Maria Aurora, officially the Municipality of Maria Aurora (; ), is the only landlocked

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 ...

Aurora An aurora ( aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly observed in high-latitude regions (around the Arc ...

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 44,958 people. Despite being the only landlocked town of the province, it is the most populated municipality of Aurora. The Millennium Tree in Balete Park and the lush green landscape is Maria Aurora's main tourist asset. The town was named after Maria Aurora "Baby" Aragon Quezon, the first daughter of Philippine President

Manuel L. Quezon Manuel Luis Quezon y Molina (, , , ; 19 August 1878 – 1 August 1944), also known by his initials MLQ, was a Filipino people, Filipino lawyer, statesman, soldier, and politician who was president of the Commonwealth of the Philippines from 1 ...

and First Lady Aurora Aragon Quezon. Maria Aurora, along with her mother Aurora, was ambushed and assassinated by elements of the

Hukbalahap The Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon (), better known by the acronym Hukbalahap, was a Filipino communist guerrilla movement formed by the farmers of Central Luzon. They were originally formed to fight the Japanese, but extended their fight int ...

movement in Bongabon,

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 ...

History

The original settlers of the town now known as Maria Aurora were Bugkalot. These people are characterized as barbaric, wild and head hunters. They first established their settlement in an area known as “Egabong” (meaning muddy stream) and was considered at that time as “no man’s land”, since no Christian dared to enter the place for fear of beheading. The arrival of a man from Liliw, Laguna named Jose Bitong who was considered as the first Christian adventurer/settler, changed the course of event when he married a young Bugkalot lady and later won the admiration and confidence of the Bugkalots. From then, he became one of their dynamic leaders and was respected by the Bugkalot Tribe and Christians as well. This opened the gate for the Spanish missionaries to settle in the area and converted the settlers into Catholicism.Maria Aurora: Historical Background
/ref> In 1771, the settlement was named and known as San Jose de Casecnan or San Jose de Casignan in honor of Jose Bitong and Casecnan River which the Spanish believed it flows near the settlement. In 1896, a group of Ilocano settlers from Aringay,

La Union La Union (), officially the Province of La Union (; ; ; ; ; ), is a coastal province in the Philippines situated in the Ilocos Region on the island of Luzon. The province's capital, the San Fernando, La Union, City of San Fernando, is the most ...

came to stay in the town, which was part of District of El Príncipe, Nueva Ecija. In 1906, another group of Ilocanos arrived from La Union and

Pangasinan Pangasinan, officially the Province of Pangasinan (, ; ; ), is a coastal Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region of Luzon. Its capital is Lingayen, Pangasinan, Lingayen while San Carlos, Pangasi ...

. Because of dominance of Ilocanos in Maria Aurora, Rang-ay Festival is celebrated, wherein ''rang-ay'' is an Ilocano word for progress. The word is distinctively chosen to confine the focus of celebration on the progressive vision of the people of Maria Aurora that are dominantly Ilocanos. The municipality of Maria Aurora was established on July 21, 1949, through the Executive Order No. 246 out of various portions of the municipalities of

Baler A baler or hay baler is a piece of farm machinery used to compress a cut and raked crop (such as hay, cotton, flax straw, salt marsh hay, or silage) into compact bales that are easy to handle, transport, and store. Often, bales are config ...

, then part of

Quezon Quezon, officially the Province of Quezon () and historically known as Tayabas, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon Regions of the Philippines, region on Luzon. Lucena, a highly urbanized ci ...

province. Through Presidential Proclamation No. 687, September 23, 2024 was declared a special working day in Maria Aurora, Aurora to celebrate the birth anniversary of the town's namesake, María Aurora "Baby" Quezon.

Proposal for the Municipality of Dr. Juan C. Angara

A separate municipality called ''Dr. Juan C. Angara'' is being proposed under Senate Bill No. 3132 and House Bill No. 6518. Named after the father of former provincial governor Bella Angara and former Senator

Edgardo Angara Edgardo Javier Angara (, September 24, 1934 – May 13, 2018) was a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as Senate President from 1993 to 1995. Angara had the second longest tenure in the history of the Senate, serving four terms and a ...

, the proposed municipality shall have a land area of and is composed of western barangays of Dianawan, Decoliat, Galintuja, San Juan, Suguit, Bazal, Pungio, Villa Aurora and Dialatnan. San Juan will serve as poblacion or the seat of government.

Geography

According to the

Philippine Statistics Authority The Philippine Statistics Authority (; PSA) is the central statistical authority of the Philippine government that collects, compiles, analyzes, and publishes statistical information on economic, social, demographic, political affairs, and gene ...

, the municipality has a land area of constituting of the total area of Aurora. Maria Aurora is the only non-coastal municipality of the province. It is bounded by

and Dipaculao on the east, San Luis on the south, Bongabon in the Province of

on the west and Alfonso Castañeda in the Province of Nueva Vizcaya on the north-west; Maria Aurora is the only municipality of Aurora bordered by Nueva Vizcaya. Maria Aurora is situated from the provincial capital

, and from the country's capital city of

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

Barangays

Maria Aurora is politically subdivided into 40

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 in the matrix 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 ...

Climate

Demographics

In the 2020 census, Maria Aurora had a population of 44,958. The population density was .

Economy

Government

List of mayors

Maria Aurora was administered by 12 mayors since its establishment in 1949. * Mayor Pedro C. Montero (''Jul 21, 1949 – Dec 31, 1951'') * Mayor Pedro S. Wenceslao (''Jan 1, 1952 – Jun 21, 1958'') * Mayor Brigido E. Collado (''Jun 22, 1958 – Dec 31, 1959'') * Mayor Leon B. Hulipas (''Jan 1, 1960 – Dec 31, 1963'') * Mayor Leonardo T. Ong (''Jan 1, 1964 – Aug 15, 1977'') * Mayor Juan R. Ortiz (''Aug 16, 1977 – May 8, 1986'') * OJC Adriano C. Bitong (''May 9, 1986 – Dec 1, 1987'') * OJC (LGO) Nepumuceno W. Gonzales (''Dec 1, 1987 – Dec 15, 1987'') * Sec. Lorenzo O. Mangaoang (''Dec. 16, 1987 – Feb 2, 1988'') * Mayor Adriano C. Bitong (''Feb 3, 1988 – Jun 30, 1998'') * Mayor Brigido M. Noval (''Jun 30, 1998 – Jun 30, 2004'') * Mayor Ariel S. Bitong (''Jun 30, 2004 – Jun 30, 2013'') * Mayor Amado M. Geneta (''Jun 30, 2013 – Jun 30, 2022'') * Mayor Ariel S. Bitong (''Jun 30, 2022 – Present'')

Transportation

Maria Aurora can be accessed by road through two routes: the Canili–Pantabangan Road, which passes Nueva Ecija's northern towns and through Alfonso Castañeda, Nueva Vizcaya; and the Nueva Ecija–Aurora Road, built on the 1940s that traverses the Sierra Madre Mountains and passes through the towns of Baler and San Luis. Today, the Canili–Pantabangan Road is much more commonly used, though it extends travel time for 1 hour, it is the safest route for vehicles. Originally, the Nueva Ecija–Aurora Road is the standard road for bus commuters, the shortest but the steep turns and unpaved roads makes it the most dangerous for heavy vehicles. There are five bus lines that serve Maria Aurora's vicinity: Maria Aurora Express (PAPIN) (

Cabanatuan Cabanatuan, officially the City of Cabanatuan (; ; kapampangan language, Kapampangan: ''Lakanbalen/Ciudad ning Cabanatuan''), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city in the province of Nueva Ecija, Philippines. Acco ...

– Dipaculao); D' Liner (Cabanatuan\

Baguio Baguio ( , , ), officially the City of Baguio (; ; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Philippines. It is known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines", ...

- Maria Aurora, Casiguran; Genesis Bus Transport (

\Cabanatuan - Baler); - Aurora Bus Line (Cabanatuan - Baler) and Lizardo Transit (Baguio - Baler)

Healthcare

The

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their o ...

sustains health over the municipality. The municipality has 21 health centers and one provincial hospital, the Aurora Provincial Hospital located in barangay Buhangin in Baler, south of the town.

Education

Maria Aurora has its education sustained by the

Department of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

- Division of Aurora. The municipality has 38 public elementary and high schools with 1 central school (Maria Aurora Central School). Private institutions in the municipality include Mount Carmel School of Maria Aurora and Wesleyan University - Philippines (Aurora). The Maria Aurora Schools District Office governs all educational institutions within the municipality. It oversees the management and operations of all private and public, from primary to secondary schools.

Primary and elementary schools

* Bagtu Elementary School * Bernabe R. Dulay Memorial Elementary School * Cabituculan East Elementary School * Calao Elementary School * Debucao Elementary School * Decoliat Elementary School * Detailen Elementary School * Diaat Elementary School * Dikildit Elementary School * Dimanpudso Elementary School * Dimotol Elementary School * Diome Elementary School * Estonilo Elementary School * Felipe R. Valdez Elementary School * Florida Elementary School * Francisco Q. Dagyapen Memorial Elementary School * Galintuja Elementary School * Kadayakan Elementary School * Leon B. Hulipas Elementary School * Leon Diaz Sr. Elementary School * Marcos R. Necesito Sr. Memorial Elementary School * Maria Aurora Central School * Maria Aurora Christian School * Mount Carmel School of Maria Aurora * Philos Montessori Learning Center * Punglo Elementary School * Quirino Elementary School * Ramada Elementary School * San Jose Elementary School * San Juan Elementary School * San Leonardo Elementary School * St. John Ecumenical Learning Center of Maria Aurora * Sta. Lucia Elementary School * Sto. Tomas Elementary School * Suguit Elementary School * Villa Aurora Elementary School * Wenceslao Elementary School * Wesley Kiddie Development Center

Secondary schools

* Bayanihan National High School * Canili Area National High School * Dianawan National High School * Eliseo C. Ronquillo Sr. Memorial National High School * Maria Aurora National High School * Ramada National High School * Rodrigo D. Palmero Memorial National High School * Suguit National High School * Wenceslao National High School * Villa Aurora National High School

Higher educational institution

* Wesleyan University - Philippines

Gallery

File:FvfMariaAurora7477 29.JPG, Municipal hall File:FvfMariaAurora7402 31.JPG, Public market File:Maria1617jf.JPG, Highway, mountains and forests (Sitio Dimasalang, Barangay Dimotol) File:Maria1637jf.JPG, 1970's Canili and Diayo Dams and Reservoirs (tributaries of Pantabangan Dam) File:Millennium tree of Balete Park, Maria Aurora, Philippinesjf.jpg, Millennium Tree at Balete Park

References

External links

* Philippine Standard Geographic Code {{Authority control Municipalities of Aurora (province) Political divisions established by Philippine executive order 1949 establishments in the Philippines