The Visayas ( ), or the Visayan Islands (
Visayan
Visayans ( Visayan: ''mga Bisaya''; ) or Visayan people are a Philippine ethnolinguistic group or metaethnicity native to the Visayas, the southernmost islands of Luzon and a significant portion of Mindanao. When taken as a single ethnic group ...
: ''Kabisay-an'', ; tl, Kabisayaan ), are one of the three
principal geographical divisions of the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
, along with
Luzon and
Mindanao. Located in the central part of the
archipelago
An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands.
Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Arc ...
, it consists of several islands, primarily surrounding the
Visayan Sea, although the Visayas are also considered the northeast extremity of the entire
Sulu Sea. Its inhabitants are predominantly the
Visayan peoples.
The major islands of the Visayas are
Panay,
Negros,
Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...
,
Bohol
Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bohol; tl, Lalawigan ng Bohol), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. It ...
,
Leyte and
Samar. The region may also include the provinces of
Palawan
Palawan (), officially the Province of Palawan ( cyo, Probinsya i'ang Palawan; tl, Lalawigan ng Palawan), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in t ...
,
Romblon
Romblon ( , ), officially the Province of Romblon, is an archipelagic province of the Philippines located in the Mimaropa region. Its main islands include Tablas, the largest, which covers nine municipalities; Sibuyan with its three towns; as w ...
, and
Masbate
Masbate, officially the Province of Masbate ( Masbateño: ''Probinsya san Masbate''; tl, Lalawigan ng Masbate), is an island province in the Philippines located near the midsection of the nation's archipelago. Its provincial capital is Masbate C ...
whose populations identify as Visayan and whose languages are more closely related to other Visayan languages than to the major languages of Luzon.
There are three administrative
regions
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...
in the Visayas:
Western Visayas (pop. 7.9 million),
Central Visayas
Central Visayas ( ceb, Tunga-tungang Kabisay-an; tl, Gitnang Kabisayaan) is an administrative region in the Philippines, numerically designated as Region VII. It consists of four provinces: (Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor) and thr ...
(8 million) and
Eastern Visayas (4.5 million). The
Negros Island Region
The Negros Island Region ( hil, Rehiyon sang Pulo sang Negros; ceb, Rehiyon sa Pulo sa Negros), also abbreviated and officially designated as NIR (unofficially ''Region XVIII''), was a short-lived administrative region in the Philippines which ...
existed from 2015 to 2017, separating
Negros Occidental
Negros Occidental ( hil, Nakatungdang Negros; tl, Kanlurang Negros), officially the Province of Negros Occidental, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region. ...
and its capital
Bacolod from Western Visayas and
Negros Oriental
Negros Oriental ( ceb, Sidlakang Negros; tl, Silangang Negros), officially the Province of Negros Oriental, is a province in the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region. Its capital is the city of Dumaguete. It occupies the southeaste ...
from Central Visayas. The region has been dissolved since.
Etymology
The exact meaning of the name of the Visayas is unknown however the word itself derives from Sanskrit. The word "Bisaya" was first documented in Spanish sources in reference only to the non-
Ati inhabitants of the island of
Panay and possibly parts of
Negros. The peoples they first encountered in Western Visayas were described by the Spanish as being "white people" and were not characterized as being tattooed, although inhabitants of Panay living in the mountainous regions did practice tattooing. In contrast, the Spaniards called the inhabitants of the other Visayan islands of
Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...
,
Bohol
Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bohol; tl, Lalawigan ng Bohol), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. It ...
, and
Leyte as the ''
Pintados'' ("the painted ones") in reference to their practice of tattooing their entire bodies.
Speculations
From the 1950s to 1960s there were spurious claims by various authors that "Bisaya" is derived from "
Sri Vijaya", arguing that the Visayans were either settlers from
Sri Vijaya or were subjects of it. This claim is largely based only on the resemblance of the word ''Bisaya'' to ''Vijaya''.
But as the linguist Eugene Verstraelen pointed out, ''Vijaya'' would evolve into ''Bidaya'' or ''Biraya'', not ''Bisaya'', based on how other
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
-derived
loanword
A loanword (also loan word or loan-word) is a word at least partly assimilated from one language (the donor language) into another language. This is in contrast to cognates, which are words in two or more languages that are similar because t ...
s become integrated into Philippine languages.
The name has also been hypothesized to be related to the
Bisaya
Visayans ( Visayan: ''mga Bisaya''; ) or Visayan people are a Philippine ethnolinguistic group or metaethnicity native to the Visayas, the southernmost islands of Luzon and a significant portion of Mindanao. When taken as a single ethnic group, ...
ethnic group of
Borneo, the latter incidentally recounted in the Maragtas epic as the alleged origins of the ancestral settlers in Panay. However historical, archeological, and linguistic evidence for this are still paltry. The languages of the Bisaya of Borneo and of the Bisaya of the Philippines do not show any special correlation, apart from the fact that they all belong to the same
Austronesian family. Similarly there are claims that it was the name of a folk hero (allegedly "Sri Visaya") or that it originated from the exclamation "Bisai-yah!" ("How beautiful!") by the Sultan of Brunei who was visiting Visayas for the first time. All these claims have been challenged and remain as mere speculations and
folk etymologies.
Geography
Visayas region is located in central
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
, with a total land area of . It is consist of several islands, including
Samar,
Negros,
Panay,
Leyte,
Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...
,
Bohol
Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bohol; tl, Lalawigan ng Bohol), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. It ...
,
Guimaras
Guimaras , officially the Province of Guimaras ( hil, Kapuoran sang Guimaras; tl, Lalawigan ng Guimaras), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Jordan while its largest local government ...
,
Biliran
Biliran, officially the Province of Biliran ( Waray-Waray: ''Probinsya han Biliran''; ceb, Lalawigan sa Biliran; tl, Lalawigan ng Biliran), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region (Region VIII). Biliran is ...
,
Siquijor,
Panaon and
Bantayan.
List of islands by population (2015 census)
List of Islands
*
Panay – 4,477,247
*
Negros – 4,414,131
*
Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...
– 4,164,535
*
Leyte – 2,388,518
*
Samar – 1,751,267
*
Bohol
Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bohol; tl, Lalawigan ng Bohol), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. It ...
– 1,211,000
*
Mactan
Mactan is a densely populated island located a few kilometers (~1 mile) east of Cebu Island in the Philippines. The island is part of Cebu province and it is divided into the city of Lapu-Lapu and the municipality of Cordova. The island is sep ...
– 467,824
*
Guimaras
Guimaras , officially the Province of Guimaras ( hil, Kapuoran sang Guimaras; tl, Lalawigan ng Guimaras), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Jordan while its largest local government ...
– 174,613
*
Biliran
Biliran, officially the Province of Biliran ( Waray-Waray: ''Probinsya han Biliran''; ceb, Lalawigan sa Biliran; tl, Lalawigan ng Biliran), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region (Region VIII). Biliran is ...
– 171,612
*
Bantayan – 136,960
*
Siquijor – 95,984
*
Panglao – 79,216
*
Panaon – 57,703
*
Pacijan
San Francisco, officially the Municipality of San Francisco ( ceb, Lungsod sa San Francisco; tgl, Bayan ng San Francisco), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Cebu, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 59 ...
– 55,180
*
Daram – 39,032
*
Poro
The Poro, or Purrah or Purroh, is a men's secret society in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea, and the Ivory Coast, introduced by the Mane people. It is sometimes referred to as a hunting society and only males are admitted to its ranks. The femal ...
– 36,508
*
Boracay – 32,267
*
Ponson – 11,308
*
Maripipi
Maripipi, officially the Municipality of Maripipi ( war, Bungto san Maripipi; ceb, Lungsod sa Maripipi; tl, Bayan ng Maripipi), is a 5th class municipality in the province of Biliran, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...
– 7,159
*
Limasawa
Limasawa, officially the Municipality of Limasawa ( Cebuano: ''Lungsod sa Limasawa''; Filipino: ''Bayan ng Limasawa''), is an island municipality in the province of Southern Leyte, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a popula ...
– 6,061
*
Homonhon
Homonhon Island is an island in the province of Eastern Samar, Philippines, on the east side of Leyte Gulf. The long island is part of the municipality of Guiuan, encompassing eight barangays: Bitaugan, Cagusu-an, Canawayon, Casuguran, Culasi, ...
– 4,211
*
Parasan – 3,847
*
Batbatan – 2,851
*
Mararison – 750
*
Maniguin – 719
History
After the defeat of the
Magellan
Ferdinand Magellan ( or ; pt, Fernão de Magalhães, ; es, link=no, Fernando de Magallanes, ; 4 February 1480 – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer. He is best known for having planned and led the 1519 Spanish expedition to the East ...
expedition at the
Battle of Mactan
The Battle of Mactan ( ceb, Gubot sa Mactan; fil, Labanan sa Mactan; es, Batalla de Mactán) was a fierce clash fought in the archipelago of the Philippines on April 27, 1521. The warriors of Lapulapu, one of the Datus of Mactan, overpowered ...
by
Lapu-Lapu
Lapulapu or Lapu-Lapu (ᜎᜉ̰-ᜎᜉ̰), whose name was first recorded as Çilapulapu, was a datu (chief) of Mactan in the Visayas in the Philippines. He is best known for the Battle of Mactan that happened at dawn on April 27, 1521, wher ...
, King
Philip II of Spain sent
Miguel López de Legazpi in 1543 and 1565 to colonize the islands for Spain. Subsequently, the Visayas region and many kingdoms began converting to Christianity and adopting western culture. By the 18th and 19th centuries, the effects of colonization on various ethnic groups turned sour and revolutions such as those of
Francisco Dagohoy began to emerge.
Various personalities who fought against the Spanish colonial government arose within the archipelago. Among the notable ones are
Graciano Lopez Jaena and
Martin Delgado from
Iloilo
Iloilo (), officially the Province of Iloilo ( hil, Kapuoran sang Iloilo; krj, Kapuoran kang Iloilo; tl, Lalawigan ng Iloilo), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is the City of Iloilo, the ...
,
Aniceto Lacson
Aniceto Lacson y Ledesma (April 17, 1857 – February 3, 1931) was the first and only president of the Negros Republic from 1898 to 1901. He is notable for leading the Negros Revolution along with Juan Araneta, and was a sugar baron.Foreman, ...
,
León Kilat and Diego de la Viña from
Negros, Venancio Jakosalem Fernandez from
Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...
, and two personalities from
Bohol
Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bohol; tl, Lalawigan ng Bohol), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. It ...
by the name of
Tamblot, who led the
Tamblot Uprising in 1621 to 1622 and
Francisco Dagohoy, the leader of the Bohol Rebellion that lasted from 1744 to 1829. Negros briefly stood as an independent nation in the Visayas in the form of the Cantonal
Republic of Negros
The Republic of Negros ( hil, Republika sang Negros; ceb, Republika sa Negros; es, República de Negros) was a short-lived revolutionary entity which had existed on the island of Negros first as a canton of the First Philippine Republic and l ...
, before it was absorbed back to the Philippines because of the American takeover of the archipelago.
The short-lived
Federal State of the Visayas was established as a revolutionary state during the Philippine Revolution. It designated
Iloilo City as the Visayas capital and was composed of three governments: the Provisional Government of the District of Visayas (
Panay), the
Cantonal Government of Negros, the Cantonal Government of Bohol, and the island of Cebu, which was under revolutionary control.
On May 23, 2005,
Palawan
Palawan (), officially the Province of Palawan ( cyo, Probinsya i'ang Palawan; tl, Lalawigan ng Palawan), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in t ...
(including its highly urbanized capital city of
Puerto Princesa) was transferred from Mimaropa (Region IV-B) to Western Visayas (Region VI) under ''Executive Order No. 429'', signed by
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who was the
president at that year.
However, Palaweños criticized the move, citing a lack of consultation, with most residents in Puerto Princesa and all Palawan municipalities but one, preferring to stay in Mimaropa (Region IV-B). Consequently, ''Administrative Order No. 129'' was issued on August 19, 2005, that the implementation of ''E.O. 429'' be held in abeyance, pending approval by the president of its Implementation Plan.
The Philippine
Commission on Elections
An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...
reported the
2010 Philippine general election
Elections for all positions in the Philippines above the barangay (except for Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao regional level) were held on May 10, 2010. The elected president is Benigno Aquino III, the 15th President of the Philippines, ...
results for Palawan as a part of the Region IV-B results. , the abeyance was still in effect, with Palawan and its capital city remaining under
Mimaropa (Region IV-B).
On May 29, 2015, the twin provinces of
Negros Occidental
Negros Occidental ( hil, Nakatungdang Negros; tl, Kanlurang Negros), officially the Province of Negros Occidental, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region. ...
(including its highly urbanized capital city of
Bacolod) and
Negros Oriental
Negros Oriental ( ceb, Sidlakang Negros; tl, Silangang Negros), officially the Province of Negros Oriental, is a province in the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region. Its capital is the city of Dumaguete. It occupies the southeaste ...
were joined to form the
Negros Island Region
The Negros Island Region ( hil, Rehiyon sang Pulo sang Negros; ceb, Rehiyon sa Pulo sa Negros), also abbreviated and officially designated as NIR (unofficially ''Region XVIII''), was a short-lived administrative region in the Philippines which ...
under ''Executive Order No. 183'', signed by
President Benigno Aquino III
Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III (; February 8, 1960 – June 24, 2021), also known as Noynoy Aquino and colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the 15th president of the Philippines from 2010 to 2016. The son of ...
. It separated both, the former province and its capital city from
Western Visayas and the latter province from
Central Visayas
Central Visayas ( ceb, Tunga-tungang Kabisay-an; tl, Gitnang Kabisayaan) is an administrative region in the Philippines, numerically designated as Region VII. It consists of four provinces: (Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor) and thr ...
.
On August 9, 2017, President Rodrigo Duterte signed ''Executive Order No. 38'', revoking the ''Executive Order No. 183'' signed by (former) President Benigno Aquino III on May 29, 2015, due to the reason of the lack of funds to fully establish the NIR according to
Benjamin Diokno
Benjamin Estoista Diokno (born March 31, 1948) is a Filipino economist currently serving as the 32nd Secretary of Finance under the administration of President Ferdinand "Bong Bong" Marcos Jr. since June 30, 2022. He previously served as Se ...
, the
Secretary of Budget and Management
The secretary of budget and management ( Filipino: ''Kalihim ng Pagbabadyet at Pamamahala'') is the head of the Department of Budget and Management
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM; fil, Kagawaran ng Badyet at Pamamahala) is an ...
.
Mythical allusions and hypotheses
Historical documents written in 1907 by Visayan historian Pedro Alcántara Monteclaro in his book ''
Maragtas'' tell the story of the ten leaders (
Datus) who escaped from the tyranny of Rajah Makatunaw from Borneo and came to the islands of Panay. The chiefs and followers were said to be the ancestors (from the collapsing empires of Srivijaya and Majapahit) of the
Visayan people. The documents were accepted by Filipino historians and found their way into the history of the Philippines. As a result, the arrival of Bornean tribal groups in the Visayas is celebrated in the festivals of the
Dinagyang
The Dinagyang Festival is a religious and cultural festival in Iloilo City, Philippines, held annually on the 4th Sunday of January, or right after the Sinulog in Cebu and the Ati-Atihan Festival in Kalibo, Aklan. It is one of the biggest festi ...
in
Iloilo City,
Ati-Atihan in
Kalibo
Kalibo, officially the Municipality of Kalibo ( Aklanon: ''Banwa it Kalibo''; Hiligaynon: ''Banwa sang Kalibo''; tgl, Bayan ng Kalibo), is a 1st class municipality and capital of the Province of Aklan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, ...
,
Aklan
Aklan, officially the Province of Aklan ( Akeanon: ''Probinsya it Akean'' k'ɣan hil, Kapuoran sang Aklan; tl, Lalawigan ng Aklan), is a province in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. Its capital is Kalibo. The province is situa ...
, and
Binirayan in
San Jose de Buenavista,
Antique. Foreign historians such as
William Henry Scott maintains that the book contains a Visayan folk tradition.
A contemporary theory based on a study of
genetic marker A genetic marker is a gene or DNA sequence with a known location on a chromosome that can be used to identify individuals or species. It can be described as a variation (which may arise due to mutation or alteration in the genomic loci) that can be ...
s in present-day populations is that
Austronesian peoples from Taiwan populated the larger island of Luzon and headed south to the Visayas and Mindanao, and then to Indonesia and Malaysia, then to
Pacific Islands and finally to the island of Madagascar, at the west of the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...
. The study, though, may not explain inter-island migrations, which are also possible, such as Filipinos migrating to any other Philippine provinces.
Administrative divisions
Administratively, the Visayas is divided into 3
regions
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...
, namely
Western Visayas,
Central Visayas
Central Visayas ( ceb, Tunga-tungang Kabisay-an; tl, Gitnang Kabisayaan) is an administrative region in the Philippines, numerically designated as Region VII. It consists of four provinces: (Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor) and thr ...
and
Eastern Visayas. Each region is headed by a Regional Director who is elected from a pool of governors from the different provinces in each region.
The Visayas is composed of 16
provinces
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
, each headed by a Governor. A governor is elected by popular vote and can serve a maximum of three terms consisting of three years each.
Western Visayas (Region VI)
Western Visayas consists of the islands of
Panay and Guimaras and the western half of
Negros. The regional center is
Iloilo City. Its provinces are:
*
Aklan
Aklan, officially the Province of Aklan ( Akeanon: ''Probinsya it Akean'' k'ɣan hil, Kapuoran sang Aklan; tl, Lalawigan ng Aklan), is a province in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. Its capital is Kalibo. The province is situa ...
*
Antique
*
Capiz
Capiz, officially the Province of Capiz (Capiznon/ Hiligaynon: ''Kapuoran sang Capiz''; tl, Lalawigan ng Capiz), is a province in the Philippines located in the central section of Western Visayas region. Its capital is the city of Roxas. It ...
*
Guimaras
Guimaras , officially the Province of Guimaras ( hil, Kapuoran sang Guimaras; tl, Lalawigan ng Guimaras), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Jordan while its largest local government ...
*
Iloilo
Iloilo (), officially the Province of Iloilo ( hil, Kapuoran sang Iloilo; krj, Kapuoran kang Iloilo; tl, Lalawigan ng Iloilo), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is the City of Iloilo, the ...
*
Negros Occidental
Negros Occidental ( hil, Nakatungdang Negros; tl, Kanlurang Negros), officially the Province of Negros Occidental, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region. ...
Central Visayas (Region VII)
Central Visayas includes the islands of
Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...
, Siquijor and Bohol and the eastern half of
Negros. The regional center is
Cebu City. Its provinces are:
*
Bohol
Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Bohol; tl, Lalawigan ng Bohol), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. It ...
*
Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...
*
Negros Oriental
Negros Oriental ( ceb, Sidlakang Negros; tl, Silangang Negros), officially the Province of Negros Oriental, is a province in the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region. Its capital is the city of Dumaguete. It occupies the southeaste ...
*
Siquijor
Eastern Visayas (Region VIII)
Eastern Visayas consists of the islands of
Leyte,
Samar and Biliran. The regional center is
Tacloban City. Its provinces are:
*
Biliran
Biliran, officially the Province of Biliran ( Waray-Waray: ''Probinsya han Biliran''; ceb, Lalawigan sa Biliran; tl, Lalawigan ng Biliran), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region (Region VIII). Biliran is ...
*
Leyte
*
Southern Leyte
*
Eastern Samar
*
Northern Samar
*
Samar
Scholars have argued that the region of
Mimaropa and the province of
Masbate
Masbate, officially the Province of Masbate ( Masbateño: ''Probinsya san Masbate''; tl, Lalawigan ng Masbate), is an island province in the Philippines located near the midsection of the nation's archipelago. Its provincial capital is Masbate C ...
are all part of the Visayas in line with the non-centric view. This is contested by a few politicians in line with the Manila-centric view.
Demographics
Language
Languages spoken at home are primarily
Visayan languages
The Bisayan languages or Visayan languages are a subgroup of the Austronesian languages spoken in the Philippines. They are most closely related to Tagalog and the Bikol languages, all of which are part of the Central Philippine languages. M ...
despite the usual misconception that these are dialects of a single macrolanguage. Major languages include
Hiligaynon or Ilonggo in much of Western Visayas,
Cebuano in Central Visayas, and
Waray in Eastern Visayas. Other dominant languages are
Aklanon,
Kinaray-a
The Karay-a language ( krj, label=none, Kinaray-a, krj, label=none, Binisayâ nga Kinaray-a or krj, label=none, Hinaraya; en, Harayan) is an Austronesian regional language in the Philippines spoken by the Karay-a people, mainly in Antique, I ...
, and
Capiznon.
Filipino
Filipino may refer to:
* Something from or related to the Philippines
** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines.
** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
, the 'national language' based on
Tagalog, is widely understood but seldom used. English, another official language, is more widely known and is preferred as the second language most especially among urbanized Visayans. For instance, English rather than Tagalog is frequently used in schools, public signs and mass media.
Cebuano vs. Bisaya
Although the word Bisaya has been adapted into the Cebuano terminology for centuries, it should never be equated with the word Cebuano. Even if its origin still has a lot of issues up to the present time, the word Bisaya is commonly used to refer to the inhabitants who originated (born) in any of the islands within the Visayas region. These inhabitants may be currently living in the Visayas region or migrated to other islands in the Philippines including Luzon and Mindanao. It is therefore not accurate to exclusively identify Bisaya with Cebuano because that precludes all the other inhabitants of the region. All Cebuanos can be called Bisaya, but not all Bisaya can be called Cebuanos. Furthermore, Bisaya should not be referred to as a language and should never be equated with the Cebuano language, although majority of the Visayan inhabitants speak the Cebuano language. The most commonly used Cebuano term to have a reference to the Visayan group of languages is "Binisaya". It is an adjective that is used to describe also anything that pertains to being Visayan. For example: "binisaya'ng awit" which is translated into English as, "Visayan song".
See also
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Visayans
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Regions of the Philippines
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Provinces of the Philippines
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Mindanao
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Luzon
Notes
References
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External links
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{{coord, 11, 00, N, 123, 30, E, region:PH_type:isle, display=title
Island groups of the Philippines
Archipelagoes of the Philippines
Archipelagoes of the Pacific Ocean
Archipelagoes of Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia