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Bataan

Araw ng Orani

Araw ng Orani, also known as Orani Foundation Day, is the founding anniversary of the municipality of Orani, Bataan, Philippines every April 21. The date is a special nonworking holiday by virtue of Republic Act No. 11145 that was approved by President Rodrigo Duterte on November 9, 2018.

The town also celebrates the fiesta of Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary, its patroness, every October.

History of Orani

The beginning of the town of Orani is back to the time when Spanish missionaries established a church as a visita of the parish of Samal. A visita is a chapel or hermitage without a rectory where a priest could stay, so a priest from the parish it belonged to would drop by to evangelize and perform sacraments.

It was later instituted as a separate “missionary center” on April 21, 1714. This is the date that “Araw ng Orani” remembers every year.

The town met several natural and man-made disasters throughout its history: an earthquake on September 16, 1852; a conflagration on March 16, 1938; and World War II between 1942 and 1945.

Araw ng Orani Activities

In 2017, the town was celebrating its 120th foundation day. That places the year of its founding in 1897. The anniversary celebration also took place between March 6 and 10. There was sunflower planting, trade fair, Alimango Sugpo festival (meaning Crab Shrimp festival) for street dancing competition, parade, and clean up drive.

And in 2018, the city government issued Executive Order No. 12 declaring March 9 a special non-working holiday for its founding anniversary celebration. In that same year, Republic Act No. 11145 was passed.

Starting in 2019, the local government has moved the schedule of the celebration of Orani’s establishment to April 21. In addition, the foundation year was reckoned no longer from 1897 but from 1714.

Its 2023 calendar included trade fair, general assemblies, grand parade, parade, anniversary mass, street dancing competition, sports,  concerts, social services, and other events.

How to reach Orani, Bataan

Buses from Metro Manila go through the route to Orani, Bataan in a distance of over 100 kilometers.

References

Araw ng Orani Summary

NameAraw ng Orani
CelebrationFounding anniversary
CountryPhilippines
DateApril 21
Facebookwww.facebook.com
Historical eventFounding of Orani as a missionary center in 1714
LocationOrani, Bataan
OrganizerMunicipal Government of Orani