Before 1979, Aurora was part of the province of Quezon. Aurora was, in fact, named after Aurora Aragon, the wife of Manuel L. Quezon, the president of the Philippine Commonwealth, after whom the mother province was named.
In 1572, the Spanish explorer Juan de Salcedo became the first European to visit the region that would be known as Aurora while he was exploring the northern coast of Luzon. Salcedo reportedly visited the towns of Casiguran, Baler and Infanta. Baler & Casiguran were part of La Provincia de La Pampanga, which also included Pampanga, Bulacan, and Tarlac, and in 1591, the towns became part of Kalilayan, which included Nueva Ecija, until Kalilayan changed its name to Tayabas in 1749, taken from the town of the same name.[3][4][5][6]
In the early days of the Spanish colonial period, Aurora was ecclesiastically linked to Infanta, which today rests further south, in northern Quezon. The earliest missionaries in the province were the Franciscans, who had established missions in Baler and Casiguran in 1609.[7] Due to lack of available personnel, the region was given to the jurisdiction of the Augustinians and Recollects in 1658, but was returned to the Friars Minor in 1703. Other early missions included Dipaculao, established in 1719, and Casiguran, in 1753.
In 1705, the Military Comandancia of Nueva Ecija was created and was governed by Governor-GeneralFausto Cruzat y Góngora. It included huge swathes of Central Luzon, the Contracosta towns, as well as the Kalilayan area and Polillo Islands, however Nueva Ecija was still part of La Pampanga province at that time.[8][5] Contracosta was the Spanish colonial name for the towns on the east coast and included towns from Mauban, Binangonan de Lampon, to El Principe.[9][6] Since Contracosta & Kalilayan were part of La Laguna province at that time before including them in Nueva Ecija, they became jointly ruled by La Pampanga & La Laguna provinces.[4] When Rafael María de Aguilar y Ponce de León took over as Governor-General of the Philippines, he decreed the separation of the military- district of Nueva Ecija from the province of Pampanga and became a regular province on April 25, 1801, including the town of Baler, acquired from Tayabas.[3]
In 1818, Nueva Ecija annexed the towns of Palanan from Isabela, as well as Baler, Casiguran, Infanta (formerly called Binangonan de Lampon) and Polillo Islands from Tayabas.[4] In 1853, the new military district of Tayabas was separated from Nueva Ecija and included present-day Southern Quezon as well as present-day Aurora. In 1858, Binangonan de Lampon and the Polillo Islands were separated from Nueva Ecija to form part of Infanta.[8] Between 1855 and 1885, El Principe was established as its own Military Comandancia with its capital in Baler.[4]
American invasion era
District of El Principe
The early history of Aurora is linked to Quezon province, of which it formed a part, and Nueva Ecija, under which the area was governed as the District of El Príncipe. In 1902, the district was separated from Nueva Ecija and transferred to the province of Tayabas (now Quezon).[7][10] The northern area which is part of the modern Dilasag and area of modern Casiguran was part of Nueva Vizcaya and also transferred to Tayabas in 1905.[11] In 1918, the area of modern Aurora north of Baler was transferred to the authority of Nueva Vizcaya, but returned to Tayabas in 1946, when Tayabas was renamed to Quezon.
An old map showing the current northern territory of Aurora as part of Nueva Vizcaya.
Philippine independence
Aurora became a sub-province of Quezon in 1951 through Republic Act No. 648 under the presidency of Elpidio Quirino,[12] after whom its neighboring province was named, and finally became an independent province during the presidency of Ferdinand E. Marcos, through Batas Pambansa Blg. 7 enacted on November 21, 1978.[7][13] One obvious reason for creating Aurora is due to the area's isolation from the rest of Quezon Province: there are no direct links to the rest of the province and much of the terrain is mountainous and heavily forested, which makes the area relatively isolated.
Contemporary
On April 22, 2024, newly installed Governor Reynante A. Tolentino took his oath of office as governor before his brother, Dipaculao Mayor Danilo A. Tolentino. He replaced Atty. Christian Noveras, who was dismissed by the Office of the Ombudsman along with his father, Vice Governor Gerardo Noveras, in December, 2023.[14]
Administrative assignment
Being originally part of the province of Quezon, Aurora was part of the Southern Tagalog Region (Region IV). Upon the issuance of Executive Order No. 103, dated May 17, 2002, by then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, the province of Aurora was moved to Central Luzon (Region III), the geographical location of the province. The provinces south of Aurora were reformed as Calabarzon and Mimaropa, and Southern Tagalog was limited to being a cultural-geographic region. The total separation of Aurora from Quezon, and the transfer of Aurora to Central Luzon were the fulfillment of the wishes and prayers of the residents of the original Municipalities of Baler and Casiguran to be truly independent from Quezon Province for the first time and to reform the original La Pampanga since the Spanish occupation.[4][15]
The province covers a portion of the Sierra Madre mountain range. As such, the elevation is generally steep to very steep and only about 14% of the province's total area is flat.[7]
Climate
Aurora's climate is classified as Tropical rainforest climate.[17] It experiences significant rainfall throughout the year.[17] Because the coastal province faces the Pacific Ocean, it is frequently visited by typhoons.[7][18]
Dilasag and Casiguran form the northern part of the province, while Dinalungan, Dipaculao, Maria Aurora, and Baler (the capital) make up the central portion. The southern half of the province consists of San Luis and Dingalan.
The 8 municipalities of the province comprise a total of 151 barangays, with Suclayin in Baler as the most populous in 2010, and Dibalo in San Luis as the least.[20]
The population of Aurora in the 2020 census was 235,750 people,[2] with a density of 75 inhabitants per square kilometre or 190 inhabitants per square mile.
Based on the 2000 census survey, Tagalogs comprised 52.85% (91,745) of the total provincial population of 173,589, and about less than 1/3 of the population were Ilocano at 31.43% (54,557). Other ethnic groups in the province were Kasiguranin at 5.1% (8,853), Bicolano at 4.08% (7,079), Kankanaey at 1.36% (2,355), Bisaya at 0.88% (1,529), Dumagat (Umiray) at 0.6% (1,047), and Cebuano at 0.48% (832).[21]
There are also pockets of Bugkalots & Negritos, called Dumagats. Most Dumagats are living in the hillsides or mountains. They are believed to have result from a fusion of Austronesian and Melanesian ancestries, and survive from fishing and hunting. There are three kinds of Dumagats in Aurora province, the Umiray Dumagat, Casiguran Dumagat, and the Palanan Dumagat. Bugkalots are the second tribe indigenous to Aurora, most of them live in Dipaculao & Maria Aurora.
Tagalogs, some originating from Palanan and Infanta, Quezon, came in to the area to trade by boat, some Tagalogs settled in Aurora (especially Baler) and married with the Aeta and Bugkalots.[22] The Spanish brought in Filipino acolytes from other areas of Luzon from 1609 to 1899. During this period, Baler can only be access by sea though the town saw increase migration from other parts of Luzon such as Laguna, Tayabas, and Bicol from the south. The opening of the Baler-Bongabon Road allowed easier migration of people from Ilocos and Isabela areas from the north. The road also allowed Igorot people and Batangueño Tagalogs to settle in Baler & other places of Aurora. The majority of Igorots settled Dipaculao, Maria Aurora, & Baler. In 1896, a group of Ilocanos from Aringay, La Union came to settle in San Jose, now called Maria Aurora; in 1906, another group of Ilocanos arrived from La Union and Pangasinan. In the early 1920s, Ilocano settlers from Central Luzon settled a Bugkalot territory Dipaculao, which in turn was derived from the phrase Dipac naulaw or Naulaw ni Dipac, the Ilocano for "Dipac got dizzy", idiomatically "Dipac is/got drunk", Dipac is the name of a Bugkalot chief; another group of Ilocano settlers arrived from La Union, Pangasinan, and other areas of Ilocos Region. The guerrilla movement during the Japanese occupation brought Novo Ecijanos (people from Nueva Ecija) to Baler; Novo Ecijanos include Tagalogs, Ilocanos, and Kapampangans, with quite large number of Pangasinenses. The Balereños learned trade from the Batangueños and the Novo Ecijanos; where before they used to share what they have, now they would sell coconut to their neighbors.[22][23][24] Other ethnic groups who came and stayed in Aurora include Christianized Gaddang and Isinai settlers who settled the surrounding lowlands of Baler Bay.[25] These ethnic groups who lived for several centuries & left cultural influences & legacies made Aurora the melting pot of the Central Luzon, next to Tarlac & Nueva Ecija.
The Tagalog and Ilocano languages are spoken by their respective ethnic groups. The province primarily speaks a Tagalog dialect that is closely related to Tayabas Tagalog of Quezon with some Ilocano influences.[26][better source needed] In Baler, for example, the variety is called Tagalog-Baler (Balereño). The Balereño is also known for distinctive expressions like akkaw, used to express surprise, wonder, disgust, and objection; it is also akin to the English term "Wow!" Other regional term expressions spoken in Baler are are(h), used to express a negative feeling of surprise; anin, used to express regret or pity for a situation; and many other words are also spoken similarly to neighboring Quezon, like adyo, meaning to climb, and puropur, which pertain to rain with gusty wind. Ilocano is mostly spoken in northern areas of the province. The working population is ready in speech in the English language as well as in the Filipino language.[27][28][29][30] Manuel L. Quezon, who was from Baler, was called the Father of the National Language for approving the recommendation of the Institute of National Language for Tagalog as the basis of the national language. Other languages spoken in Aurora are Kapampangan & Pangasinan (in some areas of the province, most of which is in Baler), & another language native in Aurora is Casiguranin or Kasiguranin, spoken in Casiguran & neighboring areas Dilasag & Dinalungan.[31]
Corn, rice and other major agricultural crops are grown in Aurora, with a total of 13% of the provincial land area used for agriculture. It also has 8,945 hectares (22,100 acres) of rice plantation that averages 24,000 metric tons (24,000 long tons; 26,000 short tons) every year.[citation needed]
Aurora Pacific Economic Zone
Casiguran is home to the Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority or APECO a special economic zone located in this coastal town. Created in 2007 by virtue of Republic Act No. 9490 through the efforts of Sen. Edgardo Angara and his son, Aurora Rep. Sonny Angara, it is expected be a major transshipment hub going to the Pacific region. It aims to boost social, economic and industrial developments in Aurora and nearby provinces by generating jobs for the people, improving the quality of their living conditions, advocating an eco-friendly approach to industrialization and enhancing the potential of the community in productivity.
^"List of Provinces". PSGC Interactive. Makati, Philippines: National Statistical Coordination Board. Archived from the original on 19 April 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
^ abcdeLancion, Conrado M. Jr. (1995). "The Provinces; Aurora". Fast Facts about Philippine Provinces. cartography by de Guzman, Rey (The 2000 Millenium ed.). Makati, Metro Manila, Philippines: Tahanan Books. p. 28. ISBN971-630-037-9. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
^National Historical Commission of the Philippines. "History of Baler". National Historical Commission of the Philippines. Retrieved 2012-03-09. When military district of El Príncipe was created in 1856, Baler became its capital...On June 12, 1902 a civil government was established, moving the district of El Príncipe away from the administrative jurisdiction of Nueva Ecija...and placing it under the jurisdiction of Tayabas Province.
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