Villanueva, Misamis Oriental
Villanueva | |
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The Municipality of Villanueva, Misamis Oriental | |
![]() Map of Misamis Oriental showing the location of Villanueva | |
Country | ![]() |
Region | Northern Mindanao (Region X) |
Province | Misamis Oriental |
Time zone | UTC+8 (PHT) |
ZIP Code | 9002 |
Villanueva is a second class municipality in the province of Misamis Oriental, Philippines. It is approximately 30-40 minutes away from the city of Cagayan de Oro. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 24,867 people in 4,779 households.
Villanueva is one of the most progressive towns in Misamis Oriental. The presence of companies like Philippine Sinter Corporation (PSC), STEAG State Power, Inc., Purina and Coca-Cola (ongoing construction) contributes to the municipality's income although it is largely agricultural.
Villanueva celebrates the feast of the Our Lady of Guadalupe every 12th of December.
History
Long before the advent of the Spanish Armada, the Municipality of Villanueva was originally named “Bongloy” by the natives called the Magahats, because of the three gigantic Bongloy trees that grew in the place where the Catholic church and town plaza stands today.
Christianization has always been associated to Philippine history. In 1830, the mission of Jasaan, an adjacent town to the north, was to establish separation from Cagayan de Oro and evangelization to as far as the towns of Sumilao, Linabo and Malitbog in the province of Bukidnon. Its center of civilization and the first Church was at “Daanglungsod” which is now the Aplaya, Jasaan, where an old kota (watch tower) is still exists, thus marked the birth of Christianity in Bongloy and the emerge of a beautiful story of how Villanueva was born.
Father Gregorio Parache, S.J., - (432 local historical sources of Northern Mindanao by Father Francisco Demetrio, S. J), who was the parish priest of Jasaan at that time brought a certain Captain Villanueva to Bongloy. Villanueva was a Mexican-American soldier who was one of the occupants of Balingasag Convent during the American occupation of the Philippines.
Father Parache requested Captain Villanueva to assist him in the plans and then commissioned the captain to develop a potable water and irrigation system in the Bongloy area. The Captain was so popular that the natives gave him extraordinary respect. The captain’s family became as popular that it was because of such word spoken by people in every corner of the hamlet, that the place was named after him.
As the years passed, the Magahats moved eastward below the town of Claveria and began calling Bongloy as Villanueva in honor of the great Captain. The word Villanueva was handed down through word of mouth in the succeeding generation.
Barangays
Villanueva is politically subdivided into eleven barangays.
- Balacanas
- Dayawan
- Katipunan
- Kimaya
- Poblacion 1
- Poblacion 2
- Poblacion 3
- San Martin
- Tambobong
- Imelda
- Looc