Kawit

Etymology

The name Kawit is derived from the Tagalog word kawit or kalawit (hook) or a larger fishing contraption, which is suggestive of its location at the base of a hook-shaped shoreline along Manila Bay extending to the tip of Cavite City. It also refers to the area's traditional pescetarian lifestyle and cuisine.

Legend, however, gives another version on how the town got its name. One day, a Spanish visitor asked a native blacksmith about the name of the village. The latter was busy at the time pounding on the anvil a piece of hot metal that looked like a hook. He hesitated to speak, not understanding what the stranger was asking, but when pressed for an answer, and thinking that he wanted to know what he was doing, he merely said kawit. The Spanish left muttering the word kawit. In the course of the time, the word evolved into cauite, and finally cavite.

History

Kawit was the most thriving settlement prior to the coming of the Spanish. In fact, the town provided the first anchorage of the Spanish in the province, whence colonization and proselytization of the Christian religion began, spreading to all corners of the province. It was established as a town in 1587 or, as recognized by laws, on August 1, 1600.

For a long time, the place was called by the Spanish "Cavite el Viejo" or Old Cavite to distinguish it from "Cavite la Punta" or "Cavite el Puerto", the commercial port and naval base (now Cavite City) whence came many Spanish marines on shore leave who made frequent visits to Cavite el Viejo, eventually turning it into a red-light district. This seedy reputation of the town was erased when Saint Mary Magdalene was made patroness, under the spiritual supervision of the Jesuits as ordered by Miguel García Serrano, O.S.A. (1618–1629), the fifth Archbishop of Manila.

With the establishment in the wake of the Philippine Revolution, the Philippine Independent Church built a shrine to Saint Michael, the Archangel in the barrio of Binakayan in 1902.

Cavite el Viejo was then a big town, comprising the municipality of Kawit today, Cavite la Punta (now Cavite City), Noveleta (called Tierra Alta by the Spanish), and Imus. Eventually, these three'' barrios''' populations grew and they eventually seceded to become independent municipalities.

Aside from its role as the birthplace of independence, Kawit was also the site of the Battle of Binakayan-Dalahican, one of several Filipino victories during the Revolution.

In 1907, the town was renamed to Kawit, its present name, by virtue of Act No. 1718 by the Philippine Commission.

Geography

Kawit is 13 km from Imus and 23 km from Manila.

Barangays

Kawit is politically subdivided into 23 barangays, as indicated below. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

• Balsahan-Bisita
• Batong Dalig
• Binakayan-Aplaya
• Binakayan-Kanluran
• Congbalay-Legaspi
• Gahak
• Kaingen
• Magdalo (Putol)
• Manggahan-Lawin
• Marulas
• Panamitan
• Poblacion
• Pulvorista/Polvorista
• Samala-Marquez
• San Sebastian
• Santa Isabel
• Tabon I
• Tabon II
• Tabon III
• Toclong (Different from Toclong in neighboring Imus)
• Tramo-Bantayan
• Wakas I
• Wakas II

Climate

| access-date = May 12, 2020 }}

Demographics

In the 2024 census, the population of Kawit was 123,631 people, with a density of {{sigfig|123,631/22.86|2}} PD/km2.

Economy

Culture

Maytinis Festival

An original Kawit tradition that takes place every Christmas Eve, a dramatic retelling of the Virgin Mary and Joseph's search in Bethlehem for a place to stay called "Panunuluyan". This reenactment happens on the streets of Kawit with different floats depicting different biblical scenes from Adam and Eve up to Mary and Joseph. The "Panunuluyan" takes place in several houses and is done in singing until it reaches the 400-year-old St. Mary Magdalene Church, where the Virgin Mary and Joseph are welcomed by angels in a giant belen (Nativity Scene), which covers the whole main Retablo or altarpiece of the church. The songs performed by the angels acted by little girls are mostly in Spanish and Tagalog.

Government

Local government

Like any other Philippine municipality, Kawit is headed by a municipal mayor, vice mayor, and 10 councilors, eight of them elected at large by the voting populace and two of them being sectoral representatives (one for the barangays and one for the youth, elected respectively through their federations).

The mayor is assisted by the vice mayor, who presides over a legislative council. The current mayor of the historical town is Armie Aguinaldo, mother of former mayor and current vice mayor Angelo Emilio G. Aguinaldo, a descendant of the first officially recognized President of the Philippines, General Emilio Aguinaldo.

Education

The Kawit Schools District Office governs all educational institutions within the municipality. It oversees the management and operations of all private and public, from primary to secondary schools.

Primary and elementary schools

• Academia Archangeli Learning School
• Aguinaldo Elementary School
• Batong Dalig Elementary School
• Bertrand Russell Academy
• Binakayan Elementary School
• Brickwood School
• Child Development and Guidance Center
• Florante Ilano Memorial Elementary School
• Gahak-Marulas Elementary School
• I Best Academy
• Kaingen-Poblacion Elementary School
• Little Huge Steps Preschool
• Living Stream Christian School
• Mary Calkins School
• Mary Montessori School
• Mil Den Academy
• Our Lady of Fatima Academy
• Panamitan Elementary School
• Perpetuo Succor Developmental Reading and Learning Center
• Potol-Sta. Isabel Elementary School
• St. Mary Magdalene School
• Students' Haven Tutorial and Learning Center
• Toclong Elementary School
• Tramo Elementary School
• Wakas Elementary School

Secondary schools

• Binakayan National High School
• Emiliano T. Tirona Memorial National High School
• Integrated School of Science

Sister city

• JPN Sakegawa, Yamagata, Japan

Images

File:Kawitjf1553 06.JPG|Procession (Karakol, dancing) File:AguinaldoShrinejf0957 07.JPG|Emilio Aguinaldo tomb File:Kawit,Cavitejf1448 04.JPG |Old Town Hall facade File:Kawitjf0772 09.JPG|Junction File:CAVITEX (D. Mojica pic 15) - Flickr.jpg|Kawit Toll Plaza of Manila–Cavite Expressway (CAVITEX)

References

References

1. {{DILG detail
2. (2022). "House Bill No. 2869". House of Representatives of the Philippines.
3. (July 7, 2023). "Declaring Tuesday, 01 August 2023, a Special (Non-working) Day in the Municipality of Kawit, Province of Cavite". [[Official Gazette (Philippines).
4. (September 20, 1907). "An Act Increasing the Number of Municipalities in the Province of Cavite From Twelve to Thirteen, by Separating from the Present Municipality of Noveleta the Former Municipality of Cavite Viejo and Giving to the Latter the Territory which it Comprised Prior to the Passage of Act Numbered Nine Hundred and Forty-Seven, and Changing the Name of the Municipality of Cavite Viejo to Kawit". Jurist AI.
5. (January 15, 2021). "Masterlist of Schools".
6. "List of Sister City Affiliations with Japan (by country)". Clair Singapore.