Visayas is one of the three principal geographical
divisions of the
Philippines, along with
Mindanao and Luzon.
consists of several islands, primarily surrounding the Visayan Sea.
Its population are referred to as the
islands of the Visayas are Panay, Negros, Cebu, Bohol, Leyte, Samar and Palawan.
may also include the islands of Romblon and Masbate, whose population identify as Visayan.
The early people in the Visayas region were Austronesians
who migrated to the islands about 6,000 to
30,000 years ago. These early settlers were Animist tribal groups.
12th century, settlers from the collapsing empires of Srivijaya, Majapahit and
Brunei, led by the chieftain Datu Puti
and his tribes, settled in the island of Panay and its surrounding
By the 14th century, Arab
traders and their followers, venturing into the Malay Archipelago
, converted some of these
tribal groups into Muslims. These tribes practiced a mixture of
Islam and Animism beliefs. There is also some evidence of trade
among other Asian people. The Visayans were thought to have kept close
diplomatic relations with Malaysia and Indonesian kingdoms
since the tribal groups of Cebu were
able to converse with Enrique of
Malacca using the Malay language
when the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand
Magellan arrived in 1521.
Magellan expedition, King Philip II
of Spain sent Ruy López
de Villalobos and Miguel López de Legazpi in 1543
and 1565 and claimed the islands for Spain.
Visayas region and many tribes began converting to Christianity and
adopting western culture. By the 18th and 19th centuries, the
effects of colonization on various ethnic groups soon turned sour
and revolutions such as those of Francisco Dagohoy
began to emerge.
Philippine Revolution and the
Philippine American War
between 1896 to 1913, the island of Negros and other
neighboring islands initiated their revolution.
from colonial rule following World War II
in 1946, the Visayas region
established its community and re-formed its government, producing
several notable presidents
coming from the
the island of Palawan was
transferred to Region VI (Western
Visayas) by Executive Order 429.
However this planned
reorganization was held in abeyance. Hence, Palawan currently
remains (as of May 2007) part of Region IV-B.
[[File:Visayas regions.PNG|left|thumb|A map
the Visayas colour-coded according to the constituent
islands, from west to east, are Palawan, Panay, Negros, Cebu, Bohol, Leyte, and Samar.]]Administratively, the Visayas is divided
into 3 regions, namely
Western Visayas, Central
Visayas,k and Eastern
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
, 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.
As for representation in the Philippine
, the Visayas is represented by 44 Congressmen elected
in the same manner as the governors.
Western Visayas (Region VI)
Visayas consists of the islands of Palawan, Panay and the
western half of Negros.
regional center is Iloilo
Its provinces are:
Central Visayas (Region VII)
Visayas includes the islands of Cebu and Bohol
and the eastern half of Negros.
regional center is Cebu
Its provinces are:
Eastern Visayas (Region VIII)
Visayas consists of the islands of Leyte and Samar.
regional center is Tacloban
Its provinces are:
Historical documents written in 1907 by Visayan historian Pedro Alcántara Monteclaro
in his book Maragtas
the story of the ten chiefs (Datus
) who escaped
from the tyranny of Datu Makatunaw from Borneo and came to the
islands of Panay. The chiefs and followers were said to be the
ancestors of the Visayan
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 Ati-Atihan in
Kalibo, Aklan and
Binirayan in San José, Antique.
Foreign historians such as William Scott
proved the book to be a Visayan folk tradition. Panay boasts of the
as its oldest and longest
contemporary theory based on a study of genetic markers in present-day populations
that Austronesian people from
the region of Luzon and headed south to the Visayas, Borneo, Indonesia,
then to Pacific islands and to the
east of the Indian
Ocean. The study, though, may not explain
inter-island migrations, which are also possible, such as the
Tagalog migration to Luzon.
According to Visayan folk traditions, the Visayas were populated by
Malays migrating from Borneo to Mindanao and to the Visayas, while
other Malays crossed to Palawan through Sabah. Other Malays were
suggested to have crossed from Samar island to the Bicol region in
Luzon. The theory suggests that those ancient tribal groups who
passed through Palawan may have migrated to what is now the island
A supplementary theory was that at that period, the Malay people
were moving north from Mindanao to the Visayas and to Luzon.
Various groups of Europeans and Chinese also integrated with the
native population during that period.