Aurora (province)

Aurora
Province
Aurora Provincial Capitol
{{#property:P41}} Flag Official seal of Aurora Seal
Nickname(s): Land of the Golden Sunrise; Gateway to the Pacific
Motto: Bagong Sigla, Bagong Pag-asa
{{#property:P242}} Location in the Philippines
Coordinates:
Country	[[{{#property:P17}}]]
Region	[[{{#property:P131}}]] (Region III)
Founded	1951 (as sub-province of Quezon)
Province	August 13, 1979
Capital	Baler
Government
• Type	Province of the Philippines
• Governor	Gerardo A. Noveras (NPC)
• Vice-Governor	Rommel Rico T. Angara (LDP)
Area
• Total	3,147.32 km2 (1,215.19 sq mi)
Area rank	45th out of 80
Population (2010)
• Total	201,233
• Rank	70th out of 80
• Density	64/km2 (170/sq mi)
• Density rank	76th out of 80
Divisions
• Independent cities	0
• Component cities	0
• Municipalities	8
• Barangays	151
• Districts	Lone district of Aurora
Demographics
• Ethnic groups	Tagalog (53%), Ilocano (31%), Kapampangan, Kasigurahin, Kankanaey (16%)
• Languages	Tagalog, Ilocano, Kapampangan, Pangasinan, English
Time zone	PHT (UTC+8)
ZIP code	3200 to 3207
Dialing code	{{#property:P473}}
ISO 3166 code	{{#property:P300}}
Website	{{#property:P856}}

Aurora is a province in the Philippines located in the eastern part of Central Luzon region, facing the Philippine Sea. Its capital is Baler and borders, clockwise from the south, the provinces of Quezon, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, and Isabela.

Before 1979, Aurora was part of the province of Quezon. Aurora was, in fact, named after Aurora Aragon, the wife of Pres. Manuel L. Quezon, the president of the Philippine Commonwealth, after whom the mother province was named.

History

Spanish era

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.

An old 1918 map of northern Tayabas.

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. 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.

District of El Principe

The early history of Aurora is linked to Quezon province, of which it formed a part until its establishment as a province, 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.

Separation from Quezon

Aurora became a sub-province of Quezon in 1951 through Republic Act No. 648, and finally attained provincehood during the presidency of Ferdinand E. Marcos, by virtue of Batas Pambansa Blg. 7 enacted on August 13, 1979.

Geography

The Dicasalarin Cove at the coast of Baler

Physical

Aurora is a coastal province in east-central Luzon. To the north, it is bordered by the Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park of Isabela, to the west by the central range of the Sierra Madre which contains the Casecnan Protected Landscape and Aurora Memorial National Park, to the south by the Umiray River, and to the east by the Philippine Sea which opens to the Pacific Ocean.

The San Ildefonso Peninsula lies in the province's northern portion between the Philippine Sea and the Casiguran Sound.

Topography

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.

Climate

Aurora's climate is classified as Tropical rainforest climate. It experiences significant rainfall throughout the year. Because the coastal province faces the Pacific Ocean, it is frequently visited by typhoons.

Administrative divisions

Aurora is politically subdivided into 8 municipalities, all encompassed by a lone legislative district.

Municipality Area (km²) Population (2010) Density (per km²) No. of barangays ZIP code Income class Coordinates Baler † 92.55 36,010 389.1 13 3200 3rd Casiguran 715.43 23,865 33.4 24 3204 2nd Dilasag 306.25 15,683 51.2 11 3205 3rd Dinalungan 316.85 10,988 34.7 9 3206 4th Dingalan 304.55 23,554 77.3 11 3207 3rd Dipaculao 361.64 27,729 76.7 25 3203 3rd Maria Aurora 426.19 38,128 89.5 40 3202 2nd San Luis 623.86 25,276 40.5 18 3201 2nd  †  Provincial capital Coordinates mark the town center vicinity, and are sorted according to latitude.

Political map of Aurora

Barangays

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.

Further information: List of barangays in Aurora

Demographics

Population census of Aurora
Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1990	139,573	—
1995	159,621	+2.55%
2000	173,797	+1.84%
2007	187,802	+1.07%
2010	201,233	+2.55%
Source: National Statistics Office

Based on the 2000 census survey, more than half of the population is Tagalog 52.85% and about less than 1/3 of the population is Ilocano 31.43%. Other ethnic groups like Kapampangan, Pangasinan, Kasiguranin and Kankanaey comprised about 16% of the population.

There are also pockets of 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.

Religion

Baler Church

The people of Aurora are heavily Christianized (large majority being Roman Catholic by 87%) as a result of hundreds of years of Spanish colonization. Some other Christian believers are also present which includes Aglipayan Church, Baptists, Born Again Christians, Jehovah's Witnesses, Iglesia Ni Cristo and Seventh-day Adventist while Muslims are also found which presence is traced to migration by some people from some parts of Mindanao.

Economy

Corn crops, rice and other major agricultural crops are grown in Aurora. it has a total of 38, 928 or 13% of provincial Land Area of Agricultural land. also 8,945 hectares of rice plantation that averages 24,000 ton every years.

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 Rep. Juan Edgardo 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.

Image gallery

• Provincial institutions
• 

  Aurora Provincial Jail
  in Suklayin, Baler

• 

  Bulwagan ng Katarungan
  (RTC), Suklayin, Baler

• 

  Aurora Parole and Probation Office, Suklayin, Baler

• 

  Aurora Police Provincial Office, NPC, PNP, Baler

• 

  Aurora Provincial Tourism Office (Suklayan)

• 

  Baler Bay

• 

  River

• 

  Bust of Maria Aurora

See also

• Aurora Quezon
• Siege of Baler
• Sierra Madre mountain range

External links

• Geographic data related to Aurora (province) at OpenStreetMap

1. REDIRECT Template:Administrative divisions of the Philippines