Luna, La Union Etymology

Jack Maico
Oct 16
3 min read

The Town of Luna was formerly called Namacpacan. “Namacpacan” is an Iloco word that means “one who has given food.” The town was named in honor of the Luna brothers, Antonio Luna and Juan Luna, whose mother, Laureana Novicio y Ancheta, was a native of the city.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luna,_La_Union

Special credits: https://www.pinoytravelogue.com/.../namacpacan-church...

https://5c8df297f0786.site123.me/the-journey/bahay-na-bato

Church in town: 𝐒𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐥𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐚 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐂𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡

Saint Catherine of Alexandria Parish Church, also known as the Shrine of Our Lady of Namacpacan and Namacpacan Church, is a Roman Catholic church located in Luna (formerly Namacpacan), La Union, Philippines, under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of San Fernando de La Union. Once called Luna Church, its titular is Saint Catherine of Alexandria. Built in 1690, it is also known as the shrine for the image of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception of Namacpacan.

The church was declared a National Cultural Treasure by the National Museum of the Philippines.

Since 1587, Namacpacan was a visita of Purao (presently known as Balaoan). On November 25, 1690, the town was founded, and a parish under the advocacy of Saint Catherine of Alexandria was canonically erected. The first church of Namacpacan was built under the supervision of Father Mateo Bustillos, the parish priest from 1695 to 1697. The original site of the church was in Darigayos, a barrio of Namacpacan, and was transferred in 1741 to its present site. The image of Our Lady of Namacpacan was enshrined in the church in 1871.

The church was reinforced with masonry and a galvanized iron roof. It was heavily destroyed by an earthquake in 1854. Through the efforts of Father Marcelino Ceballes, the church was restored and the convent was widened in 1876.

The wooden image of the Blessed Virgin Mary venerated as Our Lady of Immaculate Conception of Namacpacan, addressed in Ilocano as Apo Baket,[8] was ordered in 1871 from Spain by an Augustinian priest assigned to the Immaculate Conception Seminary in Vigan. During transit, the galleon ship from Mexico carrying the image took shelter in Darigayos due to a storm. When the sea calmed, they resumed their journey, but strong winds forced them to return to Darigayos. The ship’s captain decided to have the image transported by land, and it was temporarily placed in the town church’s convento. However, the image became too heavy to be transferred onwards; Father Camilo Naves, an Augustinian priest, interpreted these as signs from the Virgin Mary that she wanted her image to be enshrined in Namacpacan. Father Marcelino Ceballos, the parish priest, requested that the Augustinians give the image to the town. When the people of Namacpacan agreed to reimburse all expenses incurred during the image's journey from Spain, its owner finally gave it to them. The people welcomed the Virgin with feasting, and enshrined her on an altar in the north part of their church.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Namacpacan_Church

𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐋𝐮𝐧𝐚 𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲

he early history of the town can be traced back to the coastal cove area along the Darigayos, which was initially settled by the Samtoys (Ilocanos). In 1572, Spanish conquistador Juan de Salcedo arrived at a pristine white bay area known as Purao (now part of Luna and Balaoan), which means "white" in Ilocano. Salcedo attempted to persuade the natives to pay tribute to Spain, but the locals resisted foreign rule. This led to a confrontation, resulting in the first bloodshed by the Ilocanos in defiance of the Spanish. The battle ended with the defeat of the natives. In its aftermath, the river "Purao" was renamed "Darigayos"—a combination of the Ilocano words dara (blood) and ayos (flowed), signifying "where blood flowed.

𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐋𝐮𝐧𝐚: