Meycauayan , officially the City of Meycauayan (), is a 1st class component city in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the , it has a population of people.
The place got its name from the Tagalog words may kawayan which is literally translated to English as there is bamboo. It was formerly known as Mecabayan , a Kapampangan name, and alternatively as Meycawayan.
History
During the Spanish colonization of the country, the town of Meycauayan was established as a settlement by a group of Spanish priests belonging to the Franciscan Order. In 1578, its early inhabitants came into contact with Christianity. In that same year, Father Juan de Placencia and Diego Oropesa built the first church structure, which was believed to be made of nipa and bamboo. Common to all Spanish settlements in that period was the adoption of a patron saint for the newly opened town. Meycauayan has St. Francis of Assisi as the patron saint. It was only in 1668, however, that a concrete church structure was erected.
The 1818 Spanish census recorded the area having 2,375 native families and 16 Spanish-Filipino families. Meycauayan was then one of the largest towns in the province of Bulacan. The towns, which fell under its political jurisdiction, were San Jose del Monte, Bocaue, Valenzuela (formerly Polo), Obando, Marilao, Santa Maria and Pandi. It was also regarded as the unofficial capital of the province, being the hub of activities brought about by the establishment of the market center and the presence of the Spanish military detachment. During the revolution, which was set off by the execution of Dr. Jose Rizal in 1896, Meycauayan contributed its share in the fight against the Spanish conquistadores. Among the town's sons who figured prominently in the revolution were: Andres Pacheco, Ciriaco Contreras, Guillermo Contreras, Guillermo Bonque, Tiburcio Zuela, and Liberato Exaltacion. There were many others who had joined the revolution and had displayed their exceptional heroism until 1898, when the country gained its independence from Spain.
Between 1901 and 1913, Marilao became part of Meycauayan.
In 1949, a big fire razed the market center and several business establishments in the town, causing setbacks to the development of the municipality. It took several years to recover from the destruction and property losses. However, in the 1960s and early part of 1970s, new hope for the development was ushered in. Reconstruction and rehabilitation of infrastructure facilities were made possible through the assistance of the provincial and national governments. A more sound economic base was established and crop production more than doubled.
Cityhood
Meycauayan attempted cityhood twice.
The plebiscite for the ratification, along with that of Cauayan, Isabela (by virtue of RA No. 9017 dated February 28), was scheduled by the Commission on Elections on March 30. The bid however failed, and Meycauayan remained a municipality.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right; line-height:1.25em; font-size:100%;"
|+Meycauayan cityhood plebiscites
|-
! rowspan="2" | Choice !! colspan="2" | 2001<br /> !! colspan="2" | 2006<br />
|-
! Votes !! % !! Votes !! %
|-
| Yes || 8,109 || || 8,247 ||
|-
| No || 14,788 || || 5,728 ||
|-
| Total (valid) votes || 22,897 || 100% || 13,975 || 100%
|-
| Registered voters/turnout || || || 118,339 ||
|-
| Result
| colspan="2"
| colspan="2"
|-
| align="left" | || colspan="2" align="left" |