104-564: Luzon ( / l uː ˈ z ɒ n / loo- ZON , Tagalog: [luˈson] ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines . Located in the northern portion of the Philippine archipelago , it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila , as well as Quezon City , the country's most populous city. With a population of 64 million as of 2021, it contains 52.5% of
208-561: A datu ; members of this elite could hope to become a datu by demonstrating prowess in war or exceptional leadership. In large coastal polities such as those in Maynila , Tondo , Pangasinan , Cebu , Panay , Bohol , Butuan , Cotabato , Lanao , and Sulu , several datus brought their loyalty-groups, referred to as barangays or dulohan , into compact settlements which allowed greater degrees of cooperation and economic specialization. In such cases, datus of these barangays selected
312-581: A combined population of about 100.9 million (2015); thus they contain about 99% of the Philippines' total land area and total population (2015). Combined population of Luzon and Mindanao accounts for 80% of total population of the Philippines. Download coordinates as: Major islands of the Philippines ( clickable map ) Datu Datu is a title which denotes the rulers (variously described in historical accounts as chiefs, sovereign princes, and monarchs) of numerous Indigenous peoples throughout
416-583: A datuship elsewhere in the Philippines. In the later part of the 1500s, the Spaniards took possession of most of Luzon and the Visayas, converting the lowland population to Christianity from their local Indigenous religion. Although Spain eventually established footholds in northern and eastern Mindanao and the Zamboanga Peninsula , its armies failed to colonize the rest of Mindanao. This area
520-498: A later date. During the 1360s, the Javanese -centered Hindu-Buddhist Shivaite empire of Majapahit briefly ruled over Luzon as recorded in the epic poem Nagarakretagama , which reports imperial colonies in the Philippines at Saludong ( Manila ) and Solot ( Sulu ). Eventually, the kingdoms of Luzon regained independence from Majapahit after the 1365 Battle of Manila. Sulu also reestablished independence and in vengeance assaulted
624-521: A law on June 11, 1594, which commanded the Spanish colonial officials in the archipelago that these native royalties and nobilities be given the same respect, and privileges that they had enjoyed before their conversion. Their domains became self-ruled tributary barangays of the Spanish Empire. The Filipino royals and nobles formed part of the principalía (noble class) of the Philippines. It
728-526: A lot of broken rice, required two to three skilled men and women to work harmoniously and was actually a form of socializing among young folks in the villages. In old Latin, Italian, and Portuguese maps, the island is often called "Luçonia" or "Luconia." Luções, [luˈsõjʃ] (also Luzones in Spanish ) was a demonym used by Portuguese sailors in Malaysia during the early 1500s, referring to
832-428: A lusong, explaining: Traditional milling was accomplished in the 1900s by pounding the palay with a wooden pestle in a stone or wooden mortar called lusong. The first pounding takes off the hull and further pounding removes the bran but also breaks most grains. Further winnowing with a bamboo tray (bilao) separates the hull from the rice grains. This traditional hand-pounding chore, although very laborious and resulted in
936-630: A million souls. People from the Philippines, primarily from Luzon, were recruited by France (then in alliance with Spain ), first to defend Indo-Chinese converts to Christianity being persecuted by their native governments. Eventually, Filipino mercenaries helped the French conquer Vietnam and Laos and to re-establish Cambodia as a French Protectorate. This process culminated in the establishment of French Cochinchina , centered in Saigon . After many years of Spanish occupation and resistance to reform,
1040-491: A more capable war leader or political administrator. Even paramount datus such as lakans or rajahs exercised only a limited degree of influence over the less-senior datus they led, which did not include claims over the barangays and territories. Antonio de Morga, in his work Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas , expounds on the degree to which early Philippine datus could exercise their authority: There were no kings or lords throughout these islands who ruled over them as in
1144-534: A more extensive commerce than those in Visayas, having the influence of Bornean political contacts, and engaging in farming wet rice for a living. They were described by the Spanish Augustinian friar Martin de Rada as traders more than warriors. The more complex social structure of the Tagalog people was less stable during the Spaniards' arrival because it was still differentiating. In this society,
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#17327730768361248-600: A prince from Mecca who became the Sultan of Brunei , a nation that then expanded its realms from Borneo to the Philippines and set up the Kingdom of Maynila as its puppet-state. The invasion of Brunei spread Chinese royal descent like Ong Sum Ping 's kin and Arab dynasties too into the Philippines like the clan of Sultan Sharif Ali . However, other Luzon kingdoms resisted Islam, like the Wangdom of Pangasinan . It had remained
1352-418: A tributary state of China and was a largely Sinified kingdom, which maintained trade with Japan. The Polity of Cainta also existed as a fortified city-state, armed with walls and cannons. The Portuguese were the first European explorers who recorded it in their charts as Luçonia or Luçon , calling the inhabitants Luções . Edmund Roberts , who visited Luzon in the early 19th century, wrote that Luzon
1456-647: Is a term applied by historians to describe the highest ranking political authorities in the largest lowland polities or inter-polity alliance groups in early Philippine history , such as those in Maynila , Tondo , the Confederation of Madja-as in Panay, Pangasinan, Cebu, Bohol, Butuan, Cotabato, and Sulu. Different cultures on the Philippine archipelago referred to the most senior datu using different titles: In Muslim polities such as Sulu and Cotabato,
1560-598: Is called barangay among them. They had datos and other special leaders [mandadores] who attended to the interests of the barangay. Since the culture of the pre-colonial societies in the Visayas, northern Mindanao, and Luzon were largely influenced by Hindu and Buddhist cultures, the datus who ruled these principalities (such as Butuan Calinan , Ranau Gandamatu, Maguindanao Polangi , Cebu , Bohol, Panay , Mindoro and Manila ) also shared many customs of royalties and nobles in Southeast Asian territories, especially in
1664-484: Is covered by 8 administrative regions , 30 provinces and, as of 2014, 68 cities (8 regions, 38 provinces and 71 cities if associated islands are included). Table note(s): Luzon is part of the Philippine Mobile Belt , a fast deforming plate boundary zone (Gervasio, 1967) hemmed in between two opposing subduction zones, the west-dipping Philippine Trench - East Luzon Trench subduction zone, and
1768-811: Is dominated by the Bicol Peninsula , a mountainous and narrow region extending approximately 150 kilometres (93 mi) southeast from the Tayabas Isthmus in Quezon province to the San Bernardino Strait along the coasts of Sorsogon . The area is home to several volcanoes , the most famous of which is the 2,460-metre (8,070 ft) high symmetrically shaped Mayon Volcano in Albay province. The Sierra Madre range has its southern limits at Quezon province. Ultra-prominent mountains dot
1872-405: Is more broadly characteristic of Malayo-Polynesian and Austronesian cultures where, as Mulder explains: " ...Social life is rooted in the immediate experience of a hierarchically ordered social arrangement based on the essential inequality of individuals and their mutual obligations to each other. " This "essential inequality of individuals and their mutual obligations to each other" informed
1976-612: The Andres Novales uprising occurred and it was inspired by the Latin American Wars of Independence . Novales' uprising was primarily supported by Mexicans living in the Philippines as well as immigrant Latinos from the now independent nations of Colombia , Venezuela , Peru , Chile , Argentina and Costa Rica . Although the uprising failed it inspired the Cavite Mutiny , the suppression of which, lead to
2080-759: The Boxer Codex to the titled lords ( señores de titulo ) in Spain. As agalon or amo (lords), the datus enjoyed an ascribed right to respect, obedience, and support from their oripun (commoner) or followers belonging to the third order. These datus had acquired rights to the same advantages from their legal Timawa or vassals (second-order), who bind themselves to the datu as his seafaring warriors. The Timawa did not pay tribute or perform agricultural labor. The Boxer Codex calls them knights and hidalgos . The Spanish conquistador, Miguel de Loarca, described them as " free men, neither chiefs nor slaves " . In
2184-582: The Cagayan to the north, and the Pampanga to the south. In the middle of the plain rises the solitary Mount Arayat . The western coasts of Central Luzon are typically flat extending east from the coastline to the Zambales Mountains , the site of Mount Pinatubo , made famous because of its enormous 1991 eruption . These mountains extend to the sea in the north, forming Lingayen Gulf , and to
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#17327730768362288-594: The Indian Ocean , the Strait of Malacca , the South China Sea , and the medieval maritime principalities of the Philippines . His father and wife carried on his maritime trading business after his death. Another important Malacca trader was Curia de Raja who also hailed from Luzon. The "surname" of "de Raja" or "diraja" could indicate that Regimo and Curia, and their families, were of noble or royal descent as
2392-675: The Kapampangan and Tagalog people who lived in Manila Bay , which was then called Lusong ( Kapampangan : Lusung , Portuguese : Luçon ), from which Luzon was also derived. The term was also used for Tagalog settlers in Southern Tagalog region, where they created intensive contact with the Kapampangans. Eventually, the term "Luzones" would refer to the settlers of Luzon island, and later on, would be exclusive to
2496-613: The New People's Army . Datus continue to act as the community leaders in their respective tribes among a variety of indigenous peoples in Mindanao today. Moros, Lumads and Visayans now share with new settlers a homeland in Mindanao. In more affluent and powerful territorial jurisdictions and principalities in the Visayas, such as Panay, Cebu and Leyte (which were never conquered by Spain but were accomplished as vassals using pacts, peace treaties, and reciprocal alliances),
2600-459: The Pacific War , the Philippines were considered to be of great strategic importance because their capture by Japan would pose a significant threat to the U.S. As a result, 135,000 troops and 227 aircraft were stationed in the Philippines by October 1941. Luzon was captured by Imperial Japanese forces in 1942 during their campaign to capture the Philippines . General Douglas MacArthur —who
2704-515: The Philippine archipelago . The title is still used today, though not as much as early Philippine history. It is a cognate of ratu in several other Austronesian languages. In early Philippine history, datus and a small group of their close relatives formed the "apex stratum" of the traditional three-tier social hierarchy of lowland Philippine societies. Only a member of this birthright aristocracy (called maginoo , nobleza , maharlika , or timagua by various early chroniclers) could become
2808-875: The United States in the Philippine–American War which the Republic's forces lost due to its diplomatic isolation (no foreign nation recognized the First Republic) as well as due to the numerical superiority of the American military . The Americans then set up the cool mountain city of Baguio as a summer retreat for its officials. The Americans also rebuilt the capital, Manila, and established American military bases in Olongapo and Angeles cities mainly Clark Airbase and Subic Naval Base . During
2912-577: The Visayas and Mindanao. Other titles still used today are lakan in Luzon, apo in central and northern Luzon, and sultan and rajah , especially in Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan. Depending upon the prestige of the sovereign royal family, the title of datu could be equated to royal princes, European dukes , marquesses and counts . In large ancient barangays , which had contacts with other Southeast Asian cultures through trade, some datus took
3016-426: The datu came primarily from his recognized status within the noble class. A datu's political legitimacy was not only determined by birth, but was also dependent on one's "personal charisma, prowess in war, and wealth". The office of datu was normally passed on through heredity, and even in cases where it was not passed on through direct descent, only a fellow member of the aristocratic class could ascend to
3120-511: The datu class was at the top of a divinely sanctioned and stable social order in a sakop or kinadatuan ( kadatuan in ancient Malay; kedaton in Javanese; and kedatuan in many parts of modern Southeast Asia), which is elsewhere commonly referred to also as a barangay. This social order was divided into three classes. The kadatuan (members of the Visayan datu class) were compared by
3224-524: The datu provided aid in emergencies and advocacy in disputes with other communities, and warfare through the Agama and Maratabat laws. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Lumad peoples controlled an area that now covers 17 of Mindanao's 24 provinces – but by the 1980 census, they constituted less than 6% of the population of Mindanao and Sulu. Heavy migration to Mindanao of Visayans, who have settled in
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3328-447: The datus against the exercise of sovereign political authority . Although the datus and paramount datus of early Philippine polities were a " birthright aristocracy" and were widely recognized "aristocratic" or "noble", which were comparable to the nobles and royals of the Spanish colonizers, the nature of their relationship with the members of their barangay was less asymmetrical than monarchic political systems in other parts of
3432-433: The datus of pure descent (four generations) were called "potli nga datu" or "lubus nga datu" , while a woman of noble lineage (especially the elderly) are addressed by Panay inhabitants as uray (meaning: pure as gold). The different type of culture prevalent in Luzon gave a less stable and more complex social structure to the pre-colonial Tagalog barangays of Manila, Pampanga and Laguna. The Tagalog people enjoyed
3536-435: The de facto owners of agricultural products and sea resources within a district, the primary supporters of attached craft specialists, the overseers of intra-district and external trade, and the pivotal centers of regional resource mobilization systems. Anthropologists like F. Landa Jocano and Junker, historians, and historiographers like William Henry Scott distinguish between the nobility and aristocratic nature of
3640-487: The 12th century, and local Tagalog , Kapampangan and Pangasinan potters had marked each jar with Baybayin letters denoting the particular urn used and the kiln the jars were manufactured in. Certain kilns were renowned over others; prices depended on the reputation of the kiln. Of this flourishing trade, the Burnay jars of Ilocos are the only large clay jar manufactured in Luzon today with origins from this time. In
3744-662: The 16th century saw the incorporation of the Luções people and the breaking up of their kingdoms and the establishment of the Las Islas Filipinas with its capital Cebu , which was moved to Manila following the defeat of the local Rajah Sulayman in 1570. Under Spain, Luzon also came to be known as the Nueva Castilla or the New Castile . In Spanish times, Luzon became the focal point for trade between
3848-513: The 2015 census, the population of Luzon Island is 57,470,097 people, making it the 4th most populated island in the world . List of islands in the Philippines As an archipelago , the Philippines comprises about 7,641 islands clustered into three major island groups : Luzon , the Visayas , and Mindanao . Only about 2,000 islands are inhabited, and more than 5,000 are yet to be officially named. The following list breaks
3952-630: The Americas and Asia. The Manila Galleons constructed in the Bicol region brought silver mined from Peru and Mexico to Manila. The silver was used to purchase Asian commercial goods like Chinese silk , Indian gems and Indonesian spices , which were then exported back to the Americas. The Chinese valued Luzon so much, in that when talking about Spain and the Spanish-Americas, they preferred to call it as "Dao Lusong" (Greater Luzon) while
4056-592: The Christianized datus by the Spanish Empire . For example, the gobernadorcillos (elected leader of the cabezas de barangay or the Christianized datus) and Filipino officials of justice received the greatest consideration from the Spanish Crown officials. The colonial officials were under obligation to show them the honor corresponding to their respective duties. They were allowed to sit in
4160-552: The Cordillera Central mountain ranges is the large Cagayan Valley . This region, which is known for being the second largest producer of rice and the country's top corn-producer, serves as the basin for the Cagayan River , the longest in the Philippines. Along the southern limits of the Cordillera Central lies the lesser-known Caraballo Mountains . These mountains form a link between the Cordillera Central and
4264-741: The Island for centuries, spurred by government-sponsored resettlement programmes, turned the Lumads into minorities. The Bukidnon province population grew from 63,470 in 1948 to 194,368 in 1960 and 414,762 in 1970, with the proportion of Indigenous Bukidnons falling from 64% to 33%, and then 14%. There are 18 Lumad ethnolinguistic groups: Ata people, Bagobo, Banwaon, B'laan, Bukidnon, Dibabawon, Higaonon, Mamanwa , Mandaya , Manguwangan, Manobo , Mansaka , Subanon, Tagakaolo, Tasaday , Tboli , Teduray and Ubo. Lumad datus have protected their homeland forests from illegal loggers in previous decades; some joined
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4368-662: The Majapahit province of Poni ( Brunei ) before a fleet from the capital drove them out. In 1405, the Yongle Emperor appointed a Chinese governor of Luzon, Ko Ch'a-lao, during Zheng He 's voyages . China also had vassals among the leaders in the archipelago. China attained ascendancy in trade with the area in Yongle's reign. Afterwards, some parts of Luzon were Islamized when the former Majapahit province of Poni broke free, converted to Islam , and imported Sharif Ali ,
4472-505: The Philippine archipelago cultures of their own time, such as Botuan and Luzon. The Spanish expeditions of Ferdinand Magellan in the 1520s and Miguel López de Legazpi in the 1570s initially referred to paramount datus (lakans, rajahs, sultans, etc.) as kings, though the Spanish stopped using this term when those under the command of Martin de Goiti first travelled to the polities in Bulacan and Pampanga in late 1571 and realized that
4576-535: The Philippines from cultures which were under a sovereign monarch, these travelers often initially referred to the rulers of Philippine polities as monarchs, implying recognition of their powers as sovereigns . Some early examples were the Song dynasty traders who came to the Philippines and referred to the ruler of Ma-i as a huang , meaning king – an appellation later adopted by the Ming dynasty courts when dealing with
4680-631: The Portuguese conquest in 1511. Antonio Pigafetta notes that one of them was in command of the Brunei fleet in 1521. However, the Luções did not only fight on the side of the Muslims. Pinto says they were also apparently among the natives of the Philippines who fought the Muslims in 1538. On Mainland Southeast Asia , Lusung/Luções warriors aided the Burmese king in his invasion of Siam in 1547 AD. At
4784-507: The Sierra Madre Oriental, Angat, Zambales , Central Cordillera of Luzon , Bicol, and Catanduanes Island blocks. Using seismic and geodetic data, Luzon was modeled by Galgana et al. (2007) as a series of six micro blocks or micro plates (separated by subduction zones and intra-arc faults), all translating and rotating in different directions, with maximum velocities ~100 mm/yr NW with respect to Sundaland/Eurasia. As of
4888-662: The Sierra Madre mountain ranges, separating the Cagayan Valley from the Central Luzon plains. The central section of Luzon is characterized by a flat terrain, known as the Central Luzon plain , the largest in the island in terms of land area. The plain, approximately 11,000 square kilometres (4,200 sq mi) in size, is the country's largest producer of rice, and is irrigated by two major rivers;
4992-494: The Spanish, then settled in Cainta, Rizal . Newcomers who were impoverished Mexicans and peninsulares were accused of undermining the submission of the natives. In 1774, authorities from Bulacan, Tondo, Laguna Bay, and other areas surrounding Manila reported with consternation that discharged soldiers and deserters (from Mexico, Spain and Peru) were providing Indios military training for the weapons that had been disseminated all over
5096-625: The United States, Hong Kong, Singapore and Saudi Arabia . Eventually, the People Power Revolution led by Corazon Aquino and Cardinal Jaime Sin , removed Marcos and his cronies from power and they fled to Hawaii where the US granted them asylum. The following administrations are subsequently managing the political and economic recovery of the Philippines with the particular aim of spreading development outside of Luzon and into
5200-415: The Visayas and Mindanao, there was no separate name for the most senior ruler, so the paramount ruler was called a datu , although one datu was identifiable as the most senior. The noble or aristocratic nature of datus and their relatives is asserted in folk origin myths, was widely acknowledged by foreigners who visited the Philippine archipelago, and is upheld by modern scholarship. Succession to
5304-554: The Visayas. Proof of Filipino royalty and nobility ( dugóng bugháw ) could only be demonstrated by clear blood descent from ancient native royal blood, and in some cases adoption into a royal family. Datu is the title for chiefs, sovereign princes, and monarchs throughout the Philippine archipelago. The title is still used today, especially in Mindanao , Sulu and Palawan , but it was used more extensively in early Philippine history, particularly in central and southern Luzon ,
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#17327730768365408-400: The ancestors of datus and other nobles as being created by an almighty deity, just like other human beings, but the behavior of these creations determined the social position of their descendants. This conception of social organization continues to shape Philippine society today despite the introduction of western, externally democratic structures. The "authority, power, and influence" of
5512-404: The aristocratic class within early Philippine societies. De Morga, for example, referred to them as principalities. Once the Spanish colonial government had been established, the Spanish continued to recognize the descendants of pre-colonial datus as nobles, assigning them positions such as Cabeza de Barangay. Spanish monarchs recognized their noble nature and origin. When travelers came to
5616-481: The central power diminished their significance. However, in distant territories, where the central authority had less control and where order could be maintained without using coercive measures, hereditary succession was still enforced until Spain lost the archipelago to the Americans. These distant territories remained patriarchal societies, where people retained great respect for the principalía . The principalía
5720-512: The concept of the principalía : The Spanish term seňor (lord) is equated with all these terms, which are distinguished from the nouveau riche imitators scornfully called maygintao (man with gold or hidalgo by gold, and not by lineage). Upon the Christianization of most parts of the Philippine archipelago, the datus retained their right to govern their territory under the Spanish Empire . King Philip II of Spain , signed
5824-574: The country's total population and is the 4th most populous island in the world. It is the 15th largest island in the world by land area . Luzon may also refer to one of the three primary island groups in the country . In this usage, it includes the Luzon Mainland , the Batanes and Babuyan groups of islands to the north, Polillo Islands to the east, and the outlying islands of Catanduanes , Marinduque and Mindoro , among others, to
5928-431: The duties of both judges and notaries with defined powers. They also had the rights and powers to elect assistants and several lieutenants and alguaciles , proportionate in number to the inhabitants of the town. By the end of the 16th century, any claim to Filipino royalty , nobility , or hidalguía had disappeared into a homogenized, hispanized and Christianized nobility through the principalía . This remnant of
6032-621: The early 1300s the Chinese annals, Nanhai zhi , reported that Hindu Brunei invaded or administered Sarawak and Sabah as well as the Philippine kingdoms of Butuan , Sulu , and in Luzon: Ma-i (Mindoro) and Malilu 麻裏蘆 (present-day Manila ); Shahuchong 沙胡重 (present-day Siocon or Zamboanga ), Yachen 啞陳 Oton (Part of the Madja-as Kedatuan), and 文杜陵 Wenduling (present-day Mindanao ), which would regain their independence at
6136-466: The east-dipping north–south trending Manila Trench - Negros Trench- Cotabato Trench . The Philippine Sea Plate subducts under eastern Luzon along the East Luzon Trench and the Philippine Trench, while the South China Sea basin, part of the Eurasian Plate , subducts under western Luzon along the Manila Trench. The North-Southeastern trending braided left-lateral strike-slip Philippine Fault System traverses Luzon, from Quezon province and Bicol to
6240-412: The following number of tributes, with each tribute representing a family of 6-7, and he reported 90,243 native Filipino tributes; 10,512 Chinese (Sangley) and mixed Chinese Filipino mestizo tributes; and 10,517 mixed Spanish Filipino mestizo tributes. Pure Spaniards are not counted as they are exempt from tribute. Out of these, Fr. Joaqin Martinez de Zuñiga estimated a total population count exceeding half
6344-417: The houses of the Spanish provincial governors, and in any other places. They were not left to remain standing. Spanish parish priests were forbidden from treating Filipino nobles with less consideration. The gobernadorcillos exercised the command of the towns, and were port captains in coastal towns. Their office corresponded to the alcaldes ' and municipal judges' of the Iberian Peninsula, and performed
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#17327730768366448-441: The island, which encompasses most of the Ilocos Region , is characterized by a flat terrain extending east from the coastline toward the Cordillera Central mountains . The Cordillera mountain range, which feature the island's north-central section, is covered in a mixture of tropical pine forests and montane rainforests , and is the site of the island's highest mountain, Mount Pulag , rising at 2,922 metres. The range provides
6552-408: The islands down by region and smaller island group for easier reference. Below is a list of the largest Philippine islands. There are discrepancies in the area estimates across various sources, which would change the rankings of some smaller islands. The areas given may not be definitive. The 50 largest islands have a combined area of around 321,000 square kilometers (124,000 sq mi) and
6656-514: The landscape, which include Mount Isarog and Mount Iriga in Camarines Sur , and Mount Bulusan in Sorsogon . The peninsula 's coastline features several smaller peninsulas, gulfs and bays , which include Lamon Bay , San Miguel Bay , Lagonoy Gulf , Ragay Gulf , and Sorsogon Bay . Several outlying islands near mainland Luzon are considered part of the Luzon island group . The largest include Palawan , Mindoro , Masbate , Catanduanes , Marinduque , Romblon and Polillo . The island
6760-405: The largest lake in the country. The 949-square-kilometre (366 sq mi) lake is drained into Manila Bay by the Pasig River , one of the most important rivers in the country due to its historical significance and because it runs through the center of Metro Manila . Located 20 kilometres (12 mi) southwest of Laguna de Bay is Taal Lake , a crater lake containing the Taal Volcano ,
6864-476: The late 1600s, the Spanish Jesuit priest Francisco Ignatio Alcina classified them as the third rank of nobility (nobleza). To maintain the purity of bloodline, datus marry only among their kind, often seeking high ranking brides in other Barangays, abducting them, or contracting brideprices in gold, slaves and jewelry. Meanwhile, datus kept their daughters secluded for protection and prestige. These well-guarded and protected highborn women were called binokot ,
6968-400: The main port for Luzon and many Mexican soldiers and sailors were stationed in the naval garrisons there. When the Spanish evacuated from Ternate , Indonesia; they settled the Papuan refugees in Ternate, Cavite which was named after their evacuated homeland. After the short British Occupation of Manila , the Indian Sepoy soldiers that mutinied against their British commanders and joined
7072-459: The male line and by succession of father and son and their descendants. If these were lacking, then their brothers and collateral relatives succeeded... When any of these chiefs was more courageous than others in war and upon other occasions, such a one enjoyed more followers and men; and the others were under his leadership, even if they were chiefs. These latter retained to themselves the lordship and particular government of their own following, which
7176-413: The manner of our kingdoms and provinces; but in every island, and in each province of it, many chiefs were recognized by the natives themselves. Some were more powerful than others, and each one had his followers and subjects, by districts and families; and these obeyed and respected the chief. Some chiefs had friendship and communication with others, and at times wars and quarrels... When any of these chiefs
7280-437: The martyrdoms of Priests, Gomburza and the subsequent execution of the reformist and hero, Jose Rizal . Reeling against this, the Philippine Revolution against Spain erupted in Cavite and spread all throughout Luzon and the Philippines. Consequently, the First Philippine Republic was established in Malolos, Bulacan . In the meantime, Spain sold the Philippines to the United States and the First Philippine Republic resisted
7384-407: The members of their barangays. The Filipino worldview has had a conception of the self or individual being deeply and holistically connected to a larger community, expressed in the language of Filipino psychology as kapwa . This Indigenous conception of self strongly defined the roles and obligations played by individuals within their society. This differentiation of roles and obligations
7488-481: The more isolated provinces of the Visayas and Mindanao . During the administration of Ferdinand Marcos' son, Bongbong Marcos , Luzon became a destination of American and Japanese investments, it being the location of the Luzon Economic Corridor. Luzon island alone has an area of 109,964.9 square kilometres (42,457.7 sq mi), making it the world's 15th largest island . It is bordered on
7592-533: The most senior or most respected among them to serve as what scholars referred to as a paramount leader or paramount datu . The titles used by such paramount datu varied, but some of the most prominent examples were: sultan in the most Islamized areas of Mindanao; lakan among the Tagalog people; thimuay among the Subanen people ; rajah in polities which traded extensively with Indonesia and Malaysia; or simply datu in some areas of Mindanao and
7696-641: The northwestern part of the island. This fault system takes up part of the motion due to the subducting plates and produces large earthquakes. Southwest of Luzon is a collision zone where the Palawan micro-block collides with SW Luzon, producing a highly seismic zone near Mindoro island. Southwest Luzon is characterized by a highly volcanic zone, called the Macolod Corridor, a region of crustal thinning and spreading. Using geologic and structural data, seven principal blocks were identified in Luzon in 1989:
7800-524: The original Luzon was referred to as "Xiao (Small) Lusong" to refer to not only Luzon but the whole Philippines. Luzon also became a focal point for global migration. The walled city of Intramuros was initially founded by 1200 Spanish families. The nearby district of Binondo became the center of business and transformed into the world's oldest Chinatown . There was also a smaller district reserved for Japanese migrants in Dilao . Cavite City also served as
7904-588: The paramount ruler was called a sultan ; in Tagalog communities, the equivalent title was lakan ; in communities which historically had strong political or trade connections with Indianized polities in Indonesia and Malaysia, the paramount ruler was called a rajah ; among the Subanon people of the Zamboanga Peninsula , the most senior thimuay is referred to as the thimuay labi , or sulotan in more Islamized Subanon communities. In some other portions of
8008-828: The peoples of Central Luzon . Before 1000 CE, the Tagalog , Kapampangan , and Pangasinan peoples of south and central Luzon had established several major coastal polities , notably Maynila , Tondo and Namayan . The oldest known Philippine document, written in 900, is the Laguna Copperplate Inscription , which names places in and around Manila Bay and also mentions Medan , a place in Indonesia. These coastal Philippine kingdoms were thalassocracies , based on trade with neighboring Asian political entities, and structured by leases between village rulers ( Datu ) and landlords ( Lakan ) or Rajahs , by whom tributes were extracted and taxes were levied. There
8112-583: The position of datu was often (although not always) hereditary, and datus received their mandate to lead from their membership in an aristocratic class . Records of Chinese traders and Spanish colonizers describe datus or paramount datus as sovereign princes and principals . Travellers who came to the Philippine archipelago from kingdoms or empires such as Song and Ming dynasty China, or 16th-century Spain, even initially referred to datus or paramount datus as "kings", even though they later discovered that datus did not exercise absolute sovereignty over
8216-435: The position. In large settlements where several datus and their barangays lived in close proximity, paramount datus were chosen by datus from amongst themselves more democratically, but even this position as most senior among datus was often passed on through heredity. In Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas , Antonio de Morga noted this succession through heredity: These principalities and lordships were inherited in
8320-467: The pre-colonial royal and noble families continued to rule their traditional domain until the end of the Spanish regime. However, there were cases when succession in leadership was also done through the election of new leaders (i.e., cabezas de barangay ), especially in provinces near the central colonial government in Manila where the ancient ruling families lost their prestige and role. Perhaps proximity to
8424-520: The reciprocal relationships (expressed in the Filipino value of utang na loob ) that defined the three-tiered social structure typical among early Philippine peoples. In some cases, such as the more developed sakop or kinadatuan in the Visayas (e.g., Panay, Bohol and Cebu), origin myths and other folk narratives placed the datu and the aristocratic class at the top of a divinely sanctioned and stable social order. These folk narratives portrayed
8528-449: The rich and received Austronesian local nobilities. From these unions, a new cultural group was formed: the mestizo class. Their descendants emerged later to become an influential part of the government and the principalía . Anthropologist Laura Lee Junker's comparative analysis of historical accounts from cultures throughout the archipelago, depicts datus functioning as primary political authorities, war leaders, legal adjudicators,
8632-541: The same time, Lusong warriors fought alongside the Siamese king and faced the same elephant army of the Burmese king in the defence of the Siamese capital at Ayutthaya. Luções military and trade activity reached as far as Sri Lanka in South Asia where Lungshanoid pottery made in Luzon were discovered in burials. Scholars have thus suggested that they could be mercenaries valued by all sides. The Spanish arrival in
8736-500: The smallest in the country. The environs of the lake form the upland Tagaytay Ridge , which was once part of a massive prehistoric volcano that covered the southern portion of the province of Cavite and the whole of Batangas province. South of Laguna Lake are two solitary mountains, Mount Makiling in Laguna and Batangas provinces, and Mount Banahaw , the highest in the region of Calabarzon . The southeastern portion of Luzon
8840-574: The south, forming the Bataan Peninsula . The peninsula encloses Manila Bay , a natural harbor considered to be one of the best natural ports in East Asia, due to its size and strategic geographical location. The Sierra Madre mountain range continues to stretch across the western section of Central Luzon, snaking southwards into the Bicol Peninsula . Southern Luzon is dominated by Laguna de Bay ( Old Spanish , " Lake of Bay town "),
8944-414: The south. The islands of Masbate , Palawan and Romblon are also included, although these three are sometimes grouped with another of the island groups, the Visayas . The name Luzon is thought to derive from ᜎᜓᜐᜓᜅ᜔ lusong , a Tagalog word referring to a particular kind of large wooden mortar used in dehusking rice. A 2008 research paper by Eulito Bautista and Evelyn Javier provides an image of
9048-471: The term datu , lakan , or apo refers to the chief, but the noble class (to which the datu belonged or could come from) was the maginoo class. One could be born as part of the maginoo , but could also become a datu through personal achievement. The datu class (first estate) of the four echelons of Filipino society at the time of contact with the Europeans (as described by Juan de Plasencia ),
9152-576: The term is an abbreviation of Sanskrit adiraja . Fernão Mendes Pinto noted that a number of Luções in the Islamic fleets went to battle with the Portuguese in the Philippines during the 16th century. The Sultan of Aceh gave one of them (Sapetu Diraja) the task of holding Aru (northeast Sumatra) in 1540. Pinto also says one was named leader of the Malays remaining in the Moluccas Islands after
9256-575: The territory during the British war. There was also continuous immigration of Tamils and Bengalis into the rural areas of Luzon: Spanish administrators, native nobles, and Chinese businessmen imported them as slave labor during this period. In the 1600s, Fr. Joaqin Martinez de Zuñiga, conducted a census of the Archdiocese of Manila which held most of Luzon under its spiritual care, and it had
9360-511: The title of rajah or sultan . The oldest historical records mentioning datus are the 7th-century Srivijayan inscriptions such as Telaga Batu to describe lesser kings or vassalized kings. The word datu is a cognate of the Malay terms dato or datuk and to the Fijian title of ratu . In pre-Islamic times, the political leadership office was vested in a rajahship in Manila and
9464-524: The upland headwaters of the Agno River , which stretches from the slopes of Mount Data , and meanders along the southern Cordillera mountains before reaching the plains of Pangasinan . The northeastern section of Luzon is generally mountainous, with the Sierra Madre , the longest mountain range in the country, abruptly rising a few miles from the coastline. Located in between the Sierra Madre and
9568-410: The way they used to dress and adorn themselves with gold and silk. The measure of the prince's possession of gold and slaves was proportionate to his greatness and nobility. The first Western travellers, who came to the archipelago, observed that there was hardly any "Indian" who did not possess chains and other articles of gold. The Spanish colonizers who came in the 1500s acknowledged the nobility of
9672-661: The west by the South China Sea ( Luzon Sea in Philippine territorial waters), on the east by the Philippine Sea , and on the north by the Luzon Strait containing the Babuyan Channel and Balintang Channel . The mainland is roughly rectangular in shape and has the long Bicol Peninsula protruding to the southeast. Luzon is roughly divided into four sections; Northern Luzon, Central Luzon, Southern Luzon, and Southeastern Luzon. The northwestern portion of
9776-443: The world's many colonies. Subsequently, the Philippines gained independence from the United States. Luzon then arose to become the most developed island in the Philippines. However, the lingering poverty and inequality caused by the long dictatorship of US-supported dictator, Ferdinand Marcos , gave rise to the Philippine diaspora and many people from Luzon have migrated elsewhere and had established large overseas communities; mainly in
9880-537: The world. Their control over territory was a function of their leadership of the barangay and, in some local pre-colonial societies (mostly in Luzon), the concept of ruling was not a "divine right". Furthermore, their position was dependent on the common consent of the members of the barangay's aristocratic Maginoo -class. Although the position of datu could be inherited, the maginoo could choose someone else to follow within their own class if that person proved to be
9984-542: Was "discovered" in 1521. Many people from Luzon were employed within Portuguese Malacca. For example, the spice magnate Regimo de Raja , based in Malacca, was highly influential and was appointed as Temenggong (Sea Lord)—a governor and chief general responsible for overseeing of maritime trade—by the Portuguese. As Temenggong , de Raja was also the head of an armada which traded and protected commerce in
10088-459: Was also a Buddhist polity known as Ma-i or Maidh, described in Chinese and Bruneian records in the 10th century CE, although its location is still unknown and scholars are divided on whether it is in modern-day Bay, Laguna or Bulalacao , Mindoro . According to sources at the time, the trade in large native Ruson-tsukuri (literally Luzon-made , Japanese: 呂 宋 製 ) clay jars used for storing green tea and rice wine with Japan flourished in
10192-466: Was certain. MacArthur had to wait two years for his wish; it was 1944 before a campaign to recapture the Philippines was launched. The island of Leyte was the first objective of the campaign, which was captured by the end of December 1944. This was followed by the attack on Mindoro and later, Luzon. The end of the World War necessitated decolonization due to rising nationalist movements across
10296-442: Was in charge of the defense of the Philippines at the time—was ordered to Australia, and the remaining U.S. forces retreated to the Bataan Peninsula . A few months after this, MacArthur expressed his belief that an attempt to recapture the Philippines was necessary. The U.S. Pacific Commander Admiral Chester Nimitz and Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Ernest King both opposed this idea, arguing that it must wait until victory
10400-408: Was larger and more influential than the pre-conquest Indigenous nobility . It helped create and perpetuate an oligarchic system in the Spanish colony for over three hundred years. The Spanish colonial government's prohibition for foreigners to own land in the Philippines contributed to the evolution of this form of oligarchy. In some Philippine provinces, many Spaniards and foreign merchants married
10504-461: Was more courageous than others in war and upon other occasions, such a one enjoyed more followers and men; and the others were under his leadership, even if they were chiefs. These latter retained to themselves the lordship and particular government of their own following, which is called barangay among them. They had datos and other special leaders [mandadores] who attended to the interests of the barangay. The term paramount datu or paramount ruler
10608-603: Was populated by Islamized peoples ( Moros to the Spaniards) and by non-Muslim Indigenous groups now known as Lumad peoples . In the traditional structure of Moro societies, the sultans were the highest authority followed by the datus or rajah , with their rule being sanctioned by the Quran , though both titles predate the coming of Islam. These titles were assimilated into the new structure under Islam. Datus were supported by their tribes, and in return for tribute and labor,
10712-512: Was referred to by the Spaniards as the principalía . Loarca, and the canon lawyer Antonio de Morga , who classified the society into three estates (ruler, ruled, slave), also affirmed the usage of this term and also spoke about the preeminence of the principales . All members of the datu class were principales , whether they ruled or not. San Buenaventura's 1613 Dictionary of the Tagalog Language defines three terms that clarify
10816-471: Was the class that constituted a birthright aristocracy with claims to respect, obedience, and support from those of subordinate status. With the recognition of the Spanish monarchs came the privilege of being addressed as Don or Doña . – a mark of esteem and distinction in Europe reserved for a person of noble or royal status during the colonial period. Other honors and high regard were also accorded to
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