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Mexico (also known as ''Masiku''), officially the Municipality of Mexico ( pam, Balen ning Mexico; tl, Bayan ng Mexico), is a 1st 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 ...
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 out ...
of
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 ...
, the
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 173,403 people. It was also formerly known as Nuevo México during the Spanish period.


History

According to
folk etymology Folk etymology (also known as popular etymology, analogical reformation, reanalysis, morphological reanalysis or etymological reinterpretation) is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more famili ...
, the original pre-Hispanic name of the village was purportedly ''Masicu'' or ''Maca-sicu'', which the Spaniards spelled as "México". It is claimed that this was a reference to an abundance of '' chico'' trees. However ''chico'' trees are not
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...
to the Philippines and were introduced by the Spaniards from what is now
Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...
(Country). Another claim is that it is derived from ''siku'' ("elbow") and was a reference to the elbow-shaped bends of the nearby Abacan and
Pampanga River The Pampanga River is the second largest river on the island of Luzon in the Philippines (next to Cagayan River) and the country's fifth longest river. It is in the Central Luzon region and traverses the provinces of Pampanga, Bulacan, and Nueva ...
s. But there are no records of the town ever being called ''Masicu''. Instead, the origin of the latter name is believed to be simply a common mispronunciation by the locals. According to the Augustinian records in ''Libros de Gobierno Eclesiástico'', the town was founded as a river trading port at around 1581 and was originally named Novo México (the
Old Spanish Old Spanish, also known as Old Castilian ( es, castellano antiguo; osp, romance castellano ), or Medieval Spanish ( es, español medieval), was originally a dialect of Vulgar Latin spoken in the former provinces of the Roman Empire that provided ...
form of Nuevo México, "New Mexico") after
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
. Mexico, Pampanga, defintely received immigrants from Mexico since it is recorded that there were thousands of Mexican migrants to the Philippines, per year,Garcıa de los Arcos, "Grupos etnicos", 65–66 back when the Philippines was part of Mexico-City governed
Viceroyalty of New Spain New Spain, officially the Viceroyalty of New Spain ( es, Virreinato de Nueva España, ), or Kingdom of New Spain, was an integral territorial entity of the Spanish Empire, established by Habsburg Spain during the Spanish colonization of the Amer ...
. The Spanish colonists made México the capital of the newly formed Province of Pampanga. Gaspar de San Agustin wrote that being the capital, México was one of the most “beautiful and charming” centers in the province. A lavish church made of stone and tiles, the Parish of Santa Monica, was built in 1581 with Masangsang and Matúlid serving as its ''visitas''. Mexico also formerly included the city of San Fernando, including parts of
Angeles City , anthem = Himno ning Angeles (Angeles Hymn) , subdivision_type3 = District , subdivision_name3 = , established_title = Settled , established_date = 1796 , established_title1 = Chartere ...
(formerly the ''
barrio ''Barrio'' () is a Spanish word that means " quarter" or " neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city, usually delimited by functional (e.g. residential, commercial, industrial, etc.), social, a ...
'' San Angelo). In 1660, Don Francisco Maniago, a native leader from México, led the Pampanga Revolt against the Colonial Government. It was caused by the imposition of forced labor (''polo'') and rice tributes (''bandala'') by the Spanish colonial government. Maniago also inspired similar revolts in neighboring cities. These were suppressed in 1661 by
Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...
Sabiniano Manrique de Lara Sabiniano Manrique de Lara, born in Málaga in 1609, died in Málaga, 16 November 1679,Salazar, Historia genealogica de Lara, Vol.2, cap.VII, p.776 and 780 was Spanish Governor-General of the Philippines Islands from 1653 to 1663, the third longe ...
. The Spanish colonial authorities stripped México of its political importance after the Pampanga Revolt by moving the provincial capital further downstream to Bacolor. But it retained its strategic economic importance especially among the Lúsung Chinese and their mestizo descendants. México was still a regular drop off point of forest products from the upper reaches of the Ábacan River. It was also a favored destination by merchants from as far north as Pangasinan. By the 18th century, the Chinese traders and their mestizo de sangley descendants living in México, Guagua and Malabon had formed and maintained business and social alliances with each other. Cascos and
sampan A sampan is a relatively flat-bottomed Chinese and Malay wooden boat. Some sampans include a small shelter on board and may be used as a permanent habitation on inland waters. The design closely resembles Western hard chine boats like ...
s maintained the flow of goods along the Malabon-Guagua-México chain. Like the Chinese section of Manila, the commercial center of México became known as the Parián. In 1898, General Maximino Hizon, rallied Kapampángans to fight the Spanish Colonial forces under Emilio Aguinaldo's revolutionary banner and ordered the execution of the Parish priests of México and San Fernando. When the Americans replaced the Spaniards as the new colonists, General Maximino Hizon soon rose up to become supreme commander of all the Philippine Forces in Pampanga. He was captured by the Americans in 1901 and exiled to Guam after refusing to pledge his allegiance to the United States. He died in exile on September 1, 1901.Foreman, J., 1906, The Philippine Islands, A Political, Geographical, Ethnographical, Social and Commercial History of the Philippine Archipelago, New York: Charles Scribner's Sons


Geography


Barangays

Mexico is administratively subdivided into 43
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 ...
s.


Climate


Demographics

In the 2020 census, the population of Mexico, Pampanga, was 173,403 people, with a density of .


Religion

Parish churches and Spanish-era chapels: * Santa Monica Parish Church and Belfry was built by Fr. Jose dela Cruz in 1665, but was destroyed during an earthquake in 1880. What remains is just the Belfry Tower of the former Augustinian-run church. Near the 17th century Belltower of Mexico, one can also find the St. Benedict's Institution de Mexico, an Augustinian convent that was constructed in time with the Santa Monica Parish Church in 1665. Although Augustinian records such as the Estado of 1612 indicates that Mexico has one convent and two priests during that time. * Good Shepherd Parish Church, Pandacaqui Ressetlement * Our Lord's Annunciation Parish Church, San Vicente * San Jose Parish Church, San Jose Malino * San Miguel de Archangel Parish Church, Anao * Santo Domingo de Guzman Parish Church * San Jose Matulid chapel is believed to be the oldest chapel in Pampanga. * Sabanilla chapel. The Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary chapel, commonly referred to as the Sabanilla chapel (''bisitas ning Sabanilla''), is a stone chapel located between the fork roads of the barangay leading to rice fields. Like the San Jose Matulid chapel, no available documents tell of the exact date and history of the chapel. Notable features of the structure are the saint's niche flanked by decorative columns and carved stone blinds located on rectangular windows of the façade.


Religious and cultural traditions

*Good Friday rites: The faithful remember the passion and death of Jesus by the pondering om the Seven Last Words of Christ and the "''Tanggal''" (a re-enactment of how Jesus’ body was taken down from the cross). After the "Prusisyung Pasu at Pamangutcut" (Procession of the Scenes and Burial of Christ), the traditional "''burul''" (literally means: wake) where the Santo Entierro seems to be in a wake follows. In here, people visit and pray before the image, after which, in the midnight of Good Friday, there is a procession of the Virgen dela Soledad (Our Lady of Solitude). This is a ‘silent procession’ meditating and joining with the Virgin's sorrow and grief. Usually, single men and women join the procession believing that they will be blessed in their opted state of ‘single blessedness' in life. *Easter Sunday celebration: The faithful celebrate Easter. During the day, the Filipino tradition of "''Salubong/Encuentro''" is done, after which the "Pacbung Judas" or the burning of Judas' effigy follows. *April 24: This is regarded as the Mexico Day, following the date of the establishment of the town and parish on April 24, 1581. (Also the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Augustine). During the day, the parish organizes the Augustinian Festival as a tribute to the Augustinian forefathers of the town. A procession of different Augustinian saints and blesseds is held. Among the images joining the procession are Saint Monica, Saint Augustine, Saint Nicholas of Tolentino, Saint Rita of Cascia, Saint Thomas of Villanova, Saint John of Sahagun, San William the Hermit, Saint Magdalene of Nagasaki, Saint Ezequiel Moreno and Our Lady of Consolation and Cord. *May 4: Mexico's town fiesta is celebrated in honor of its patron saint, Saint Monica (Mother of Saint Augustine). *September 4: The people of Mexico celebrate the feast of Virgen dela Consolacion y Correa (Our Lady of Consolation and Cord; Patroness of the Augustinian Order) during which they receive blessed cinctures imitating the gesture of the Virgin Mary giving her own cincture to Saint Monica during her grief and sorrow at her son's misgivings. *September 10: The Sanikulas Festival is celebrated in honor of Saint Nicolas de Tolentino. Bread/cookies (a local delicacy in the town with arrowroot as their main ingredient) are eaten. The tradition is inspired by the story of San Nicolas when he was ill for some time and his advancement to old age started to manifest. He was about to die when his superiors asked him to eat a little meat (for he was a vegetarian) to be nourished, after all he is needed by his community and the souls in purgatory, which he had been praying for. Although he wanted to follow the advice of his superiors he also acknowledged the power and value of fasting towards God's merciful love. He then sought the help of the Virgin Mary through a prayer. Moved by his prayers, she appeared with the baby Jesus in her arms. She handed Nicolas a small piece of bread and asked him to dip it in the water contained in a chalice being held by the baby Jesus. Following her advice, he immediately recovered from his illness, and had more strength than he had ever had before. From then on, Nicolas would bless little pieces of bread, which he would hand out among the people for them to be healed. *December 15–24: Christmas is welcomed by the annual "''Lubenas Pascu''". During this celebration, they parade colorful lanterns and decorated carrozas. According to Tantingco, Lubenas came from the word ''novena'', which means nine days, referring to the nine-day ''simbang gabi''. But while the rest of the country was content with attending dawn masses for nine consecutive days, Kapampangans went a step farther by holding a procession on the eve of every ''simbang gabi'' with a procession after dinner, which means they slept late, and then woke up before dawn for the ''simbang gabi'' (or ''simbang bengi'' in Kapampangan).


Economy


Education

It has various educational institutions including: Elementary/Primary *Mexico Ecumenical Dev't. Center for Children Inc. *Our Lady of Guadalupe School and Play Matters Therapy Center in Lagundi *School of Saint Brother Benilde, a De La Salle-supervised private school *San Juan Elementary School *Mexico Central School (Mexico South) *Sto.Rosario Elem School (Central School) (Mexico North) *Pandacaqui Resettlement Elementary School High School/Secondary *Don Jesus Gonzales High School *San Juan High School *Mexico National High School *Diosdado Macapagal High School (San Pablo) *St Joseph Academy (San Antonio) Tertiary: *Don Honorio Ventura State University (Mexico Campus)


References


Books

*Gaspar de San Agustin, ''Conquistas de las Islas Filipinas 1565-1615'', Translated by Luis Antonio Mañeru, 1st bilingual ed panish and English published by Pedro Galende, OSA: Intramuros, Manila, 1998 * Michael Raymon Tayag-Manaloto Pangilinan, ''Siuálâ ding Meángûbié''. * Gaspar de San Agustin, ''Conquistas de las Islas Filipinas; 1565–1615'', 1st Bilingual Edition, Intramuros: 1998. * Luciano P.R. Santiago, ''Laying the Foundations: Kapamangan Pioneers in the Philippine Church, 1592-2001'', Angeles City: 2002. * Mariano A. Henson, ''Pampanga and Its Towns (AD 1300-1965)'', Angeles: 1965. * John Alan Larkin, ''The Pampangans: Colonial Society in a Philippine Province'', Berkley, 1972. * The Luther Parker Collection, ''Datos historicos de este municipio de Mexico'', Provincia de la Pampanga, Islas Filipinas, translated from Spanish by Antonio Prima. * ''The Historical Data Papers'', Mexico, Bureau of Public Schools, 1953. * Teresita Gimenez Maceda, ''Mga Tinig Mula sa Ibaba: Kasaysayan ng Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas at Partido Sosialista ng Pilipinas sa Awit, 1930–1955'', QC, 1996. * Yoshikawa Eiji, Taikóki (''The History of the Life of Toyotomi Hideyoshi''), Tokyo, 1967. * Robby Tantingco, Lubenas is Pampanga's precious cultural gem. Indung Kapampangan. December 13, 2006.


External links


Mexico Profile at PhilAtlas.com
*
Philippine Standard Geographic Code 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 ...
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