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Cagayan, officially known as the Confederal Republic of the Cagayan (: República Confederal del Cagayán; Tiberico Mixto: Kumpederal na Republika de Kagayan), is a  in Southern Kesh, stretching from the innermost extent of the South Kesh Bay northwards to the Kamarband range. The country has a generally tropical geography, with dominating much of the landscape, though a significant portion of the east is covered in forest. Cagayan covers an area of 701,286 km² with a population of around 106.6 million as of 2019. The official language of the confederation is, though a similar auxiliary status is granted to a Tiberican-based called Tiberico Mixto used throughout the country. Though there is no single capital, much of the confederation's highest authorities, such as the Chamber of the Senators and the Supreme Court of Grace and Justice, are based in Cagayan, a city and conurbation at the mouth of the Cagayan River, which thus serves as a de facto capital.

Cagayan has been inhabited since the at least 200,000 years ago, with the  period in the area beginning by the  with the introduction and cultivation of  and, and later on by the  migration waves,. The first civilisations would not appear until the with the rise of the ancient city of Callao. Since then, the area has been home to successive civilisations, becoming the center of various polities such as Talaquin, Tacloban, Sasmuan, Calunasan, Sugda, Skolota, Arimaspa and the Lakanate of Cagayan, which would later on give its name to the area. In the, the polities of the area would become vassals to the Zhou Empire of Kodeshia along with Pelankan to the southwest, which would become known as Heiban, though they would later revolt against the Zhou in the 16th century and re-establish their independence. The arrival of Fernando de Soto in 1622, however, would mark the beginning of colonisation by Agrana y Griegro, leading to Cagayan becoming a part of the kingdom as the Viceroyalty of the Cagayan for over 200 years. During this time, would become the dominant religion, and the city of Cagayan on the river delta would become a major trade hub.

In 1872, the Cagayan War of Independence began, leading to the independence of Cagayan as the Kingdom of the Cagayan, though it would be followed by an era of volatility, leading to a civil war in 1879, followed by a series of revolts and mutinies in the following years, revolutions in 1912 and 1913, another civil war from 1913-1915 after the 1913 revolution failed to fully take control, followed by another revolution in 1916 on the tail end of the war. A military dictatorship would later take full control, rapidly industrialising the country in pursuit of and fully annexing what is now Northern Cagayan by 1947, but another civil war would break out from 1972 to 1980 and break its power, ultimately replacing the dictatorship with the current confederal system by 1981.

Cagayan is a inhabited by more than 100 ethnic groups speaking around 120 distinct languages and dialects in a complex mesh of cultures. The largest ethnic groups are the and  peoples in the south and the  and  peoples in the north, which, with the exception of the Tagailog, are themselves clusters of culturally-related ethnolinguistic groups, with the languages of the Southern Cagayano and Aftari especially constituting extensive. The Confederal Charter of the Cagayan guarantees and is home to an eclectic mix of, , and  populations, as well as believers in traditional faiths.

Etymology
The name Cagayan for the country is directly derived from the name of the Cagayan River. From there, it is speculated that the word Cagayan directly comes from a word for "river" from one of the in the area, cognate to  carayan,  cayayan, and  calayan, all of which mean "river" and go back to a   *kaRayan. The word is most similar to or  cagayan which may well be the origin of the term, though whether it definitely originates in either language is contested due to their distance from the river itself.

However, though Cagayan was surely first used for the Cagayan River, the use of Cagayan to refer to the modern-day political unit is relatively recent, and reflects a gradual development. It was first used for the old settlement at the river delta, which later became modern-day Cagayan City. After that, it became used for the Lakanate of Cagayan that emerged around the settlement, and subsequently the region approximating the range of that polity. This name for the region was later taken up by the Viceroyalty of the Cagayan, which was in turn taken up by the newly-independent Kingdom of the Cagayan, which later expanded northwards to encompass the modern-day bounds of Cagayan.

Paleolithic era
The earliest attested archaeological artifacts in Cagayan confirm the presence of human species have inhabited the area continuously since about 200,000 years ago in the, though would not arrive in the area by the  around 30,000 BC. Human habitation was mainly restricted to the foothills of the Kamarband and the upper reaches of the Cagayan Valley, constituting a part of what became known as the East Kamarband cultural complex. The humans of the area were confronted by a harsh climate and led a hunter-gatherer lifestyle, as well as leaving behind a large number of decorated caves, such as the caves of Mayuñgib, which contained the oldest traces of human life in Cagayan, and were continuously inhabited for a long time. By around 12,000 BC, the climate became milder and more stable, with humans spreading south into the lower river valley, and the area entered the Neolithic by 9,000 BC.

Neolithic era
The early Neolithic occupation of Cagayan was, like the Paleolithic that preceded it, largely confined to the foothills of the Kamarband. The Pre-Pottery Neolithic period would see the gradual introduction of from around 9,000 BC with the domestication of  until around 8,000 BC, when the incursion of the Netted Ware culture from the northeast would see the introduction of  and the subsequent rapid spread of settlement to the lower Cagayan Valley, effectively subsuming the previous cultures there. By 7,500 BC, the Macabebe-Caña horizon that emerged had already broke up into distinct, flourishing cultures across the valley. The earliest Neolithic sites of the era, such as Jamac and Pinacpac were in the northern foothills and began developing, while southern settlements began to eschew in favour of more complicated irrigation methods, the first of which was Ycalauang Taytay, settled by farmers bringing the Pinacpac culture from the north. Later on, the appeared in the area by 5000 BC from the southeast as the Pali culture, coinciding somewhat with the introduction of  to the area from the north.

The Macabebe-Caña horizon is characterised by common traits, some of which ultimately originated from the Netted Ware culture. This includes a kind of ancestor worship involving the preservation of skulls, which were to indicate facial features, a rite still practiced in some local cultures to this day. The local toolkit was characterised by spears, stone bowls, and pestles, alongside other tools such as and  made of bone or deer antlers, though  would be introduced in 4,000 BC and see greater use. Larger settlements emerged, with houses made of stone or and with entrances through the roof, often built beside each other to form a complex. This would be supplanted by and  by 6,000 BC.



Pottery continued to be decorated, though the designs grew more and more complicated compared to the earlier Netted Ware design of criss-crossed hatches, and this decoration began to extend from pottery to claywork in general. The most prominent example of decorated claywork from the era comes from the Kipapaoan culture from 6,500-5,500 BC, which were often coloured red with mixed in with the clay, primarily. The concentration of iron oxides was manipulated to produce different shades of rust red, resulting in what was essentially pottery with geometric or animal motifs. The Kipapaoan culture also created similarly polychrome fertility figurines and stamp seals.



The period from 4,000 BC to 3,200 BC was marked by increasing interconnection, beginning with the appearance of the first citadel in the area in Pazazay, which indicated the rising beginning to take place across the region. Trade networks formed between the various settlements, linking them together and initiating a stage of cultural integration. The various riverine cultures came to constitute the Pazazay cultural complex, characterised by and increasing. The increasing appearance of made from  and, among other stones, reflects the trade network expanding to nearby regional cultures. would be introduced to the area by around 3,700 BC, beginning the Bronze Age in Cagayan.

Callao megalithic culture
The intensive agricultural practices of the area had already prompted due to the work needed in maintaining the  and, and the surplus food enabled  and. This had earlier led to the beginning and growth of settlements across the Cagayan river valley since the start of the Neolithic. had also by 4,000 BC, as the grains of, , and  were supplemented by a variety of other crops, such as , , and. These factors, along with the introduction of bronze in 3,700 BC, eventually culminated in the early phase of the Callao megalithic culture, lasting from 3,200 BC to 2,900 BC, characterised by the growth of settlements into large urban centers, as well as the building of even more settlements across the river valley in a stage of agrarian colonisation.



The cities of the Callao culture are known to have been ruled by important figures, possibly. The political landscape seems to have been dominated by, with each major city maintaining its own citadel and control over the surrounding area, which may have also included other cities and settlements. Stelae have been found across the river valley, which may have acted as boundary stones. There were also rituals centered around the destruction of these boundary stones, which indicated periods of war between two city-states. Parallel to warfare was, where the increasing amounts of extravagant sacrifices seen in Callao burials seem to have been rival city-states seeking to outdo each other in gifting, a custom also found in modern-day groups.

The Callao culture eventually fell into a steep and rapid decline by around 2,300 BC, coinciding with a drought that swept the area. Over the following centuries, evidence shows that the cities were attacked in a wave of raids and destruction beginning from the north, causing mass depopulation and eventual abandonment of the cities. It is hypothesised that this is caused by a raiding group of peoples driven south under duress from the drought. Though most of the cities had collapsed by 2,000 BC, the sites retained a small population for periods after their fall before being ultimately abandoned. A remnant of the Callao culture survived in Cabintang, persisting up to around 1,870 BC, before also becoming depopulated in time.

Post-Callao period
After the fall of the Callao megalithic culture, the area began to revert from urbanised dwellings to rural life, and the population became more dispersed as the area entered into the Post-Callao period, which began around 1,960 BC. Various sites from this period, such as Cemetery C and Tavtavoan, show a continuity from the Callao megalithic culture through inherited traits such as slilted granaries, two-story buildings and construction methods, and the presence of marked boundary stelae. Alongside these inherited traits were new cultural innovations such as the lingling-o pendants, made of various materials including gold, shells, and wood, which first appeared around 1,200 BC. Jade carving would also emerge around 1,000 BC, with the first carved jade artifacts being found at the site at Mabat-án Viejo. Other finds from the period include the mysterious frying pans, of which the purpose remains unknown, though they are commonly hypothesised to be liquid mirror frames. Early signs of writing also appear at this time, with the emergence of what would become the Tumang logographs by around 1,250 BC, first found and used on inscriptions.

The Post-Callao period ended abruptly, however, by around 850 BC, with the incursion of the Avashta culture from the northeast. The Avashta were an equestrian culture who brought and  to Cagayan, along with. They were also highly militaristic, as evidenced by the sudden rise in fortified structures and burials showing violent deaths. But at the same time, the introduction of horses and horse-riding allowed travelling over greater distances, contributing to the foundation and reestablishment of trade routes across the region, ushering in a period of prosperity.

Iron Age
The Iron Age proper began around 700 BC, after a brief interlude following the Avashta incursion which introduced iron to the area. The Tumang logographs had developed into a full-fledged writing system as a variant of the was introduced through trade routes, appearing in records by 700 BC. This  initially coexisted with the old logographs before combining into a bipartite writing system by 500 BC, though the logographic component continued to decline in favour of the syllabic Brahmic component as time passed. With the advent of writing, the first historical accounts appear in the form of king lists and chronicles, giving the first records and attestations of the area and its states.

Cagayan during the Iron Age was politically fragmented, and was effectively a patchwork collection of various states. These states were generally, though another common element in governance was that of the , where a set of families, often 10,000 families in larger states, formed a deliberative council. The myriarch families held greater power than the and were often richer, though the myriarchy was often either the governing body of the state or formed an advisory body to the monarch. Smaller states and also banded together to form  in mutual interest and defense, which were essentially formalised alliances whose members were also in flux as states joined and left. They were often led by a leader as if they were a single state themselves, with the leader usually elected among the leaders of the member states, though some were ruled jointly.

Post-independence era
On 15 October 1877, representatives of the colonial government and of the revolutionary coalition signed the Declaration of Independence of the Kingdom of the Cagayan, which officially recognised Cagayan's independence, ending the Cagayano War of Independence. However, internal disputes soon led to the Santa Rosa convention, where after a contested election, de las Casas was deposed as supremo of the coalition and king of Cagayan, replaced by Severino Razón. de las Casas declared the results null and void, and the coalition grew increasingly divided between the pro-de las Casas Macaluluas and the pro-Razón Magdiwang factions. Razón later attempted to arrest de las Casas, leading to the Macaluluas faction drafting the Military Agreement of San Juan and creating a separate government, sparking a civil war by 1879.

After much brutal fighting, Razón defeated the Macaluluas forces at Tierra Negra in 1880, but the civil war exposed strained relations amongst the coalition armies, leading Razón to dissolve the coalition and claim absolute authority. However, it gave rise to yet more discontent as Razón was perceived to have flouted the ideals of the original Manifesto of Esperanza, setting off another series of rebellions against his rule. He was forced to step down after another election in 1882, and was replaced by Alejandro de los Ríos, a former Macaluluas leader, who then began reforms in changing the government from an to a  as the Transitional Republic of the Cagayan.

After the initial turmoil of 1877 to 1882, the government of de los Ríos allowed for rapid modernisation of the country. His rule was marked by economic stability and growth, technological advancement, and rapid expansion of infrastructure, but also growing economic inequality and widespread political repression. Despite elections being held every two years, he continued to hold power either through himself or through his associates in rigged elections. Widespread discontent led up to the Cabadbaran revolt and he was forced to concede in 1909, stepping down in favor of Vicente Mercado. Though Mercado would keep order for a short while, de los Ríos began a coup d’etat in 1911 and forcibly took control of the government, judicially murdering Mercado and installing himself as the of Cagayan, beginning a dictatorial regime. A reaction would not be sufficiently organised until 1912, which sparked yet another civil war.

Geography
Cagayan is located in Southern Kesh between latitudes 2°N and 12°S and longitudes 48°E and 52°E. It is bounded by Gxea to the southwest, Thobe to the northwest, Aftarestan and Atargistan to the north, Plot 211 to the northeast, Plot 208 to the southeast, and the South Kesh Sea to the south. Despite having a relatively large land area of 701,286 km², it has a limited stretch of coastline compared to other countries in its vicinity.

The northern part of the country is dominated by the Kamarband that runs through the middle of much of Kesh, and the river Cagayan runs from the mountains down to Imus where one of its major tributaries, the river Cañawaran, flows into it. The Kamarband gently slopes down into hilly terrain, with many ranges running across the north such as the Sarrat and Añghát ranges on the northeast and northwest of the country, respectively, and other rivers, such as the Agoo and Itomán, originate from these hills to flow into the Cagayan further south.

The southern part of the country, meanwhile, is dominated by floodplains produced by the foothills of the Kamarband continuing to slope down further south, and the Cagayan Delta that spans the entire coast. The river Cagayan, from Imus, flows down to the delta along with the river Payaqawan, which forms Cagayan’s southeastern borders with Plot 208. The delta is composed of two regions, which are the Delta Proper through which the river Cagayan empties into the Laguna de Cabo, and the Ibalong Peninsula which separates the Laguna de Cabo from the Bianagan Bay, through which the river Payaqawan empties into both.

Climate
Despite its elongated form, Cagayan experiences a generally uniform climate as a large part of the country comprising much of the south falls under the tropical savanna climate (As). A large swathe of the east, comprising most of the plains of the area, has the tropical monsoon climate (Am), while the northwest, being encompassed by the Kamarband, has the humid subtropical climate (Cfa) that gives way to a belt of tundra (ET) in higher altitudes.

Cagayan mainly has two seasons. The first is the wet season which lasts from late October to April as the seasonal Keshian Low forms over much of Southern Kesh, hastening the formation of storms in the region. Rainfall is also contributed by the, which also forms a trough with the winds of the Keshian monsoon, especially in the eastern monsoon plains. January and February are generally the wettest months of this season. The other season is the dry season, which lasts from May to early October as the Iapetus anticyclone gains strength, during which most of the country, due to its relatively inland location, experiences warm temperatures that can reach extremes up to 40°C.

Politics
Cagayan is a despite having a highly divergent system. As a, it effectively operates as a with various  in existence, though they work differently as largely informal, loosely-bound. This is due to the system itself lacking any measures related to political parties, as well as the focus on meaning that politicians do not have the power to push for legislation on their own, as these legislations have to come from their constituents. There are up to 80 known political parties with members in the Congress, the largest of which are Convergencia Popular – Libertad (CPL) and Alianzas Autóctonos (ALA). With the political divide tending more broadly towards one between those advocating for and those advocating for, parties have been coalescing into devolutionist and centralist parties. Since the foundation of the current state in the 1980s, the devolutionists have held a majority in Congress, and continue to do so to this day, mainly due to the country's experience with centralised government under the Junta Sindicalista Nacional in the early 20th century. On the other hand, the recent Southern Kesh brought about a small surge in popularity for centralism, though it has not been substantial enough to make any inroads.

Government
Cagayan is a with elements of, practicing  through. It has the elements of a confederation in that its administrative divisions enjoy near-total autonomy without a separate central government, though provided that these constituents do not contravene the Confederal Charter of the Cagayan, which serves as the country's. The Charter originated from a set of agreements between the cantons that came to constitute Cagayan in the aftermath of the Second Cagayano Civil War, which was eventually codified in 1981 and became the highest laws of the country.

The legislature and executive are condensed into one power, invested in the Congress of the Confederation of the Cagayan (Congreso de la Confederación del Cagayán) simply known as the Congress. It is a bicameral body consisting of a lower house, the Chambers of the Federations, Cantons, and Localities (Cámaras de las Federaciones, Cantones, y Barrios) or the Lower Chambers (Cámaras Inferiores), and an upper house, the Chamber of the Senators (Cámara de los Senadores) or the Upper Chamber (Cámara Superior). Legislators in the Lower Chambers, the, the intendents, and the federal presidents, represent their local constituencies, which are the , the , and the , respectively. The legislators in the Upper Chamber, the senators, are chosen independently of their local constituencies. Both are chosen by majority vote, with the legislators of the Lower Chambers elected by the councils of their local constituency, and the senators being elected from across the confederation.

The president serves as the, and is elected by the members of the Congress among themselves, which serves as the collective head of government. The president does not hold much power, as their function is merely to represent the country in official and international functions. When they are elected, their seat in the Congress becomes vacated, and if they come from the Lower Chambers, their seat representing their local constituency, and an election for an interim replacement takes place. If the president is dismissed, then they will return to their former seat in Congress, and the interim member of Congress is dismissed in turn.

Administrative divisions
Cagayan, as a confederation, is divided into 9 federations that serve as the main highest-level divisions of the country. These federations are then nominally composed of cantons, which are in turn composed of. However, each federation has the power to freely reorganise its constituents with their consent, and some, as a result, have other subdivisions aside from cantons and localities. However, these internal divisions do not hold much power outside their federation, and are not represented in the Lower Chamber of Congress. In addition, there are also cantons that do not have a higher-level division, which are the 21 independent cantons, and in these cases they simply act as de facto federations in their own right.

Economy
The Cagayano economy produced an estimated (nominal) of around $835.4 billion and its primary exports include,  and , , , fruits, rice, and coffee. Its unit of currency is the Cagayano peso (₱ or CAP).

As a, the Cagayano economy is transitioning from an economy largely based on , especially , to an economy becoming mainly based on and the. Currently, the economy is dominated by the industry and manufacturing sector, which makes up around 54.7% of the country's GDP, while the service industry and agriculture make up 33.1% and 12.2%, respectively.

The foundations of industry in Cagayan largely originate from the intense industrialisation programs of the Junta Sindicalista Nacional over the 1920s to the 1960s, which resulted in a rapid growth of and  as well as the massive build-up of infrastructure across the country. Though the industrialisation programs resulted in a sharp decrease in the and a series of severe famines due to neglect of the agricultural sector, the modern Cagayano economy continues to function at the expense of the industrial base built on these programs.

Agriculture and fishery
Agriculture constitutes the largest part of Cagayan's primary sector, contributing around 9% of the country's GDP. This number has been increasing over the past decade, with agriculture contributing to an ever greater percentage of GDP every year, which is largely the result of active government and direct popular projects, including, , and , along with increasing research and mechanisation. Currently, around 25% of the country's total land area is used for agricultural purposes, and around 35% of the workforce is employed in agriculture. A wide variety of crops are planted across Cagayan, though most of these crops are food crops. The most commonly cultivated crops are, , and , all grains. Other crops include, , , , and various fruits.

The agricultural sector consists of two main modes of production. They are the, usually owned by state or private companies and managed by hacienderos, and the , often family-owned or communally-owned. Most of Cagayan’s food supply comes from smallholdings, while are mainly supplied by plantations. This is because haciendas are characterised by consolidated, mostly relying on cash crop, in contrast to smallholdings' small-scale agriculture and  of cash and food crops. Certain labour-intensive cash crops such as coffee and are mainly supplied by smallholdings instead of haciendas, generally due to the amount of labour making mass cultivation unprofitable. However, the number of haciendas have been decreasing in recent years due to land reforms, which is projected to result in lower production of cash crops as more farmers shift to polyculture.

Demographics
The 2019 census conducted by the Office of Census and Statistics recorded Cagayan's population at 106,595,621 with a population growth of 1.63%. Nearly a fourth of the population, around 28 million, resides in the highly urbanised Cagayan Delta region. The first official census covering the entire modern-day area was taken in 1950 after the Northern Cagayan Expedition. Before that, the first official census held within Cagayan was conducted in 1802 by the Viceroyalty of the Cagayan and recorded a population of 5,862,325; however, only men aged between 20 to 70 were counted as the purpose of the census was for tax collection. The country currently possesses a relatively young population, with at least 40% of the population being born from 1990 onwards.

Cuisine
Cagayano cuisine is formed from the cuisines of the various ethnolinguistic groups across the country, such as the, , , , , and the , among others, and heavily influenced by , , and , in line with the history of the country itself. It constitutes a continuum of various regional cuisines, varying by historical context, ethnolinguistic groups, and most importantly, geography, which together affect the ingredients, seasonings, and cooking techniques used for the region’s dishes, which range from the simple (smoked fish) and  (omelette) to the highly elaborate  and  usually only served in feasts.

As with much of Southern Kesh, the staple food across Cagayan is. In meals, rice is always served with an ulam, which is usually translated as ‘viand’ but generally refers to any savoury dish served with the rice to provide it flavour. For this reason, Cagayano cuisine tends to favour highly robust flavours in its dishes, as they are often served as ulam. Leftover rice (bahao) is traditionally fried with garlic in the oil and sauces of the previous ulam, which itself is also mixed with the bahao to make. Other staple ingredients include (gatâ), which is used for sauces in dishes collectively known as, which literally means ‘cooked in coconut milk’, as well as guinisá, a fried preparation of , , and  directly derived from the Artemian  used as a base in many dishes.