Ivatan

Kapian capa nu dios /ka/pee/an/ka/pah/nu/dee/os/

EYE-LAND OF THE STORM

Some 35,000 people speak Ivatan, or Chirin nu Ibatan, the Austronesian language exclusive to the Batanes Islands and distinct from the northern Luzon languages. The Batanes were an important way station on the risky journey of the Austronesian-speaking peoples from Taiwan to northern Luzon around 4000 BC. Before they could make the journey successfully, they had to invent a canoe with an outrigger and sail, to keep their boats from capsizing in the fierce northward current. The Austronesian terminology for ‘sail’ and ‘outrigger’ dates back to that period of time. Ivatan has two dialects, namely Ivatan, spoken on the islands of Batan and Sabtang, and Itbayat, spoken on the islands of Itbayat.

As the Christian faith of the mainland permeates the Batanes, the Ivatan continue to believe in anyitu, the embodiments, ghosts and souls of their dead ancestors. This complex negotiation of faiths is conducted through rituals and offerings to the anyitu, understood strictly as nonworshipping practices.

DO

Follow designated pedestrian crossing and jeepney stops.

DON’T

Refuse an offer of food during a home visit.