Ivatan
The Ivatan are an indigenous Austronesian ethnolinguistic group native to the Batanes Islands, the northernmost province of the Philippines. They form the core of the population in Batanes, with communities on Batan, Itbayat, Sabtang and surrounding islets.
The Ivatan language, part of the Northern Luzon branch of the Austronesian family, has several dialects, including
Culturally, the Ivatan have adapted to a typhoon-prone environment. A distinctive feature is their stone houses
Religiously, the majority of Ivatan people are Roman Catholic, a legacy of Spanish colonial influence. While
Historically, the Ivatan are believed to have inhabited Batanes long before extensive European contact, developing a