Sablayan (), officially the Municipality of Sablayan ( tgl, Bayan ng Sablayan), is a 1st class

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Occidental Mindoro Occidental Mindoro ( tl, Kanlurang Mindoro), officially the Province of Occidental Mindoro, is a province in the Philippines located in the Mimaropa region. The province occupies the western half of the island of Mindoro. Its capital is Mambu ...

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 92,598 people. It has a total land area of 2,188.80 square kilometers, making it the largest municipality in the Philippines. The

Apo Reef Apo Reef is a coral reef system in the Philippines situated in the western waters of Occidental Mindoro province in the Mindoro Strait. Encompassing , it is considered the world's second-largest contiguous coral reef system, and is the largest in ...

, North and South Pandan Islands, and a portion of

Mounts Iglit–Baco National Park The Mounts Iglit–Baco National Park is a protected area of the Philippines and an ASEAN Heritage Park located in the island of Mindoro in central Philippines. The park covers an area of surrounding Mount Iglit and Mount Baco in the central int ...

are part of its jurisdiction. Sablayan Penal Colony, the Philippines' largest penal facility with sprawling lot of is also located in this municipality.

History

The town used to be called Dongon, a coastal village located currently at Barangay San Nicolas. The first accounts of the baptism of the locals under the Recollects were recorded in 1670. By 1749, Dongon became the biggest pueblo in the whole island of Mindoro in terms of population. In 1754, the Moro pirates started attacking the town, and almost every year thereafter, until in 1791 when the Moros effectively wiped out the whole population from more than 600 inhabitants to less than 98 people. In 1814, the inhabitants of Dongon gradually transferred to the village of Sablayan, until Dongon ceased to become a village in 1829. In 1832, the missionary friar Simeon Mendoza de la V. de Ibernalo requested the Spanish government for the exemption of the town's inhabitants from paying taxes so that they could build a stone church, convent and fort at a hilly part of the village. The church that stands today at the town may have been built from 1832 to 1835, and its advocacy was placed under San Sebastian.

Geography

Sablayan is located in the central part of

. It is bounded to the north by the municipality of Santa Cruz and the municipalities of Baco,

Naujan Naujan, officially the Municipality of Naujan ( tgl, Bayan ng Naujan), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Oriental Mindoro, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 109,587 people. It assumed the status of ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

and Socorro all in

Oriental Mindoro Oriental Mindoro ( tl, Silangang Mindoro), officially the Province of Oriental Mindoro, is a province in the Philippines located on the island of Mindoro under Mimaropa region in Luzon, about southwest of Manila. The province is bordered by the ...

province; to the east by the municipalities of Pinamalayan, Gloria,

Bansud Bansud, officially the Municipality of Bansud ( tgl, Bayan ng Bansud), is a 2nd class municipality in the province of Oriental Mindoro, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 42,671 people. Etymology The name of the ...

, Bongabong and Mansalay also in

; to the south by the municipality of Calintaan; and to the west by the Mindoro Strait. Sablayan is from

Mamburao Mamburao (), officially the Municipality of Mamburao ( tgl, Bayan ng Mamburao), is a 2nd class municipality and capital of the province of Occidental Mindoro, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 47,705 people. H ...

Barangays

Sablayan is politically subdivided into 22

barangay A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolita ...

s. In 1957 the following barrios were renamed: Batasan to Claudio Salgado, Hinaya to Buhay na Bato (Batong Buhay) and Iriron to San Isidro. * Batong Buhay * Buenavista (town proper) * Burgos * Claudio Salgado * General Emilio Aguinaldo * Ibud * Ilvita * Ligaya * Poblacion (Lumangbayan) * Paetan * Pag-Asa * San Agustin * San Francisco * San Nicolas * San Vicente * Santa Lucia * Santo Niño * Tagumpay * Victoria * Lagnas * Malisbong * Tuban

Climate

Demographics

Economy

Government

List of former chief executives

Culture

Held once a year the Dugoy Festival is a celebration of the

Mangyan Mangyan is the generic name for the eight indigenous groups found on the island of Mindoro, southwest of the island of Luzon, the Philippines, each with its own tribal name, language, and customs. The total population may be around 280,001, ...

culture.

References

External links

Sablayan Profile at PhilAtlas.com
* Philippine Standard Geographic Codebr>Philippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Occidental Mindoro