Alfonso at a Glance

Alfonso at a Glance

At the upland border of Cavite, lies the small developing town of Alfonso with a land area of 6,988 hectares. The 1996 statistics places the population at 34, 713. It has a total of 32 Barangays including five in the Poblacion. The 27 Barangays outside the Poblacion are all agriculturally centered though there are now scattered newly developed subdivisions here and there. Cut flower farming is becoming a trend nowadays.
Despite its proximity to Manila, it is still unmistakably rural; the reason why it is has become a haven for retirees who are building rest houses all around. Alfonso has not yet been invaded too much by people migrating from other provinces and because of this, almost everyone knows everyone, thus somehow maintaining peace, hospitality and unity. If not for the threat of the drug menace, Alfonso would be a paradise.


The Legend of Alas-as

Once upon a time there was a beautiful mountain full of wild trees and various kinds of wild animals. In this mountain, no human being lived. It was a virgin place, a pretty show window of God’s grace.
One happy bright morning a brave hunter chanced to see the lovely place. How he got inside, he did not know nor did he care to know, for he was greatly attracted by the place. He did not want to leave so he stayed overnight.
While he was fast asleep, a very charming young lady approached him. She held a cute oblong white seed that looked like a giant pearl. She instructed him to plant the seed in the area then vanished. When he woke up in the morning he realized that he had been dreaming, but to his astonishment, the oblong white pearl-like seed was there, clasped in his right hand. Now knowing what to do he decided to plant the seed before he went home.
Years later the hunter thought of the seed he planted. He went back to the place to find out what happened. To his surprise, he saw a tall healthy tree bearing very sweet fruit. Back at his hut he told his wife and children about it. Then he decided to transfer his hut near the big lovely tree.
The fruit of the tree was so sweet that it was considered a gift of God, who was then called “Allah”. So then man called the tree “Allah”, meaning God, and his family idolized it. His young child who was just learning to talk that time called the tree “alas” each time he asked for a bite of the God-given fruit.
One day the child was very eager to have a bite of the fruit. He pleaded to his father to give him “alas-as, alas-as,” and continued crying. Since then the first family in the locality called it “alas-as.” Other hunters heard about the tree. They transferred to the place, which they named Alas-as in honor of the tree which attracted them. It was that way for many, many years until it became a part of Indang. The name “ALAS-AS” was only changed to ALFONSO in 1859 when the former Barrio of Indang was made a town. Alfonso was the name chosen to honor the king of Spain, King Alfonso XII.
To this day, the name “alas-as” is still very fresh in the minds of the people of Alfonso. Two entities stand today to remind the Alfonso folk of the tree, Alas-as street and a stream called “Ilog Alas-as”. The legendary Alas-as tree grew up near this rivulet, which still flows nearby. How the Alas-as tree disappeared is another interesting legend.


Alas-as Tree Vanished One Night

When the fruit of Alas-as became famous among hunters, they did not only come around but they also started cutting its branches and picking its young fruits until it was badly damaged.
The “lady” became angry. One cloudy night, lightning accompanied by deafening thunder burned the tree. The people who were awakened by the thunder saw the “lady” wearing black, crying near the site of the alas-as tree which was turned into ashes.
Eversince no other alas-as tree grew up anywhere. What Botanist now called alas-as is something like pandan (a shrub)
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Old records show that Alfonso was named after King Alfonso XIII which is impossible since Alfonso was established in 1859 while King Alfonso XIII was born only in 1886, a disparity of 27 years. So, Alfonso must have been named after King Alfonso XII.


From the b ook TINGKORAW: Allfonso's History and Legend by jett e. avinante, m.d.