Daanbantayan

Daanbantayan
Municipality
Maya, Daanbantayan – northernmost point of Cebu island
Seal
Map of Cebu with Daanbantayan highlighted
Daanbantayan Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 11°15′N 124°00′E / 11.25°N 124°ECoordinates: 11°15′N 124°00′E / 11.25°N 124°E
Country	Philippines
Region	Central Visayas (Region VII)
Province	Cebu
District	4th district of Cebu
Barangay	20 (see § Barangays)
Government [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Vicente Loot (United Nationalist Alliance)
• Vice mayor	Gilbert Arrabis
• Town Council	Members Ali Abucay Xhona De Leon Bobo Te Emmanuel Benatiro Intoy Luche Dano Gullem Samuel Moralde M^a Bregitte Tancawan 2016 unofficial result
• Representative	Benhur Salimbangon
Area[2]
• Total	92.27 km^2 (35.63 sq mi)
Population (2015 census)[3]
• Total	84,430
• Density	920/km^2 (2,400/sq mi)
• Voter (2016)[4]	48,601
Time zone	PST (UTC+8)
ZIP code	6013
IDD : area code	+63 (0)32
Income class	1st class
PSGC	072221000
Website	www.daanbantayan.gov.ph

Daanbantayan is a 1st municipal income class municipality in the province of Cebu, Philippines,^[2] the northern tip of Cebu island. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of 84,430.^[3] In the 2016 election, it had 48,601 registered voters.^[4]

Daanbantayan celebrates its annual fiesta along with the Haladaya Festival starting on the 21st of August and ends with a street-dancing on the 30th, in honor of Datu Daya, the legendary founder of the town.

Etymology

The name Daanbantayan was derived from two words: the word "daan", which means "old" in Cebuano, and the word "bantayan", which refers to a place that served as a watchtower to look out for Moro raiders during the Prehespanic period in the Philippines. Older usages have the two words separately, as "Daan Bantayan". The original site of the town might have been at an elevated vantage point near Punta, in Barangay Tapilon.

History

In 1945, the Philippine Commonwealth Army troops of the 3rd, 8th, 81st, 82nd, 83rd, 85th and 86th Infantry Division of the Philippine Army entered the town of Daanbantayan, supported by the Cebuano guerrillas, and were attacked by the Japanese forces in the Battle of Daanbantayan during World War II.

On 8 November 2013, 9 people were killed and 50 injured when Super Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda in Philippines area of responsibility) passed over Daanbantayan.^[5]

Geography

Islands and thalassic attractions

There are several small islands / islets and diving spots some distance from Cebu island:

• Carnaza (11°30′50″N 124°05′58″E / 11.51389°N 124.09944°E) 175 ha (432 acres)
• Chocolate (11°18′20″N 124°03′48″E / 11.30556°N 124.06333°E)
• Gato cave and islet (11°26′48″N 124°01′13″E / 11.44667°N 124.02028°E) 4.5 ha (11 acres)
• Malapascua (11°20′00″N 124°07′00″E / 11.33333°N 124.11667°E) 600 ha (1,483 acres)
• Maria (11°29′34″N 124°06′13″E / 11.49278°N 124.10361°E) 1.5 ha (4 acres)
• Monad Shoal (11°18′30″N 124°11′30″E / 11.30833°N 124.19167°E)

Barangays

Daanbantayan comprises 20 barangays:

PSGC	Barangay	Population			±% p.a.
		2015[3]		2010[6]
072221001	Agujo	6.8%	5,726	4,836	+3.27%
072221002	Bagay	5.4%	4,549	4,015	+2.41%
072221003	Bakhawan	3.0%	2,540	2,267	+2.19%
072221004	Bateria	4.3%	3,664	3,252	+2.30%
072221005	Bitoon	5.6%	4,753	4,350	+1.70%
072221006	Calape	2.6%	2,233	2,518	−2.26%
072221007	Carnaza	2.7%	2,259	2,360	−0.83%
072221008	Dalingding	2.5%	2,137	2,069	+0.62%
072221009	Lanao	3.9%	3,313	2,968	+2.12%
072221010	Logon	6.8%	5,720	4,496	+4.69%
072221011	Malbago	5.2%	4,408	3,311	+5.60%
072221012	Malingin	1.9%	1,600	1,512	+1.08%
072221013	Maya	10.4%	8,822	7,815	+2.33%
072221014	Pajo	4.3%	3,634	2,970	+3.92%
072221015	Paypay	3.4%	2,888	2,741	+1.00%
072221016	Poblacion	9.2%	7,794	7,144	+1.67%
072221017	Talisay	5.1%	4,297	3,802	+2.36%
072221018	Tapilon	9.9%	8,323	7,281	+2.58%
072221019	Tinubdan	2.4%	2,002	2,050	−0.45%
072221020	Tominjao	4.5%	3,768	3,149	+3.48%
	Total		84,430	74,897	+2.31%

Demographics

Population census of Daanbantayan
Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1990 58,771 —     1995 64,845 +1.86% 2000 69,336 +1.45%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 2007 73,254 +0.76% 2010 74,897 +0.81% 2015 84,430 +2.31%
Source: Philippine Statistics Office[3][6][7]

In the 2016 election, it had 48,601 registered voters, meaning that 58% of the population are aged 18 and over.^[4]

Transportation

Ceres Liner, Rough Riders and Cebu Autobus are among the bus companies with regular service to and from Cebu city (North Bus Terminal). Jeepneys, tricycles, and trisikads are the main modes of transportation within the town.

Tourism

Malapascua island from the air

Approaching Gato Islet

Daanbantayan is now known for its pristine, white powder-like sandy beaches – one of which is Malapascua Island. With its vast and rich marine resources, it hosts a long string of dive sites offering unique marine life and beauty.

As a tourist destination, Daanbantayan stages the Haladaya Festival every year as an added attraction to local vacationers, holidaymakers, Filipino expatriates, and foreign tourists from as far away as North America, South America, and Europe.

Attractions

• Municipal hall – built in 1916.
• Sta. Rosa de Lima parish church – inaugurated on 10 April 1858 and finished in 1886. Its façade is still intact with its original design.^[8]
• Town plaza – site of a battle between the so-called Daanbantayan Volunteers and 19 well-armed bandits led by Capitan Berinoin 1898.^[8]
• San Pedro River - its northern bank has an abandoned Muslim settlement founded by Datu Daya during the pre-Spanish era.^[8]
• Tapilon point (also known as Punta Sampero) – site of the watchtower of Kandaya, called "daang bantayanan". But there are no remains of the watchtower.^[8]
• Malapascua Island – is situated across a shallow strait from the northernmost tip of Cebu. This small island is known for its wide white sand beach, Bounty Beach; it has also become known as a superior diving destination.
• Gato Cave and Islet – a small sharp rocky island rising in the middle of the Visayan Sea, about 15 kilometres (9 miles) from Malapascua. The 83-metre-high (272 ft) island is home to nesting seabirds, a colony of flying foxes, soft coral canyons, and rare and unusual nudibranchs.^[8]
• Monad Shoal – a 20-metre-deep (66 ft) seamount known for its thresher sharks, making the shoal popular for recreational divers. The common thresher shark (alopias vulpinus) and pelagic thresher shark (alopias pelagicus) normally live in depths as deep as 350 metres (1,148 feet), but the shoal offers opportunities to see them in less than 20 metres of water.^[8]

References

1. "Municipality". Quezon City, Philippines: Department of the Interior and Local Government. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
2. "Municipal: Daanbantayan". PSA. Philippines: National Statistical Coordination Board. Retrieved 8 January 2016.
3. "Region VII (CENTRAL VISAYAS)". Census of Population (2015): Total Population by Province, City, Municipality and Barangay (Report). PSA. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
4. "2016 National and Local Elections Statistics". Commission on Elections. 2016.
5. The Economist (16 November 2013). "Typhoon Haiyan Damage Is 'Worse Than Hell'". Business Insider Australia. Archived from the original on 18 November 2013.
6. "Region VII (CENTRAL VISAYAS)". Census of Population and Housing (2010): Total Population by Province, City, Municipality and Barangay (Report). NSO. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
7. "Region VII (CENTRAL VISAYAS)". Census of Population (1995, 2000 and 2007): Total Population by Province, City and Municipality (Report). NSO. Archived from the original on 24 June 2011.
8. "Local Heritage". Municipality of Daanbantayan, Cebu. Archived from the original on March 8, 2016. Retrieved 5 April 2013.

External links