Puná Island (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''Isla Puná''), is an island just off the coast of southern

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

at approximately 80 degrees west longitude and 3 degrees south latitude. It is located at the head of the

Gulf of Guayaquil The Gulf of Guayaquil is a large body of water of the Pacific Ocean in western South America. Its northern limit is the city of Santa Elena, Ecuador, Santa Elena, in Ecuador, and its southern limit is Cabo Blanco, Peru, Cabo Blanco, in Peru. The ...

, south of the mouth of the Guayas River and the city of

Guayaquil Guayaquil (), officially Santiago de Guayaquil, is the largest city in Ecuador and also the nation's economic capital and main port. The city is the capital (political), capital of Guayas Province and the seat of Guayaquil Canton. The city is ...

, Ecuador's largest city and chief port. It is bordered by Jambelí Channel on the east and Morro Channel on the west, both of which connect the open Gulf of Guayaquil to the narrow mouth of the Guayas River. Uninhabited Santa Clara Island lies some 25 km to the south-west. The total area of Puná Island is . The island is a parish of Guayaquil Canton in

Guayas Province Guayas (, ) is a coastal Provinces of Ecuador, province in Ecuador. It is bordered to the west by Manabí Province, Manabí, Santa Elena Province, Ecuador, Santa Elena, and the Pacific Ocean (as the Gulf of Guayaquil); to the east by Los Ríos ...

History

The

Battle of Puná The Battle of Puná, a peripheral engagement of Francisco Pizarro's conquest of Peru, was fought in April 1531 on the island of Puná (in the Gulf of Guayaquil) in Ecuador. Pizarro's conquistadors, boasting superior weaponry and tactical skill, ...

, fought on the island in April 1531, was an engagement of

Francisco Pizarro Francisco Pizarro, Marquess of the Atabillos (; ; – 26 June 1541) was a Spanish ''conquistador'', best known for his expeditions that led to the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire. Born in Trujillo, Cáceres, Trujillo, Spain, to a poor fam ...

's during the

Spanish conquest of Peru The Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire, also known as the Conquest of Peru, was one of the most important campaigns in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. After years of preliminary exploration and military skirmishes, 168 Spaniards, ...

. It was fought by the Spanish

conquistadores Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...

allied with the natives of Tumbez, against their rivals, the people of Puná.Prescott, W.H., 2011, The History of the Conquest of Peru, Digireads.com Publishing, The missionary first bishop of Cuzco, Vincent de Valverde, was put to death by the islanders on 31 October 1541.Vincent de Valverde
'' Catholic Encyclopaedia'' Hakluyt's 'Voyages' relate that Thomas Cavendish raided the island in 1587 during his circumnavigation having fought against local forces including natives who were by then loyal to the Spanish administration. Puná Island is where rugby union in Ecuador was first played, in the 1930s, by English merchants.UNVEILING RUGBY IN ECUADOR
revealed 5 July 2009

References

Pacific islands of Ecuador Parishes of Ecuador Geography of Guayas Province {{Ecuador-geo-stub