Caoayan

Not to be confused with Cauayan.

Caoayan
Municipality
Municipality of Caoayan
The Caoayan Town Hall
Seal
Etymology: Bamboo
Motto:  Pardas Caoayan!
Map of Ilocos Sur with Caoayan highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Caoayan Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 17°32′49″N120°22′59″E / 17.5469°N 120.3831°E / 17.5469; 120.3831
Country	Philippines
Region	Ilocos Region
Province	Ilocos Sur
District	1st district
Founded	1825
Chartered	1911
Barangays	17 (see Barangays)
Government   [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
•  mayor of Caoayan [*]	Germelina Singson-Goulart
•  Vice Mayor	Pedro B. Belarmino
•  Representative	Deogracias Victor B. Savellano
•  Municipal Council	Members Maria Teresa C. Alquiza Francis T. Mendoza Visitacion P. Quilana Jose Q. Quadra Romel R. Balallo Melnan Q. Atendido Adrian T. Fenol Demetrio M. Briones
•  Electorate	14,080 voters (2022)
Area [2]
• Total	17.42 km2 (6.73 sq mi)
Elevation	5.0 m (16.4 ft)
Highest elevation	44 m (144 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2020 census) [3]
• Total	19,574
• Density	1,100/km2 (2,900/sq mi)
•  Households	4,838
Economy
•  Income class	4th municipal income class
•  Poverty incidence	15.60 % (2021) [4]
•  Revenue	₱ 86.49 million (2020)
•  Assets	₱ 447.4 million (2020)
•  Expenditure	₱ 90.55 million (2020)
•  Liabilities	₱ 64.43 million (2020)
Service provider
• Electricity	Ilocos Sur Electric Cooperative (ISECO)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	2702
PSGC	012907000
IDD  :  area code	+63 (0)77
Native languages	Ilocano Tagalog

Caoayan, officially the Municipality of Caoayan (Ilocano : Ili ti Caoayan; Filipino : Bayan ng Caoayan), is a municipality in the province of Ilocos Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 19,574 people. ^[3]

Caoayan is 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from Vigan and 411 kilometres (255 mi) from Manila.

Etymology

Caoayan Welcome Arch

During pre-Spanish times the port of Pandan was an important trading post for Chinese and inter-island vessels, and one of the commodities once traded there was bamboo. With the arrival of the Spaniards came the project to identify the names of places in the Philippines. Spaniards, patrolling the area for pirates known as tirong, came to a place near the island called Puro, and asked the name of the place. Thinking that the Spaniards wanted to know the name of the bamboo floating in rafts on the Baggoc River waiting to be traded, they answered "kawayan." The Spaniard then listed the place's name as Caoayan.

From that time on, the place's registered name was Caoayan, and has been registered as a barrio of the capital town Bigaan. It became a parish in 1825. The first missionaries that founded Saint Paul College of Ilocos Sur landed in Pandan. A commemorative marker stands at Pandan Port to commemorate the event.

History

Caoayan, which was once a barrio of Ciudad Fernandina, now Vigan, became a municipality in 1911. Don Dimas Querubin was the town's founder and got elected as the first municipal mayor. He was succeeded by his son, Don Asterio Q. Querubin I, who served for four terms and became president of the Mayors' League of Ilocos Sur.

Geography

Barangays

Caoayan is politically subdivided into 17 barangays.  ^[5] Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

• Anonang Mayor
• Anonang Menor
• Baggoc
• Callaguip
• Caparacadan
• Don Alejandro Quirolgico (Poblacion)
• Don Dimas Querubin (Poblacion)
• Don Lorenzo Querubin (Poblacion)
• Fuerte
• Manangat
• Naguilian
• Nansuagao
• Pandan
• Pantay Tamurong
• Pantay-Quitiquit
• Puro
• Villamar

Climate

Climate data for Caoayan, Ilocos Sur
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	30 (86)	31 (88)	33 (91)	34 (93)	33 (91)	31 (88)	30 (86)	30 (86)	30 (86)	31 (88)	30 (86)	29 (84)	31 (88)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	19 (66)	19 (66)	21 (70)	23 (73)	25 (77)	25 (77)	24 (75)	24 (75)	24 (75)	22 (72)	21 (70)	19 (66)	22 (72)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	9 (0.4)	11 (0.4)	13 (0.5)	23 (0.9)	92 (3.6)	122 (4.8)	153 (6.0)	137 (5.4)	139 (5.5)	141 (5.6)	42 (1.7)	14 (0.6)	896 (35.4)
Average rainy days	4.6	4.0	6.2	9.1	19.5	23.2	24.0	22.5	21.5	15.2	10.5	6.0	166.3
Source: Meteoblue (modeled/calculated data, not measured locally) [6]

Demographics

Population census of Caoayan

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1903 6,201 —     1918 7,860 +1.59% 1939 8,306 +0.26% 1948 9,064 +0.98% 1960 11,045 +1.66%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1970 12,670 +1.38% 1975 13,375 +1.09% 1980 14,070 +1.02% 1990 15,637 +1.06% 1995 15,799 +0.19%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 2000 17,199 +1.84% 2007 18,914 +1.32% 2010 18,551 −0.70% 2015 19,861 +1.31% 2020 19,574 −0.29%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority [7] [8] [9] [10]

In the 2020 census, Caoayan had a population of 19,574. ^[3] The population density was 1,100 inhabitants per square kilometre (2,800/sq mi).

Economy

A series of roadside eateries just outside of the town's parish church in Caoayan, Ilocos Sur

Poverty incidence of Caoayan

5 10 15 20 2006 12.50 2009 14.38 2012 15.22 2015 10.67 2018 4.05 2021 15.60 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18]

Our Lady of Hope Church

Due to its geographical location, fishing has been the main source of livelihood of the inhabitants. Next is agriculture where farmers planted onions, tomatoes, rice and corn bound. The town is also known for its loom-weaving industry which dates back before Spanish regime. Palafox and Associates have declared Caoayan as the fish-bowl and onion basket of Ilocos Sur.

Boat-sailing was one of the major industries of Caoayan but was eased out as means of transportation with the onset of modern highways especially those connecting the Ilocos provinces to Manila and the Cagayan Valley. The provincial government has recognized the Caoayano skill by awarding locals who are engaged in boat-making and calesa-manufacturing as living legends of Ilocos Sur.

Currently, LGU-Caoayan has launched the country's first ever One-Barangay, One-Product (OBOP) program. Although its official One-Town, One-Product (OTOP) as per DTI's initiatives is Abel Iloko, only 5 out of the 17 barangays are into loom-weaving. Under Mayor Goulart, the OBOP was designed to give all barangays equal economic development opportunity. Under this program, non- Abel Iloko barangays are empowered to adopt their respective OBOPs depending on the raw materials that are indigenous and abundant in their communities.

The OBOP has now produced a wide array of local products: processed Rosangis (clam shells), Bagoong Ipon, native Cakes and Delicacies, processed peanuts, Pickled Singkamas (turnips), Smoked Tilapia, Corn Husk souvenir items, Water Lily handicrafts, Smoked/De-boned Bangus (milkfish), with others that are following soon. Abel Iloko weavers have also undergone training programs that will enable them to come up with high-end Abel outputs.

Caoayan is also presently riding on the coattails of Vigan, which has been declared as one of the new 7 wonder cities of the world. To be able to get a fair share of the city's tourist influx, Caoayan opened the Pinakbet Farm in Barangay Nansuagao, offering the quintessential Ilokano dish - Pinakbet - as its centerpiece. These tourism-based projects have been launched to achieve the town's vision of improving all Caoayanos' standard of living through additional revenue and employment generation.

Government

Local government

Main article: Sangguniang Bayan

Caoayan, belonging to the first congressional district of the province of Ilocos Sur, is governed by a mayor designated as its local chief executive and by a municipal council as its legislative body in accordance with the Local Government Code. The mayor, vice mayor, and the councilors are elected directly by the people through an election which is being held every three years.

Elected officials

Members of the Municipal Council
(2019–2022) ^[19]

Position	Name
Congressman	Deogracias Victor B. Savellano
Mayor	Germelina S. Goulart
Vice-Mayor	Pedro B. Belarmino
Councilors	Maria Teresa C. Alquiza
	Francis T. Mendoza
	Visitacion P. Quilana
	Jose Q. Quadra
	Romel R. Balallo
	Melnan Q. Atendido
	Adrian T. Fenol
	Demetrio M. Briones

Notable personalities

The ancestral house of Don Dimas Querubin, Caoayan, Ilocos Sur's most famous individual.

• Elpidio Quirino - 6th President of the Philippines

References

1.   Municipality of Caoayan | (DILG)
2. "2015 Census of Population, Report No. 3 – Population, Land Area, and Population Density" (PDF). Philippine Statistics Authority. Quezon City, Philippines. August 2016. ISSN   0117-1453. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 25, 2021. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
3. Census of Population (2020). "Region I (Ilocos Region)". Total Population by Province, City, Municipality and Barangay. Philippine Statistics Authority . Retrieved 8 July 2021.
4. "PSA Releases the 2021 City and Municipal Level Poverty Estimates". Philippine Statistics Authority. 2 April 2024. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
5. "Province: Ilocos Sur". PSGC Interactive. Quezon City, Philippines: Philippine Statistics Authority . Retrieved 12 November 2016.
6. "Caoayan: Average Temperatures and Rainfall". Meteoblue. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
7. Census of Population (2015). "Region I (Ilocos Region)". Total Population by Province, City, Municipality and Barangay. Philippine Statistics Authority . Retrieved 20 June 2016.
8. Census of Population and Housing (2010). "Region I (Ilocos Region)" (PDF). Total Population by Province, City, Municipality and Barangay. National Statistics Office . Retrieved 29 June 2016.
9. Censuses of Population (1903–2007). "Region I (Ilocos Region)". Table 1. Population Enumerated in Various Censuses by Province/Highly Urbanized City: 1903 to 2007. National Statistics Office.
10. "Province of Ilocos Sur". Municipality Population Data. Local Water Utilities Administration Research Division. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
11. "Poverty incidence (PI):". Philippine Statistics Authority. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
12. "Estimation of Local Poverty in the Philippines" (PDF). Philippine Statistics Authority. 29 November 2005.
13. "2003 City and Municipal Level Poverty Estimates" (PDF). Philippine Statistics Authority. 23 March 2009.
14. "City and Municipal Level Poverty Estimates; 2006 and 2009" (PDF). Philippine Statistics Authority. 3 August 2012.
15. "2012 Municipal and City Level Poverty Estimates" (PDF). Philippine Statistics Authority. 31 May 2016.
16. "Municipal and City Level Small Area Poverty Estimates; 2009, 2012 and 2015". Philippine Statistics Authority. 10 July 2019.
17. "PSA Releases the 2018 Municipal and City Level Poverty Estimates". Philippine Statistics Authority. 15 December 2021. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
18. "PSA Releases the 2021 City and Municipal Level Poverty Estimates". Philippine Statistics Authority. 2 April 2024. Retrieved 28 April 2024.
19. "2019 National and Local Elections" (PDF). Commission on Elections. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2020-10-06. Retrieved March 11, 2022.

External links

• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Philippine Census Information
• Local Governance Performance Management System