Modern-day Pampanga consists of one chartered city and twenty-one towns as follows:
Pampanga was, among other distinctions, the first Luzon province inaugurated by the Spaniards (in 1571, the same year as the inauguration of the City of Manila). As such, during the early years of the Spanish conquest, it occupied a vast area whose northern boundaries, as described in 1594 by Governor-General Gomez Perez Dasmariñas, were as follows: as one goes from Pampanga to the province of Tuy (now Nueva Vizcaya) from the end of the Zambales ranges to the beginning of the Tui (Magat) River of Cagayan; thence following its course to the villages of Datan, Lamot, and Duli to the end of the province of Tuy, and the commencement of that of Cagayan; and, cutting this line, by a cross-line from the end of the province of Pangasinan to the sea, on the coast opposite Manila.
APALIT ANGELES CITY BACOLOR CANDABA ARAYAT GUAGUA LUBAO FLORIDABLANCA MACABEBE MAGALANG MABALACAT MEXICO MINALIN MASANTOL SAN FERNANDO SAN LUIS PORAC SANTO ANA SANTA RITA SAN SIMON SANTO TOMAS SEXMOAN
Additionally, Fray Joaquin Martinez de Zuñiga, OSA, relates that for 200 years Pampanga had its boundaries from north to southeast with the Bulacan towns of Hagunoy, Calumpit, and all the neighboring towns of the Baliuag river, except Quiñgua; from northwest to northeast with the missions of Cagayan and its mountains; in the northeast it included the towns of Caranglan, Pantabangan, and Puncan of Nueva Ecija near where the Rio Grande de la Pampanga originates in the Caraballo mountains, until the lands and mountains of Baler (now belonging to Aurora), Tayabas (now Quezon) province; from northwest to southeast with Bataan province or Rinconada, comprising its towns, Dinalupihan, Ilana Hermosa, Orani, Samal, Abucay, Balanga, Pilar, and Udiong (now Orion).
In the will of Pansonum (christened Fernando Malang Balagtas; d. 21 Mar 1589), who was descended from the pre-Hispanic Bornean rulers of Central Luzon, the land of the Capampangan people was described as including the territories of Pampanga (including Bataan, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, and a portion of Bulacan), Pangasinan, and Zambales. Barrios Carmen, Rosales, San Quintin, Umingan, and Balungao, until 27 Oct 1892, belonged to Nueva Ecija, which was formerly part of Pampanga.
Pampanga's present borders were more or less established by 1873, after undergoing several alterations which either subtracted from (in most cases) or added to its present land area of 850 square miles (smaller than most U.S. counties). The record below, although incomplete, attests to the conclusion that Pampanga was the mother of the provinces of Bataan, Nueva Ecija, and Tarlac, and has nursed some towns of the provinces of Pangasinan and Bulacan for more than 400 years since the days of the pre-Hispanic Bornean rulers of Central Luzon.
1) In 1754, when the province of Bataan was created, the Pampanga towns of Dinalupihan, Ilana Hermosa, Orani, Samal, Abucay, Balanga, Pilar, and Udiong (now Orion) were absorbed by the new province.
2) In 1840, the towns of Pampanga were reckoned to be 28, namely: Angeles, Apalit, Arayat, Bacolor, Betis (now a barrio of Guagua), Candaba, Guagua, Lubao, Mabalacat, Macabebe, Magalang, Mexico, Minalin, Porac, San Fernando, San Luis, San Simon, Santa Ana, Santa Rita, Santo Tomas, Sexmoan, Bamban (now belonging to Tarlac), Capas (ditto), La Paz (ditto), Tarlac (ditto), Cabiao (now belonging to Nueva Ecija), Gapang (ditto), and San Miguel de Mayumo (now belonging to Bulacan).
3) In 1841, San Isidro (now belonging to Nueva Ecija) was added to the list of Pampanga towns.
4) In 1848, the towns of Cabiao, Gapang, San Isidro, San Antonio, and Aliaga became part of Nueva Ecija, and the town of San Miguel was ceded to Bulacan.
5) In 1857, the town of La Victoria (now belonging to Tarlac) was added to the list of Pampanga towns.
6) In 1860, due to lawlessness and depredations perpetrated by the balugas or aetas, the Pampanga towns of Bamban, Capas, Concepcion, Victoria, Tarlac, Mabalacat, Magalang, Porac, and Floridablanca were created into a Commandancia Militar.
7) In 1873, Mabalacat, Magalang, Porac, and Floridablanca were returned to Pampanga. The Pampanga towns of Bamban, Capas, Concepcion, Tarlac, and Victoria, which were under the Commandancia Militar, never reverted to Pampanga; instead they became part of the new province of Tarlac, which was created in 1874. Patling (now O'Donnell) and some southern towns of Pangasinan were also absorbed by Tarlac.
In 1903, Governor Ceferino Joven reported that Betis, Minalin, Santa Ana, and Santa Rita were having financial difficulties. The following year, therefore, the 23 municipalities were reduced to 17, but the process was not completed until early 1905, when Santo Tomas was consolidated with San Fernando, further reducing the number of municipalities to 16, thus:
Angeles Apalit Arayat, incl. Santa Ana Bacolor Candaba Floridablanca Guagua, incl. Sexmoan and Betis Lubao Mabalacat Macabebe, incl. Masantol Magalang Mexico Porac San Fernando, incl. Minalin and Santo Tomas San Luis, incl. San Simon Santa Rita
Further research is needed to determine when Masantol, Santa Ana, and San Simon became independent again, but Minalin became a town again in 1905, Sexmoan in 1910, and Santo Tomas as late as 1951. As for Betis, it is still and up to now a barrio of Guagua.
In summary, Pampanga lost 20 towns to the neighboring provinces, as follows:
BATAAN (1754) NUEVA ECIJA (1848) TARLAC (1874) Abucay Aliaga Bamban Balanga Cabiao Capas Dinalupihan Gapan Concepcion Ilana Hermosa San Antonio La Paz Orani San Isidro Tarlac Orion Victoria Pilar BULACAN (1848) Samal San Miguel (de Mayumo)
1. Henson, Mariano A. The Province of Pampanga and Its Towns (A.D.
1300-1955). 2nd ed. Angeles, Pampanga: By the author, 1955.
2. Larkin, John A. The Pampangans: Colonial Society in a Philippine
Province. Berkeley, Los Angeles, London: University of California Press,
1972.