Laoag City (18°N 12', 120°E 36') is the capital city of Ilocos Norte province in the Ilocos Region of the Philippines. The municipalities of San Nicolas, Paoay, Sarrat, Vintar, and Bacarra form its municipal boundaries. The foothills of the Cordillera mountain range to the east, and the South China Sea to the west are its physical boundaries. The town experiences the prevailing monsoon climate of Northern Luzon, characterized by a dry season from November to April and a wet season from May to October, occasionally visited by powerful typhoons. Its economy is based primarily in agriculture, producing rice, tobacco, and garlic as economic staples. The region is renowned for pottery, blacksmithing, furniture-making, and weaving. Its ethnic population is overwhelmingly Ilocano. Unlike the rest of the region, however, the Roman Catholic Church does not predominate. The Aglipayan Church, Iglesia ni Cristo, and other Protestant groups have strong followings, as well as, animism and non-religiosity.

History

Ilaoag, "the place of light or clarity" in the Ilocano language of the inhabitants, is an old, flourishing settlement known to Chinese and Japanese traders when the Spanish conquistador Juan de Salcedo arrived at the north banks of Padsan River in 1572. Augustinian missionaries established the Roman Catholic Church in 1580 and designated Saint William, the Hermit as its patron saint.

Pedro Almazan crowned himself king in 1661 in a bid of insurrection and protest against Spanish tax mandates. Other rebellions flared throughout colonial times, including against Spanish tobacco monopoly in 1782.

Laoag became a city in 1965. It is the political, commercial, and industrial hub of the province.