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Ilocos
Region
Clockwise from the top: Paoay Church, Baluarte Watch Tower, La Paz Sand Dunes, Hundred Islands National Park, Bangui Windfarm
Location in the Philippines
OpenStreetMap
Coordinates: 16°37′N 120°19′E / 16.62°N 120.32°E / 16.62; 120.32
Country	Philippines
Island group	Luzon
Regional center	San Fernando (La Union)
Largest city	San Carlos (Pangasinan)
Area
• Total	13,013.60 km2 (5,024.58 sq mi)
Highest elevation (Mount Sicapoo)	2,361 m (7,746 ft)
Population  (2020 census)[2]
• Total	5,301,139
• Estimate  (2020)	5,220,807[1]
• Density	410/km2 (1,100/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ISO 3166 code	PH-01
Provinces	4 Ilocos Norte Ilocos Sur La Union Pangasinan
Independent cities	1 Dagupan
Component cities	8 Alaminos Batac Candon Laoag San Carlos San Fernando Urdaneta Vigan
Municipalities	116
Barangays	3,267
Cong. districts	12
Languages	Ilocano (Iloko) Pangasinan Bolinao Sambal Kankana-ey Itneg Isnag Ibaloi English Filipino
GDP (2023)	₱814.29 billion $14.64 billion[3]
Growth rate	(7.1%)[3]
HDI	0.743 (High)
HDI rank	6th in the Philippines (2019)

The Ilocos Region (Ilocano: Rehion/Deppaar ti Ilocos; Pangasinan: Sagor na Baybay na Luzon/Rehiyon Uno ; Tagalog: Rehiyon ng Ilocos), designated as Region I, is an administrative region of the Philippines. Located in the northwestern section of Luzon, it is bordered by the Cordillera Administrative Region to the east, the Cagayan Valley to the northeast and southeast, Central Luzon to the south, and the South China Sea to the west.^[5]

The region comprises four provinces (Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, and Pangasinan) and one independent city (Dagupan). Its regional center is San Fernando, La Union, whereas the largest settlement is San Carlos, Pangasinan. The 2000 census reported that the major languages spoken in the region were Ilocano (64% of the total population at that time), Pangasinan (32.5%), and Tagalog and other languages (3.21%).^[6]

History

Prehistory

The region was first inhabited by the aboriginal Negritos, before they were pushed by successive waves of Austronesian immigrants that penetrated the narrow coast. Tingguians (Igorot) in the interior, Ilocanos in the north, Pangasinenses in the south, and Zambals in the southwesternmost areas settled the region.

Early history

As commercial trading routes became established in Southeast Asia, the pre-Hispanic Luyag na Caboloan (present-day Pangasinan) area in the vicinity of Lingayen gulf became maritime trading centers, as gold mined from the Cordillera Mountain Range came down along the Aringay-Tonglo-Balatok gold trail,^[7][8] and was also traded in the neighboring settlement of Agoo, whose coast at the time was shaped in such a way that it was a good harbor for foreign vessels.^[9][10]

Evidence of trade between the then-Pangasinense port of Agoo and China has been excavated in the form of porcelain and pottery pieces unearthed at the site of the Catholic church during its renovation, - which are now kept in the Museo de Iloko.^[9] Japanese fishermen eventually established their first settlement in the Philippines there, passing on their fishing skills and technologies to the local populace.^[9]

Spanish colonial era

The Spanish arrived in the 16th century and established Christian missions and governmental institutions to control the native population and convert them to Catholicism. Present-day Vigan in Ilocos Sur province became the diocesan seat of Nueva Segovia. By the end of the 1700s, Ilocos had 44,852 native families and 631 Spanish Filipino families.^{[11]: 539 [12]: 31, 54, 113} It also had 10,041 Chinese Filipino families.^[12]: 9 Ilocanos in the northern parts were less easily swayed, however, and remained an area filled with deep resentments against Spain. These resentments surfaced at various points in the Ilocos provinces' history as insurrections, most notably that of Andres Malong and Palaris of Pangasinan, Diego Silang and his wife Gabriela Silang in 1764, and the Basi Revolt in the 19th century.

However, it was the Pangasinans in the south who were the last to stand against the Spaniards.^{[13][better source needed]}

American invasion era

In 1901, the region came under American colonial rule, and in 1941, under Japanese occupation.

In 1901, towns of Nueva Ecija, namely Balungao, Rosales, San Quintin and Umingan were annexed to the province of Pangasinan. On November 30, 1903, several municipalities from northern Zambales including Agno, Alaminos, Anda, Bani, Bolinao, Burgos, Dasol, Infanta and Mabini were ceded to Pangasinan by the American colonial government. These municipalities were a part of the homeland of the Sambal people who wanted to remain within the Zambales province. This 1903 colonial decision has yet to be reverted.^[14] The reason for transferring those towns from Nueva Ecija & Zambales to Pangasinan is because they were geographically further away from the capitals.

Japanese occupation era

During 1945, the combined American and the Philippine Commonwealth troops including with the Ilocano and Pangasinan guerillas liberated the Ilocos Region from Japanese forces during the Second World War.

The postwar era

The Ilocos region produced two presidents of the Republic of the Philippines within the first two decades after the recognition of Philippine independence: Elpidio Quirino and Ferdinand Marcos.

This period also marked a return of the tobacco industry to the Ilocos Region. Ever since the end of the tobacco monopoly, tobacco production had declined in the Ilocos as filipinos started shifting from locally made cigars to foreign made cigarettes.^[15] But after reading a feature article series by Maximo Soliven which explained why Virginia tobacco would grow well on Ilocos soil, businessman Harry Stonehill was convinced to invest extensively in rebuilding the industry, establishing the Philippine Tobacco Flue-Curing and Redrying Corporation (PTFCRC) in 1951 and recruiting farmers from throughout Region 1 to produce tobacco.^[16][17] The following year, La Union Congressman Manuel T. Cases filed a bill to "limit the importation of foreign leaf tobacco," which was eventually signed by President Elpidio Quirino as Republic Act 698.^[18] This allowed Stonehill's investments to make a handsome profit,^[19] and the newly-rebuilt local industry to bloom.^[16] Stonehill was later deported a decade later, in the 1960s, for tax evasion and bribery of government officials, in what would later be called the Stonehill scandal,^[19] but the tobacco industry continued to grow.^[17][19]

The Martial Law era

Various human rights violations were documented in the Ilocos region during the Marcos martial law era, despite public perception that the region was supportive of Marcos' administration.^[20] In Ilocos Norte, various farmers from the towns of Vintar, Dumalneg, Solsona, Marcos, and Piddig were documented to have been tortured,^[20] and eight farmers in Bangui and three indigenous community members in Vintar were "salvaged" in 1984.^[20]

Ilocanos who were critical of Marcos' authoritarian rule included Roman Catholic Archbishop and Agoo, La Union native Antonio L. Mabutas, who spoke actively against the torture and killings of church workers.^[21][22] Other La Union natives who fought the dictatorship were student activists Romulo and Armando Palabay of San Fernando, La Union, whose torture and death in a military camp in Pampanga would lead them to being honored as martyrs in the fight against the dictatorship in the Philippines' Bantayog ng mga Bayani memorial.^[23]

In Ilocos Norte, one of the prominent victims of the Martial Law era who came from Laoag was Catholic layperson and social worker Purificacion Pedro, who volunteered in organizations protesting the Chico River Dam Project in the nearby Cordillera Central mountains.^[24] Wounded while visiting activist friends in Bataan, she was later killed by Marcos administration soldiers while recuperating in the hospital.^[25][26] Another prominent opponent of the martial law regime was human rights advocate and Bombo Radyo Laoag program host David Bueno, who worked with the Free Legal Assistance Group in Ilocos Norte during the later part of the Marcos administration and the early part of the succeeding Aquino administration. He would later be assassinated by motorcycle-riding men in fatigue uniforms on October 22, 1987 – part of a wave of assassinations which coincided with the 1986-87 coup d'état which tried to unseat the democratic government set up after the 1986 People Power Revolution.^[27] Both Bueno and Pedro were later honored among the first 65 people to have their names inscribed on the wall of remembrance of the Philippines' Bantayog ng mga Bayani, which honors the martyrs and heroes who fought the dictatorship,^[28] and Pedro was listed among Filipino Catholics nominated to be named Servant of God.^[29]

Integration of new provinces

The province of Pangasinan was transferred by Ferdinand Marcos from Region III into Region I in 1973 and afterwards imposed a migration policy for Ilokanos into Pangasinan, to the moderate detriment of the native Pangasinenses. Before the administration of Ferdinand Marcos, Pangasinan was not a part of the region.^[30] He also included Abra, Mountain Province, and Benguet in the Ilocos region in a bid to expand Ilokano influence among the ethnic peoples of the Cordilleras.^[31]

Transfer of provinces to the Cordillera Administrative Region

When the Cordillera Administrative Region was established in 1987 under Corazon Aquino, the indigenous provinces of Abra, Mountain Province, and Benguet were transferred into the newly formed region.

Contemporary history

The Ilocos region has produced two more Philippine Presidents in the years since the 1986 People Power revolution: Pangasinense Fidel V. Ramos and Ferdinand Marcos' son Bongbong Marcos.

The southern parts of the region were severely hit by the 1990 Luzon earthquake. Five municipalities in La Union were affected: Agoo, Aringay, Caba, Santo Tomas, and Tubao with a combined population of 132,208. Many buildings, including the Agoo Municipal hall,^[32] the Museo de Iloko, the parish church of Aringay,^[33] and the Basilica Minore of our Lady of Charity,^[9] collapsed or were severely damaged. 100,000 families were displaced when two coastal villages sank due to liquefaction. The province suffered many casualties leaving 32 people dead. In Pangasinan, about 90 buildings in Dagupan were damaged, and about 20 collapsed. Some structures sustained damage because liquefaction caused buildings to sink as much as 1 metre (39 inches). The earthquake caused a decrease in the elevation of the city and several areas were flooded. The city suffered 64 casualties of which 47 survived and 17 died. Most injuries were sustained during stampedes at a university building and a theater.

Geography

The Ilocos Region is divided into two contrasting geographical features. The Ilocos provinces occupy the narrow plain between the Cordillera Central mountain range and the South China Sea, whereas Pangasinan occupies the northwestern portion of the vast Central Luzon plain, having Zambales Mountains as its natural western limit.

Lingayen Gulf is the most notable body of water in Pangasinan and it contains several islands, including the Hundred Islands National Park. To the north of Ilocos is Luzon Strait.

The Agno River runs through Pangasinan from Benguet, flowing into a broad delta at the vicinities of Lingayen and Dagupan before emptying into Lingayen Gulf.

Administrative divisions

The Ilocos Region comprises 4 provinces, 1 independent component city, 8 component cities, 116 municipalities, and 3,265 barangays.^[34]

Provinces

Province	Capital	Population (2020)[35]		Area[36]		Density		Cities	Muni.	Barangay
				km2	sq mi	/km2	/sq mi
Ilocos Norte	Laoag City	11.5%	609,588	3,418.75	1,319.99	180	470	2	21	559
Ilocos Sur	Vigan City	13.3%	706,009	2,596.00	1,002.32	270	700	2	32	768
La Union	San Fernando	15.5%	822,352	1,499.28	578.88	550	1,400	1	19	576
Pangasinan	Lingayen	59.7%	3,163,190	5,450.59	2,104.48	580	1,500	4	44	1,364
Total			5,301,139	12,964.62	5,005.67	410	1,100	9	116	3,267
• Figures for Pangasinan include the independent component city of Dagupan.

Governors and vice governors

Province	Image	Governor	Political Party		Vice Governor
Ilocos Norte		Matthew Marcos Manotoc		Nacionalista	Cecilia Araneta Marcos
Ilocos Sur		Jeremias C. Singson		NPC	Ryan Luis Singson
La Union		Raphaelle Veronica Ortega-David		PDDS	Mario Eduardo Ortega
Pangasinan		Ramon Guico III		Nacionalista	Mark Ronald DG. Lambino

Cities and municipalities