Ayungon (; ), officially the Municipality of Ayungon, is a municipality in the province of Negros Oriental, Philippines. According to the 2024 census, it has a population of 50,688 people.
Attractions include the Karalaon Bird Sanctuary,the subterranean area of the Mabato Caves, a man-made lake in Banban, and the Pagsalsalan Twin Falls (Maaslum Falls).
There are at least two explanations for the origin of the name Ayungon. According to Dr. Timoteo S. Oracion of Silliman University, it may date back to the pre-colonial period, when places were often named after prominent individuals. In this case, the locality was associated with a fisherman named Ayung, whose dwelling served as a resting place for travelers. The area came to be known as âÂÂAyungâÂÂs place,â which later evolved into Ayungon with the addition of the suffix âÂÂ-on.âÂÂ
Another account suggests that the name resulted from a misunderstanding between Spanish visitors and a local resident. When asked for the name of the place, the native, who was cutting a tree, thought he was being asked his name and replied âÂÂAyung.â When asked again, he assumed the question referred to the tree and answered âÂÂDungon.â The Spaniards reportedly combined the two responses into âÂÂAyung-Dungon,â which was eventually shortened to Ayungon.
During the Spanish regime, the original town plaza was located at the beach, which was transferred further inland due to a massive flood. The town also suffered an epidemic of smallpox which took away two-thirds of the town's population. Old municipal profiles refer to Ayungon as Todos los Santos, though there are no legends to explain that Hispanic name, just as there are no tales elaborating on the ruins of apparently Hispanic fortifications on the Tampocon II shoreline, perhaps because Ayungon's colonial past was not entirely its own. For many years, it was a mere barrio of Tayasan, until 1924 when Governor General Leonard Wood came to establish Ayungon as a full-fledged municipality through the recommendation of the then-provincial governor, Enrique Villanueva.
During World War II, numerous houses were burned, as well as people being tortured and killed. Many of them died due to famine and malaria. Maximo Romano Enardecido, the mayor at the time, evacuated the municipal government to Pangi, a mountainous village located south of the Poblacion. Captain Eugenio âÂÂKusganâ Antonio led the town's guerilla movement. The town was liberated in October 1944, and the Americans came in to rehabilitate the town by lending money to pay for war damages.
from the provincial capital Dumaguete, Ayungon is located on the midriff of Oriental Negrosâ northern stretch, nearly two hours from Dumaguete.
Of only three virgin forests said to be still remaining on Negros Island, one is located in barangay Banban.
Ayungon is politically subdivided into 24 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.
Ayungon is mostly rural with vast rice fields, dense coconut groves and expansive plantations of sugar cane, bananas and pineapple.
As of May 2025, the once quiet town is starting to commercialize by bringing in numerous known international and national businesses in its Poblacion.
As the town is growing economically, it has been conferred with the status of 1st class income municipality.
The public schools in the town of Ayungon are administered by two school districts under the Schools Division of Negros Oriental.
Elementary schools:
High schools:
Private schools: