Batangas

General Information

Is a province of the Philippines located on the southwestern part of Luzon in the CALABARZON region. Its capital is Batangas City and it is bordered by the provinces of Cavite and Laguna to the north and Quezon to the east. Batangas is one of the most popular tourist destinations near Metro Manila. Found in the province is world-known Anilao (Mabini) and its many dive sites that are ideal for observing marine life, and outstanding for macro photography. The town of Taal is famous for its hand embroideries, knives, and sausages; and it reigns as one of the two most culturally preserved sites of the Spanish colonial era in the Philippines.

Geography

Together with the provinces in the Island of Panay, Ilocos Sur and Pampanga, Batangas was one of the earliest encomiendas made by the Spaniards who settled in the country. It was headed by Martin de Goiti and since then it became one of the most important centres of the Philippines, not only the Tagalogs. Batangas first came to be known as Bonbon. It was named after the mystical and fascinating Taal Lake, which was also originally called Bonbon. Some of the earliest settlements in Batangas were established at the vicinity of Taal Lake. In 1534, Batangas became the first practically organized province in Luzon. Balayan was the capital of the province for 135 years from 1597-1732. In 1732, it was moved to Taal, then the flourishing and most progressive town in the province. It was in 1889 that the capital was moved to the present, Batangas City.

Culture

Maria Kalaw Katigbak, a Filipino historian, was quoted to call the Batanguenyos the Super-Tagalogs. This is because these group of people belonging to the Tagalog stock is the paramount example of what one can expect from this ethnolinguistic group. And indeed, when you ask someone to overact a Tagalog, they would imitate the Batanguenyos. Batanguenyos are very regionalistic. When one learns that a person in the room is also from Batangas, expect them to be together until the end of the event. It is also expected that those in office would favour their fellow Batanguenyos as long as the rules could allow it. Thus the running joke, the Batangas Mafia came to existence. They also tend to live in a large extended family. It is but common that a piece of land remains undivided until the family connection becomes to far-off related. Marriages between relatives of the fifth generation is still restrained in the Batangan culture even if Philippine laws allow it.

Climate

The rainy season runs from June to September, with a peak in precipatation during the month of July. Be sure to bring good rain gear if you visit during the summer. The coolest and most pleasant time of year falls between October and February, when the skies dry up and temperatures average 24 degree C. Evenings can get rather chilly during the winter, especially in the interior highlands. The season from March to May is the driest time of the year. Temperatures regularly hit 38 c, although the coastal communities enjoy sea breezes.

Population

The population of the province totals 1,905,348 as of May 2000.

Languages/ Dialects

Batanguenyos are bilingual, with Tagalog and English as the basic languages used in business, government, schools, and everyday communication.

Political subdivision

The province is composed of 32 municipalities. Capital is Batangas City.