# Capul

Capul, officially the Municipality of Capul (Waray: Bungto han Capul; Tagalog: Bayan ng Capul), is an island municipality in the province of Northern Samar, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 12,323 people.
The natives of Capul are known as the Abaknon or the Capuleño people. It is the only town in the province of Northern Samar with a distinct language, Inabaknon (also known as Capuleño, Abaknon Sama, or Capul Sinama), instead of Waray, the native language spoken by the locals of Samar island. Inabaknon is unique in it being only distantly related to the languages spoken in the entire Visayas and Luzon regions. Instead, it is classified by linguists as a Sama-Bajaw language.
A lighthouse was built on the island which served as a guidepost for the Acapulco-Manila galleon trade vessels passing through the treacherous waters of San Bernardino Strait. It also served as the capital of the former province of Samar from 1848 to 1852.

## Etymology

According to folklore, the name Capul is said to be derived from the word Acapulco, an old trading post in Mexico.

## History

According to oral folk history, the native Abaknon people of the island of Capul were originally from the island of Balabac, off the southern coast of Palawan. They were originally a Sama-Bajau group. In the 1300s, their island was annexed by the Sultanate of Sulu. The people who refused to submit to the Sultanate and convert to Islam fled Balabac under the leadership of a datu named Abak. They sailed northwards until reaching the island of Capul. Here, they established a settlement which they called Abak. By 1610, Spanish Jesuits arrived in the island and construction of the first church began around this period. The Inabaknon language of the Abaknon people are still classified by linguists as a Sama-Bajaw language, though the Abaknon people have converted to Christianity and have become culturally Visayan due to proximity with Visayan groups.
On June 18, 1966, barrios Mahaba, Maragat, Mongolbongol, Panganoron, Sila, Ternate, and Sang-putan were excised from Capul to form the new municipality of San Vicente.

## Geography

The municipality is contiguous with Capul Island, located at the southern entrance to the San Bernardino Strait.

### Barangays

Capul is politically subdivided into 12 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.
* Aguin
* Jubang
* Landusan
* Oson
* Poblacion Barangay 1
* Poblacion Barangay 2
* Poblacion Barangay 3
* Poblacion Barangay 4
* Poblacion Barangay 5
* Sagaosawan
* San Luis
* Sawang

### Climate

Climate data for Capul, Northern Samar :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 27 (81) | 28 (82) | 29 (84) | 30 (86) | 31 (88) | 30 (86) | 29 (84) | 29 (84) | 29 (84) | 29 (84) | 29 (84) | 28 (82) | 29 (84) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 22 (72) | 22 (72) | 22 (72) | 22 (72) | 24 (75) | 24 (75) | 24 (75) | 24 (75) | 24 (75) | 24 (75) | 23 (73) | 23 (73) | 23 (74) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 84 (3.3) | 59 (2.3) | 58 (2.3) | 55 (2.2) | 93 (3.7) | 133 (5.2) | 149 (5.9) | 125 (4.9) | 155 (6.1) | 165 (6.5) | 140 (5.5) | 136 (5.4) | 1,352 (53.3) |
| Average rainy days | 18.1 | 13.6 | 15.8 | 16.1 | 21.7 | 25.5 | 26.6 | 25.1 | 24.8 | 25.8 | 22.7 | 20.1 | 255.9 |
| Source: Meteoblue (modeled/calculated data, not measured locally) ||||||||||||||

## Economy

Poverty incidence of Capul
* 10
* 20
* 30
* 40
* 50
* 60
* 2006 38.50
* 2009 41.62
* 2012 45.23
* 2015 51.15
* 2018 37.35
* 2021 17.91
* Source: Philippine Statistics Authority

### Language

Capul has a different language from the rest of Northern Samar and the rest of Eastern Visayas. The native language in the island-municipality is Inabaknon. Inabaknon has been classified by linguists as a Sama-Bajaw language closely related to those found in Mindanao, rather than a Visayan language. Nonetheless, the Capul people can speak and understand the Waray language as it is spoken by the majority of the people in Northern Samar.

## Tourism

Capul Church and Fortress
    The Capul Church, built during the Spanish colonial period, is dedicated to St. Ignatius of Loyola and is surrounded by a square fort with bulwarks of dissimilar designs. The church structure was actually the third that was built on the site. The first two structures, made of hard wood and nipa roofs, were razed when Moro pirates plundered the island in 1615 and 1768. In 1781, Fr. Mariano Valero, a Spanish architect-priest led the restoration of the church and built the stonewall fortress similar to that in Intramuros, Manila that would fortify it against Moro attacks.
Capul Watchtower
    Located on a hill near the Capul fort overlooking the town harbor, a stone watchtower was erected to serve as a sentry or warning system and a refuge for indigents during Moro raids.
Bitō Cave
    Bitō Cave, also known as Beto Cave, is a popular natural attraction located in Sawang.
Timon-timon Rock
    Timon-timon is a rudder-shaped rock formation located near the southern point of the island.
Capul Island Lighthouse