View source for Samar

{{short description|Third-largest island in the Philippines}}
{{for-multi|the province|Samar (province)|and|Samar (historical province)|other uses|Samar (disambiguation)}}
{{more citations needed|date=December 2014}}
{{Infobox islands
| name                            = Samar
| image_name                      =
| image_caption                   =
| image_size                      =
| map                             = 
| map_alt                         = 
| map_width                       = 
| image_map                       = Samar Island Location Map Red.png
| map_caption                     = Location within the Philippines
| map_relief                      = 
| label                           = 
| label_position                  = 
| coordinates                     = {{coord|12|00|N|125|00|E|type:isle_region:PH|display=inline,title}}
| archipelago                     = [[Visayas]]
| waterbody                       = {{unbulleted list | [[Leyte Gulf]] | [[Philippine Sea]] | [[Samar Sea]] | [[San Bernardino Strait]] | [[San Juanico Strait]] }}
| location                        = 
| area_km2                        = 13,428.8
| area_footnotes                  = <ref name = yearbook>{{cite journal |url = https://psa.gov.ph/sites/default/files/2010%20PIF.pdf |title = 2010 Philippine Yearbook |journal = Philippine Yearbook |publisher = National Statistics Office |issn = 0116-1520 |edition = 23rd |location = Manila, Philippines |access-date = 2015-12-14}}</ref>
| rank                            = 63rd
| coastline_km                    = 800.6
| coastline_footnotes             = <ref name = unep>{{cite web |title = Islands of Philippines |url = http://islands.unep.ch/IHE.htm#895 |work = Island Directory |publisher = United Nations Environment Programme |access-date = 18 September 2015 |archive-date = 28 April 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190428003606/http://islands.unep.ch/IHE.htm#895 |url-status = dead }}</ref> 
| highest_mount = [[Mount Huraw]]
| elevation_m    = 890
| Country_heading                 = 
| country                         = [[Philippines]]
| country_admin_divisions_title   = Region
| country_admin_divisions         = [[Eastern Visayas]]
| country_admin_divisions_title_1 = Provinces
| country_admin_divisions_1       = {{unbulleted list | [[Eastern Samar]] | [[Northern Samar]] | [[Samar (province)|(Western) Samar]] }}
| country_largest_city            = [[Calbayog]]
| country_largest_city_population = 186,960
| population                      = 1,909,537 <!-- sum of Samar, Eastern Samar, and Northern Samar provinces -->
| population_as_of                = 2020
| population_footnotes            = {{PH census|2015}}
| density_km2                     = {{#expr: 1880020 / 13428.8 round 1}}
| ethnic_groups                   = [[Visayans]] (<!--[[Waray]] is the 
official ethnic group, it's just a REGIONAL DEMONYM-->[[Waray-Waray people|Waray-Waray]])
}}

'''Samar''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|ɑː|m|ɑr}} {{respell|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 of the Philippines|provinces]]: [[Samar (province)|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]].

Many names, such as ''Samal'', ''Ibabao'', and ''Tandaya'', were given to the island prior to the arrival of the Spaniards in 1596. During the early days of [[History of the Philippines (1521–1898)|Spanish occupation]], Samar was under the jurisdiction of [[Cebu]]. It later became part of [[Leyte (province)|Leyte]] in 1735 until its separation to become a distinct province named [[Samar (historical province)|Samar]] in 1768. On June 19, 1965, through Republic Act No. 4221, Samar was divided into three provinces: [[Northern Samar]], [[Samar province|(Western) Samar]] and [[Eastern Samar]]. The capitals of these provinces are, respectively, [[Catarman, Northern Samar|Catarman]], [[Catbalogan]], and [[Borongan]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chanrobles.com/republicacts/republicactno4221.html#.WUcsVdkayc0|title=PHILIPPINE LAWS, STATUTES AND CODES - CHAN ROBLES VIRTUAL LAW LIBRARY|website=Ronald Echalas Diaz, Chan Robles & Associates Law Firm}}</ref> In commemoration of the establishment of these provinces, June 19 is celebrated as an annual holiday and many have the day off from work.

==Geography==
Samar is the third-largest island in the Philippines by area, after the islands of [[Luzon]] and [[Mindanao]].<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/place/Samar "Samar"]. Britannica. Retrieved February 23, 2023.</ref> Mount Huraw is Samar's highest point, with an elevation of {{convert|2,920|ft|m|abbr=on}}.<ref>[https://peakvisor.com/adm/samar.html "Samar"]. Peakvisor. Retrieved February 23, 2023.</ref>

Samar is the easternmost island in the Visayas. It lies to the northeast of [[Leyte]], separated from it only by the [[San Juanico Strait]], which at its narrowest point is only about {{convert|2|km}} across; the strait is spanned by the [[San Juanico Bridge]]. And it lies to the southeast of the [[Bicol Peninsula]] on [[Luzon]], separated from it only by the [[San Bernardino Strait]].

To the south is [[Leyte Gulf]], which in October 1944 became the [[Battle of Leyte Gulf|site of one of the most consequential naval battles]]<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20191106134341/https://www.history.navy.mil/browse-by-topic/wars-conflicts-and-operations/world-war-ii/1944/battle-of-leyte-gulf.html "The Battle of Leyte Gulf"]. Naval History and Heritage Command. Retrieved February 23, 2023.</ref> of [[World War II]]. And to the north and east of Samar lies the [[Philippine Sea]], part of the [[Pacific Ocean]].

==History==

=== Spanish accounts ===

==== Events ====

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

In 1543, Datu Iberein with his official oarsmen approached a Spanish vessel anchored in his harbour. There is also a Samarnon saga that tells the story of Bingi of Lawan.<ref name="Scott">{{cite book|last=Scott|first=William Henry|title=Cracks in the parchment curtain and other essays in Philippine history|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dKvtAAAAMAAJ|year=1985|publisher=New Day Publishers|isbn=978-971-10-0073-8|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=dKvtAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Samar+chieftain%22 93]}}</ref>

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 [[Ferdinand Magellan]] (transcribed as ''Zamal'' in the diary of [[Antonio Pigafetta]]). He sighted it on 16 March 1521, having sailed there from the [[Mariana Islands]].<ref>[https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/culture/spotlight/03/14/21/the-hospitable-shores-of-samar-during-magellans-landfall "The hospitable shores of Samar during Magellan’s landfall"]. ANCX. Retrieved February 23, 2023.</ref><ref name="Ocampo">{{cite book |last1=Ocampo |first1=Ambeth |title=Looking Back: Volume 1 |date=2012 |publisher=Anvil Publishing, Inc. |isbn=9789712736087}}</ref>  Realizing he had arrived at an [[archipelago]], he charted the islands, and called them ''San Lazaro'' ([[Lazarus of Bethany|Saint Lazarus]] in English) because they were sighted on [[Lazarus Saturday]]. The Spaniards later called the island Filipinas. Although Samar was the first island of the Philippines sighted by Magellan, he did not land there. He continued south, weighed anchor at [[Suluan]] Island, and then finally, on 17 March 1521, he landed on [[Homonhon]] Island.<ref>Parr, Charles McKew ''So Noble a Captain: The Life and Times of Ferdinand Magellan'' Thomas Y. Crowell, New York, 1953. p.431</ref>  Later in the 1700s, Samar was recorded to have about 103 [[Spanish Filipino]] families and 3,042 native families.<ref name="Estadismo2">[https://ia601608.us.archive.org/10/items/bub_gb_ElhFAAAAYAAJ_2/bub_gb_ElhFAAAAYAAJ.pdf ESTADISMO DE LAS ISLAS FILIPINAS TOMO SEGUNDO By Joaquín Martínez de Zúñiga (Original Spanish)]</ref>{{rp|113}}

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 settlement in Samar.<ref name="Scott"/>

Samar also had names which are recorded in early Spanish sources, including ''Ibabao'' (or ''Cibabao''), ''Achan'', ''Camlaya'', and ''Taridola''. The Spanish captain [[Miguel Lopez de Legaspi]] also infamously called the island ''Tandaya'', after mistaking the name of a lord with the name of the island (not to be confused with [[Datu Daya]] of northern Cebu). This was spelled by [[Miguel de Loarca]] as ''Candaya''.<ref name="Ocampo"/>

=== Philippine-American War ===
{{Further|Philippine–American War|Balangiga massacre|Pacification of Samar}}
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|date=July 2022}}

On September 28, 1901, [[Eugenio Daza]], Area Commander of Southeastern Samar and Valeriano Abanador, the town's police chief, launched an attack on U.S. Army Company C [[9th Infantry Regiment (United States)|9th Infantry Regiment]] who were occupying [[Balangiga, Eastern Samar|Balangiga]]. This action, commonly known as the ''[[Balangiga massacre]]'', brought one of the only Filipino victories of the war and the worst American defeat in decades.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}} In 1989, "Balangiga Encounter Day" was established as a provincial holiday in Eastern Samar to celebrate that victory.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/2008/09/26/proclamation-no-1629-s-2008/|title=Proclamation No. 1629, s. 2008|last=Ermita|first=Eduardo R.|date=September 26, 2008|website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1989/02/10/republic-act-no-6692/|title=Republic Act No. 6692|date=February 10, 1989|website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines.}}</ref>

The action resulted in the order during the [[pacification of Samar]] <blockquote>''"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]]</blockquote>
which brought about the slaughter of thousands of Filipinos by [[United States Marine Corps|American Marines]].{{cn|date=September 2024}}

In his history of the war, [[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."<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Philippine War 1899-1902|last=Linn|first=Brian McAllister|author-link=Brian McAllister Linn|publisher=University Press of Kansas|year=2000|isbn=0-70061225-4|publication-place=Lawrence, Kansas 66049|page=321}}</ref>

=== World War II ===
The waters off the east side of the island also hosted the [[Battle off Samar]] on October 25, 1944, wherein a small, unarmored force of [[United States Navy]] escorts fought off the center force of the [[Imperial Japanese Navy]], including the [[Japanese battleship Yamato|Japanese battleship ''Yamato'']]. During [[World War II]] the island was part of a large US Navy base [[Leyte-Samar Naval Base]].

==Demographics==
{{Historical populations
|title       = Population of Samar <!-- based on historical censuses, sum of Eastern, Northern, and Western Samar -->
|align       = none
|cols        = 2
|percentages =
|footnote    =
|source      = Philippine Statistics Authority{{PH census|2015}}
| 1903 |{{sum|79645|67680|118912}}
| 1918 |{{sum|117348|93559|168668}}
| 1939 |{{sum|154347|155050|236909}}
| 1948 |{{sum|197734|227957|331521}}
| 1960 |{{sum|237747|261424|368823}}
| 1970 |{{sum|271000|306114|442244}}
| 1975 |{{sum|287149|354665|478378}}
| 1980 |{{sum|320637|378516|501439}}
| 1990 |{{sum|329335|383654|533733}}
| 1995 |{{sum|362324|454195|589373}}
| 2000 |{{sum|375822|500639|641124}}
| 2007 |{{sum|405114|549759|695149}}
| 2010 |{{sum|428877|589013|733377}}
| 2015 |{{sum|467160|632379|780481}}
| 2020 |
{{sum|477168|639186|793183}}
<!---| 2025 |
| 2030 | -->
}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline|Samar Island}}
* {{wikivoyage inline|Samar Island}}

{{Islands of the Philippines}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Samar (Island)}}
[[Category:Samar| ]]
[[Category:Islands of Samar (province)]]
[[Category:Islands of Northern Samar]]
[[Category:Islands of Eastern Samar]]