"Mangga ken Tirem": The Town That Started with a Snack

Long ago, before roads were paved and jeepneys had karaoke, the land where Mangatarem now stands was a thick forest—home to wild boars, chirping birds, and the occasional confused goat. People rarely ventured deep into the woods unless they had a good reason, like hunting, collecting firewood, or avoiding their in-laws.

One sunny afternoon, two woodcutters—Poldo and Andong—set off into the forest from opposite directions. They didn’t know each other yet, but fate (and hunger) had plans.

Poldo, a cheerful man with a habit of whistling off-key, brought a bunch of ripe mangoes in his bayong. Meanwhile, Andong, who took pride in being unconventional, packed something he claimed was “high-class merienda”—a bundle of freshly gathered oysters from the nearby river, wrapped in banana leaves.

They both stopped to rest under the same towering tree, surprised to see each other in such a remote part of the woods.

“Friend!” Poldo called out. “Hungry?”

“Always,” Andong replied.

Poldo opened his bayong, revealing golden mangoes that glistened like treasure. Andong unwrapped his leaves dramatically, revealing slippery, shiny oysters that looked... well, very oyster-like.

They looked at each other’s snacks, wide-eyed.

And in unison, they both blurted out:

“Manga ken Tirem!” (Mango and Oyster!)

There was a brief silence. Then they laughed so hard they nearly dropped their snacks.

“What kind of strange picnic is this?” Poldo joked.

“I don’t know,” Andong replied, biting into a mango with one hand and slurping an oyster with the other, “but it’s the start of a delicious friendship.”

From that day on, whenever people asked where they met, the two would proudly answer, “Dita idiay Manga ken Tirem!” (there in the place of mango and oyster.)

Eventually, the story spread faster than gossip in a sari-sari store. When settlers began naming the growing community, someone (probably hungry at the time) suggested, “Why not call it Mangatarem—to honor the legendary snack combo?”

And so, it was done.

To this day, people still argue whether mangoes and oysters are a good combo (most say no), but everyone agrees on one thing: Mangatarem is a name you’ll never forget—and it all began with a very strange snack in the forest.

Base Reference:

https://www.pangasinan.gov.ph/city-municipalities/mangatarem/