Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo

Barotac Nuevo is a third-class municipality in the province of Iloilo, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 45,804 people in 8,757 households.

The town is approximately a one-hour car trip from the provincial capital of Iloilo City. The town proper is a junction to the towns of Pototan, Dingle, Anilao and Dumangas.

Economy

The infrastructure, buildings and main roads to and around Barotac Nuevo are well kept and paved.

The weather is tropical, ideal for the town's agricultural production of rice, sugar cane, and spinach. Also produced in the town are marine products such as milkfish and tilapia which is harvested from brackish water fisheries. There are at the least three annual rice harvests, depending on the season, and in an area is prone to flooding, monsoons and typhoons.

Demographics

The primary language spoken in Barotac Nuevo is Hiligaynon and Kinaray-a, and the population is predominantly Roman Catholic.

Barangays

Barotac Nuevo is politically subdivided into 29 barangays:

History

The name "Barotac" is from the Spanish word "baro", which means "mud", as well as the last syllables of "tac" and "lutac". With "nuevo", translated as "new", added to the name, it distinguished it from another town called Barotac Viejo just north.

According to local folklore, Barotac Nuevo was famous for its well-bred horses. There was once a horse called Tamasak, a pure white stallion known for its strength, in the stead of one Don Simon, and who was offered much if he could sell it to Manuel Gonzales de Aguilar, the Governor General of the country at that time. Don Simon eventually sold Tamasak. But not for money, but for title, and separation from the town of Dumangas, which it was just a smaller section thereof. The barrio once known as "Mulatac" now stands the town of Barotac Nuevo.

Barotac Nuevo is a small town whose main industry and capital is in agriculture. The town church was built during the 16th century by Spanish missionaries.

Football is the most popular sport among the Barotacnons, a sharp contrast to the rest of the Philippine islands where basketball remains the undisputed most popular sport. The town has produced numerous professional players, including members of the Philippine national team. Every afternoon, people flock to the football field in the town center to play or watch the game. Kids as young as five years old start playing football as their beginning to a glorious sporting career. In light of this, FIFA has established a football training center here to develop future stars.

Radio & Television Station

*DYIS 106.7
*List of Radio & Television Station in Iloilo

External links

* [http://www.nscb.gov.ph/activestats/psgc/default.asp Philippine Standard Geographic Code]
* [http://www.t-macs.com/kiso/local/ 2000 Philippine Census Information]