Geography

Pangasinan is a province of the Republic of the Philippines. The provincial capital is Lingayen. Pangasinan is located on the west central and peripheral area of the island of Luzon along the Lingayen Gulf, with the total land area being 5,368.82 square kilometers (3336.030 sq mi). According to the latest census, it has a population of 2,645,395 people in 477,819 households. The total population is projected to rise to 3,039,500 in 2010.[1] According to the 2007 Philippine general elections, Pangasinan has a voting population of 1,360,807, which is the second highest in the Philippines.

Pangasinan is the name for the province, the people, and the primary language spoken in the province. Indigenous Pangasinan speakers are estimated to number at least 1.5 million. Pangasinan is spoken as a second-language by many of the ethnic minorities in Pangasinan. The most significant minority ethnic groups in Pangasinan are the Ilocano, Bolinao, and Tagalog.

The name Pangasinan means “land of salt” or “place of salt-making”; it is derived from the words Pang, meaning for and asin, meaning “salt”, or For Salt in the Pangasinan language and other related languages. The province is a major producer of salt in the Philippines. Dagupan City is known for it’s Bangus festival named after the fish they widely produce and made the city famous.

An ancient kingdom called Luyag na Kaboloan existed in Pangasinan before the Spanish conquest that began in the 15th century. The maritime trade network that once flourished in ancient Southeast Asia connected Pangasinan with other peoples of Southeast Asia, India, China, and the Pacific.

Pangasinan occupies a strategic geo-political position in the central plain of Luzon, known as the rice granary of the Philippines. Pangasinan has been described as a gateway to northern Luzon and as the heartland of the Philippines.

Political

The province of Pangasinan is subdivided into 44 municipalities, 4 cities, 1,364 barangay (which means “villages”), and six congressional districts. Its major water supply comes from the Agno River; tourist spots like the hundred islands in Alaminos, Pangasinan are great places to relax especially during summer.The capital of Pangasinan is Lingayen.

Ancient history

The Pangasinan people, like most of the people in the Malay Archipelago, are descended from the Austronesian-speakers who settled in Southeast Asia since prehistoric times. Comparative genetics, linguistics, and archaeological studies locate the origin of the Austronesian languages in Sundaland, which was populated as early as 50,000 years ago by modern humans.^[2][3][4] The Pangasinan language is one of many languages that belongs to the Malayo-Polynesian languages branch of the Austronesian languages family.

 Southeast Asian maritime trade network

A vast maritime trade network connected the distant Austronesian settlements in Southeast Asia, the Pacific, and the Indian Ocean. The Pangasinan people were part of this ancient Austronesian civilization.

The ancient Austronesian-speakers were expert navigators. Their outrigger canoes were capable of crossing the distant seas. The Malagasy sailed from the Malay archipelago to Madagascar, an island across the Indian Ocean, and probably reached Africa. The Polynesians settled the distant Pacific islands as far away as Hawaii and Easter Island, and probably reached the Americas. At least three hundred years before the arrival of Europeans, the Makasar and the Bugis from Sulawesi, in what is now Indonesia, as well as the Bajau of the Malay archipelago, carried out long-distance commerce with their prau and established settlements in north Australia, which they called Marege.

Pangasinan was founded by Austronesian-speakers who called themselves Anakbanua, meaning “child of banua.” Banua is an Austronesian concept that could mean territory, homeland, society, civilization or cosmos. The Pangasinan people identified or associated banua with the sun. They established their settlements along the Agno River and the Lingayen Gulf. The region came to be known as Pangasinan, in the coastal area, and Kaboloan, in the interior area. Eventually, the whole region and its people came to be known as Pangasinan. Archaeological evidence and early Chinese and Indian records show that the inhabitants of Pangasinan traded with India, China and Japan as early as the 8th century A.D.

Luyag na Caboloan

An ancient kingdom called Luyag na Kaboloan, with Binalatongan as its capital, existed in the fertile Agno River valley. Around the same period, the Srivijaya and Majapahit empires arose in Indonesia that extended their influence to much of the Malay Archipelago. Urduja, a legendary woman warrior, is believed to have ruled in Pangasinan around the 14th century. The Luyag na Kaboloan expanded the territory and influence of Pangasinan to what are now the neighboring provinces of Zambales, La Union, Tarlac, and Benguet. Pangasinan enjoyed full independence until the Spanish conquest.

 Mana beliefs and rituals

The ancient Pangasinan people, like other Austronesian peoples, believed in mana, an Austronesian concept which can be describe as the essence of every being and everything that exists. To the Pangasinan people, mana can be inherited or acquired, like from an ancestor or something in nature. They practiced Shamanist or animist beliefs and rituals, and worshipped a pantheon of anitos (“deities”). Their temples or altars were dedicated to a chief anito called Ama Kaoley (“Supreme Father”) who communicated through mediums called manag-anito. These mediums wore special costumes when serving an anito and they made offerings of oils, ointments, essences, and perfumes in exquisite vessels; after the offerings were made, the anito is supposed to reply in a secret room to their questions.

Christianity

In 1324, Odoric of Perdenone, a Franciscan missionary from Friuli, Italy, celebrated a Catholic Mass and baptized natives at Bolinao, Pangasinan. In July 2007, memorial markers were set up in Bolinao to commemorate Odoric’s journey based on a publication by Luigi Malamocco, an Italian priest from Friuli, Italy, who claimed that Odoric of Perdenone held the first Catholic Mass in the Philippines in Bolinao, Pangasinan.

Spanish colonization

On April 27, 1565, the Spanish conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi arrived in the Philippine islands with about 500 soldiers to establish a Spanish settlement and begin the conquest of the archipelago. On May 24, 1570, the Spanish forces defeated Rajah Sulayman and other rulers of Manila and later declared Manila as the new capital of the Spanish East Indies. After securing Manila, the Spanish forces continued to conquer the rest of the island of Luzon, including Pangasinan.

Provincia de Pangasinan

In 1571, the Spanish conquest of Pangasinan began with an expedition by the Spanish conquistador Martín de Goiti, who came from the Spanish settlement in Manila through Pampanga. About a year later, another Spanish conquistador, Juan de Salcedo, sailed to Lingayen Gulf and landed at the mouth of the Agno River. Limahong, a Chinese pirate, fled to Pangasinan after his fleet was driven away from Manila in 1574. Limahong failed to establish a colony in Pangasinan, as an army led by Juan de Salcedo chased him out of Pangasinan after a seven-month siege.

By 1580, Pangasinan was made into an “Alacadia Mayor” by the Spanish Governor of the Philippines. Roman Catholic Augustinian, Franciscan, and Dominican missionaries arrived with the conquistadors and most of the inhabitants of Pangasinan converted to Roman Catholicism. In 1611, Pangasinan became a Spanish colonial province, comprising the territories of Zambales and some areas of La Union and Tarlac. Lingayen was made the capital of the province (and still is to this day). Continued resistance to Spanish rule was forced to go underground or flee to the mountains.

Tourist attractions

Sunny white beach at Rock Garden Resort, Bolinao, Pangasinan

The “Treasurers of Bolinao”, Pangasinan

• Nuestra Señora de Manaoag

The Shrine of Our Lady of Manaoag is famous throughout the country for its supposed miraculous powers. Catholic devotees frequent the shrine, especially on the feast days on the first of October and the 18th day after Easter Sunday.

• San Carlos City Plaza
• San Juan River in San Carlos City
• Mapandan FESTIVAL
• Bangus Festival in Dagupan City
• Patupat Festival in Pozorrubio
• Pistay Dayat(Feast of the Sea) all over Pangasinan
• Bonuan Blue Beach in Dagupan
• White Beach in San Fabian
• Cape Bolinao Beach in Bolinao
• Tambobong White Beach in Dasol
• Tondol Beach in Anda
• Antong Falls in Sison
• Cacupangan Cave in Mabini
• Mount Balungao in Balungao
• Manleluag Spring National Park in Mangatarem
• Sanctuario de Senor Divino Tesoro in Calasiao
• Salasa Church in Bugallon
• Lingayen Gulf War Museum in Lingayen
• Bolinao Museum in Bolinao
• Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center in Lingayen
• Hundred Islands Marine Sanctuary in Alaminos
• Oceanographic Marine Laboratory in Alaminos
• Red Arrow Marker of the WWII 32nd US Infantry Division in San Nicolas
• Rock Garden Resort
• Hundred Islands National Park of Alaminos
• Umbrella Rocks of Agno
• Urduja House in Lingayen
• Beach Walk in Lingayen
• Viewdeck in Suasalito, Sual, Pangasinan
• St. John Cathedral Garden Dagupan City
• Caves in Bolinao
• Home for the Aged in Anda
• Boat ride in Pantal River, Dagupan City
• Provincial Capitol, Lingayen, Pangasinan
• Sts. Peter and Paul Parish, Calasiao, Pangasinan

Others

• Robinson’s Place Pangasinan, Calasiao, Pangasinan
• SM City Rosales, Rosales, Pangasinan
• CB Mall, Urdaneta City, Pangasinan
• 168 Mall, Urdaneta City, Pangasinan
• CSI City Mall, Dagupan City,Pangasinan
• CSI Market Square, Dagupan City,Pangasinan
• CSI Main, Dagupan City,Pangasinan
• CSI Warehouse Club, Urdaneta City, Pangasinan
• Nepo Mall , Dagupan City,Pangasinan
• BHF Family Plaza , Dagupan City,Pangasinan
• Magicenterpoint,Dagupan City,Pangasinan
• SM City Dagupan,soon,Dagupan City,Pangasinan
• Magiclub,Dagupan City,Pangasinan
• Magic Mall, Urdaneta City, Pangasinan
• Magic Pozorrubio, Cablong, Pozorrubio, Pangasinan
• Tangay Tangay Restaurant, Cablong, Pozorrubio, Pangasinan

Plaza Pergola in Pozorrubio, Pangasinan

Culture

here are thousands of public schools and hundreds of private schools across the province for primary and secondary education. Many Pangasineneses go to Metro Manila and the United Statesfor tertiary and higher education. The state and private colleges and universities in Pangasinan include the following:

• Oakridge International School of Young Leaders
• AMA Computer College
• Asian Institute Of E-Commerce
• Colegio de Dagupan
• Colegio San Jose De Alaminos
• Dagupan Colleges Foundation
• Golden West Colleges
• Kingfisher School of Business and Finance
• Lyceum Northern Luzon
• Lyceum Northwestern University
• Luzon Colleges of Science and Technology
• Palaris College
• Pangasinan State University
• Pangasinan Merchant Marine Academy
• Panpacific University Northern Philippines
• Philippine College of Science and Technology
• Pimsat Colleges
• Saint Columban’s College
• San Carlos College
• Saint Therese of the Child Jesus College Foundation
• STI College
• University of Luzon
• University of Pangasinan
• Urdaneta City University
• University Of Perpetual Help – Jonelta Foundation (Pangasinan Campus)
• Virgen Milagrosa University Foundation
• Gospel of Christ Montessori School (GCMS)

Pangasinan has 51 hospitals and clinics and 68 rural health units (as of July 2002). Although some residents go to Manila and the United States for extensive medical tests and treatment, most Pangasinenses go to the medical centers in the cities of Dagupan, San Carlos City, and Urdaneta.

The culture of Pangasinan is a blend of the indigenous Malayo-Polynesian and western Hispanic and American cultures, with some Indian and Chinese influences. Today, Pangasinan is very much westernized. The main centers of Pangasinense culture are Lingayen, San Carlos City, Dagupan, and Manaoag.

Language

Main articles: Pangasinan language, Ilocano language, and Bolinao language

The Pangasinan language is an agglutinative language. It belongs to the Malayo-Polynesian languages branch of the Austronesian languages family and is the primary language of the province of Pangasinan and the dominant language in central and coastal Pangasinan. The Pangasinan language is similar to the other Malayo-Polynesian languages of the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and Madagascar. It is closely related to the Ibaloi language spoken in the neighboring province of Benguet and Baguio City, located north of Pangasinan. The Pangasinan language is classified under the Pangasinic group of languages. The Pangasinic languages are:

• Pangasinan
• Ibaloi
• Karao
• I-wak
• Kalanguya
• Keley-I
• Kallahan
• Kayapa
• Tinoc

Other languages are spoken in some areas of the neighboring provinces of Benguet, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya, and Ifugao.

The educated Pangasinans are mostly proficient in their native language, English, and Tagalog. Pangasinan is the second-language of many Ilocanos in Pangasinan. Minority languages in Pangasinan are Ilocano and Bolinao, which is spoken in northwestern Pangasinan.

Political

The province of Pangasinan is subdivided into 44 municipalities, 4 cities, 1,364 barangay (which means “villages”), and six congressional districts. Its major water supply comes from the Agno River; tourist spots like the hundred islands in Alaminos, Pangasinan are great places to relax especially during summer.

The capital of Pangasinan is Lingayen.

Cities

City	Income Class	District	Population (2007)	Area (km²)
Alaminos City	2nd class, component[6]	1st	79,788	164
Dagupan City	1st class, independent component	4th	149,554	37
San Carlos City	2nd class, component	2nd	161,884	169
Urdaneta City	1st class, component	3rd	120,785	100

Municipalities

Municipality	Income Class	District	Population (2007)	Area (km²)
Agno	3rd Class	1st	26,023	170
Aguilar	3rd Class	2nd	36,564	195
Alcala	3rd Class	5th	38,934	46
Anda	3rd Class	1st	34,398	75
Asingan	2nd Class	6th	54,092	67
Balungao	4th Class	6th	25,214	73
Bani	2nd Class	1st	45,652	180
Basista	4th Class	2nd	28,104	24
Bautista	4th Class	5th	28,094	46
Bayambang	1st Class	3rd	103,145	144
Binalonan	1st Class	5th	52,722	48
Binmaley	1st Class	2nd	76,214	119
Bolinao	1st Class	1st	69,568	197
Bugallon	2nd Class	2nd	62,237	190
Burgos	4th Class	1st	20,187	131
Calasiao	1st Class	3rd	85,419	48
Dasol	3rd Class	1st	27,027	167
Infanta	3rd Class	1st	23,731	254
Labrador	4th Class	2nd	20,508	91
Laoac	4th Class	5th	28,266	41
Lingayen	1st Class	2nd	95,773	63
Mabini	3rd Class	1st	23,338	291
Malasiqui	1st Class	3rd	122,820	131
Manaoag	1st Class	4th	62,684	56
Mangaldan	1st Class	4th	90,391	48
Mangatarem	1st Class	2nd	65,366	318
Mapandan	3rd Class	3rd	32,905	30
Natividad	4th Class	6th	21,560	134
Pozorrubio	1st Class	5th	63,689	135
Rosales	1st Class	6th	57,702	66
San Fabian	1st Class	4th	74,005	81
San Jacinto	1st Class	4th	35,591	44
San Manuel	1st Class	6th	46,769	129
San Nicolas	1st Class	6th	33,419	210
San Quintin	3rd Class	6th	30,556	116
Santa Barbara	1st Class	3rd	73,025	61
Santa Maria	4th Class	6th	30,721	70
Santo Tomas	5th Class	5th	13,706	13
Sison	3rd Class	5th	42,791	82
Sual	1st Class	1st	29,925	130
Tayug	3rd Class	6th	37,954	51
Umingan	1st Class	6th	62,497	258
Urbiztondo	3rd Class	2nd	43,430	82
Villasis	1st Class	5th	56,668	76

Physical

Pangasinan is located on the west central area of the island of Luzon in the Philippines. Pangasinan borders La Union and Benguet to the north, Nueva Vizcaya and Nueva Ecija to the east, and Zambales and Tarlac to the south. To the west of Pangasinan is the South China Sea. The province also encloses the Lingayen Gulf.

The land area of Pangasinan is 5,368.82 square kilometers (3336.030 sq mi). The province is 170 kilometers (105.633 mi) north of Manila, 50 kilometers (31.0685 mi.) south of Baguio City, 115 kilometers (71.4576 mi.) north of Subic International Airport and Seaport, and 80 kilometers (49.7096 mi.) north of Clark International Airport.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) reported several inactive volcanoes in Pangasinan: Amorong, Balungao, Cabaluyan, Cahelietan, Candong, and Malabobo. PHIVOLCS reported no active or potentially active volcanoes in Pangasinan. A cataclysmic volcanic eruption in the past appears to have formed a caldera located between the towns of Malasiqui and Villasis with a center at about 15° 55′ N and 120° 30′ E near the Cabaruan Hills. This area may contain rich ore deposits.

Economy

Commercial Salt Industry in Dasol

Pangasinan has export earnings of around $5.5 million.

Energy

The 1200 megawatt Sual Coal-Fired Power Plant, 345 megawatt San Roque Multi-Purpose Dam, and the Northern Cement Corporation are all located in Pangasinan.

 Marine

Pangasinan is a major fish supplier in Luzon, and a major producer of salt in the Philippines. It has extensive fishponds, mostly for raising bangus, or “milkfish”, along the coasts of the Lingayen Gulf and the South China Sea. Pangasinan’s aquaculture includes oyster and sea urchin farms.

Agriculture

The major crops in Pangasinan are rice, mangoes, corn, and sugar cane. Pangasinan has a land area of 536,819 hectares, and 44 percent of the total land area of Pangasinan is devoted to agricultural production.

The Pangasinan people (Totoon Pangasinan) are called Pangasinan or the hispanicized name Pangasinense, or simply taga-Pangasinan, which means “from Pangasinan”. The population of Pangasinan is 2,434,086.^[7] Pangasinan is the third most populated province in the Philippines. The estimated population of the indigenous speakers of the Pangasinan language in the province of Pangasinan is 1.5 million and is projected to double in about 30 years. According to the 2000 census, 47 percent of the population are Totoon Pangasinan and 44 percent are Ilocanos. Sambal settlers from Zambales also predominate in the westernmost municipalities of Bolinao and Anda. The Pangasinan people are closely related to the Austronesian-speaking peoples of the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia. The Pangasinans are also related to the Polynesians of the Pacific islands, the Formosan indigenous peoples of Taiwan, the Cham of central Vietnam and Cambodia, and the Malagasy of Madagascar.

Some prominent people of Pangasinan heritage (though not necessarily ethnic identification) include:

• Philippine’s foremost National Hero, Jose Rizal, traces his roots in Pangasinan through his maternal grandmother, Brigida de Quintos. Brigida’s father was Manuel de Quintos was an attorney of Manila, graduated from Santo Tomás University, whose family were Chinese mestizos of Lingayen, Pangasinan.
• President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, whose mother was from Binalonan, Pangasinan.
• President Fidel V. Ramos, who was born in Lingayen, Pangasinan.
• Speaker Jose de Venecia, Jr., who was born in Dagupan City, Pangasinan.
• The late actor and presidential candidate Fernando Poe, Jr., whose father was from San Carlos City, Pangasinan.
• Director General Arturo Lomibao, the former head of the Philippine National Police, is from Mangaldan, Pangasinan.
• Lt. Gen. Jose Mejia Calimlim, the Vice Chief of Staff of the Philippine Armed Forces, is from Mapandan, Pangasinan.
• Gabriel Singson, the former governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, is from Lingayen, Pangasinan.
• F. Sionil José and Carlos Bulosan are internationally known writers from Pangasinan.
• Victorio C. Edades, a Filipino modernist and a recognized National Artist, was from Pangasinan.
• Jacqueline Aquino Siapno, a professor from Dagupan City, is the interim first lady of East Timor.
• Dr. Francisco Viray, former dean of the University of the Philippines Engineering Dept and former Secretary of Energy of the Philippines during the President Ramos Administration, is from Lingayen, Pangasinan.
• Geronima Tomelden-Pecson, the first female senator of the Philippines, was a native of Lingayen.
• Julius Bongato, the first Filipino gay to be the Ms. Gay Universe 2009 held in Tokyo, Japan. He hails from Mapandan, Pangasinan.
• Gen.Hermogenes Cendaña Esperon, Jr.,a native of Asingan, former Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines during Pres. Gloria M. Arroyo Administration.
• Donita Rose’s mother belongs to the Ramos clan of Bayambang, Pangasinan
• Julius Babao
• Cheryl Cosim
• Anne Curtis
• Danny Ildefonso from Urdaneta City
• Barbara “Barbie” Salvador, a native of Pozorrubio, Pangasinan, Mutya ng Pilipinas 2010, Miss Tourism Cosmopolitan International 2010
• General Jacinto “The Corrupt” Ligot, a native of Pozorrubio, Pangasinan, a former AFP Comptroller
• Ana “The Hurricane” Julaton, a native of Pozorrubio, Pangasinan, World Boxing Champion
• Marc Pingris, a native of Pozorrubio, Pangasinan, a Filipino-French professional basketball player, PBA Champion
• Oscar Orbos, a native of Bani, Pangasinan, a former senator and TV host

Those Articles I post are came from:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pangasinan