Alicia, Isabela

Alicia
Municipality
Seal
Map of Isabela showing the location of Alicia
Alicia Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 16°47′N 121°42′E / 16.783°N 121.700°E / 16.783; 121.700Coordinates: 16°47′N 121°42′E / 16.783°N 121.700°E / 16.783; 121.700
Country	Philippines
Region	Cagayan Valley (Region II)
Province	Isabela
District	3rd District of Isabela
Barangays	34
Government[1]
• Mayor	Ian Paul L. Dy
Area[2]
• Total	154.10 km2 (59.50 sq mi)
Population (2010)[3]
• Total	64,687
• Density	420/km2 (1,100/sq mi)
Time zone	PST (UTC+8)
ZIP code	3306
Dialing code	78
Income class	1st class; partially urban

Alicia (formerly known as Angadanan Viejo) is a first class municipality in the province of Isabela, Philippines. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 64,687 people.^[3]

The town is located in an area of predominantly flat and fertile land in the Cagayan Valley that surrounded by the Caraballo Mountains to the south, the Great Sierra Madre to the east and the Cordillera Mountain Range to the west. It is the largest rice producer in the entire Cagayan Valley and has the largest irrigated rice field in the whole Region II of the Philippines.

Alicia, the old town of Angadanan, is known for the Pagay Festival and its famous historical landmark, the Our Lady of Atocha Church completed and inaugurated in 1849 which was officially declared by the Philippine Department of Tourism as a national religious tourist destination in the Philippines.

Barangays

Alicia has a total land area of 15, 410 hectares and 64, 339 total population as of 2009. 71% of the total land area is an agricultural land which makes Alicia primarily an agricultural municipality best suited for the intensive production of rice and corn. Farming is its major livelihood and rice its major product and resource. Alicia is politically subdivided into 34 barangays:^[2]

History

Alicia was once called "Angadanan Viejo" (which means "Old Angadanan") when the new Angadanan was relocated in 1776 to its current location near the Angadanan Creek.^[4]

The old Angadanan town was part of the Cagayan Valley province. The entire Cagayan Valley was one large province which the Spaniards called La Provincia del Valle de Cagayan, but divided into two new provinces in 1839 by the Spanish conquistadors. One retained the old name Cagayan which comprised all towns from Aparri to Tumauini; while a new province of Nueva Vizcaya was created composed of all towns from Ilagan City to the Caraballo del Sur including Catalangan, Angadanan (now Alicia), and Palanan, with Camarag (Echague) as its capital.^[5]

A Royal Decree was created on 1 May 1856 creating Isabela de Luzon to distinguish it from other Isabelas in the Philippines. It comprised the town of Carig (now Santiago City), Camarag (now Echague), Angadanan (now Alicia), Cauayan, Calanusian (now Reina Mercedes), Gamu, and Ilagan City, all detached from Nueva Vizcaya; while Tumauini and Cabagan were taken from the Cagayan province. It was placed under the jurisdiction of a governor with the capital seat at Ilagan City, where it remains at the present.^[5]

When the late Philippine President Elpidio Quirino signed Executive Order No. 268 on 28 September 1949, the Old Angadanan was renamed and created the municipality of Alicia in honor of then Quirino’s wife, Dona Alicia Syquia Quirino, who was murdered by the Japanese during the Japanese occupation.^[6]

Demographics

Climate

Language

The population is a combination of different ethnic group dominated by Ilocano speaking people which make Ilocano the common language used in the municipality.

Economy

Alicia, as a suburb of a progressive city, Cauayan, Isabela, is also showing signs of progress. Various banking institutions like Landbank of the Philippines, Security Bank,^[8] etc. are already present in Alicia. In 2013, popular fast food chain Jollibee has opened^[9] its first branch in Alicia which includes Drive Thru service.

Attractions

Our Lady of Atocha Church

The Our Lady of Atocha Church in Alicia is known for having an old Spanish church architecture. It is one of the best churches to visit for a pilgrimage in the Philippines during the Holy Week.^[10] The church was declared by the Philippine Department of Tourism as one of the national religious tourist attractions in the Philippines.^[11]

The structure of the church was original built by the Spaniards in the 18th century, but not finished. Passing by Angadanan town on 12 February 1805, Fr. Manuel Mora, OP wrote that “Angadanan has a convent of bricks, though not totally finished. Its church is timber, wood, and bamboo. The number of inhabitants is 791.” The church and convent as seen today in the town of Alicia, beautiful and antique, was built by Fr. Tomas Calderon, OP and inaugurated in 1849, with Fr. Francisco Gainza, OP, then vicar of Carig (now Santiago City). The church was dedicated to the Nuestra Señora de Atocha, more popularly known today as Our Lady of Atocha. The church is known for its antique Castilian architectural design and can be found along the Maharlika Highway and is accessible by land transport.^[5][12][13]

The Catholic churches in Alicia, Gamu, and Cauayan City, are examples of what is called as the "Cagayan Style" of Spanish churches that was inspired by the Tuguegarao church.

List of mayors

The first mayor (municipality leader) of Alicia was Glicerio Acosta who was appointed to office by the President of the Philippines upon the creation of Alicia as a municipality in 1949. The mayor is restricted to three consecutive terms, totaling nine years, although a mayor can be elected again after an interruption of one term.

The following is the chronological list of current and past mayors of Alicia:

Educational institutions

Alicia has two universities that cater to the people of the municipality and other neighboring municipalities and provinces. Alicia is also noted for having the most high-tech school in the region.

College and University

• Northeast Luzon Adventist College
• Philippine Normal University- Northern Luzon Campus

High Schools

Private:

• Dalton Academy
• Northeast Luzon Adventist College
• School of Our Lady of Atocha
• Top Achievers Private School
• Odizee School of Achievers

Public:

• Alicia National High School
• Alicia Vocational School
• Palayan Region High School
• Rizal Region National High School, Alicia, Isabela

Elementary Schools

Private:

• Alicia Adventist Multigrade School
• Faith Christian Academy
• Northeast Luzon Adventist College
• School of Our Lady of Atocha
• St. Francis School Foundation
• St. John Adaptive Montessori School
• Top Achievers Private School
• Odizee School of Achievers
• Ay Kun School

Public:

External links

• Local Government of Alicia Isabela
• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Philippine Census Information
• Our Lady of Atocha Colonial Church
• Local Governance Performance Management System

References

	San Mateo	Cauayan
	Ramon		Angadanan
		Alicia
		San Isidro	Echague

Province of Isabela Ilagan (capital) Municipalities Alicia Angadanan Aurora Benito Soliven Burgos Cabagan Cabatuan Cordon Delfin Albano Dinapigue Divilacan Echague Gamu Jones Luna Maconacon Mallig Naguilian Palanan Quezon Quirino Ramon Reina Mercedes Roxas San Agustin San Guillermo San Isidro San Manuel San Mariano San Mateo San Pablo Santa Maria Santo Tomas Tumauini Component Cities Cauayan Ilagan Independent Component City Santiago (Administratively independent from the province, but grouped under Isabela by the National Statistics Office) Barangays See: List of barangays in Isabela