Pimpin: Santa Ana's old names

Santa Ana was once Pimpin, and its barangays still answer to names like Kanukil, Darabulbul and Balen Bayu.

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Discover Pampanga Editors · October 2026

Photo: Ralff Nestor Nacor on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA · via Wikimedia Commons

Before it was Santa Ana, the town was Pimpin, founded in 1598 as a visita of Arayat. Its people still call themselves Pimpeños, and the nickname Balen Pimpin is said to refer to the town's small size. Spanish missionaries dedicated it to Saint Anne in 1617.

The names that stayed

Officially, Santa Ana's barangays carry saints' names. Locally, many still use the older ones, a sign, Tantingco writes, of the townspeople's respect for their history:

Sumpung, now San Agustin
Patayum, now San Bartolome
Kenabuan, now San Isidro
Kanukil, now San Joaquin, the poblacion
Katmun, now San Jose
Sepung Ilug, now San Nicolas
Darabulbul, now San Pablo
Kalumpang, now San Pedro
Tuklung, now San Roque
Kalinan, now Santa Lucia
Balen Bayu, now Santa Maria
Libutad, now Santiago
Pagbatuan, now Santo Rosario

San Juan was once Tinajero; its older name is lost.

In 1810 several of Pimpin's barrios were transferred to Arayat, Mexico and San Luis. The town was reinstated as a municipality on January 1, 1913. Its heart is still the parish church of Saint Anne in Kanukil.