Miagao (also written Miag-ao), officially the Municipality of Miagao (; ; ), is a municipality in the province of Iloilo, Philippines. According to the , it has a population of people.
Miagao is considered as the "Onion Capital of the Visayas". The town center of the municipality lies on the western bank of the Tumagbok River, the largest river in the municipality.Miagao Satellite Map The poblacion is made up of eight barangays.Miagao Barangays
The town holds their patronal fiesta in honor of St. Thomas of Villanova (more commonly known as Santo Tomas de Villanueva) every September 22 that lasts several days. The town is also the location of one of the Baroque Churches of the Philippines, the Miagao Church, which was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The entire town of Miagao was later inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage City and became a member of the Organization of World Heritage Cities (OWHC).
Etymology The name of Miagao has many disputed etymologies. One of the most popular, and probably the most widely accepted version is that the name of the town was derived from a plant named Miagos. Miagos or Osmoxylon lineare is a flowering plant from the family Araliaceae that used to grow abundantly in the area when the Spaniards came. Because of its abundance in the area, the Spaniards named the place Miagos which later became Miagao. Another version, according to Rev. Fr. Lorenzo Torres of Igbaras, is that a native named "Miyagaw" was asked by the Spaniards for the name of the place but gave his name instead.Miagao History
History
A settlement in Damilisan were recorded by Spanish Map early in 1700 with 13,493 people and 2,974 houses. Miagao gained its independence as a municipality in 1716 . Prior to that, it used to be a part of an arrabal of four different towns in southern Iloilo. Until 1580, Miagao was an arrabal of Oton. From 1580 until 1652, it was an arrabal of Tigbauan. It was an arrabal of Suaraga (now San Joaquin) from 1652 to 1703 and before becoming independent, it became an arrabal of Guimbal from 1703 to 1716. In 1731, Miagao had its first capitan and teniente mayor (now equivalent to mayor and vice mayor) after an election was held in Guimbal under the supervision of Victorino C. Ma., an authorized representative of the governor.
Geography
Topography Miagao is a coastal town with a hilly to mountainous terrain. Most of the flat areas in the municipality are found either in coasts or along the town's major rivers which include the Naulid, Tumagbok, Oyaoy, Bacauan, Tabunacan, Oyungan, Lanutan, and San Rafael rivers. A mountain range forms a natural boundary between Miagao and the province of Antique to the north.
The highest point in the municipality is the summit of Mount Tulajon, locally spelled as Tulahong, at 1,100 meters asl located in Barangay Ongyod.
Climate
The municipality has a type I climate based on PAGASA's climate classification chart. The climate of Miagao is greatly affected by north-east and south-west monsoons. The town experiences a pronounced wet season from May to October and a dry season from November to April. The coolest months are the months of December to February while the hottest months are the months of April and May.
Barangays
Miagao is politically subdivided into 119 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.
It has more barangays than any other municipality in the Philippines.Barangay in numbers The municipality has 22 coastal barangays and 97 landlocked barangays. Name PSG Code Population Population Agdum 063030001 345400 Aguiauan 063030002460481 Alimodias 063030003 764652 Awang 063030004 156139 Bacauan 063030006 611624 Bacolod 063030007 471515 Bagumbayan 063030008 939988 Banbanan 063030009 485419 Banga 063030010 222224 Bangladan 063030011 348366 Banuyao 063030012 898937 Baraclayan 063030013 400414 Bariri 063030014 133143 Baybay Norte (Poblacion) 063030015 29323013 Baybay Sur (Poblacion) 063030016 998969 Belen 063030017 191199 Bolho (Poblacion) 063030018 457387 Bolocaue 063030019 195194 Buenavista Norte 063030020 385413 Buenavista Sur 063030021 291293 Bugtong Lumangan 063030022 327350 Bugtong Naulid 063030023 203197 Cabalaunan 063030024 252258 Cabangcalan 063030025 137144 Cabunotan 063030026 306243 Cadoldolan 063030027 151113 Cagbang 063030028 310321 Caitib 063030029 634564 Calagtangan 063030030 423481 Calampitao 063030031 798826 Cavite 063030032 209203 Cawayanan 063030033 261285 Cubay 063030034 753830 Cubay Ubos 063030035 162158 Dalije 063030036 18091627 Damilisan 063030037 13051295 Dawog 063030038 826830 Diday 063030039 760767 Dingle 063030040 379427 Durog 063030041 10641072 Frantilla 063030042 162190 Fundacion 063030043 339316 Gines 063030044 685752 Guibongan 063030045 9771089 Igbita 063030046 324236 Igbugo 063030047 505523 Igcabidio 063030048 300322 Igcabito-on 063030050 344461 Igcatambor 063030051 312326 Igdalaquit 063030052 205182 Igdulaca 063030053 706708 Igpajo 063030054 380332 Igpandan 063030055 303317 Igpuro 063030056 468538 Igpuro-Bariri 063030057 304314 Igsoligue 063030058 460452 Igtuba 063030059 11571345 Ilog-ilog 063030060 233175 Indag-an 063030061 694623 Kirayan Norte 063030062 17271834 Kirayan Sur 063030063 14401475 Kirayan Tacas 063030064 10871376 La Consolacion 063030065 451471 Lacadon 063030066 682692 Lanutan 063030067 470549 Lumangan 063030068 796792 Mabayan 063030069 213226 Maduyo 063030070 169163 Malagyan 063030071 14091641 Mambatad 063030072 939982 Maninila 063030073 10631139 Maricolcol 063030074 339359 Maringyan 063030075 674558 Mat-y (Poblacion) 063030076 23462197 Matalngon 063030077 161136 Naclub 063030078 647577 Nam-o Sur063030079 217211 Nam-o Norte 063030080 291307 Narat-an 063030082 591759 Narorogan 063030083 226239 Naulid 063030084 800820 Olango 063030085 335333 Ongyod 063030086 176208 Onop 063030087 291268 Oya-oy 063030005 297308 Oyungan 063030088 14171495 Palaca 063030089 21422178 Paro-on 063030090 299130 Potrido 063030091 403363 Pudpud 063030092 514598 Pungtod Monteclaro 063030093 302320 Pungtod Naulid 063030094 171161 Sag-on 063030095 390332 San Fernando 063030096 428464 San Jose 063030097 466439 San Rafael 063030098 13031204 Sapa (Poblacion) 063030099 822679 Saring 063030100 416422 Sibucao 063030101 338371 Taal 063030102 197191 Tabunacan 063030103 514504 Tacas (Poblacion) 063030104 759747 Tambong 063030105 205188 Tan-agan 063030106 556569 Tatoy 063030107 605647 Ticdalan 063030108 425312 Tig-amaga 063030109 252228 Tig-Apog-Apog 063030110 281257 Tigbagacay 063030111 274230 Tiglawa 063030112 183165 Tigmalapad 063030113 528521 Tigmarabo 063030114 451505 To-og 063030115 157134 Tugura-ao 063030116 314304 Tumagboc 063030117 415442 Ubos Ilawod (Poblacion) 063030118 1003800 Ubos Ilaya (Poblacion) 063030119 896918 Valencia 063030120 465475 Wayang 063030121 229240
Demographics
In the 2024 census, the population of Miagao was 68,163 people, with a density of .
Languages Almost all people in Miag-ao speak Kinaray-a as it is the primary language of the municipality. Hiligaynon is spoken as a second language by many and is especially useful when going to Iloilo City where Hiligaynon is the dominant language.Ethnologue - Languages of the World
Healthcare
The municipality's healthcare services is under the management of the Miagao Municipal Health Office (MHO), headed by its Municipal Health Officer, Rural Health Physicians, Nurses, Midwives, and other allied health workers and staff. The MHO is directly under the administration of the Local Government Unit.
The Municipal Health Office ensures that the delivery of basic services and provisions of adequate facilities relative to health services provided under Section 17 of the Universal Healthcare Law of the Philippines (Population-based Health Services) are effectively implemented.
The main components of the Municipal Health Office include the following: MHO Office including the headquarters of its different health programs First-aid Clinic Out-patient Clinic Birthing Clinic Animal Bite Treatment Center DOTS Center and COVID-19 Swabbing Center The 19 Barangay Health Stations (BHS) spread across the municipality The Main Health Center (MHC) caters to three BHS, namely: MHC-A, MHC-B, and MHC-C
There are also other private medical, dental and veterinary clinics, laboratories, and pharmacies located primarily in the poblacion area.
Economy
Agriculture
The municipality of Miagao is a largely agricultural town. Around 52% of the municipal land area is classified as agricultural and around 40% of the total land area is planted. Rice is the primary crop of the town while corn is considered as a secondary crop.
Miagao is hailed as the "Onion Capital of the Visayas" because it is the largest producer of bulb onion not only in Western Visayas but in the whole Visayas and Mindanao.News Feature: Miagao town prides itself as onion capital of Western Visayas Miagao town notes increased onion production Other Crops: Volume of Production by Region and by Province In 2022, 92% of the region's onion production was produced by the municipality of Miagao which targets to further increase production by expanding the plantation area.DA eyes 200 hectares of onion plantation in W. Visayas
Other crops produced by the municipality include eggplants, peanuts, monggo, tomatoes, root crops, and bamboo.Socio-Economic Profile of the Municipality of MiagaoMiag-ao FITS Center Opens to Clients
Banks Miagao is a financial center in southern Iloilo. The town has a total of five banks.
Infrastructure
Public Transport Miagao is strategically located along the Iloilo-Antique road. Because of this, transportation is not a big problem in the municipality. The town proper is from Iloilo City and from San Jose de Buenavista, the capital of Antique.Municipality of Miagao
Buses Several bus companies operate in Miagao. Buses that ply the Iloilo-Antique, Iloilo-Caticlan via San Jose, and Iloilo-Manila routes pass by the municipality every day. Ceres Liner by Vallacar Transit passes by Miagao almost every 30 minutes on its way to Iloilo from Antique and vice versa.
Manila bound buses also pass by Miagao. Dimple Star Transport, Gasat/Valisno Transport, and Ceres Liner pass by Miagao every morning on their way to Manila. In addition, RM Liner also heads to Manila everyday but passes by Miagao early in the evening.
Jeepneys Jeepneys serve the Miagao-Iloilo City route more frequently than buses. The typical jeepney can contain around 22 to as many as 34 or more passengers. The town is mainly served by Miagao-Iloilo City bound jeepneys but San Joaquin-Iloilo City bound jeepneys also serve the area. These jeepneys generally pass by every 10–20 minutes so catching a jeepney bound for Iloilo City is not a problem. Several mountain barangays of Miagao are also served by jeepneys because smaller modes of transportation aren't usually strong enough to climb steep and unpaved roads. In that case, habal-habal or plain motorcycles can also be used.
Jeepneys serving the hinterlands of the municipality include regular routes from the poblacion area to the following barangays: Miagao - Tiglawa/Banga via Banbanan/Cavite Miagao - San Jose via Banbanan Miagao - Tigmarabo via Banbanan/Oya-oy Miagao - Tig-amaga/Pudpud via Ticdalan Miagao - Tigmalapad/Igbita Miagao - Bacolod (barangay) Miagao - Dalije via Bacolod Miagao - Alimodias via Olango/Bacolod (rainy season) or via Pudpud (dry season) Miagao - Tigbagacay/Naclub Miagao - Maricolcol/Baraclayan
Tricycles Tricycles are the most common form transportation in the municipality. These are the Philippines' version of tuk-tuk in other Asian countries. Tricycles are often limited to operate within the municipality but special and private trips to other places are allowed.