Piat, Cagayan

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Piat
Municipality
Municipality of Piat
Seal
Nickname(s):  Pilgrimage Center of Cagayan Valley
Map of Cagayan with Piat highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Piat Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 17°47′30″N 121°28′30″E / 17.7917°N 121.475°E / 17.7917; 121.475Coordinates: 17°47′30″N 121°28′30″E / 17.7917°N 121.475°E / 17.7917; 121.475
Country	Philippines
Region	Cagayan Valley
Province	Cagayan
District	2nd district
Founded	1610
Barangays	18 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Carmelo O. Villacete
• Vice Mayor	Leonel C. Guzman
• Representative	Samantha Louise V. Alfonso
• Electorate	15,972 voters (2019)
Area [2]
• Total	139.60 km2 (53.90 sq mi)
Elevation	43 m (141 ft)
Highest elevation	196 m (643 ft)
Lowest elevation	13 m (43 ft)
Population  (2020 census) [3]
• Total	24,805
• Density	180/km2 (460/sq mi)
• Households	5,515
Economy
• Income class	4th municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	14.36% (2015)[4]
• Revenue	₱128,078,058.98 (2020)
• Assets	₱264,688,240.77 (2020)
• Expenditure	₱109,741,476.02 (2020)
• Liabilities	₱50,748,044.56 (2020)
Service provider
• Electricity	Cagayan 1 Electric Cooperative (CAGELCO 1)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	3527
PSGC	021520000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)78
Native languages	Ibanag Ilocano Itawis Tagalog

Piat, officially the Municipality of Piat (Ibanag: Ili nat Piat; Ilocano: Ili ti Piat; Tagalog: Bayan ng Piat), is a 4th class municipality in the province of Cagayan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 24,805 people. ^[3]

It is located in the south-west part of Cagayan province in what is known as the Itawes Region, along which the Rio Chico runs west, south, and north-west of the town until it debouches into the Rio Ibanag somewhere near Nassiping.^[5]

Piat is dubbed as the "Pilgrimage Center of Cagayan Valley" because of the thousands of devotees and tourists who come here to pay homage. It is the home of Our Lady of Piat which continues to be the source of inspiration and object of devotion of many Catholics in the region.

History[]

There are quite a few conjectures on how Piat got its name. One has it is that it derives from "pias," an Ilokano word, in Ibanag "addulu" and in Tagalog, "kamiyas." Another has it that the word comes from "aggapiya," meaning "healer, masseuse," and a more credible version has it that it is derived from the Ibanag and Itawes word "piya" which means "goodness, kindness, health."

The original people were the Itawes; at present, there are many Ibanag. Ilokano, Tagalog, Kapampangan and other dialect speakers. There are also families of Spanish and American descent. The head of the family was called "urayan" or "baruwang" and the council of elders "Kammaranan." There were also war leaders and braves called "mengal," and priestesses called "anitera" from the Spanish word called "anito" or "minangilu" in Ibanag, "mangilut" in Itawes and "baybaylan" in Bisayan; there were few priests among the ancient people.

In 1596, the Dominican Provincial, Fr. Miguel de San Jacinto named Piat as a mission in the Itawes region comprising the towns of Tabang, Malaueg, Tuao and Piat. The encomenderos then were Pedro Barreda, Juan de Arranda and Isabel de Cardona. In 1604, the Bishop, Diego de Soria, negotiated for more missionaries for the Itawes region. To help in the pacification and evangelization of the region, the Dominicans introduced the devotion to Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary: in 1604, they brought the images of Our Lady from Macau and first enshrined it in Lallo, later bringing it to Piat 1622.

Barangays[]

Piat is politically subdivided into 18 barangays.

Climate[]

Demographics[]

In the 2020 census the population of Piat, Cagayan, was 24,805 people ^[3] with a density of 180 inhabitants per square kilometre or 470 inhabitants per square mile.

Economy[]

Attractions[]

Front of the Minor Basilica of Piat in Piat, Cagayan

Basilica of Our Lady of Piat

This site is visited by Roman Catholic pilgrims and is believed to exhibit miracles.^[17] The Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Piat is one of only 13 minor basilicas in the Philippines. It is distinguished as the home of the venerated Black Virgin Mary. The interior contains curved ceilings made of wood with historical images and accounts along the tops of the walls. Verandas inside the church add to the shrine's elegance. On the altar lies the Blessed Virgin Mary covered in glass. At the back of the church is a staircase leading to a window opening onto the back of the Virgin Mary where devotees can touch the dress of Our Lady.

Bukal ng Buhay

This spring allegedly bestows miracles and blessings. In April 2005, the spring started to draw crowds of devotees along with the woman who dreamed of the Miraculous Lady of Visitation of Piat. 10 years earlier while working abroad she received a dream where it was insisted that she personally go to Piat to look for the hidden spring near the sanctuary on the hill where the Miraculous Lady was being enshrined. From that day on the spring became a crowd attraction, even drawing people from the medical fields. Devotees share stories on how they get healed of their ailments or recover from their surgical operations after drinking and washing themselves with the miraculous water drawn from this “Bukal ng Buhay”. The bukal was featured on several television documentaries in the Philippines such as Rated K and Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho.

References[]

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Piat, Cagayan.

• Piat Profile at PhilAtlas.com
• Our Lady of Piat Basilica
• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Philippine Census Information