San Narciso, officially the Municipality of San Narciso ( ilo, Ili ti San Narciso; tl, Bayan ng San Narciso), is a 4th 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 state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

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 ...

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 30,759 people. San Narciso is famous for its beaches along the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phi ...

that are suited for surfing. Many local celebrities have already visited San Narciso to surf in its beaches which is from Iba, from

Olongapo Olongapo, officially the City of Olongapo ( fil, Lungsod ng Olongapo; ilo, Siudad ti Olongapo; xsb, Siyodad nin Olongapo), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Located in the province of Zambales ...

, and from

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

. The

Philippine Merchant Marine Academy The Philippine Merchant Marine Academy ( fil, Akademiya sa Bapor Pangkalakalan ng Pilipinas) also referred to by its acronym PMMA) is a maritime higher education institution operated by the Philippine government in San Narciso, Zambales. Studen ...

or PMMA is located here. San Narciso also houses the Magsaysay Memorial College, which offers bachelors courses and other 2-year courses. Also located in San Narciso is the Zambales Academy, one of the oldest secondary education institution in the province, it is where former president

Ramon Magsaysay Ramon del Fierro Magsaysay Sr. (August 31, 1907 – March 17, 1957) was a Filipino statesman who served as the seventh president of the Philippines, from December 30, 1953, until his death in an aircraft disaster on March 17, 1957. An automo ...

took his secondary education.

History

The Municipality of San Narciso was founded in the early part of 18th century. The migrants from the Ilocandia arrived in the area and established their settlement in Alusiis which was the first name of the pueblo that later became San Narciso. San Narcsio became the official name of the town by a Royal Decree issued by the Spanish Governor General Narciso Claveria and Archbishop Jose Soque on February 12, 1846. The people of San Narciso participated in the Philippine Revolution against Spain. When the

Katipunan The Katipunan, officially known as the Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan or Kataastaasan Kagalang-galang na Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK; en, Supreme and Honorable Association of the Children of the Nation ...

was organized by Andres Bonifacio and sent his representatives in San Narciso, many prominent men of the town became members. Pantaleon Dumlao became the head of the local organization.

Geography

San Narciso is located in a relatively flat plain. West of the town is the

and to the east is bordered by the Sto. Tomas river are the Zambales Mountain Ranges. Average elevation is above sea level and the highest elevation is above sea level.

Climate

San Narciso has a

tropical monsoon climate An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ...

(Am) with little to no rainfall from November to April and heavy to extremely heavy rainfall from May to October.

Barangays

San Narciso is subdivided into 17

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 metropolita ...

Demographics

In the 2020 census, the population of San Narciso, Zambales, was 30,759 people, with a density of .

Economy

The town is mostly agricultural with most families owning farmland to plant

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...

and other crops such as string beans,

onions An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the on ...

and other vegetables. Commerce is centered in the town center and the public market. There are also a number of

poultry Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, quails, ...

and

pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus ...

farms in the municipality mostly located in the outskirts. In recent years, tourism has increased in the municipality. Due to its close proximity to

which is just a 3-hour drive away, many residents of the capital visit its beaches specially around summertime. This in effect has increased the economic activity in the municipality and have provided jobs and opportunities to its residents.

Culture

The first settlers of San Narciso came from

Paoay, Ilocos Norte Paoay, officially the Municipality of Paoay ( ilo, Ili ti Paoay; fil, Bayan ng Paoay), is a 4th class municipality in the province of Ilocos Norte, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 25,001 people. The town is hom ...

and

Agno, Pangasinan Agno, officially the Municipality of Agno ( pag, Baley na Agno; ilo, Ili ti Agno; tgl, Bayan ng Agno), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Pangasinan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 29,947 people. T ...

which was then a part of Zambales. They brought forth with them customs and traditions such as honoring their dead thru prayers and

novenas A novena (from Latin: ''novem'', "nine") is an ancient tradition of devotional praying in Christianity, consisting of private or public prayers repeated for nine successive days or weeks. The nine days between the Feast of the Ascension and P ...

. Family members and relatives come together to offer prayers and recite names of deceased relatives. One unique part about these practices is the serving of food, usually

pancit Pancit ( ), also spelled pansít, is a general term referring to various traditional noodle dishes in Filipino cuisine. There are numerous types of pancit, often named based on the noodles used, method of cooking, place of origin, or the ingr ...

, puto and ''ginataang bilo-bilo'' or what locals call ''tambo-tambon''g. It is a local delicacy made from glutinous

balls,

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively cultivated ...

, banana,

jackfruit The jackfruit (''Artocarpus heterophyllus''), also known as jack tree, is a species of tree in the fig, mulberry, and breadfruit family ( Moraceae). Its origin is in the region between the Western Ghats of southern India, all of Bangladesh, ...

, coconut milk and tapioca pearls.

Government

Municipal executives

;Spanish regime: * 1884 Tomas Bernabe Gobernadorcillo * 1886 Mariano Apolinario Gobernadorcillo * 1887 Paulo Fogata Gobernadorcillo * 1888 Esteban Foton Gobernadorcillo * 1889 Mariano Marañon Gobernadorcillo * 1890 Francisco Fajarito Gobernadorcillo * 1891 Gregorio Farañal Gobernadorcillo * 1892 Leocadio Firme Gobernadorcillo * 1893 Juan Flordeliza Dumlao Gobernadorcillo * 1894 Quirico Amon Sr. Gobernadorcillo * 1895 Luis Fogata Gobernadorcillo * 1895 Cipriano Fogata Gobernadorcillo ;Revolutionary government: * 1897 Cipriano Fernandez Capitan Municipal * 1898 Casamiro Amon Capitan Municipal 1 * 1900 Vicente Posadas Capitan Municipal ;American regime: * 1903–1904 Simeon Marañon Presidente Municipal * 1905–1906 Angel Dumlao Presidente Municipal * June 1906-Jan. 8, 1908 Simeon Villanueva Presidente Municipal * June 9, 1908-Dec. 1909 Angle Dumlao Presidente Municipal * 1910–1912 Victor Amos Presidente Municipal * 1912–1916 Mariano Villanueva Presidente Municipal * 1916–1919 Marcos Fuerte Presidente Municipal * 1919–1922 Severino Fuertes Presidente Municipal * 1922–1925 Paulino Delos Santos Presidente Municipal * 1926–1931 Esteban Florita Presidente Municipal * 1932–1934 Donato Amon Presidente Municipal ;Commonwealth: * 1934–1940 Ireneo Delos Reyes Municipal Mayor * 1941-Oct. 1942 Pacifico Fuerte Municipal Mayor ;Japanese Occupation: * Oct. 1942–1944 Sebastian Fogata Municipal Mayor ;Liberation Military Government: * February 1945 Gerardo Evangelista Municipal Mayor * May 1945 – July 1946 Pacifico Fuerte Municipal Mayor * 1947–1948 Severino Fuertes Municipal Mayor ;Republic of the Philippines: * Aug. 1948–1955 Sebastian Fogata Municipal Mayor * Jan. 1956–1960 Jose Delos Santos Municipal Mayor * Jan. 1960–1963 Sebastian Fogata Municipal Mayor * Jan. 1963–1986 Francisco A. Galvez, Jr. Municipal Mayor * 1986–1989 Quirico F. Abrajano, Jr. Municipal Mayor * 1989–1992 Francisco A. Galvez, Jr. Municipal Mayor * 1992–2001 Quirico F. Abrajano, Jr. Municipal Mayor * 2001 – 2010 William T. Lim Municipal Mayor * 2010 - 2016 Peter T. Lim Municipal Mayor * 2016 to 2019 La Rainne Abad-Sarmiento Municipal Mayor * 2019 to 2022 William T. Lim Municipal Mayor * 2022 to present La Rainne Abad-Sarmiento Municipal Mayor

References

7. https://pia.gov.ph/provinces/zambales

External links

San Narciso Profile at PhilAtlas.com
* Philippine Standard Geographic Code {{Authority control Municipalities of Zambales Surfing locations in the Philippines