Пиліппин Араят тауы және оның тарихы

Volcano in the Philippines

Mount Arayat is a potentially active stratovolcano sleeping in the
province of Pampanga on the island of Luzon, Philippines, rising to a height of The volcano has a breached crater on its northwest side with a smaller andesitic dome in the collapse amphitheater. There are historical records of eruption in Arayat and the only dated rocks are 530 and 650 thousand year old basalts predating the collapse and formation of the lava dome. However, weak steaming is currently present in some of the heavily eroded vents on the North Western side of the summit. Additionally an analysis report indicates that the volcano erupted over the last 2,000 years, but it is believed to refer to the volcanic activity of the volcano. Mount Arayat is located in a flat agricultural region at The southern half of the mountain lies within the municipality of Arayat, Pampanga, while the north half and the mountain summit lies within Magalang, Pampanga. 10 mile (16 km) to the west of Mount Arayat is Angeles City and the former Clark Air Base. The active volcano Mount Pinatubo is located west. Manila is located to the south. The volcano was officially declared as a tourist spot on 1997. The mountain is mystical, the legendary home of Aung/Aring Sinukuan/Sinkuan/Suku or the Fairy known as diwata Maria Sinukuan depending on which version of the story the readers or listeners prefer, but in ancient Kapampangan folklore as well as the research gathered by Kapampangan students of Henry Otley Beyer, it was and is the abode of Apung/Aring Sinukuan, rival of Namalyari of Mount Pinatubo, who is in varying versions, the son of Cargon Cargon who was mortally wounded in a fight with a giant from the Zambales Mountain Range which is said to be the home of Apu Namalyari. The mountain is currently under an immense deforestation threat. Locals have cited that there is a man in the mountain, angry due to the deforestation that was happening. Others say that it was Aring Sinukuan.

The first mention of the origin of Arayat is a travel diary from 1696 by Gemelli Careri. The author mentions that according to the natives, the original name of the mountain is Bondo Kalaya, which later became Bondoc Alaya (literally "Mount Alaya"). Later on, Alaya became Arayat.

During the Philippine Revolution, the Filipino revolutionaries retreated on Mount Arayat after the failure of the Cry of Nueva Ecija during September 1896 when the Spanish counter attacked at San Isidro. In September 1897, Gen. Francisco Macabulos retreated to Mount Arayat along with his men to avoid capture by the Spanish authorities in Tarlac, which used to be under the control of his forces. Several engagements would occur here afterwards until his surrender on January 15, 1898.

On Mount Arayat, Colonel Thorpe, an American guerrilla officer, was captured by Japanese forces on December 10, 1942. Mount Arayat would then be used as a hiding place for communist Filipino guerrillas called the Hukbalahap afterwards. Nicanor Songco "Bapa" developed a plan on how they could spread the information of their escape to Mount Arayat to be safe in the height of the war. This plan would be the reason for the survival of their family from Bulacan, Pampanga and Nueva Ecija who joined them at that time. When they found out that the Japanese soldiers had arrived at their place, they quickly left and went to Mount Arayat but when they were about to go up, the officers of the Japanese soldiers came to arrest him. Nicanor surrendered to ensure everyone's safety. He was tortured by having his skin removed from his arm. Following this, he was released by the Japanese soldiers and he was able to return to Mount Arayat and his family.

Mount Arayat stands in the middle of the flat Central Luzon Plain, consisting of rice paddies and a typical elevation of about AMSL. The mountain is topped by a circular volcanic crater about in diameter, much of which has collapsed on the western and part of the northern rim due to erosion. This has resulted in a breached crater which opens in a west northwest direction. This area is the apparent source of a major debris avalanche deposit that forms hummocky terrain beyond the west and northwest sides of the volcano. The summit stands on the northeast side of the breached crater, known as North Peak, while the Pinnacle Peak is located on the southeast crater rim. Post collapse activity formed an andesitic lava dome known as White Rock in the collapse amphitheater.

In April 2022, President Rodrigo Duterte signed a law declaring Mount Arayat as a protected landscape under the National Integrated Protected Areas System.