Ibanags

Ibanags 

(also, Cagayans), a people inhabiting the central Cagayan River valley, on the northern island of Luzon in the Philippines. Population, approximately 400,000 (1970 estimate). The language of the Ibanags belongs to the Indonesian language group and is similar to the subdialects of the Gaddang and Calagua-Kalinga mountain tribes. The Ibanags are evidently the members of these mountain tribes who adopted Christianity. Although the Ibanags are Catholics, there are considerable vestiges of pre-Christian beliefs. The Ibanags are primarily engaged in rice and tobacco growing. They have been exposed to strong cultural influences from a neighboring people, the Ilokanos.