Santa Maria, officially the Municipality of Santa Maria (; ), is a
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
in the
province
A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
Davao Occidental,
Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 57,526 people.
History
Santa Maria was created as a municipality of
Davao on June 18, 1966 out of 12 barangays and 15 barrios from
Malalag, by virtue of Republic Act No. 4743. Basiawan was designated as the municipal seat. On May 8, 1967, the municipality became part of
Davao del Sur following Davao's division under Republic Act No. 4867.
On October 28, 2013, it was ceded to
Davao Occidental as a result of a
plebiscite
A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or adv ...
, in which the majority of voters approved the creation of the new province.
Geography
The municipality, located on
Mindanao
Mindanao ( ) is the List of islands of the Philippines, second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and List of islands by population, seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the ...
Island, is about north-west of provincial capital municipality of
Malita and about south-south-east of Philippine main capital
Manila
Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...
. It is also located on the coast of
Davao Gulf. The noted feature of Santa Maria is the Mount Monkeyawa, standing about more than a hundred-meter above sea level. And at the foot of this mountain, the Municipal Hall where it is located.
Climate
Barangays
Santa Maria is politically subdivided into 22
barangay
The barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as ''barrio'', is the smallest Administrative divisions of the Philippines, administrative division in the Philippines. Named after the Precolonial barangay, precolonial po ...
s. Each barangay consists of
puroks while some have
sitios.
* Basiawan
* Buca
* Cadaatan
* Kidadan
* Kisulad
* Malalag Tubig
* Mamacao
* Ogpao
* Poblacion
* Pongpong
* San Agustin
* San Antonio
* San Isidro
* San Juan
* San Pedro
* San Roque
* Tanglad
* Santo Niño
* Santo Rosario
* Datu Daligasao
* Datu Intan
* Kinilidan
Demographics
Language and dialects
*Tagakaulo - a native dialect originates from the mixture of
Bagobo,
Mandaya,
Davawenyo, and the
Lumad peoples of
Davao City
Davao City, officially the City of Davao, is a City of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Davao Region, Philippines. The city has a total land area of , making it the List of Philippine cities and municipalities ...
.
*
Cebuano
Economy
Government
Municipal officials 2022-2025:
* Mayor: Claude Benjamin Bautista II
* Vice Mayor: Josephine Mariscal
* Councilors:
** Jestoni Tiwo
** Rudy Mariscal Jr.
** Lino Solo
** Amel Vistal
** Lea Abe
** Jubane Monsad
** Ondo Mangayao
References
External links
Santa Maria Profile at the DTI Cities and Municipalities Competitive Index*
Philippine Standard Geographic Codebr>
Philippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control
Municipalities of Davao Occidental
1966 establishments in the Philippines