Bridging the Gap
By Prof. Henry Funtecha

Dumalag, Parish of St. Martin of Tours

Dumalag, one of the central towns of Capiz Province, was founded by the Augustinians in 1590. Later, it passed on to the bishopric but in 1614 or 1615, it reverted back to the Augustinians. Its supposed original name "Ayombong" was replaced with Dumalag in 1631.

Several folklores have been recounted on how the town came to be called Dumalag, as it is known today. According to Fr. Juan Fernandez, the name came from the Bisayan word "dalag" which means yellow. This is because it is claimed that most of the early inhabitants of this town were of Chinese ancestry. Others claim that the "dalag' came from the color of the Pan-ay River that cuts across the town which used to turn yellow because of the leaves of a certain tree that fell into it. Still another version is attributed to the "dumalaga" or spring chicken which could have been in abundance in the area in early times. One more related folklore tells that when the Spaniards first came to the place, they ran across women laundering in the river. The colonizers asked the women about the name of the town and thinking that the question was about the condition of the river, they answered "gadalag", meaning its yellowish, and the name Dumalag came about and the rest is history.

But, has anyone explored the possibility that the name Dumalag actually came from a man's family name? It must be pointed out that there are individuals as well as families today in Panay bearing the family name Dumalag.

The first church and convent of Dumalag were constructed between 1600 and 1720, and the parish was dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours, a bishop. In 1833, Fr. Augustin Duran, whose name has been adopted by one of Dumalag's biggest barangays, started the construction of the present church. The church had a five-storey bell tower which rose majestically at the left side of the church. In 188l, Fr Lesmes Perez bought live bells to be installed at the belfry.

The strong earthquake of 1948 heavily damaged the church and other structures in Dumalag leaving only the walls of the religious structure and the bell tower. A temporary church was built in front of the present one. The damaged structure was finally reconstructed by the parish priest, Msgr. Jesus Frantilla, and his assistants in the late 1950s.

The leading natural attraction of Dumalag is the Suhot spring and caves being marked by the towering Paningraon range. It is located about one and a half kilometer distance from the town center. The natural bridge and the famed caves of Suhot lead into minimally explored caverns which are claimed to stretch as far as the other side of Paningraon, facing Dumarao, a neighboring municipality. The many chambers of the Suhot caves are grown over with stalactites and stalagmites of considerable sizes and lengths. At the mouth of the caves, near the natural bridge, is a spring with sulfurous, salty water that is considered by the local folks as healthy for bathing. In more recent years, Suhot spring and caves have become a favorite destination for people coming from other places visiting Dumalag.