Ubay, Bohol


Ubay, officially the Municipality of Ubay, is a municipality in the province of Bohol, Philippines. According to the 2024 census, it has a population of 82,179 people.
Ubay has an uncontested area of 258.132847 square kilometers and has a contested area of 5.87 square kilometers with other Municipality per certification issued by the Land Management Bureau of the DENR. It has a of coastline.

Etymology

One etymology derivation is that the town's name is a contraction of the term ubay-ubay, meaning "alongside".
According to Kaufmann's Visayan-English dictionary, the Visayan word "ubay" means:
The flow of seawater between the mainland and the island of Lapinig Grande could justify the second definition of Ubay. It is a situation that is permanent and the constant reference to the flow of water can make the term ubay be attached as the name of the place.
An alternative derivation is that the term 'ubay-ubay' or 'alongside' became the byword of seafarers who used to travel close to the shorelines of Ubay to avoid the strong current of the Canigao Channel. There was a single path to follow reach the island trading centres. This trail was located alongside the sandy beach. Later on the term Ubay became the original name of the community.

History

Spanish Period

Historically, Ubay was part of Talibon, when the latter was established as a town in civil aspect in 1722. During Spanish period, a town has two aspects - religious, headed by the parish priest and civil aspect, headed by a gobernadorcillo. The religious aspect was then considered superior to the civil aspect, as the church held significant influence over daily life and governance during that time.
In 1744, the Dagohoy Revolution started, controlling the entire northeastern part of the province, stretching from Duero to Inabanga that lasted up until 1829. As the revolution progresses, Jesuit were replaced by Augustinian Recollects in Bohol in 1768 led by Fr. Pedro de Santa Barbara, who travelled through mountains with proposals of peace and resettlement for Dagohoy and its followers. Through his untiring intrepidness, later on, pacified patriots together with their cluster chieftains chose to resettle in southern coastal towns. Later in 1794, Fr. Manuel de la Consolacion, then parish priest of Inabanga, successfully brought hundreds of followers and resettled them in towns of Talibon and Inabanga, as well in the barangays of San Pedro, Pangpang, and Ubay. Therefore, much of early residents of Ubay were followers of Dagohoy.
In 1821, Ubay became an independent town from Talibon in civil aspect, but due to the Dagohoy Revolution, the newly established town of Ubay did not operate as an independent town because most of the inhabitants resisted the Spanish Government. Up until 1846, Ubay was not listed among the towns in the island of Bohol. Then, according to a Tax Census dated September 1, 1847, Ubay was officially listed, which served as the basis for its reorganization and indication of a functioning town, marking September 1, 1847 as the foundation date of Ubay. The first gobernadorcillo of Ubay was believed to be Toribio Reyes, whose name and the year 1872 are inscribed on one of the old church bells of Ubay Parish, and who was the only son of Berudja, the legendary matriarch of Ubay.
The religious aspect of Ubay was still administered by the parish of Inabanga, until Talibon was able to establish a separate parish in 1831, making Ubay a visita with its chapel made of wood. The official religious aspect of the town was established much later than the civil aspect.
On June 26, 1874, a written petition was made by gobernadorcillo Saturnino Boyles along with the Community Heads, and the Household Heads of Ubay for an independent parish, separate from Talibon. To support their cause, they voluntarily constructed a decent rectory.
Then, on October 22, 1877, an independent parish in Ubay was established by a diocesan decree under the patronage of the Holy Child. This was done through Royal Order No. 695 of the Ministry of Overseas dated October 5, 1876, issued by the King of Spain Alfonso XII, creating an independent parish in Ubay, and a confirming decree dated November 22, 1876 from the Spanish Governor General José Malcampo, 3rd Marquess of San Rafael. Cabulao was included as its visita.
The first parish priest of Parrioquia de Ubay was P. Fr. Blas Adan del Pilar, from the Order of Augustinian Recollects, who served from October 1877 until February 1884, before he was transferred to Consolacion, Cebu. He succeeded by P. Fr. Benito Garayao del Carmen, from February 1884 - February 1886; P. Fr. Franscisco Vega de la Virgen de Vico from November 9, 1884, to April 1890; P. Fr. Leon Inchausti del Rosario from February 26 - March 20, 1890; P.Fr. Buenaventura Marrodan del Carmen from March 20, 1890, to 1897; and P. Fr. Juan Bea de la Virgen del Villar, from May 14, 1897, to December 20, 1898.
Ubay holds its town fiesta every January, as it is the official feast month of Santo Niño, a tradition that continues to this day. Ubayanons far away often come home during the fiesta to celebrate, reunite with loved ones, and honor their cultural heritage. The town comes alive with parades, music, and religious services, as the community gathers to relive traditions and strengthen their ties to home.

American Rule

On March 6, 1902, the entire municipality of Batuanan was consolidated with Ubay through Philippine Commission Act No. 370
On October 31, 1903, the old municipality of Ipil was divided into two. With Ipil River as demarcation line, the left bank was annexed to Talibon while the right bank was consolidated with Ubay. Furthermore, barangay Cabulao and the previously annexed municipality of Batuanan was separated from Ubay, together with barangay Libas, Candijay to create the new and distinct municipality of Mabini in virtue of Philippine Commission Act No. 968.

Modern Period

On September 1, 1947, the municipality of Ipil was reorganized, joining the barangays of Guinobatan, Mahagbu, and Tagum from Ubay together with other barangays of Talibon to create the renamed municipality of Trinidad through Executive Order No. 80.
On June 21, 1956, barangay Babag separated from Ubay together with other barangays of Carmen, Sierra-Bullones, and Trinidad to form the new municipality of Dagohoy through Executive Order No. 184.
On March 14, 1961, barangays of Corazon and Magsaysay separated from Ubay together with other barangays of Trinidad to form the independent municipality of San Miguel through Executive Order No. 423.
On December 29, 1961, barangay San Isidro separated from Ubay, together with other barangays of Candijay, Guindulman, and Sierra-Bullones to create the municipality of Pilar through Executive Order No. 460.
On June 21, 1969, barangays of Aguining, Basiao, Bonbonon, Gaus, Pitogo, and Tugas separated from Ubay to create the independent municipality of Pitogo in virtue of Republic Act 5867. It was later renamed President Carlos P. Garcia in honor of the 8th president of the Philippines on October 27, 1977, through Presidential Decree No. 1228.

Former Territories

Ubay is the largest municipality of Bohol with a total land area of 258.13 km2, encompassing about 5.35% of the total land area of the province. In 1902, during the American Colonial period, Ubay covered almost the entire northeast portion of the province, about a fifth of its total land area. Below is the list of former territories under the jurisdiction of Ubay.

Geography

Ubay is the largest and most populated municipality in Bohol, located in the northeast of the province. The town is situated east of Trinidad, north of Alicia and Mabini, and northeast of San Miguel. It is northeast of Tagbilaran.

Climate

The climate is typically equatorial – temperature range over the year is less than three degrees Celsius, and annual rainfall exceeds. The dry season starts in February and lasts through April sometimes extending to midMay. The climate in Ubay falls within Coronas climate type IV, characterized by not very pronounced maximum rainfall with a short dry season from one to three months and a wet season of nine to ten months.
Ubay has a tropical climate. Most months of the year are marked by significant precipitation, making agriculture favorable – it supports at least two rice crops per year. The short dry season has little impact. Ubay is classified as Am by climate classification system.

Barangays

Ubay is politically subdivided into 44 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.
These barangays are organized into eight urban districts :

Demographics

When the first national census was held in 1903, the municipality had a population 7,355. It continued to grow until 1960 with 34,090. The population markedly decreased in 1970 with the creation of the municipality of President Carlos P. Garcia, formerly a constituent barangay. Since 1970, average annual growth rate is.
The primary language is Cebuano: Filipino and English are understood to a limited degree.

Economy

Ubay has a number of business establishments commercial trading firms engaged in retail and wholesale. The new public market building was completed in 2000. The regular market day is Monday and local traders from neighboring towns come to sell their merchandise consisting mostly of agricultural products and small consumer items like used clothes, household utensils, and other products. Ubay also provides a market for the neighboring island municipality of Pres. Carlos P. Garcia, Municipality of Bien Unido, Alica and Mabini. Another well-known public market is located in barangay San Pascual, south of the municipality.
Ubay is one of the growth centers in and considered the dairy capital of the province where the Philippine Carabao Center, National Dairy Authority and the Ubay Stock Farm the largest and oldest livestock in the country with more than 3,000 hectares is located in the Municipality. The Municipality is also center for agri-industrial production and the biggest producers of poultry products in central visayas produced by the Marcela Farms Inc. located in Barangay Lomangog produce tons of poultry products like dress chicken. Ubay is also one of the top producers of fish products as it has more than 1,000 hectares of fishpond. The Municipality is a center for agriculture with government establishments like the Philippine Coconut Authority, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Bohol Experiential Station, Bureau of Soil and Water Management and the Central Visayas Integrated Agricultural Research Center are located. The Municipality is also considered the rice granary of the province with 51% of its total land area is intended for agriculture in which majority of its rice fields are irrigated.