Peñaranda, officially the Municipality of Peñaranda (,

tagalog language Tagalog ( ,According to the ''OED'' anMerriam-Webster Online Dictionary ; ''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 ...

: ''Ili ti Peñaranda''), is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Nueva Ecija Nueva Ecija, officially the Province of Nueva Ecija ( ; ; ; ), is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. Its capital is the city of Palayan, while Cabanatuan, its former capital, is the largest Local gove ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 32,269 people. It is bounded by the municipalities of General Tinio and San Leonardo and the city of

Gapan Gapan , officially the City of Gapan (, Ilocano: ''Siudad ti Gapan'', Kapampangan: ''Ciudad/Lakanbalen ning Gapan''), is a component city in the province of Nueva Ecija, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 1 ...

. The area was originally called Mapisong and was a part of the municipality of

. The area was organized into a municipality by José Maria Peñaranda, a Spanish engineer, and subsequently named after him. Peñaranda was once known for its high-quality crop called ''ikmo'', a plant used by older Filipinos as a chewing substance. Recently however, the crop is on the brink of extinction. Rice remains a flourishing farm produce. In 2012, the

National Commission for Culture and the Arts The National Commission for Culture and the Arts of the Philippines (NCCA; , ) is the official government agency for culture in the Philippines. It is the overall policy making body, coordinating, and grants giving agency for the preservation, d ...

(NCCA) and the ICHCAP of

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

published ''Pinagmulan: Enumeration from the Philippine Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage''. The first edition of the

-backed book included Nueva Ecija's ''Arakyo'', signifying its great importance to Philippine intangible cultural heritage. The local government of Nueva Ecija, in cooperation with the NCCA, is given the right to nominate the Arakyo in the

UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists UNESCO established its Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage with the aim of ensuring better protection of important intangible cultural heritages worldwide and the awareness of their significance.Compare: This list is published by the Intergove ...

Geography

Barangays

Peñaranda is politically subdivided into 10

barangay The barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as ''barrio'', is the smallest Administrative divisions of the Philippines, administrative division in the Philippines. Named after the Precolonial barangay, precolonial po ...

s, as shown below. Each barangay consists of

purok A ''purok'' () is an informal division within a barangay in the Philippines. While not officially considered a local government unit (LGU), a ''purok'' often serves as a unit for delivering services and administration within a barangay. ''Pur ...

s and some have

sitios A ''sitio'' (Spanish language, Spanish for "site") in the Philippines is a territorial enclave that forms part of a barangay. Typically rural, a ''sitios location is usually far from the center of the barangay itself and could be its own bar ...

. * Callos * Las Piñas * Poblacion I * Poblacion II * Poblacion III * Poblacion IV * Santo Tomas * Sinasajan * San Josef * San Mariano (Maugat)

Climate

Demographics

Religion

Majority of the people is Roman Catholic. Other religious groups have churches and places of worship in the municipality.

Economy

Primarily depends on rice & vegetable farming, poultry and piggery.

Culture

Every May, Peñaranda residents stage a musical drama called "Araquio", a re-enactment of Christians' quest led by

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

Helena and King Constantine for the Holy Cross where

Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

was nailed. Actors and actresses garbed in colorful and cute costumes dramatize this century old tradition which features sword fights between the Christians and Moros. Peñaranda is also known for its mouth-watering, native

rice cakes A rice cake may be any kind of food item made from rice that has been shaped, condensed, or otherwise combined into a single object. A wide variety of rice cakes exist in many different cultures in which rice is eaten. Common variations include ...

such as espasol, putong puti and

sapin-sapin Sapin-sapin is a layered glutinous rice and coconut dessert in Philippine cuisine. It is made from rice flour, coconut milk, sugar, water, flavoring, and coloring. It is usually sprinkled with latik or grated coconut among other toppings. The d ...

. Schedule of Barangay Fiesta: * ''Santo Tomas'' - every First weekend of the month of May * ''Callos'' - every 5th & 6th day of the month of May * ''Las Piñas'' - every 11th & 12th day of the month of May * ''San Joseph'' - every Third weekend of the month of May * ''Sinasajan'' - every 21st & 22nd day of the month of May * ''Poblacion I-IV'' (Town Fiesta) - every Last weekend of the month of May * ''San Mariano'' - (TBA)

Education

Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology Peñaranda Off-Campus (Academic Extended Venue) commenced operation in June 2005. This is a joint undertaking of the Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology and the Local Government Unit of Peñaranda, Nueva Ecija. It was first operated during the term of Former Mayor Felix A. Corpuz. It is located at the vicinity of the Penaranda National High School. The first administrator was Nomereo J. Gaboy, a retired School Principal. Peñaranda Campus is under the administration of Mayor Ferdinand R. Abesamis and Mr. German L. Del Rosario is the Campus Administrator.

Gallery

File:Penaranda12jf.JPG, Welcome marker File:Peñaranda Town Hall in Nueva Ecija.jpg, Town hall, seat of the Government File:Stleonardojf26.JPG, alt=Peñaranda Campus, Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology File:Elementaryjf.JPG, Santo Tomas Elementary School File:Assissijf.JPG, Parish of St. Francis of Assisi File:Patiojf.JPG, Plaza of the Church

References

External links

* Philippine Standard Geographic Codebr>Philippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{DEFAULTSORT:Penaranda, Nueva Ecija Municipalities of Nueva Ecija