The first inhabitants of Abra were the ancestors of the Bontocs and the Ifugaos. These inhabitants eventually left to settle in the old Mountain Province. Other early inhabitants were the Tingguians, or Itnegs, as they are also known.
Spanish era
In 1598, a Spanish garrison was established in Bangued to protect Christian Ilocanos from Tingguian raids. Originally the area was called El Abra de Vigan. During the British Occupation of the Philippines, Gabriela Silang and her army fled to Abra from Ilocos and continued the revolt begun by her slain husband, Diego Silang. She was captured and hanged by the Spanish in 1763. In 1818, the Ilocos region, including Abra, was divided into Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur. In 1846, Abra was created as a political-military province with Lepanto as a sub-province. It remained so until the arrival of the Americans in 1899.
American period
In 1908, the Philippine Commission again annexed Abra to Ilocos Sur in an attempt to resolve Abra's financial difficulties. On March 9, 1917, the Philippine Assembly re-established Abra as a province.
In 1942, the Japanese forces occupied the Philippines and entered Abra. Abra was liberated by the Philippine Commonwealth forces and local Cordilleran guerrillas during the Battle of Abra in 1945, at the end of the Second World War.
Modern history
The revolutionary Marxist priest, Conrado Balweg, who fought for the rights of the Cordillera tribes, began his crusade in Abra. After successfully negotiating a peace accord with Balweg's group in 1987, the Philippine government created the Cordillera Administrative Region, which includes Abra.
Geography
Abra is situated in the mid-western section of the Cordillera Administrative Region in Luzon. It is bordered by the provinces of Ilocos Norte on the northwest, Apayao on the northeast, Kalinga on the mid-east, Mountain Province on the southeast, and Ilocos Sur on the southwest. Abra has a total land area of. The province is hemmed in by the towering mountain ranges of the Ilocos in the west and the Cordillera Central in the east. The Abra River runs from the south in Benguet to the west and central areas, bisecting the whole Abra Valley. It is joined by the Tineg River originating from the eastern uplands at a point near the municipality of Dolores.
The 27 municipalities of the province comprise a total of 303 barangays, with Poblacion in La Paz as the most populous in 2010, and Pattaoig in San Juan as the least.
Demographics
The population of Abra in the was people, with a density of. Abra's inhabitants are mostly descendants of Ilocano settlers and members of the Tingguian tribe. Based on the 2000 census survey, Ilocanos comprised of the total provincial population of 209,146. Tingguians came in second at, while other ethnic groups in the province were the Ibanag at, Itneg at, and Tagalog at. The predominant languages are Ilocano and Itneg.
Economy
As of 1990, there were 743 cottage industries in Abra, of which 208 are registered with the Department of Trade and Industry. 59% are engaged in bamboo and rattan craft making, both leading industries in the area. Abra's economy is agriculture-based. Its major crops are rice, corn, and vegetables, root crops; commercial products include coffee, tobacco, and coconut. Extensive grassland and pasture areas are used for livestock production.
