Balaoan, Province of La Union, Ilocos Region, Philippines

🇵🇭 Balaoan, officially the Municipality of Balaoan (Ili ti Balaoan; Bayan ng Balaoan), is a 1st class municipality in the province of La Union, Philippines.

Etymology • Dr. Camilo Osias - name of a former senator who was born in Balaoan • Nagsabaran (as Nagsabaran Norte & Nagsabar Sur) – This name (meaning "place where [the road] branches out") was given to the place because the national road branched out to this barrio. The root word is sabar, meaning "to branch out". • Pantar (as Pantar Norte & Pantar Sur) - Ilocano term of "lively".

History According to William Scott, "Balaoan itself was an emporium for the exchange of Igorot gold".

Balaoan, formerly "Puraw" (meaning "white') was originally part of Ilocos Sur. The town's present name originated during the Spanish colonial era. A group of Spanish soldiers were on patrol and went on to rest on a sitio. The villagers were curious about the soldiers because of their unusual descent and fair skin color (others have olive skin, which is still lighter than the skin tone of villagers). They flocked the soldiers touching their guns, too afraid that the guns might explode accidentally, one villager asked the soldier in a local vernacular. "Aoan bala?" ("Awan bala?" in modern spelling, meaning "No bullets?"). The soldier did not understand what the villager meant, he uttered the last word first, and remembering the last, he said "Bala-aoan", which is pronounced on its modern town name "Balaoan".

During the Spanish colonization of the Philippines, a secret society of insurrectos was organized in the municipality. Its purpose was to fight and revolt against the Spanish Government in the area. On the eve of the revolution, a traitor told the Spanish of their plan. The Spanish soldiers, without any investigation, arrested seven members of the secret society and executed them the same night. Only one, Fernando Ostrea, escaped with leg wounds. He informed the people about what had happened. In memory of the seven Martyrs, a masonic lodge, Siete Martires Lodge No. 177, was organized.

Balaoan is one of the oldest municipalities in La Union, having been founded in 1704. Its first Capitan is Ignacio Duldulao.

Geography Balaoan is situated north of Bacnotan, south of Bangar, east of Luna and west of Santol. Located 30 km (19 mi) north of San Fernando City, the provincial capital of La Union and the regional capital of Region I. Balaoan is 299 km (186 mi) north of Metro Manila. Barangay Paraoir is Balaoan's pristine coastal community on the South China Sea.

Balaoan can be reached from Manila using the MacArthur Highway, or by airplane via Canaoay Airport in San Fernando City.

Its land area of 6,870 hectares (17,000 acres) consists mostly of agricultural lands. It occupies 4.3% of the total area of the province.

Geography: Barangays Balaoan is politically subdivided into 36 barangays.  Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios. • Almeida • Antonino • Apatut • Ar-arampang • Baracbac Este • Baracbac Oeste • Bet-ang • Bulbulala • Bungol • Butubut Este • Butubut Norte • Butubut Oeste • Butubut Sur • Cabuaan • Calliat • Calungbuyan • Camiling • Dr. Camilo Osias • Guinaburan • Masupe • Nagsabaran Norte • Nagsabaran Sur • Nalasin • Napaset • Pa-o • Pagbennecan • Pagleddegan • Pantar Norte • Pantar Sur • Paraoir • Patpata • Sablut • San Pablo • Sinapangan Norte • Sinapangan Sur • Tallipugo.

Festivities The church of Balaoan is under the advocacy of the town's patron saint, St. Nicholas of Tolentino, whose feast day is celebrated on September. Balaoan's town fiesta is celebrated every December 21 to 23 of the year.

Education *Elementary schools * • Almeida Elementary School • Apatut Elementary School (Apatut) • Ar-arampang Elementary School (Ar- Arampang,Balaoan) • Balaoan Central Elementary School (Antonino and Cabua-an) • Balaoan Christian Foundation (Nalasin) • Bulbulala Elementary School (Bulbulala) • Bungol Elementary School (Bungol) • Butubut Elementary School (Butubut Sur) • Butubut Norte Elementary School (Butubut Norte) • Calliat Elementary School (Calliat) • Guinaburan Elementary School (Guinaburan) • Masupe Elementary School (Masupe) • Nagsabaran Sur Elementary School (Nsgsabaran Sur) • Osias Educational Foundation (Dr. Camilo Osias) • Pantar Community School (Pantar Norte) • Pantar Sur Elementary School (Pantar Sur) • Paraoir Elementary School (Paraoir) • Patpata Elementary School (Patpata) • San Nicolas Academy • San Nicolas Academy (Dr. Camilo Osias, Nalasin and Antonino) • Sinapangan National High School (Sinapangan Norte) • Sinapangan Norte Elementary School (Sinapangan Norte) • Sinapangan Sur Elementary School (Sinapangan Sur); *High schools * • Bungol National High School (Bungol) • Butubut National High School (Butubut Norte) • Castor Z. Concepcion Memorial National High School (Nalasin and Antonino) • Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University National High School (Paraoir) • Osias Educational Foundation (Dr. Camilo Osias) • San Nicolas Academy.