History of my

Hometown
The Spanish expeditionary forces proceeded northward, and came upon a spring just west of
the place where the present Catholic Church of the town now stands. The Spanish soldiers took
turns in drinking the water from the spring. Just as their leader was about to drink, there was an
apparition, whom the oldest soldier among the group recognized to be that of Saint Catherine of
Alexandria. From that time on, the places was named as Sta. Catalina, in honor of Saint Catherine
who had been chosen as the Patron Saint. The water from the above-mentioned spring was told
from generations to generation to have some kind of a miraculous healing power. The Spaniards and
the inhabitants as well, valued the spring so much that they built the Catholic Church, one of the
remaining vestiges of the Spanish rule in the country.

The majority of Filipinos have a tangible Christian formation as a result of the long period of
Spanish colonization, with about 90% of the population being Christians, as seen in the town of Sta.
Catalina. The Spanish Expeditionary Forces who name the town Sta. Catalina in honor of St.
Catherine of Alexandria who they claimed to have appeared at the exact site of the present Church
likewise made an enormous contribution to the development of Catholicism and about 98% of the
constituents adhere to this dominant religion in the municipality.

The church here in Sta. Catalina is the proof that this town was once colonized and
influenced by the Spanish. Spanish Colonization has a big role in our lives. They were the one who
influence us to become a Christian and built churches in different places and Sta. Catalina is one of
them and named with our Patron Saint Catherine of Alexandria.

In cultural the Komedya is was brought by the Spaniards when they came to colonize the
country in the 16th century, tracing its origins from Spanish and Mexican theatrical forms. Used in
the Christianization of the Philippines, the komedya is thus generally religious and moralistic in
theme, with stories usually depicting love and the conflict between the Christians and the Muslims.
Many komedyas were written in verse like Balagtas’s Orosman at Zafiraand all incorporated dance
steps to stylize battles. Actors wear colorful costumes. In 1637, a famous komedya depicted the
defeat o Corralateat the hands of Sebastian Hurtaclo de Corcuera. In the 18th century, the komedya
depicting conflicts in distant medieval European kingdoms began to be staged. In spite of the attacks
on the komedya and the rise of the sarswela in the 1990 and bodabil in the 1920s,the komedya still
attracted rural audiences until after World War II.
 Today, the dramatic form like Komedya that was introduced or
influenced by Spain continue to live in rural areas. For years, the Komedya
have been revitalized to make it more responsive to the conditions and
need of a developing town. Today, the mass media, especially film, has
effectively eliminated many traditional drama forms, but the komedya
survives in a few towns all over the islands.

Onions, cabbage, cauliflower, sweet pepper, eggplant, beans,

tomato, sweet potato, yam beans, mongo and peanut are the vegetables
that are planted. Because of the limited agricultural land in the
municipality, inter cropping farming system are commonly practiced.
696.588 hectares are planted with rice and corn while 1,150 hectares are
planted with vegetable. This municipality has been known as the
“VEGETABLE BOWL OF THE NORTH”. The total value of vegetable
production alone is PhP 523.04 million that brings a lot of income to
farmers.

Officially the Municipality of Santa Catalina is a 5th class

municipality in the province of Ilocos Sur, Philippines.

Presented by: Grenda Carise Dela Cruz

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