Welcome to Northern Samar National Historical Commission of the Philippines Chair Professor Regalado Trota Jose and other guests!

Governor Edwin Ongchuan warmly received the officials of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) led by NHCP Chair, Prof. Regalado Trota Jose and guests from the RAFI - Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. the Philippine National Historical Society, and the Philippine Historical Association, who arrived in Catarman yesterday, July 29, 2024 from Manila and other parts of the country.

The group are in Northern Samar for a national event, the unveiling of the national historical marker of pioneering Visayas historian, Fr. Francisco Ignacio Alcina, SJ and the commemorative program in his honor happening today, July 30, 2024, in the historical town of Palapag, Northern Samar.

Tomorrow, July 31, 2024 the national conference on Alcina will be held in UEP, Catarman, along with the launching of the national history month celebration and the Dekada ng Kasaysayan ng Pilipinas 2023-2033.

The event is a partnership activity of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, the Provincial Government of Northern Samar, the Local Government Unit of Palapag, the University of Eastern Philippines; the Diocese of Catarman, and the Our Lady of the Assumption Parish - Palapag.

Francisco Ignacio Alcina, SJ was a Spanish Jesuit Missionary and Historian who was born on 2 February 1610. Ordained in Cebu, he was assigned to the Visayas where he served as a priest in various parishes across the archipelago, including Palapag. During his mission work in Palapag, he began to compile what would become one of the most exhaustive compilations of Visayan history, culture, language, arts, and tradition. This compilation, later published as Alcina's History of the Bisayan Islands, remains one of the quintessential historical sources on the pre-and colonial period Visayas, and paved the way for future generations of local historical research.

The Governor and his wife, Ms. Bles Ongchuan hosted a welcome dinner for Chair Jose and company whom they had a vibrant talk on other historic sites in Northern Samar, to include Batag Island in Laoang where the infamous lighthouse stood witness to pre-colonial galleon trade and the historic Battle of Catubig site.

Thank you NHCP for choosing Northern Samar as center of this historic event!