. The other islands are Misanga, Ditarem, Siayan, Itbayat, Dinem, Batan, Sabtang, Ivuhos, and Diadekey. Only Itbayat, Batan, and Sabtang are inhabited. Batanes is about 190 kilometers south of Taiwan.

Contents 1 People and culture 2 Economy 3 Geography 3.1 Political 3.1.1 Municipalities 3.2 Physical 4 History 5 External links

People and culture

The indigenous people in Batanes are called Ivatan, who are linguistically, racially, physically, and culturally closer to the Taiwanese aborigines than to the other Filipinos. The main languages spoken in Batanes are Ivatan and Itbayaten (which appears as a dialect of the preceding of which the latter is of Formosan origin. This accounts for their cultural dissimilarities with other Filipinos.

Economy

Geography

Political

Batanes is subdivided into 6 municipalities.

Municipalities

Basco Itbayat Ivana

Mahatao Sabtang Uyugan

Physical

Batanes lies on a group of islands collectively called Batanes Islands and they are the northernmost islands of the Philippines. They are located between the Babuyan Islands (belonging to Cagayan Province) and Taiwan. The islands are sparsely populated and subject to frequent typhoons.

The three largest islands are Itbayat, Batan, and Sabtang. The northernmost is Mavudis Island.

History

The ancestors of today's Ivatans are descended from Austronesians who migrated to the Batanes Islands 4000 years ago during the Neolithic period. They lived in fortified mountain areas called idjangs and drank sugar-cane wine, or palek. They also used gold as currency and produced a thriving agriculture-based industry. They were also seafarers and boat-builders. Between the 10th and 6th centuries, the Chinese came to Batanes to trade with them. Relics of these Chinese ceramic wares have been found on Batan Island.

In 1687, a crew of English freebooters headed by William Dampier came with a crew of Hollanders and named the islands in honor of their country's monarchs. Itbayat was named "Orange Isle" in honor of William of Orange, and Batan was named "Grafton Isle". Sabtang Isle was named "Monmouth Isle" after the Duke of Monmouth. Capt. Dampier stayed for less than three months, and did not claim the islands for the British crown.

In 1783, the Spanish claimed Batanes as part of the Philippines under the auspices of Governor-General Jose Basco y Vargas. However, the Ivatans remained on their idjangs, or mountain fortresses. In 1790, Governor Guerrero decreed that Ivatans were to leave their idjangs and to live in the lowlands, thereby giving them more people to tax. Basco and Ivana were the first towns. Mahatao was then administered by Basco, while Uyugan and Sabtang, by Ivana. Itbayat was not organized until the 1850s, its coast being a ridge. Ivatans were then ordered to dresslike the other Filipinos, and it didn't took them long to adapt. Soon, Ilocanos were being put in the islands, so as to control the native population there. Limestone technology used by the Spanish were also being spread to the islands, so that their bridges became strong and fortified. Some of these bridges still remain at both Ivana and Mahatao. By 1890, many Ivatans were in Manila, and became ilustrados, who then brought with them home the revolutinary ideas of the Katipunan. These Ivatans, who were then discontented with Spanish rule, killed the ruling General Fortea and declared the end of Spanish rule.

During the American colonial period, public schools suddenly boomed, and more Ivatan became more aware of their place in the Philippines. In 1920, the first wireless telegraph was installed, followed by an airfield in 1930. Roads were constructed and the Batanes High School was instituted.

During the Second World War, the Japanese massacred many Ivatan men, and raped and molested Ivatan women. When the United States regained the country, Batanes regained its provincehood.

External links

• Northern Luzon cultures

Template:Batanes

ceb:Batanes

de:Batanes ilo:Batanes ja:バタネス州 nl:Batanes no:Batanes pam:Batanes tl:Batanes