Laoag (), officially the City of Laoag (; ), is a component city and capital of the province of Ilocos Norte, Philippines. According to the , it has a population of people.
It is the province's most populous settlement, as well as its political, commercial, and industrial hub. The Ilocos Region's busiest commercial airport is also built in Laoag. It is also the northernmost city in the Philippines.
The municipalities of San Nicolas, Paoay, Sarrat, Piddig, Vintar, and Bacarra form its boundaries. The foothills of the Cordillera Central mountain range to the east, and the South China Sea to the west are its physical boundaries.
Laoag experiences a prevailing monsoon climate of Northern Luzon, characterized by a dry season from November to April and a wet season from May to October. Despite being battered by powerful typhoons occasionally, Laoag can still be referred to as the "Sunshine City".
History
In 1571, when the Spanish conquistadors had Manila more or less under their control, they began looking for new sites to conquer. Legaspi's grandson, Juan de Salcedo, volunteered to lead one of these expeditions. Together with eight armed boats and 45 men, the 22-year-old voyager headed north.
On June 13, 1572, Salcedo and his men landed in Vigan and then proceeded towards Laoag, Currimao, and Badoc. As they sailed along the coast, they were surprised to see numerous sheltered coves (looc) where the locals lived: as a result, they named the region "Ylocos" and its people "Ylocanos".
As the Christianization of the region grew, so did the landscape of the area. Vast tracts of land were utilized for churches and bell towers in line with the Spanish mission of ('under the bells') – a proclamation by King Philip's 1573 Law of the Indies. In the town plaza, it was not uncommon to see garrisons under the church bells. The colonization process was slowly being carried out.
The Spanish colonization of the region, however, was never completely successful. Owing to the abusive practices of many Augustinian friars, a number of Ilocanos revolted against their colonizers. Noteworthy of these were the Dingras uprising (1589) and Pedro Almasan revolt in San Nicolas (1660). In 1762, Diego Silang led a series of battles aimed at freeing the Ilocanos from the Spanish yoke. When he died from an assassin's bullet, his widow Gabriela continued the cause. She too was captured and hanged. In 1807, the sugar cane (basi) brewers of Piddig rose up in arms to protest the government's monopoly of the wine industry. In 1898, the church excommunicated Gregorio Aglipay for refusing to cut off ties with the revolutionary forces of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo. Unperturbed, he established the . Aglipay's movement and the national sentiment it espoused helped restore the self-respect of many Filipinos.
"The great increase in population from 1715 to 1818 from 18,980 to 282,845 made the administration of the province very difficult. Due to the excessive monopolies and forced labor, there were several uprisings: first by the people of Dingras in 1589; one that was led by Pedro Almazan in 1616; the revolt of Diego Silang in 1762–1763; by Ambaristo in 1788; by Pedro Mateo in 1808 (also known as Basi Revolt) and uprising of Sarrat in 1815. For this reason, the division of the Ilocos into two provinces was recommended by the local authorities. On February 2, 1818, a Spanish Royal Decree was promulgated dividing the Province of Ilocos Norte from Ilocos Sur. Laoag, which was then the biggest center of population, was made the capital of Ilocos Norte." The 1818 census noted that Laoag and Ilocos Norte had 55,000 native Filipino families and had 5 large Spanish-Filipino clans. Ilocos Norte was noted to be rich and highly cultured and was a patron of the arts and crafts, and produced globally recognized artists such as Juan Luna.
Laoag was captured by the Japanese Army on December 12, 1941, two days after the landing at Vigan and Aparri. Its airport was then used by the Japanese for most of World War II.
Cityhood
On June 19, 1965, Laoag changed from municipality to city status, following a plebiscite and passed into law by the Senate President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos. It remained the capital of Ilocos Norte. Mayor Eulalio F. Siazon and Engineer Trinidad Lucas Aurelio were part of a team that led the drive to convert Laoag into a city. Another members of the group was Simeon M. Valdez who filed the bill in congress, co-authored by Antonio V. Raquiza. The first city mayor was Eulalio Fonacier Siazon.
Geography The City of Laoag is located at the west-central part of the Province of Ilocos Norte bordering the South China Sea. It is bounded on the east by the Municipality of Sarrat; in the southeast by the Municipality of San Nicolas; in the southwest by the Municipality of Paoay, in the northeast the Municipality of Vintar; in the northwest by the Municipality of Bacarra; and in the west by the South China Sea. It is one of the largest cities in the Ilocos Region.
Laoag is situated from the country's capital city of Manila.
Barangays Laoag is politically subdivided into 80 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios. +The 80 barangays of the City of Laoag Conventional Long Name BarangayNumber Name FormerName/Territory Barangay No. 1, San Lorenzo 1 San Lorenzo Poblacion Barangay No. 2, Santa Joaquina 2 Santa Joaquina Poblacion Barangay No. 3, Nuestra Señora del Rosario 3 Nuestra Señora del Rosario Poblacion Barangay No. 4, San Guillermo 4 San Guillermo Poblacion Barangay No. 5, San Pedro 5 San Pedro Poblacion Barangay No. 6, San Agustin 6 San Agustin Poblacion Barangay No. 7-A, Nuestra Señora del Natividad 7-A Nuestra Señora del Natividad Poblacion Barangay No. 7-B, Nuestra Señora del Natividad 7-B Nuestra Señora del Natividad Poblacion Barangay No. 8, San Vicente 8 San Vicente Poblacion Barangay No. 9, Santa Angela 9 Santa Angela Poblacion Barangay No. 10, San Jose 10 San Jose Poblacion Barangay No. 11, Santa Balbina 11 Santa Balbina Poblacion Barangay No. 12, San Isidro 12 San Isidro Poblacion Barangay No. 13, Nuestra Señora de Visitacion 13 Nuestra Señora de Visitacion Poblacion Barangay No. 14, Santo Tomas 14 Santo Tomas Poblacion Barangay No. 15, San Guillermo 15 San Guillermo Poblacion Barangay No. 16, San Jacinto 16 San Jacinto Poblacion Barangay No. 17, San Francisco 17 San Francisco Poblacion Barangay No. 18, San Quirino 18 San Quirino Poblacion Barangay No. 19, Santa Marcela 19 Santa Marcela Poblacion Barangay No. 20, San Miguel 20 San Miguel Poblacion Barangay No. 21, San Pedro 21 San Pedro Poblacion Barangay No. 22, San Andres 22 San Andres Poblacion Barangay No. 23, San Matias 23 San Matias Poblacion Barangay No. 24, Nuestra Señora de Consolacion 24 Nuestra Señora de Consolacion Poblacion Barangay No. 25, Santa Cayetana 25 Santa Cayetana Poblacion Barangay No. 26, San Marcelino 26 San Marcelino Poblacion Barangay No. 27, Nuestra Señora de Soledad 27 Nuestra Señora de Soledad Poblacion Barangay No. 28, San Bernardo 28 San Bernardo Poblacion Barangay No. 29, Santo Tomas 29 Santo Tomas Poblacion Barangay No. 30-A, Suyo 30-A Suyo – Barangay No. 30-B, Santa Maria 30-B Santa Maria – Barangay No. 31, Talingaan 31 Talingaan – Barangay No. 32-A, La Paz East 32-A La Paz East – Barangay No. 32-B, La Paz West 32-B La Paz West – Barangay No. 32-C, La Paz East 32-C La Paz East – Barangay No. 33-A, La Paz Proper 33-A La Paz Proper – Barangay No. 33-B, La Paz Proper 33-B La Paz Proper – Barangay No. 34-A, Gabu Norte West 34-A Gabu Norte West – Barangay No. 34-B, Gabu Norte East 34-B Gabu Norte East – Barangay No. 35, Gabu Sur 35 Gabu Sur – Barangay No. 36, Araniw 36 Araniw – Barangay No. 37, Calayab 37 Calayab – Barangay No. 38-A, Mangato East 38-A Mangato East – Barangay No. 38-B, Mangato West 38-B Mangato West – Barangay No. 39, Santa Rosa 39 Santa Rosa – Barangay No. 40, Balatong 40 Balatong – Barangay No. 41, Balacad 41 Balacad – Barangay No. 42, Apaya 42 Apaya – Barangay No. 43, Cavit 43 Cavit – Barangay No. 44, Zamboanga 44 Zamboanga – Barangay No. 45, Tangid 45 Tangid – Barangay No. 46, Nalbo 46 Nalbo – Barangay No. 47, Bengcag 47 Bengcag – Barangay No. 48-A, Cabungaan North 48-A Cabungaan North – Barangay No. 48-B, Cabungaan South 48-B Cabungaan South – Barangay No. 49-A, Darayday 49-A Darayday – Barangay No. 49-B, Raraburan 49-B Raraburan – Barangay No. 50, Buttong 50 Buttong – Barangay No. 51-A, Nangalisan East 51-A Nangalisan East – Barangay No. 51-B, Nangalisan West 51-B Nangalisan West – Barangay No. 52-A, San Mateo 52-A San Mateo – Barangay No. 52-B, Lataag 52-B Lataag – Barangay No. 53, Rioeng 53 Rioeng – Barangay No. 54-A, Camangaan 54-A Camangaan – Barangay No. 54-B, Lagui-Sail 54-B Lagui-Sail – Barangay No. 55-A, Barit-Pandan 55-A Barit-Pandan – Barangay No. 55-B, Salet-Bulangon 55-B Salet-Bulangon – Barangay No. 55-C, Vira 55-C Vira – Barangay No. 56-A, Bacsil North 56-A Bacsil North – Barangay No. 56-B, Bacsil South 56-B Bacsil South – Barangay No. 57, Pila 57 Pila – Barangay No. 58, Casili 58 Casili – Barangay No. 59-A, Dibua South 59-A Dibua South – Barangay No. 59-B, Dibua North 59-B Dibua North – Barangay No. 60-A, Caaoacan 60-A Caaoacan – Barangay No. 60-B, Madiladig 60-B Madiladig – Barangay No. 61, Cataban 61 Cataban – Barangay No. 62-A, Navotas North 62-A Navotas North – Barangay No. 62-B, Navotas South 62-B Navotas South – Note: Italicized names are former names/territories.
Climate Laoag has a tropical savanna climate with warm to hot temperatures year round. Temperatures dip slightly during the winter months between December and February. Characterized by two well-pronounced seasons; dry and wet and is classified as mild and pleasant climate. Dry season usually starts in November until April and wet during the rest of the year. The city is shielded from northeast monsoon and trade winds by the mountain ranges of Cordillera and Sierra Madre but it is exposed to the southwest monsoon and cyclone storms.
The rainy seasons, which has an average monthly rainfall of more than . is from May to September with its peak in June, July and August. Rainfall during the peak month represents 68% of the annual rainfall with an average of .
In the afternoon of May, temperature reach up to and drops down to in the early mornings of January. The city recorded an average temperature of with a relative humidity of 75.5% in 1996. The city experiences an average of four to five tropical cyclones every year.
Demographics
According to the 2024 census, it has a population of 112,117 people, with a density of .
Laoag City had a total population of 94,466 for the year 2000 as per NSO official report. In 1995, the total inhabitants of the city was 88,336, an increase of 6,130. Based on the 1995 and 2000 intercensal periods, the Average Annual Growth Rate of the city was 1.35%.
The number of households is 19,751 and the average household size is five (5) persons per household. Male-female ratio is 1:1; Birth rate is 26.44% while Death rate is 4.28%.
In the city of Laoag as of year 2000, Urban barangay San Lorenzo had the largest number of population at 2,883, followed by Rural barangay Buttong at 2,277, and then by Barangay 2 Santa Joaquina at 2,048. With the least inhabitants was Rural Barangay 39 Santa Rosa, 592, and then Barangay 52-A San Mateo, 594. Noticeably, the residents of Barangay 23 San Matias decreased by 740.
Language The dominant dialect spoken in Laoag City is Ilocano.
Religion The Roman Catholic and the Aglipayan Church are the dominant religious affiliations. The rest of the existing religions in the city include the Iglesia ni Cristo, and other Protestant groups with a significant number of adherents.
Economy