Aurora (province)

Aurora, officially the Province of Aurora ( fil, Lalawigan ng Aurora; ilo, Probinsia ti Aurora), is a province in the Philippines located in the eastern part of Central Luzon region, facing the Philippine Sea. Its capital is Baler and borders, clockwise from the south, the provinces of Quezon, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, and Isabela.

Before 1979, Aurora was part of the province of Quezon. Aurora was, in fact, named after Aurora Aragon, the wife of Pres. Manuel L. Quezon, the president of the Philippine Commonwealth, after whom the mother province was named.

History

Spanish era

In 1572, the Spanish explorer Juan de Salcedo became the first European to visit the region that would be known as Aurora while he was exploring the northern coast of Luzon. Salcedo reportedly visited the towns of Casiguran, Baler and Infanta.

In the early days of the Spanish colonial period, Aurora was ecclesiastically linked to Infanta, which today rests further south, in northern Quezon. The earliest missionaries in the province were the Franciscans, who had established missions in Baler and Casiguran in 1609. Due to lack of available personnel, the region was given to the jurisdiction of the Augustinians and Recollects in 1658, but was returned to the Friars Minor in 1703. Other early missions included Dipaculao, established in 1719, and Casiguran, in 1753.

District of El Principe

The early history of Aurora is linked to Quezon province, of which it formed a part, and Nueva Ecija, under which the area was governed as the District of El Príncipe. In 1902, the district was separated from Nueva Ecija and transferred to the province of Tayabas (now Quezon).

Independence

Aurora became a sub-province of Quezon in 1951 through ''Republic Act No. 648'', and finally became an independent province during the presidency of Ferdinand E. Marcos, through ''Batas Pambansa Blg. 7'' enacted on November 21, 1978.

Administrative assignment

As original part of the province of Quezon, Aurora was part of the Southern Tagalog Region (Region IV). Upon the issuance of Executive Order No. 103, dated May 17, 2002, by then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the province of Aurora was moved to Central Luzon (Region III). The provinces south of Aurora formed as Calabarzon and Mimaropa.

Geography

Aurora is a coastal province covering an area of in east-central Luzon. To the north, it is bordered by the Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park of Isabela, to the west by the central range of the Sierra Madre which contains the Casecnan Protected Landscape and Aurora Memorial National Park, to the south by the Umiray River, and to the east by the Philippine Sea which opens to the Pacific Ocean. The San Ildefonso Peninsula lies in the province's northern portion between the Philippine Sea and the Casiguran Sound.

Topography

The province covers a portion of the Sierra Madre mountain range. As such, the elevation is generally steep to very steep and only about 14% of the province's total area is flat.

Climate

Aurora's climate is classified as Tropical rainforest climate. It experiences significant rainfall throughout the year. Because the coastal province faces the Pacific Ocean, it is frequently visited by typhoons.

Administrative divisions

Aurora is politically subdivided into 8 municipalities, all encompassed by a lone legislative district.

Barangays

The 8 municipalities of the province comprise a total of 151 barangays, with ''Suclayin'' in Baler as the most populous in 2010, and ''Dibalo'' in San Luis as the least.

Demographics

The population of Aurora in the 2020 census was 235,750 people, with a density of .

Based on the 2000 census survey, Tagalogs comprised of the total provincial population of 173,589, and about less than 1/3 of the population were Ilocano at . Other ethnic groups in the province were Kasiguranin at , Bicolano at , Kankanaey at , Bisaya at , Dumagat (Umiray) at , and Cebuano at .

There are also pockets of Negritos, called Dumagats. Most Dumagats are living in the hillsides or mountains. They are believed to have result from a fusion of Austronesian and Melanesian ancestries, and survive from fishing and hunting. There are three kinds of Dumagats in Aurora province, the Umiray Dumagat, Casiguran Dumagat, and the Palanan Dumagat.

Tagalogs, some originating from Palanan and Infanta, Quezon, came in to the area to trade by boat, some Tagalogs settled in Aurora (especially Baler) and married with the Aeta and Ilongots. The Spanish brought in Filipino acolytes from other areas of Luzon from 1609 to 1899. During this period, Baler can only be access by sea though the town saw increase migration from other parts of Luzon such as Laguna, Tayabas, and Bicol from the south. The opening of the Baler-Bongabon Road allowed easier migration of people from Ilocos and Isabela areas from the north. The road also allowed Igorot people and Batangueño Tagalogs to settle in Baler & other places of Aurora. In 1896, a group of Ilocanos from Aringay, La Union came to settle in San Jose. In 1906, another group of Ilocanos arrived from La Union and Pangasinan.

The Tagalog and Ilocano languages are spoken by their respective ethnic groups. The province primarily speaks Tagalog dialect called ''Tayabas Tagalog'' that resembles a dominant part of Batangas Tagalog with a heavy mixture of Ilocano, Bicolano and Cebuano words; the dialect is also known for distinctive expressions like ''hane'', ''kawasa'', and ''yano''. Ilocano spoken in Aurora was affected by Tayabas Tagalog accent. Most English is spoken in the municipalities of Baler and Maria Aurora.

Religion

The people of Aurora are heavily Christianized (large majority being Roman Catholic by 87%) as a result of hundreds of years of Spanish colonization. Some other Christian believers are also present which includes Methodists, Aglipayan Church, Baptists, Born Again Christians, Jehovah's Witnesses, Members Church of God International, Iglesia ni Cristo and Seventh-day Adventist while Muslims are also found which presence is traced to migration by some people from some parts of Mindanao. Muslims, Anitists, animists, and atheists are also present in the province.

Economy

Corn crops, rice and other major agricultural crops are grown in Aurora. It has a total of 38, 928 or 13% of provincial Land Area of Agricultural land. It also has of rice plantation that averages 24,000 tons every year.

Aurora Pacific Economic Zone

Casiguran is home to the Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority or APECO a special economic zone located in this coastal town. Created in 2007 by virtue of ''Republic Act No. 9490'' through the efforts of Sen. Edgardo Angara and Rep. Juan Edgardo Angara, it is expected be a major transshipment hub going to the pacific region. It aims to boost social, economic and industrial developments in Aurora and nearby provinces by generating jobs for the people, improving the quality of their living conditions, advocating an eco-friendly approach to industrialization and enhancing the potential of the community in productivity.

Gallery

File:Halls of Justice, Regional Trial Court in Baler, Aurora.jpg, ''Bulwagan ng Katarungan''
(RTC), Suklayin, Baler
File:Aurorapnpjf.jpg, Aurora Police Provincial Office, NPC, PNP, Baler
File:Tourismjf.jpg, Aurora Provincial Tourism Office (Suklayin)
File:Baler Bay aerial.JPG, Baler Bay
File:FvfMariaAurora7579 17.JPG, Bust of Maria Aurora

Notable people

*Sonny Angara, senator since 2013.
* Bellaflor Angara-Castillo, governor from 2004 to 2013.

See also

* Aurora Quezon
* Siege of Baler
* Sierra Madre mountain range

References

External links

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{{Authority control

Provinces of the Philippines
States and territories established in 1979
1979 establishments in the Philippines
Former sub-provinces of the Philippines