Abucay, officially the Municipality of Abucay, ( tl, Bayan ng Abucay), is a 3rd class
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
in the
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...
of ,
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 ...
. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 42,984 people.
The mainly agricultural and fishing town is situated on the northeastern portion of the
Bataan Peninsula
Bataan (), officially the Province of Bataan ( fil, Lalawigan ng Bataan ), is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the entir ...
, along
Manila Bay
Manila Bay ( fil, Look ng Maynila) is a natural harbor that serves the Port of Manila (on Luzon), in the Philippines. Strategically located around the capital city of the Philippines, Manila Bay facilitated commerce and trade between the Phili ...
, with a total land area of . It is from
Balanga and from Manila, accessible via the
Bataan Provincial Expressway
The Roman Superhighway or Bataan Provincial Highway, formerly known as the Bataan Provincial Expressway, is a , two- to four-lane major highway that connects the municipality of Dinalupihan to the municipality of Mariveles in Bataan, Philippines. ...
, off Exit 25, or the parallel National Road in Bataan. Its westernmost elevated section is located within the
Bataan National Park
Bataan National Park is a protected area of the Philippines located in the mountainous interior of Bataan province in the Central Luzon Region. The park straddles the northern half of Bataan Peninsula near its border with Subic Bay Freeport Zone. ...
.
History
The first printing press in the Archipelago was found in this town.
Tomas Pinpin Tomas may refer to:
People
* Tomás (given name), a Spanish, Portuguese, and Gaelic given name
* Tomas (given name), a Swedish, Dutch, and Lithuanian given name
* Tomáš, a Czech and Slovak given name
* Tomas (surname), a French and Croatian su ...
, the first Filipino printer, learned the art from Fray Francisco Blanca de San Jose and Juan de Vera, a Chinese printer at the
University of Santo Tomas
The University of Santo Tomas (also known as UST and officially as the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, Manila) is a private, Catholic research university in Manila, Philippines. Founded on April 28, 1611, by Spanish friar Miguel ...
.
On June 23, 1647, a fierce battle was fought between the Dutch invaders and the
Pampango defenders in the near the Abucay church area. Nearly 200 Pampangos were put to death and 40 others together with
Pampanga
Pampanga, officially the Province of Pampanga ( pam, Lalawigan ning Pampanga; tl, Lalawigan ng Pampanga ), is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Lying on the northern shore of Manila Bay, Pampanga is bordered by Tarlac ...
’s Spanish ''alcalde mayor'' (town mayor) Antonio de Cabrera. Dominican priests Father Geronimo Sotomayor and Father Tomas Ramos were taken to
Batavia
Batavia may refer to:
Historical places
* Batavia (region), a land inhabited by the Batavian people during the Roman Empire, today part of the Netherlands
* Batavia, Dutch East Indies, present-day Jakarta, the former capital of the Dutch East In ...
.
[admin (2012-06-25)]
"Abucay Church (Parish of St. Dominic de Guzman), Bataan"
. Philippine Churches. Retrieved on 2014-12-18.
Geography
Abucay borders
Balanga (the capital city) to the south,
Samal to the north and northwest,
Morong to the west, and
Manila Bay
Manila Bay ( fil, Look ng Maynila) is a natural harbor that serves the Port of Manila (on Luzon), in the Philippines. Strategically located around the capital city of the Philippines, Manila Bay facilitated commerce and trade between the Phili ...
to the east.
According to the
Philippine Statistics Authority
The Philippine Statistics Authority (Filipino: ''Pangasiwaan ng Estadistika ng Pilipinas''), abbreviated as PSA, is the central statistical authority of the Philippine government that ''collects, compiles, analyzes and publishes statistical inf ...
, the municipality has a land area of constituting of the total area of Bataan.
Topography of Abucay varies from the mountainous terrain of
Mount Natib
Mount Natib is a dormant stratovolcano and caldera complex in the province of Bataan on western Luzon Island of the Philippines. The volcano complex occupies the northern portion of the Bataan Peninsula. The mountain and adjacent surrounding i ...
caldera in the west to the coastal areas of the province along the shore of
Manila Bay
Manila Bay ( fil, Look ng Maynila) is a natural harbor that serves the Port of Manila (on Luzon), in the Philippines. Strategically located around the capital city of the Philippines, Manila Bay facilitated commerce and trade between the Phili ...
. Six rivers with a combined length of originate from the mountain flowing in the west-to-east direction.
[
]
Climate
Barangays
Abucay is politically subdivided into 9 barangay
A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolitan ...
s.
Demographics
In the 2020 census, Abucay had a population of 42,984. The population density was .
Most of the people of Abucay speak the Tagalog language
Tagalog (, ; ; '' Baybayin'': ) is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by the ethnic Tagalog people, who make up a quarter of the population of the Philippines, and as a second language by the majority. Its standardized form, ...
. There are also residents who speak "Kapampangang Hilaw," a dialect variation of the Kapampangan language
Kapampangan or Pampangan is an Austronesian language, and one of the eight major languages of the Philippines. It is the primary and predominant language of the entire province of Pampanga and southern Tarlac, on the southern part of Luzon's c ...
, in Barangay Mabatang.
Economy
Abucay is basically an agricultural and fishing town. Besides Manila Bay, existing fishponds cover an area of of which are under intensive use while the rest are non-functioning but available for utilization. These fishponds are rich with commercial species like milkfish
The milkfish (''Chanos chanos'') is the sole living species in the family Chanidae. However, there are at least five extinct genera from the Cretaceous.
The repeating scientific name (tautonym) is from Greek ( ‘mouth’).
The species has many ...
, tilapia
Tilapia ( ) is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish from the coelotilapine, coptodonine, heterotilapine, oreochromine, pelmatolapiine, and tilapiine tribes (formerly all were "Tilapiini"), with the economically most ...
, pla-pla and shrimp
Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...
s.
Agricultural lands in Abucay produces rice, corn, root crops, legumes, vegetable and various kinds of fruits as well as forest-grown bamboo and buho.["Abucay, Bataan - Discover Bataan Peninsula"]
My Bataan. Retrieved on 2014-12-25. Most of the ''walis tambo'' (local brooms) sold in Baguio
Baguio ( ,
), officially the City of Baguio ( ilo, Siudad ti Baguio; fil, Lungsod ng Baguio), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Philippines. It is known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines", ...
come from Abucay.
Government
The political seat of the municipal government is located at the Municipal Hall (also called Town Hall). During the Spanish colonial period, the ''Gobernadorcillo'' was the chief executive who held office at the town hall, then called the ''Presidencia''.
During the American period from 1898 to 1946, the elected Mayor and local officials, including the appointed ones hold office at the Municipal Town Hall. The executive and legislative departments perform their functions at the Sangguniang Bayan
The Sangguniang Bayan () is the local legislative branch of the municipal governments in the Philippines. It is responsible for passing ordinances and resolutions for the administration of a municipality. Its powers are defined by the Local Gov ...
(Session Hall) and Municipal Trial Court, respectively, which are located at the Municipal Hall.
Abucay's incumbent elected officials are Mayor Liberato P. Santiago ( NPC), a land developer and a nth-time re-electionist, and Vice Mayor Ma. Khristine G. Dela Fuente ( Lakas-Kampi-CMD). Santiago owns various villages and subdivisions - all converted from ricefields or fishponds. The eight (8) Sangguniang Bayan members led by the Vice Mayor hold office at the Abucay Sangguniang Bayan Session Hall.
Tourism
Saint Dominic de Guzman Parish Church
One of the oldest in the Philippines, the first Abucay Church was established in 1587 and was administered by the Dominicans in 1588. The present church was built sometime in the early 1600s, the exact year is still unknown. The Church was badly damaged by the earthquake of September 16, 1852, and again by a fire in 1870. Father Jose Diego Pelaez rebuilt the church.
The church still houses the bells donated in 1839 and 1859.[ The five bells of the Abucay Church were restored on January 17, 1978, by U.S. Naval Base Facility in ]Subic Bay
Subic Bay is a bay on the west coast of the island of Luzon in the Philippines, about northwest of Manila Bay. An extension of the South China Sea, its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility, U.S. Naval Base Subi ...
, Zambales
Zambales, officially the Province of Zambales ( fil, Lalawigan ng Zambales; ilo, Probinsia ti Zambales; Pangasinan: ''Luyag/Probinsia na Zambales''; xsb, Probinsya nin Zambales), is a province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon re ...
province according to a historical marker in the church.
The Parish of Saint Dominic de Guzman has a population of 19,501 Catholics. Its patron saint is Saint Dominic de Guzman and the town's feast day is August 8. The present parish priest is Rev. Fr. Josue V. Enero succeeding Rev. Msgr. Remigio R. Hizon, Jr. in June 2017. The church belongs to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Balanga
The Diocese of Balanga is one of the 72 dioceses of the Catholic Church in the Philippines. It was established on March 17, 1975, by Pope Paul VI.
The diocese comprises the whole civil province of Bataan, with 37 parishes, one minor basilica, ch ...
under the Vicariate of Saint Dominic de Guzman.
Other attractions
Landmarks include the following:
* ''Tomas Pinpin Monument'' — a memorial to Tomas Pinpin Tomas may refer to:
People
* Tomás (given name), a Spanish, Portuguese, and Gaelic given name
* Tomas (given name), a Swedish, Dutch, and Lithuanian given name
* Tomáš, a Czech and Slovak given name
* Tomas (surname), a French and Croatian su ...
, the "Patriarch of Filipino Printing" in barangay Ibayo. The monument stands at the center of Tomas Pinpin Memorial Elementary School, the central and the biggest public elementary school in Abucay.
* ''Maria Canon Statue'' — In Barangay Sibul, a tower was erected by the Mie-ken Daiichi Shiēseo of the Japanese Sohyōshin Sports in 1978 to invoke the repose of dead souls from the World War II period.
* ''Pasukulan Falls'' — located in west Abucay in the forested valley of Mount Natib. The place is ideal for picnics.
* ''Sibul Springs'' — located in western Abucay featuring sulfuric swimming pools with a wide area for outdoor recreation. Its main attraction is the natural spring believed to provide muscle pain relief.
* ''Christmas Village in Mabatang'' — Christmas celebration in Mabatang extends to the streets of every sitio in the barangay, which are lavishly adorned to rejoice the season.
* ''Abucay Cockpit''
Infrastructure
Electric power for Abucay is served by the Peninsula Electric Cooperative (PENELCO).
A sanitary landfill
Sanitation refers to public health conditions related to clean drinking water and treatment and disposal of human excreta and sewage. Preventing human contact with feces is part of sanitation, as is hand washing with soap. Sanitation systems ...
in Sitio Macao in Barangay Capitangan is the first of its kind in the province of Bataan.
Education
Universities and colleges
* Colegio de San Juan de Letran-Abucay - the Abucay campus of the Colegio de San Juan de Letran
The Colegio de San Juan de Letran, (transl: College of San Juan de Letran) also referred to by its acronym CSJL, is a private Catholic coeducational basic and higher education institution owned and run by the friars of the Order of Preachers i ...
is situated in Dominican Hills, west of town center of Abucay, on the slopes of Mount Natib
Mount Natib is a dormant stratovolcano and caldera complex in the province of Bataan on western Luzon Island of the Philippines. The volcano complex occupies the northern portion of the Bataan Peninsula. The mountain and adjacent surrounding i ...
at about in elevation.
* Bataan Peninsula State University-Abucay campus - formerly the Bataan National Agricultural School (BNAS) now part of the state university
A state university system in the United States is a group of public universities supported by an individual state, territory or federal district. These systems constitute the majority of public-funded universities in the country.
State univers ...
in Bataan.
Gallery
File:Abucay,Bataanjf3687.JPG, Town plaza
File:Abucay,Bataanjf3700 06.JPG, Town center
File:Abucay,Bataanjf3688 02.JPG, Abucay Park
File:Abucay,Bataanjf3688 04.JPG, Auditorium, Plaza
File:ParishChurchofSt.DominicdeGuzmanjf3681_06.JPG, Abucay World War II heroes monument
References
External links
* Philippine Standard Geographic Code
{{Authority control
Municipalities of Bataan
Populated places on Manila Bay
1587 establishments in the Philippines
Populated places established in 1587