SURE Ilocos Sur!

Naimbag nga aldaw kada-kayo amin!!!

Ilocos Sur is an illustrated history. It is one of the three first city in the Philippines. The province of Ilocos Sur is where the Ilocos Region’s myriad of cultures and histories converge to become a living museum of a spirited past. A national shrine, a national landmark, a national museum, heritage museums, ancestral houses, period houses, cobble-stoned streets – they all share space in the timeless land of Ilocos Sur. Makataros ka ti ilokano? No worries! Filipino and English arewidely used in the area. Ngem Ilocano is the principal dialect. Kankanaey and Itneg are spoken in cultural communities too. 

Ilocos Sur is located along the western coast of Northern Luzon. It is bounded by Ilocos Norte on the north, Abra on the northeast, Mt. Province on the east, Benguet on the southeast, La Union on the south, and the China Sea on the west.

Its area of 2,579.58 square kilometers occupies about 20.11 % of the total land area of Region 1. 

Now, are you wondering how to go there?  There's a lot of ways for you to hop in your time machine! From Manila you can reach Vigan by air via Laoag. From Laoag Ilocos Norte, take a bus going to Vigan. There are also several buses offering trips to Vigan from Manila, Pasay or Quezon City. Buses bound for Vigan, whether coming from Laoag or Manila, will pass by the Heritage Village. The bus ride from Manila will take around 8-10 hours, so patience is needed but it'll surely be worth your patience.

Ilocos Sur Map

It's made up of... 34 municipalities which are subdivided into 764 barangays. They are Alilem, Banayoyo, Bantay, Burgos, Cabugao, Candon, Caoayan, Cervantes, Galimuyod, Gregorio del Pilar, Lidlidda, Magsingal, Nagbukel, Narvacan, Quirino, Salcedo, San Emilio, San Esteban, San Ildefonso, San Juan, San Vicente, Santa, Santiago, Sta. Catalina, Sta. Cruz, Sta. Lucia, Sta. Maria, Sto. Domingo, Sigay, Sinait, Sugpon, Suyo, Tagudin, and Vigan.

   

Grab the history of The Heritage Village... Before the coming of the Spaniards, the coastal plains in northwestern Luzon, stretching from Bangui (Ilocos Norte) in the north to Namacpacan (Luna, La Union) in the south, were as a whole known as a progressive region called the Ylokos. This region lies in between the China Sea in the west and Northern Cordilleras on the east. The inhabitants built their villages near the small bays on coves called“looc” in the dialect. These coastal inhabitants were referred to as“Ylocos” which literally meant “from the lowlands”. The entire region was then called by the ancient name “Samtoy” from“sao ditoy” which in Ilokano mean“our dialect”. The region was later called by the Spaniards as“Ylocos” or “Ilocos” and its people “Ilocanos”.

The Ilocos Region was already a thriving, fairly advanced cluster of towns and settlements familiar to Chinese, Japanese and Malay traders when the Spaniard explorer Don Juan de Salcedo and members of his expedition arrived in Vigan on July 1574. Forthwith, they made Cabigbigaan (Bigan), the heart of the Ylokos settlement their headquarters which Salcedo called“Villa Fernandina” and which eventually gained fame as the “Intramuros of Ilocandia”. Salcedo declared the whole Northern Luzon as an encomienda. Subsequently, he became the encomendero of Vigan and Lieutenant Governor of the Ylokos until his death in March 11, 1576. Augustinian missionaries joined the military forces in conquering the region through evangelization. They established parishes and built churches that still stand today. Three centuries later, Vigan became the seat of the Archdiocese of Nueva Segovia.

A royal decree of February 2, 1818 separated Ilocos Norte from Ilocos Sur, the latter to include the northern part of La Union (as far as Namacpacan, now Luna) and all of what is now the province of Abra. The sub-provinces of Lepanto and Amburayan in Mt. Province were annexed to Ilocos Sur. The passage of Act 2683 by the Philippine Legislature in March 1917 defined the present geographical boundary of the province. The names of famous men and women of Ilocos Sur stand in bold relief in Philippine history. Pedro Bukaneg is the Father of Iluko Literature. Isabelo de los Reyes will always be remembered as the Father of the Filipino Labor Movement. His mother, Leona Florentino was the most outstanding Filipino woman writer of the Spanish era. Vicente Singson Encarnacion, an exemplary statesman, was also a noted authority on business and industry.

   

Aaand did you know that?

• Ilocos Sur was founded by the Spanish conquistador, Juan de Salcedo in 1572. It was formed when the north (now Ilocos Norte) split from the south (Ilocos Sur). At that time it included parts of Abra and the upper half of present-day La Unión. The current boundary of the province was permanently defined by virtue of RA 2973, which was signed in March 1917.

• In 1763, during the British occupation of the Philippines, Ilocos Sur was ruled by the British appointed governor, Ilocanofreedom fighter Diego Silang, until he was shot in the back by Miguel Vicos in Vigan.

• On December 2, 1899, the Battle of Tirad Pass happened, where the gallant General Gregorio del Pilar and 60 brave Filipino defenders died covering the escape of General Emilio Aguinaldo from the Americans.
• In 1942, the Japanese Imperial forces occupied the province.

• In 1945, the province was liberated from the Japanese with the joint efforts of Filipino & American soldiers including Ilocano guerrillas. When the Filipino soldiers of the 1st, 2nd, 11th, 12th, 13th, 15th and 16th Infantry Division of the Philippine Commonwealth Army, 1st Infantry Regiment of the Philippine Constabulary and the 15th, 66th and 121st Infantry Regiment of the United States Armed Forces in the Philippines - Northern Luzón or USAFIP-NL was beginning the Battle of Bessang Pass and attacking Japanese forces. It included the bloody Battle of Bessang Pass on June 14, 1945.

• The 1970s were dark periods for the province as armed men known as the "saka-saka" (Ilocano, literally "bare-footed") terrorized the province; and this reign of terror resulted in the famous burning of the barangays of Ora East and Ora Centro in the municipality of Bantay. This era ended with the rise of Luis "Chavit" Singson to the governor's seat.

 
 
 

http://www.tourism.gov.ph/SitePages/InteractiveSitesPage.aspx?siteID=2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ilocos_Sur http://www.ilocossur.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=79&Itemid=191