Mendez, Cavite

The municipality of Mendez-Nuñez was originally known as "Gahitan", one of the many barrios of Indang. The name was derived from the word "gahit" meaning "to cut", because the people then had to cut down tall and thick cogon grass that abounded in the place in order to clear areas for agricultural and residential purpose.

Over time, the number of houses in Gahitan grew, leading the sitio to become a barrio and eventually a full-fledged town on December 1, 1875, thanks to Governor-General Jose Malcampo y Monje (1874-1877). consolidated the three barrios of Gahitan, Palocpoc, and Anuling into an independent municipality named Méndez Núñez, in honor of the Spanish naval officer and close friend, Commodore Casto Méndez Núñez.

In 1856, when they were still Spanish naval officers, Malcampo and Mendez-Nuñez, established the first Masonic lodge in Kawit under a charter from the Grand Lodge of Portugal. The friendship of these two officers had been tested in many a battle against Muslim pirates in Mindanao.

Pedro Aure was the gobernadorcillo of Mendez during its first year as a municipality in 1876. Cayetano Aure, perhaps a relative of Pedro, was the first and only capitan municipal of Mendez during the First Philippine Republic (1899-1901). Pedro's son, Marcelino Aure, became a famous general during the Philippine Revolution. His nom de guerre was Alapaap (Cloud).

Mendez continued to be a municipality from 1875 to October 15, 1903 when, under Act No. 947 of the Philippine Commission, reduced the 23 municipalities of Cavite to eleven. Mendez and Bailen (now General Emilio Aguinaldo) were incorporated into the municipality of Alfonso.^[6]

But 12 years later, on January 1, 1915, Mendez regained its independent status as a municipality of Cavite.^[7]

The municipality of Mendez is located 66 kilometers (41 mi) from Metro Manila and is accessible via Aguinaldo Highway. It is one of the smallest and upland towns of Cavite province. It is bounded to the north and east by Indang, to the south by Tagaytay, and to the west by Alfonso.

In the 2024 census, the population of Mendez was 36,518 people,^[16] with a density of 840 inhabitants per square kilometre or 2,200 inhabitants per square mile.

Poverty incidence of Mendez

Source: Philippine Statistics Authority^{[17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]}

The Mendez Schools District Office governs all educational institutions within the municipality. It oversees the management and operations of all private and public, from primary to secondary schools.^[26]

• Josh Mojica - Entrepreneur and content creator^[27]

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  Mendez-Tagaytay Road in Mendez Town Proper
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  Interior of Saint Augustine Parish Church
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  Mendez Central School
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  Paraiso ng Batang Mendez