Batanes

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Batanes Province
Basic data
Region : Cagayan Valley
Capital : Basco
Population : 17,246
August 1, 2015 census
Population density : 79 inhabitants per km²
Area : 219.01  km²
PSGC : 020900000
structure
 - Highly urbanized cities
 - provincial cities
 - municipalities 6th
 - Barangays
 - electoral districts 1
Location of the province in the Philippines
map

Coordinates: 20 ° 35 '  N , 121 ° 54'  E

Hand drawn map of Luzon street

Batanes is the northernmost and smallest province in the Philippines . It consists of the - almost eponymous - archipelago of the Batan Islands . The capital of the province is Basco . A total of 17,246 inhabitants ( August 1, 2015 census ) live on the islands, which have an area of ​​219.01 km².

geography

The Batanes Province is part of the Cagayan Valley region , which is predominantly located on the main island of Luzon .

The Batan Islands lie on the Luzon Strait and are separated from the Babuyan Islands by the Balintang Canal and from Taiwan by the Bashi Strait .

The archipelago includes the following islands (from north to south):

There are also some very small unnamed secondary islands and rocks. Only the three largest of the Batan Islands are inhabited: the main island of Batan, Itbayat and Sabtang.

People and culture

The native people in the province are called Ivatan . In terms of their physical appearance and culture, they are more closely related to the indigenous peoples of Taiwan than to the Filipino peoples. The most widely used language in the province is the Austronesian Ivatan .

Communities

The province of Batanes has 6 municipalities, which in turn are divided into 29 barangays .

Municipalities of the province (the first four are on the main island of Batan, while Itbayat and Sabtang consist of the islands of the same name and uninhabited neighboring islands):

history

The ancestors of today's Ivatan people were Austronesians who settled the Batan Islands 4000 years ago during the Neolithic period. They lived mainly in mountain dwellings, so-called Idjangs, and used gold as their currency. They also created an agriculture-based industry. They were also seafarers and shipbuilders. Between the 6th century and the 10th century, the Chinese came to the islands to trade. Remains of Chinese porcelain have been discovered on Batan Island.

In 1687, the captain William Dampier drove to the islands with a team of English and Dutch privateers and named them after the country's monarchs. Itbayat was named Orange Island in honor of King William III. of Orange-Nassau and Batan became Grafton Isle . Sabtang ( Monmouth Isle ) was named after James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth. Captain Dampier stayed almost three months and did not claim any of the islands for the English crown.

In 1783 the Spaniards claimed the province as part of the Philippines under the patronage of Governor General Jose Basco y Vargas. The Ivatans, however, stayed in their Idjangs. In 1790, Governor Guerrero ordered the Invatans to live in the lowlands, creating the first two cities of Basco and Ivana. The Spaniards also built limestone bridges at that time, some of which are still standing. In 1890, attention was drawn to the Ivantan because they were considered the home of the revolutionary ideas of the Katipunan, a Philippine secret society. The Ivatan of this secret society, who were not satisfied with the Spanish rule, killed the ruling General Fortea and declared Spanish rule over.

Many public schools sprang up during the colonization of America. In 1920 the first wireless telegraph was installed and in 1930 a smaller airfield was built. Roads were built and Batanes High School was founded.

In World War II, many Ivatan-men were executed by the Japanese. The Japanese also sexually molested and raped the Ivatan women. When the US regained the country, Batanes became a province again.

In 2004, Vicente S. Gato was elected Governor of Batanes.

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