Samar

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Samar (/ˈsɑːmɑːr/ SAH-mar) is the third-largest and seventh-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 1,909,537 as of the 2020 census. It is located in the eastern Visayas, which are in the central Philippines. The island is divided into three provinces: Samar (formerly Western Samar), Northern Samar, and Eastern Samar. These three provinces, along with the provinces on the nearby islands of Leyte and Biliran, are part of the Eastern Visayas region.

About a third of the island of Samar is protected as a natural park, known as the Samar Island Natural Park.

On June 19, 1965, through Republic Act No. 4221, Samar was divided into three provinces:

Samar is the third-largest island in the Philippines by area, after the islands of Luzon and Mindanao.^[5] Mount Huraw is Samar's highest point, with an elevation of 2,920 ft (890 m).^[6]

Samar is the easternmost island in the Visayas. It lies to the northeast of

To the south is Leyte Gulf, which in October 1944 became the site of one of the most consequential naval battles^[7] of World War II. And to the north and east of Samar lies the Philippine Sea, part of the Pacific Ocean.

History

Kingdoms and principalities

Events

The name for the Samar island was approximated as Zamal by Antonio Pigafetta in 1521.

In 1543, King Iberein with his official oarsmen approached a Spanish vessel anchored in his harbour. Iberein is from Lawan. There is also a Samarnon saga that tells the story of Bingi of Lawan.^[8]

There are other principalities on the island such as Ibabao (or Cibabao), Achan, Camlaya, Taridola, and Candaya.

Foreign descriptions

Samar was the first island of the Philippines sighted by the Spanish expedition led by

Years later, other Spanish expeditions arrived. The historian William Henry Scott wrote that a "Samar datu by the name of Iberein was rowed out to a Spanish vessel anchored in his harbor in 1543 by oarsmen collared in gold; while wearing on his own person earrings and chains." Scott recounted a Samarnon saga, which was called siday, about Bingi of Lawan, a prosperous Lakanate in Samar, and he also recorded that Datu Hadi Iberein came from the Lakanate of Lawan.[8]

Samar also had names which are recorded in early Spanish sources, including Ibabao (or Cibabao), Achan, Camlaya, and Taridola. The Spanish captain

The final campaign of the Philippine–American War (1899-1902) took place in Samar and is one of the best known, and most notorious, of the entire war. A combination of factors resulted in particularly violent clashes.^{[citation needed]}

On September 28, 1901,

In 1989, "Balangiga Encounter Day" was established as a provincial holiday in Eastern Samar to celebrate the Balangiga Encounter victory.[13]^[14]

The Balangiga Encounter resulted in the brutal March across Samar.

"I want no prisoners. I wish you to kill and burn; the more you kill and burn, the better it will please me ... The interior of Samar must be made a howling wilderness ..." — Gen. Jacob H. Smith

Thousands of Filipinos were slaughtered by American Marines.

In his history of the war,^[15] Brian McAllister Linn asserts "Samar cast a pall on the army's achievement and, for generations, has been associated in the public mind as typifying the Philippine War."^{[citation needed]}

World War II

The waters off the east side of the island also hosted the

Demographics

References