Surigao Strait (Filipino: ''Kipot ng Surigaw'') is a strait in the southern

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, between the

Bohol Sea The Bohol Sea, also called the Mindanao Sea, is a sea located between the Visayas and Mindanao islands in the Philippines. It lies south of Bohol and Leyte and north of Mindanao. Siquijor and Camiguin are its two major islands. The major c ...

and the

Leyte Gulf Leyte Gulf is a gulf in the Eastern Visayan region in the Philippines. The bay is part of the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, and is bounded by two islands; Samar in the north and Leyte in the west. On the south of the bay is Mindana ...

of the

Philippine Sea The Philippine Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean east of the Philippine archipelago (hence the name), the largest in the world, occupying an estimated surface area of . The Philippine Sea Plate forms the floor of the sea. Its ...

Geography

It is located between the regions of

Visayas The Visayas ( ), or the Visayan Islands ( Visayan: ''Kabisay-an'', ; tl, Kabisayaan ), are one of the three principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Luzon and Mindanao. Located in the central part of the archipelago, i ...

and

Mindanao Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of t ...

. It lies between northern

Mindanao Island Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of t ...

and

Panaon Island Panaon Island is a small island in the Philippines, in the province of Southern Leyte. It lies south of Leyte, separated from Dinagat to the east, and Mindanao to the southeast by Surigao Strait. The Mindanao Sea lies to the southwest. Panaon ...

, and between the

Dinagat Islands Dinagat Islands ( Cebuano: ''Mga Pulo sa Dinagat''; Surigaonon: ''Mga Puyo nan Dinagat''; Kabalian: ''Mga Puyo san Dinagat''; Waray: ''Mga Purô han Dinagat''; Filipino: ''Mga Islang Dinagat''), officially the Province of Dinagat Islands, is a ...

and

Leyte island Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has be ...

. The strait is deep but has a strong current, up to . The northern entrance of the Surigao Strait is marked by a navigation light on Suluan Island. The

Hibuson Gibusong, variously Hibusong and Hibuson, is a Waray language, Waray-speaking island in Mindanao, Philippines, in the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Dinagat Islands. It lies northwest of Dinagat Island, at the north end of Surigao Strai ...

island lies at the north end of the Surigao Strait.

Transport

It is regularly crossed by numerous

ferries A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

that transport goods and people between

and Mindanao. The ferries stop at Liloan, Southern Leyte and

Surigao City Surigao City, officially the City of Surigao ( Surigaonon: ''Siyudad nan Surigao''; ceb, Dakbayan sa Surigao; fil, Lungsod ng Surigao), is a 1st class component city and capital of the province of Surigao del Norte, Philippines. According to ...

Surigao del Norte Surigao del Norte ( Surigaonon: ''Probinsya nan Surigao del Norte''; ceb, Amihanang Surigao; Tagalog: ''Hilagang Surigao''), officially the Province of Surigao del Norte, is a province in the Philippines located in the Caraga region of Mindanao. ...

Etymology

According to legend, the strait was named after Solibao, a

Negrito The term Negrito () refers to several diverse ethnic groups who inhabit isolated parts of Southeast Asia and the Andaman Islands. Populations often described as Negrito include: the Andamanese peoples (including the Great Andamanese, the On ...

chieftain, who lived at the outlet of the

Surigao River Surigao () may refer to: *Surigao (province), a former province of the Philippines, chartered in 1901 and dissolved in 1960. It is currently partitioned into three provinces which includes: ** Surigao del Norte, a province in the Philippines **Suri ...

. Migrating Visayan fishermen gradually formed a settlement there, and when Spanish explorers visited the place, they probably misheard the name as Surigao instead of Solibao. A different theory explains that Surigao may be derived from the Spanish word ''surgir'', meaning "swift water" or "current".

History

In March 1521 during the first circumnavigation of the Earth,

Ferdinand Magellan Ferdinand Magellan ( or ; pt, Fernão de Magalhães, ; es, link=no, Fernando de Magallanes, ; 4 February 1480 – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer. He is best known for having planned and led the 1519 Spanish expedition to the Eas ...

and his crew were the first Europeans to sail through the strait. The Battle of Surigao Strait took place here on October 25, 1944. The American battleships of the U.S. 7th Fleet Support Force commanded by Rear Admiral

Jesse B. Oldendorf Jesse Barrett "Oley" Oldendorf (16 February 1887 – 27 April 1974) was an admiral in the United States Navy, famous for defeating a Japanese force in the Battle of Leyte Gulf during World War II. He also served as commander of the American naval ...

were able to "

cross the T Crossing the ''T'' or capping the ''T'' is a classic naval warfare tactic used from the late 19th to the mid-20th centuries in which a line of warships crosses in front of a line of enemy ships to allow the crossing line to bring all their guns ...

" against Vice Admiral

Shoji Nishimura A is a door, window or room divider used in traditional Japanese architecture, consisting of translucent (or transparent) sheets on a lattice frame. Where light transmission is not needed, the similar but opaque ''fusuma'' is used (oshiire/ ...

's Southern Force; nearly all of which, including the battleships ''Yamashiro'' and ''Fusō'', were sunk. All but one of these American battleships had been in Pearl Harbor during the Japanese sneak attack and either damaged or sunk and subsequently refloated and repaired.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Straits of the Philippines Bohol Sea Philippine Sea Landforms of Surigao del Norte Landforms of Southern Leyte Landforms of Dinagat Islands Maritime Southeast Asia