San Juan, officially the Municipality of San Juan ( ilo, Ili ti San Juan; fil, Bayan ng San Juan), formerly called as Lapog, is a 3rd 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 sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

Ilocos Sur Ilocos Sur, officially the Province of Ilocos Sur ( ilo, Probinsia ti Ilocos Sur; tl, Lalawigan ng Ilocos Sur), is a province in the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region in Luzon. Located on the mouth of the Mestizo River is the capital o ...

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 26,674 people. Because it produces most of the goods made of buri leaf in the province, it is sometimes called the Buri Capital of Ilocos Sur.

Etymology

The town got its name from its patron saint, Saint

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

History

The town of Lapog was established in 1772. The name of the municipality has gone through a series of changes. The early settlers and occupants called it "''Lapo''", short for "''Lapo-Lapo''", a tall grass which grew everywhere in the area. In the year 1772, Don Tomas Aquino, the first local leader, initiated the organization of the scattered communities into one, calling the place "''Lapog''", a derivative of local vernacular "''Lap-Lapog''" which means unirrigated land. For 189 years, "''Lapog''" remained in the records as the official name of the town until June 18, 1961,

Republic Act This article contains a partial list of Philippine laws. Sources of Philippine laws ;Notes : *Customs may be considered as supplementary source of law, however, customs which are contrary to law, public order or public policy shall not be ...

No. 3386 was enacted and it was renamed to San Juan. Since most of the inhabitants were of the belief that religious names bring peace, happiness, and prosperity, the town was renamed "''San Juan''", after the name of its patron saint, Saint

. It was stricken by all sorts of plagues and epidemics (like the

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

epidemics of 1808 and 1918–19,

locust Locusts (derived from the Vulgar Latin ''locusta'', meaning grasshopper) are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase. These insects are usually solitary, but under certain circumstanc ...

infestation in 1903, and destruction of ricefields by worms called "arabas" in 1905). Bessang Pass, just south of the poblacion, was constructed in 1874. Americans destroyed their town hall in 1903. But despite these misfortunes, San Juan progressed into a prosperous community.

Geography

San Juan is from

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region, seat of government and one of three List of metrop ...

and from

Vigan City Vigan, officially the City of Vigan ( ilo, Siudad ti Vigan; fil, Lungsod ng Vigan), is a 4th class component city and capital of the province of Ilocos Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 53,935 people. Lo ...

, the provincial capital.

Barangays

San Juan is politically subdivided into 32

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 metropolitan ...

s. These barangays are headed by elected officials: Barangay Captain,

Barangay Council The Sangguniang Barangay, also known as the Barangay Council, and formerly as the Rural Council and then the Barrio Council, is the legislative body of a barangay, the lowest form of government in the Philippines. The term is coined from the Tag ...

, whose members are called Barangay Councilors. All are elected every three years.

Climate

Demographics

In the 2020 census, San Juan had a population of 26,674. The population density was .

Economy

Government

San Juan, belonging to the first congressional district of the province of

, is governed by a mayor designated as its local chief executive and by a municipal council as its legislative body in accordance with the Local Government Code. The mayor, vice mayor, and the councilors are elected directly by the people through an election which is being held every three years.

Elected officials

References

External links

Act renaming the Municipality of Lapog to San JuanPasyalang Ilocos SurLapoguenio PerspectivesPhilippine Standard Geographic CodePhilippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Ilocos Sur