Bulacan

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This article is about the province. For the municipality, see Bulacan, Bulacan.

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Bulacan is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. It has two cities namely San Jose del Monte City and Malolos City, which is its capital. Bulacan is located immediately north of Metro Manila. Bordering Bulacan are the provinces of Pampanga to the west, Nueva Ecija to the north, Aurora and Quezon to the east, and Rizal to the south. Bulacan also lies on the northern shore of Manila Bay.

Bulacan figures prominently in Philippine History. Many national heroes and political figures were born in Bulacan. The province was also one of the first to revolt against Spain. However, Bulacan is most noted for being the capital of the first Philippine Republic in the now city of Malolos as well as its Malolos Constitution.

Contents 1 People and culture 2 Economy 3 Geography 3.1 Political 3.1.1 Cities 3.1.2 Municipalities 3.2 Physical 4 History 5 Tourist Attractions 6 External links

People and culture

Population. According to the May 2000 census, there are a total of 2,234,088 Bulaqueños, making Bulacan the fourth most populous province in the country. It is also the fifth most densely populated province at 851 people per square kilometer. There are 463,886 households in the province with an average size of 4.81 persons, significantly lower than the national average of 4.99.

Languages. Tagalog is the predominant language of Bulacan because of its proximity to Manila. Inhabitants also speak Kapampangan, which is the language of neighboring Pampanga.

Economy

Industries. The province of Bulacan is steadily becoming industrialized due to its proximity to Metro Manila. Many corporations put up industrial plants and site in Bulacan. Some of the industries include leather tanning, cement bag making, fireworks manufacturing, ceramics, textiles, food processing, and shoe manufacturing.

Agriculture. The rural areas still mostly depend on agriculture as a source of income. Some of the major crops are rice, corn, vegetables, and fruits such as mangoes.

Transportation. Bulacan is linked with Metro Manila primarily through the North Luzon Expressway, which crosses the province into Pampanga.

Geography

Political

Bulacan is subdivided into 22 municipalities and 2 cities.

Cities

• Malolos City
• San Jose del Monte City

Municipalities

Angat Balagtas (Bigaa) Baliuag Bocaue Bulacan Bustos Calumpit Doña Remedios Trinidad Guiguinto Hagonoy Marilao

Meycauayan Norzagaray Obando Pandi Paombong Plaridel Pulilan San Ildefonso San Miguel San Rafael Santa María

Physical

Terrain. Bulacan lies in the southern portion of the fertile plains of Central Luzon. The area is drained by the Angat and Pampanga rivers. The Sierra Madre mountain range forms the highlands of Bulacan in the east. Angat Lake, which was formed by the Angat Dam is located in that area. The highest point in the province at 1170 meters is Mount Oriol, part of the Sierra Madre.

Climate. November to April is generally dry while wet for the rest of the year. The northeast monsoon (amihan) prevails from October to January bringing in moderated and light rains. From February to April, the east trade winds predominate but the Sierra Madre (Philippines) mountain range to the east disrupts the winds resulting to a dry period. From May to September, the southwest monsoon (habagat) prevails and the period is characterized by numerous storms and typhoons.

The hottest month is May having an average temperature of 29.7°C while the coldest is February with an average temperature of 18.1°C.

History

The history of the province from the Spanish occupation has been replete with events worthy of recollection. As early as the time of the coming of Legaspi to conquer Manila with two of his subordinate officers, Martin de Goiti and Juan Salcedo, the Bulakeños thru their seafaring brothers from Hagonoy showed their instinctive love of country by helping Raja Soliman, King of Manila, fight the Battle of the Bangkusay Channel.

The history began when a small settlement of fishermen lived along the coast of Manila Bay before the coming of the Spaniards. Later on, these settlers became farmers after moving inwards as they discovered that the land in the interior part was fertile and very much drained by the network of rivers and streams. These settlers grew and flourished into large and prosperous settlement now known as the province of Bulacan. It is believed that flowers bloomed in the region when the Spaniards came. Because of these sprawling green orchards, vegetables and profusely flowering plants, as well as beautiful women, this lovely land had come to be called Bulacan as sort of shortened term for "bulak-lakan" and/or a derivative of the word "bulak" (kapok) which abound in the province even before the Spaniards came.

The signing of the Pact of Biak-na-Bato in 1897 was a brilliant chapter in the history of Bulacan. However, the crowning glory among the series of historical events in the province was the establishment of the Capital of the First Philippine Republic in Malolos. The Malolos Church and the Barasoain Church will be both remembered as the executive headquarters of President Aguinaldo and as the Legislative, from September 10, 1898 to March 29, 1899. It was also in Malolos that the famous and historical document, the Malolos Constitution, was drafted and ratified.

Bulacan is also the cradle of noble heroes, of great men and women. The early people of Bulacan, being descendants of a freedom-loving race, had also risen in revolt like their brothers in other parts of the country. Bulacan was one of the eight provinces, which rallied behind the Katipunan's call for an all-out insurrection against the Spanish tyranny in the late 19t h century. It produced the del Pilars, Balagtas, Tecson, Valenzuela, Torres, Estrella, Ponce, Sandico, Panganiban and many others. The Bulakeños take fierce pride in their history and tradition and they live by these glories. By these glories, they are quick to display leadership and seek fullest commitment to national goals.

Tourist Attractions

Malolos Cathedral Basilica in Malolos the church that served as the first Presidential Headquarters of the First Philippine Republic under Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo.

Barasoain Church in Malolos was the site of the congress which drafted the first Philippine Constitution and established the first Philippine Republic.

Calumpit Church - the oldest church in the whole province of Bulacan (built in 1575)

Sta. Monica Church in Angat is over 400 years old.

Meycauayan Church in Meycauayan over a century-old church.

Divine Mercy National Shrine in Marilao.

Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto (San Jose del Monte).

Festivals:

• Singkaban Fiesta (Linggo ng Bulacan)
• Bocaue River Festival (Pagoda Festival)
• Obando Festival Carabao Festival (Pulilan)
• Sambuklod Festival (San Jose del Monte)

External links

• Official Website of the Provincial Government of Bulacan
• Bulacan Chamber of Commerce and Industry

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