Dupax del Norte

Dupax del Norte is a fourth class municipality in the province of Nueva Vizcaya, Philippines. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 25,697 people.

Dupax del Norte, situated on the south-eastern part of Nueva Vizcaya, has a total land area of 396 square kilometers. It is bounded by the town of Kasibu in the north, Alfonso Castañeda in the east, Dupax del Sur in the south, and Bambang in the west. It has wide tracts of virgin forests, rich, fertile plains and valleys with mineral deposits and is blessed with a climate suitable for agriculture.

History

The name "Dupax" comes from the Isinay word "dopaj". By "dopaj" the Isinays, who are the first inhabitants of Dupax, meant "to lie down in complete relaxation." According to folklores that have survived from generation to generation, even long before the founding fathers established the municipality, the site of what eventually became the "poblacion", or town proper of Dupax, used to serve as a roaring camp for primitive hunters from surrounding tribal settlements. After hard days of hunting in nearby mountains, the hunters would repair the camp where they would feast on their catch of wild animals. When they were through with their brand of merrymaking "they would lie down and relax completely" before getting up again to return to their respectives home. The camping area, which was a plain or a valley, was near their hunting grounds that later, they decided to settle on it together with their families and the town of Dopaj was established.