Ayungon

Ayungon (Cebuano: Lungsod sa Ayungon; Tagalog: Bayan ng Ayungon), officially the Municipality of Ayungon, is a municipality in the province of Negros Oriental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 47,102 people.^[3]

Ayungon Lungsod sa Ayungon
Municipality
Municipality of Ayungon
Flag
Map of Negros Oriental with Ayungon highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Ayungon Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 9°51′30″N 123°08′48″E
Country	Philippines
Region	Negros Island Region
Province	Negros Oriental
District	1st district
Barangays	24 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Dennis Nusan Amancio (NP)
• Vice Mayor	Nelda Abordo Favillaran (NPC)
• Representative	Jocelyn Sy-Limkaichong
• Municipal Council	Members Christian T. Opada Lee F. Dy Dennise Anthony M. Densing Keith B. Enardecido Tessa Claire M. Olveros Joseph A. Dayahan Roger O. Baldado Romulo P. Alforque
• Electorate	32,173 voters (2025)
Area [2]
• Total	265.10 km2 (102.36 sq mi)
Elevation	112 m (367 ft)
Highest elevation	669 m (2,195 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2020 census)[3]
• Total	47,102
• Density	180/km2 (460/sq mi)
• Households	11,443
Economy
• Income class	2nd municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	38.42 % (2021)[4]
• Revenue	₱ 258.9 million (2022)
• Assets	₱ 671.3 million (2022)
• Expenditure	₱ 237.1 million (2022)
• Liabilities	₱ 108.3 million (2022)
Service provider
• Electricity	Negros Oriental 1 Electric Cooperative (NORECO 1)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	6210
PSGC	074602000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)35
Native languages	Cebuano Tagalog
Website	www.ayungon.gov.ph

Attractions include the Karalaon Bird Sanctuary, the subterranean area of the Mabato Caves, a man-made lake in Banban, and the Pagsalsalan Twin Falls (Maaslum Falls).^[5]

History

There are at least two variations of the name's origin. According to Dr. Tomoteo S. Oracion of Silliman University, during the pre-colonial periods, a certain locality is named after the most popular person living in it. The most popular person happened to be a fisherman named "Ayung", who has his own hut where travellers would stop by. It was referred to as "Ayung's Place," which was later suffixed with "-on" to form "Ayungon". Another variation revolves around the Spaniards asking a native, who was cutting a tree, about the name of the place. The native thought they were asking for his name, so he answered "Ayung". The Spaniards asked the same question again, but this time, the native thought they were asking the name of tree he was cutting, so he answered "Dungon". The Spaniards coined the term "Ayung-Dungon" to refer to this area, which was later shortened to "Ayungon".^[6]

During the Spanish regime, the original town plaza was located at the beach, which was transferred further inland due to a massive flood. The town also suffered an epidemic of smallpox which took away two-thirds of the town's population. Old municipal profiles refer to Ayungon as Todos los Santos, though there are no legends to explain that Hispanic name, just as there are no tales elaborating on the ruins of apparently Hispanic fortifications on the Tampocon II shoreline, perhaps because Ayungon's colonial past was not entirely its own. For many years, it was a mere barrio of Tayasan, until 1924 when Governor General Leonard Wood came to establish Ayungon as a full-fledged municipality through the recommendation of the then-provincial governor, Enrique Villanueva.

During World War II, numerous houses were burned, as well as people being tortured and killed. Many of them passed away due to famine and malaria. Maximo Romano Enardecido, the mayor at the time, evacuated the municipal government to Pangi, a mountainous village located south of the Poblacion. Captain Eugenio “Kusgan” Antonio led the town's guerilla movement. The town was liberated in October 1944, and the Americans came in to rehabilitate the town by lending money to pay for war damages.^[6]

Geography

82 kilometres (51 mi) from the provincial capital Dumaguete, Ayungon is located on the midriff of Oriental Negros’ northern stretch, nearly two hours from Dumaguete.^[5]

Of only three virgin forests said to be still remaining on Negros Island, one is located in barangay Banban.^[5]

Barangays

Barangays of Ayungon.

Ayungon is politically subdivided into 24 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

PSGC	Barangay	Population			±% p.a.
		2020[3]		2010[7]
074602001	Amdus	2.2%	1,049	1,407	▾	−2.89%
074602003	Anibong	4.5%	2,102	2,131	▾	−0.14%
074602004	Atabay	3.0%	1,398	1,225	▴	1.33%
074602005	Awa-an	5.8%	2,718	2,474	▴	0.94%
074602006	Ban-ban	5.6%	2,622	2,299	▴	1.32%
074602007	Calagcalag	3.6%	1,718	1,711	▴	0.04%
074602008	Candana-ay	2.3%	1,098	1,958	▾	−5.62%
074602009	Carol-an	7.2%	3,375	2,899	▴	1.53%
074602010	Gomentoc	4.6%	2,173	2,065	▴	0.51%
074602011	Inacban	3.8%	1,803	1,588	▴	1.28%
074602012	Iniban	2.8%	1,298	1,273	▴	0.19%
074602002	Jandalamanon	2.4%	1,107	1,167	▾	−0.53%
074602013	Kilaban	1.6%	744	846	▾	−1.28%
074602014	Lamigan	2.5%	1,195	844	▴	3.54%
074602015	Maaslum	3.7%	1,741	1,799	▾	−0.33%
074602016	Mabato	6.7%	3,164	3,253	▾	−0.28%
074602017	Manogtong	2.9%	1,348	1,603	▾	−1.72%
074602018	Nabhang	2.6%	1,228	1,463	▾	−1.74%
074602024	Poblacion	4.3%	2,036	1,837	▴	1.03%
074602019	Tambo	8.9%	4,189	3,188	▴	2.77%
074602020	Tampocon I	4.5%	2,127	1,944	▴	0.90%
074602021	Tampocon II	4.7%	2,196	2,674	▾	−1.95%
074602022	Tibyawan	3.8%	1,797	1,867	▾	−0.38%
074602023	Tiguib	6.1%	2,876	2,631	▴	0.89%
	Total		47,102	46,146	▴	0.21%

Climate

Climate data for Ayungon, Negros Oriental
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	29 (84)	30 (86)	31 (88)	32 (90)	31 (88)	30 (86)	30 (86)	30 (86)	30 (86)	30 (86)	29 (84)	29 (84)	30 (86)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	23 (73)	22 (72)	23 (73)	24 (75)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	24 (75)	24 (75)	23 (73)	24 (75)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	42 (1.7)	34 (1.3)	40 (1.6)	61 (2.4)	124 (4.9)	188 (7.4)	190 (7.5)	191 (7.5)	189 (7.4)	186 (7.3)	124 (4.9)	73 (2.9)	1,442 (56.8)
Average rainy days	10.0	8.5	9.5	12.8	22.3	26.8	28.4	27.9	27.3	27.6	20.5	13.1	234.7
Source: Meteoblue (modeled/calculated data, not measured locally)[8]

Demographics

Population census of Ayungon

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1939 12,777 —     1948 14,797 +1.64% 1960 21,539 +3.18% 1970 23,165 +0.73% 1975 23,639 +0.41% 1980 27,656 +3.19% 1990 33,317 +1.88%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1995 36,928 +1.95% 2000 40,744 +2.13% 2007 42,643 +0.63% 2010 46,146 +2.91% 2015 46,303 +0.06% 2020 47,102 +0.34%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[9][7][10][11]

Economy

Poverty incidence of Ayungon

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 2000 64.64 2003 60.66 2006 49.70 2009 51.59 2012 51.33 2015 52.41 2018 30.50 2021 38.42 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19]

Ayungon is mostly rural with vast rice fields, dense coconut groves and expansive plantations of sugar cane, bananas and pineapple.^[5]

As of May 2025, the once quiet town is starting to commercialize by bringing in numerous known international and national businesses in its Poblacion. Businesses like Mr. DIY, Crispy King, and Arnok's Fried Chicken started to show up in town during Dennis Amancio's mayoral term. 7-Eleven is soon to open at the Callao-Nacional Business Arcade, alongside with Mr. DIY as the first business to start operating at the arcade.

As the town is growing economically, it has been conferred with the status of 1st class income municipality.^[20]

Education

The public schools in the town of Ayungon are administered by two school districts under the Schools Division of Negros Oriental.

Elementary schools:

• Amdus Elementary School — Amdus
• Anibong Elementary School — Anibong
• Awa-an Elementary School — Awa-an
• Ayungon Central Elementary School — Nat'l Highway, Poblacion
• Banban Elementary School — Banban
• Buenavista Elementary School — Atabay
• Calagcalag Elementary School — Calagcalag
• Candana-ay Elementary School — Candana-ay
• Canlukduhan Elementary School — Sitio Canlukduhan, Gomentoc
• Carol-an Elementary School — Carol-an
• Duli-Duli Elementary School — Sitio Duli-Duli, Tibyawan
• Gomentoc Elementary School — Gomentoc
• Inacban Elementary School — Inacban
• Iniban Elementary School — Iniban
• Jandalamanon Elementary School — Jandalamanon
• Kilaban Elementary School — Kilaban
• Lamigan Elementary School — Lamigan
• Libtacon Elementary School — Sitio Libtacon, Banban
• Maaslum Elementary School — Maaslum
• Mabato Elementary School — Mabato
• Manogtong Elementary School — Manogtong
• Nabalian Elementary School — Sitio Nabalian, Carol-an
• Nabhang Elementary School — Nabhang
• So-ok Elementary School — Sitio So-ok, Mabato
• South Poblacion Elementary School — Nat'l Highway, Tampocon II
• Talanyog Elementary School — Sitio Talanyog, Carol-an
• Tambo Elementary School — Tambo
• Tampocon I Elementary School — Tampocon I
• Tibyawan Elementary School — Tibyawan
• Tiguib Elementary School — Tiguib
• Tumampon Elementary School — Sitio Tumampon, Tiguib

High schools:

• Ayungon National High School — Nat'l Highway, Tampocon I
• Ayungon NHS - Carol-an Extension — Carol-an
• Ayungon Science High School — Todos Los Santos Street, Tampocon II
• Mabato Provincial Community High School — Mabato
• Tambo National High School — Tambo

Private schools:

• Negros Academy-Negros College, Inc. — Enardecido Street, Tampocon II