Paoay, officially the Municipality of Paoay (; ), 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 ...

Ilocos Norte Ilocos Norte (), officially the Province of Ilocos Norte (; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region. It is located in the northwest corner of Luzon island, bordering Cagayan and Apayao to t ...

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 25,001 people.

History

In 1701, Paoay was established as a municipality by virtue of a Royal Decree that also designated Don Martin Guiang as its founding head. He served in this capacity as ''Kapitan Bosar'' from 1701 to 1704.

Geography

The Municipality of Paoay is home to the

Paoay Church Saint Augustine Parish Church, commonly known as Paoay Church, is a Roman Catholic church in the municipality of Paoay, Ilocos Norte in the Philippines. It is under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Diocese of Laoag. Completed in 1710, t ...

, a

UNESCO World Heritage World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an international treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between sovereign states and/or international organizations that is governed by int ...

site. Paoay is situated from the provincial capital

Laoag Laoag (), officially the City of Laoag (; ), is a component city and capital of the province of Ilocos Norte, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 111,651 people. It is the province's most populous settlement, ...

, 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

Paoay is politically subdivided into 31

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. 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 ...

. * Bacsil * Cabagoan * Cabangaran * Callaguip * Cayubog * Dolores * Laoa * Masintoc * Monte * Mumulaan * Nagbacalan * Nalasin * Nanguyudan * Oaig-Upay-Abulao * Pambaran * Pannaratan (

Poblacion ''Poblacion'' (from Spanish '' población'', meaning "population"), sometimes abbreviated as Pob., is a term used in the Philippines to refer to the administrative center, downtown, old town, or commercial area of a city or municipality. It ...

) * Paratong * Pasil * Salbang (

) * San Agustin * San Blas (

) * San Juan * San Pedro * San Roque (

) * Sangladan Poblacion (Nalbuan) * Santa Rita (

) * Sideg * Suba * Sungadan * Surgui * Veronica

Climate

Demographics

In the 2020 census, the population of Paoay was 25,001 people, with a density of .

Economy

Government

Local government

Paoay, belonging to the second congressional district of the province of

, is governed by a mayor designated as its local chief executive and by a municipal council as its legislative body in accordance with the Local Government Code. The mayor, vice mayor, and the councilors are elected directly by the people through an election which is being held every three years.

Elected officials

Tourism

Paoay Lake

Another prominent feature of the municipality is Paoay Lake. Legend has it that it was the site of a prosperous

, called ''San Juan de Sahagún'' ( Saint John of Sahagún), that sank following a massive

earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

. On the shores of the lake lies a

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word ''manse'' originally defined a property l ...

once used by the Marcoses. Called '' Malacañang of the North'', it is now a museum that is open to the public. Adjacent to the mansion is the Paoay Golf Course.

Education

The Paoay Schools District Office governs all public and private schools within the municipality.

Primary and elementary schools

* Bacsil Elementary School * Evangelista Elementary School * Monte Elementary School * Mumulaan Elementary School * Nagbacalan Elementary School * Nagbacalan West Elementary School * Nalasin Elementary School * Nanguyudan Elementary School * Paoay Central Elementary School * Paoay East Central Elementary School * Paoay Faith Academy * Pasil Elementary School * Salbang Elementary School * Sideg Elementary School * Suba Elementary School

Secondary schools

* Paoay Lake National High School * Paoay National High School * Paoay North Institute * Malaguip Integrated School

Gallery

File:Paseo de Paoay, Ilocos Norte, Apr 2025.jpg, Paseo de Paoay File:View from the Paoay Church.jpg, View of Poblacion Area File:Paoay Church VIII.jpg, Buttress of the Paoay Church File:On the Sidelines.JPG, Details on the side of a door of the church

Notable personalities

* Conchita Carpio-Morales, a Filipino judge * Mans Carpio, a Filipino lawyer

References

External links

* * Philippine Standard Geographic Codebr>Philippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Ilocos Norte