A Short History of Asingan (or how Asingan got its name)
Courtesy of Vic Costes formerly of Asingan now residing in Toronto
 THE LEGEND OF THE CROCODILE AND THE RIVER ASINGAN'S POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS

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        As early as 1600, Dominican missionaries established religious missions in a place called Caboloan ( said to be the first name of Pangasinan ). One was called SAN  BARTOLOME DE AGNO ( 1687 )  the first to be established near the present site of San Manuel. Then another mission was put up in a neighbouring area ( now the present site of Asingan ). This second mission is called SAN LUIS BELTRAN DE SINAPOG (1698). In 1719 some Igorots from the nearby mountains of San Manuel attacked the mission of San Bartolome and massacred some inhabitants. The Dominican friars and some survivors fled to San Luis Beltran mission for safety.
 
        In 1733, the Governor General granted a license to establish a town in the San Luis Beltran mission. This town became Asingan in 1802 and up this day, it is still located beside the Sinapog river.
 
        ASINGAN  got its name from an early incident when some visitors cried "Naasing kayo" ( Ilocano for you are hostile ) to some natives who did not want the visitors to hang around. But the present inhabitants of Asingan are now anything but hostile.
        Francisco Malala, a retired school teacher and a local writer-researcher from Asingan, provided us with additional materials pertaining to the history of this town. Mr. Malala is also the Editor-in-Chief of the HOMELAND NEWS, a Community Newspaper published in Asingan and being circulated in nearby towns of Pangasinan.
 
        According to Francisco, when the revolt against the Spaniards broke out in 1762, only Asingan and Binmaley did not join the uprising. Asingan became the refuge of Dominican friars whose lives were endangered; thus Asingan earned the title of "Most Noble and Most Loyal Asingan."
 
        If you visit Asingan now a days, you can view the Asingan Catholic Church in its fully restored elegance. Like any church in Pangasinan, it  has survived earthquakes, insurrections and other man-made calamities.
 
         On March 16, 1892 an earthquake left the church with some horizontal cracks. But the church was still usable for worship. Then in 1898, General Makabulos of the KKK ( Kagalang galangang, Kataastaasang Katipunan ) organized some secret groups in Pangasinan. It  is written that during this year, Binalonan, San Manuel and Asingan were captured by the KKK. It must have been during this period that the Asingan convent ( the biggest convent in Eastern Pangasinan at that time ) was razed to the ground by a Katipunero named Agustin Alejo.
 
         In 1947, Rev. Jose Macaraeg renovated the church in preparation for  the second post war celebration of Christ the King in Pangasinan. Thus in October 1947, the faithful from  entire Pangasinan, and also the towns of Lupao and Cuyapo in Nueva Ecija and other towns like Camiling and Gerona in Tarlac converged in Asingan for a huge celebration. ( at that time, these towns are still part of the Diocese of Lingayen.)
 
         On July 16, 1990, an intensity 8 earthquake rendered the church useless. Whole walls came down. Masses were held outdoors. But Asinganians from all over the world ( even those from other denominations ) pitched in their financial help for the restoration of the church. Thus, on October 10, 1993, which is celebrated in Asingan as the feast day of their Patron Saint St. Louis Beltran, the reconstructed church was opened to all Asinganians for the first time. This first Mass was concelebrated by Fr. Jesus Galang, D.D. Asingan Parish Priest Msgr. Marlo Peralta and assistant Parish Priest Benjamin Mangonon.
 

         The parishioners were honored in April 23, 1995 when President Fidel Ramos came to his hometown to see the new church . Msgr. Peralta acknowledged before the congregation the presence of the former President of the Philippines.--#

 

       Vic Costes, Asingan Pangasinan ( now a resident of Toronto ) delivers an informal address to employees of the Delmendo Cable TV Network in Asingan. Main office of this company is established in Asingan but it had already branched out to other municipalities like San Manuel and Sta. Maria.
         Miguelita Costes from Toronto recently visited CRYSTAL GLADE
      in Asingan. It offers comfortable quarters which include a swimming
      pool and a Karaoke bar..

     Miguelita is still working as the Branch Manager  of one of the 99 branches of
the TPL (Toronto Public Library). While still in Pangasinan, she was the Teacher-
Librarian of the Divine Word College in Urdaneta. Then she immigrated to Canada
where she found a job at the Toronto Public Library, Queen/Saulter Branch. She
is now residing in Etobicoke, Toronto with her husband Victorio Costes, of
Asingan, Pangasinan.
         Miguelita Hufana Costes recently paid a visit to her hometown, Sta. Maria, Pangasinan. The house in the background was built by her cousin, Edwin Torres, also from this town, now a retiree. Edwin spent his working years in San Francisco, California. Edwin's house must have added beauty to the skyline of Santa Maria which has  seen the construction of gorgeous houses in the recent years

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THE LEGEND OF THE CROCODILE AND THE RIVER
 
Every town has its collection of legends and strange stories. Asingan has a weird legend about  a gigantic crocodile and the river.
 
Years ago, before the invention of the washing machine, women go to the river every Saturday morning to wash clothes. But there was the rumour of the existence of this huge crocodile. One Saturday, late in the afternoon, the rumour became a reality. A young woman was rinsing clothes downstream when from behind, crept the reptitle, deadly and silently.  There was a scream and in a flash, the young woman disapeared. Other people saw the hideous back and tail of the crocodile when it sank swiftly into the water with its prey. Screaming, all the other women scrambled for safety. The grim news was relayed to the girl's father.
 
The father immediately organized a search party. That night, the found the young girl weak but alive in a nearby clearing.  Her left leg was badly bitten. In hysterics, she said the crocodile brought her to its hiding place, a small cave in the river bank far away from the village.  She was dragged into this cave by the monster where she saw the skeletons of many humans and animals. It seemd the animal had just eaten and  it was reserving the young girl for its next meal.
 
The girl was playing dead the whole time  til she saw the crocodile leave again. Immediately, she crept out of the cave and made her escape. Due to exhaustion, she fell unconscious in the spot where the spot where the hunters found her.
 
The men with the girl as their guide, found the crocodile's lair. They guarded the entrance of the cave and when the beast arrived, captured it with strong ropes. It was so huge that it could snap a man in two with just one bite. But the captors were consumed with hatred for the creature that they started beating it with clubs, machetes and rocks until it died. Legend said the river saw it all and it was not happy about it. After all, the crocodile was one of her children.
 
Then they dragged it to the town plaza ( village square ) and here they continued mutilating it while the people watched. They stripped its skin and they fed its meat to the dogs. A hole was dug in the middle of the square and what remained of the creature was dumped in there.
 
That night, someody hear the river wail mournfully, like a mother who lost her child. It sounded like pleading to the heavens asking for celestial help. At midnight, a strong typhoon broke and caused the river to overflow its banks. The townspeople woke up the next morning to find out that a whole row of houses near the river was swept away. The river became a whirlpool of  trees, house parts and other kinds of debris.
 
Things would go back to normal during the dry season. But it seems that the river could not forget what happened. Every year, just about the time when the crocodile was killed, a strong typhoon comes and the river floods  the land surrounding it. The river bank is changing its location every year. It seems to be getting closer and closer to the town proper.
A village elder said that the river is trying to reclaim the bones of the crocodile and will not stop until it suceeds. It is trying to make a path to the spot where the crocodile was buried. It would be an easy thing to dig up the bones again and throw it back to the river. But the problem is that a complex concrete structure ( the Asingan Auditorium ) is now built over the spot where the crocodile bones were interned. Besides no one remembers the exact spot where the bones are located.

 

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ASINGAN'S POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS
 
Asingan has contributed four Congressmen to the political history of the Philippines: Juan Millan, Narcisco Ramos, Justino Benito and Luciano Millan. Juan Millan was a hard working Nacionalista lawmaker who died after the end of his second term. Narciso Ramos, a member of the Liberal Party later became the Secretary of Foreign Affairs. Then there was Justino Benito, a brilliant lawyer who was chosen as an outstanding Congressman during his term. The fourth is Luciano Millan ( Asingan Public High School eventually was named after him ) a "fighting" Nationalista Congressman. His record was so good that he was selected to represent the Philippines in the United Nations General Assembly with another brilliant statesman. That statesman's name was Ferdinand Edralin Marcos.
 
It is said that Ferdinand Marcos came to Asingan a few times. Narciso Ramos, the father of Fidel Ramos and Leticia Ramos-Shahani, was his close relative . He stayed then in a stately house that belongs to the Agsalud family. Mrs. Pura Ramos Agsalud is the sister of Narciso. It is said that Ferdinand Marcos came to Asingan during the war, then as a Senator and finally as a Presidential candidate.
 
Asingan came to the limelight when Fidel Ramos won the Presidential election many, many years later. A month before the election, I was in Asingan to attend the town fiesta. I saw him with many bodyguards and friends participating in the TARAY ASINGAN. Back in Toronto,  I was elated  a month later when I heard that finally, a townmate of ours became the President of the Philippines. His sister also won a senatorial seat. However, there are a few townspeople from Lingayen, Pangasinan who claim that Lingayen is the true hometown of Pres. Ramos since his mother is from this town and he was born in this provincial capital. Some say Fidel Ramos finished his Elementary schooling in  Lingayen and his teachers say he had shown a promising capacity for leadership. I gathered these stories when I visited Lingayen during one of my balik-bayan holidays.
 
However, the fact remains that Pres. Ramos and Sen. Leticia Shahani have residences ( rather vacation houses ) here in Asingan.And many schools in town are renamed after their parents.
 
Rafael Colet is another addition to the Who's Who in Asingan's Hall of Fame. Rafael Colet once served as the governor of Pangasinan. Ranjit Shahani, the son of Leticia Ramos Shahani  has also served as a Congressman for the 5th District of Pangasinan.
 
You might have seen ( or heard ) of two towering Narra trees at the Mayor's gate at the  south side of the town plaza. The seedlings which grew into these gigantic trees were brought over from Dapitan, Zamboanga by an Asinganian, Professor Jose  Blando. It is said that the seedlings came from the narra tree planted by our country's national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal. He planted this tree while he was in exile in Dapitan. The last time I saw the trees, they are already dead but I know they witnessed the unfolding of Asingan from a small settlement into a bustling community belonging to the second millennium. I remember Asingan during the 50's, 60's and '70s. It was a "sleepy" community. Now a days, it seems Asingan hardly sleeps at all. Resorts with modern swimming pools and picnic areas sprung up in the poblacion and in many barrios. Night life in town would be a visit to countless "Karaoke" bars which are open 7 days ( or rather 7 nights )  a week.. Apartels and Hotels are established for transients and visitors. Tricycles come and go out of town almost the whole night. You can even text a tricycle to come to your doorstep if you have a cell phone, assuming the driver have a cell of his own.
 
Thus the story of Asingan continues with the passage of time and history. Its townspeople come and go like the waves at the beach. But like the beach, Asingan does not go away. It is always there, patiently awaiting for her visiting sons and daughters from all over the world.
 
THE END.
 
Written by Victorio Costes from files by Samuel Soloria, Carl Calderon, Francisco Malala and Celestino Necessito.
 

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35th Anniversary Ball in honor of the Federation of Philippine Societies in New Jersey, Inc. 
Nueva Domaoan Elma  from Asingan,( seated, extreme left) is the Treasurer. The  affair was held at the
Sheraton Meadowlands Hotel. The photo also shows ( standing right to left Glen Domaoan, 
Zeny Almario VP, External Affairs/Ball Chair person and a Korean guest. Friends of Asingan,
an Asinganian association in NJ  is member of the Federation of Philippine Societies in New Jersey.



































The Federation of Philippine Societies in New Jersey, Inc. 35th Anniversary ball
2nd from left Angelito Domaoan PRO of Friends of Asingan of NY, NJ and PA

 

 

 




 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 








 35th Anniversary Ball of the Federation of Philippine Societies in New Jerseyheld at Sheraton Meadowlands Hotel
East Rutherford, New Jersey. seating left to right Nueva Domaoan Elma President Friends of Asingan
 of NY, NJ & PA and Treasurer of The Federation of Philippine Societies in New Jersey, Inc.
Standing: Glen Domaoan of Friends of Asingan of NY, NJ & PA Zenaida Almario
VP External Affairs/Ball Chair of Federation of Philippine Societies In New Jersey, Inc.
 Guest, And Mr Almario.




































 

 

 

 








 A pilgrimage to Divine Mercy at Stockbridge Massachusets Left to Right Dia Domaoan and Nueva Domaoan
of Freinds of Asingan of NY,NJ and PA. Contributed By Angelito Domaoan of Friends of Asingan NY, NJ & PA

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