Masbate, lying off between the southern tip of Luzon and the islands of the Visayas, is the melting pot of Bicolano and Visayan cultures. Masbate residents are called Masbateños, and while the province is grouped with Bicol, Masbateño culture is more Visayan than Bicolano.
Masbate has the oldest known settlements in the Philippines, being settled at around 4000-3000 BC. The island is colonized in 1569 by Spaniards seeking its gold mines and Masbate (then also named Masbat) served as a major waypoint for the historic Manila-Acapulco galleons. Until it became its own province, Masbate was part of Albay, and also Sorsogon, for a decade between 1908 and 1917 after being ravaged by a typhoon.
