Pagsanjan (pronounced ''PAG-sang-han''), officially the Municipality of Pagsanjan ( tgl, Bayan ng Pagsanjan), 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 ...

of Laguna,

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 44,327 people. Situated from Santa Cruz and southeast of

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

, this town can reach via

Manila East Road The Manila East Road, also known as National Road and National Highway, is a two-to-four lane primary and secondary highway connecting Metro Manila to the provinces of Rizal and Laguna (province), Laguna in the Philippines. Since 2014, the ent ...

Slex The South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), signed as E2 of the Philippine expressway network and R-3 of the Metro Manila arterial road network, is a limited-access toll expressway that connects Metro Manila to the provinces in the Calabarzon region ...

. Pagsanjan is the tourist capital of Laguna and is the home of the Bangkero Festival held every March. The ''bangkeros'' are tour guides who steer boats along the river to

Pagsanjan Falls Pagsanjan Falls, also known as Cavinti Falls (local name: Magdapio Falls) is one of the most famous waterfalls in the Philippines. Located in the province of Laguna, the falls is one of the major tourist attractions of the region. The three-drop ...

(also called Magdapio Falls), for which the town is well known but is actually in neighboring

Cavinti Cavinti, officially the Municipality of Cavinti ( tgl, Bayan ng Cavinti), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Laguna, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 23,980 people. It is in the Sierra Madre mount ...

. Pagsanjan was the capital of the province of Laguna for 170 years (1688–1858) during which the town prospered as the commercial, cultural and learning center of the province.

Etymology

Pagsanjan is located in the

riparian A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the terrestrial biomes of the Earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks ar ...

delta formed by the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...

of the Balanac and Bumbungan

rivers A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

. Originally called ''Pinágsangahán'' ("branching" or "juncture"), this was shortened to "Pagsanjan" by early Spanish colonists because they found the name very difficult to pronounce.

History

Pagsanjan was originally a ''

barrio ''Barrio'' () is a Spanish language, Spanish word that means "Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter" or "neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city, usually delimited by functional (e.g. residenti ...

'' of

Lumban Lumban, officially the Municipality of Lumban ( tgl, Bayan ng Lumban), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Laguna, Philippines. It can reach this town Passing Through Rizal Province via Manila East Road or SLEX. According to the 2020 ...

. In 1668, eight Japanese and Chinese traders, who were highly impressed by the strategic location of the barrio at the juncture of Balanac and Bumbungan, rivers founded the town. They established a trading settlement and engaged in the

betel nut The betel (''Piper betle'') is a vine of the family Piperaceae, which includes pepper and kava. The betel plant is native to Southeast Asia. It is an evergreen, dioecious perennial, with glossy heart-shaped leaves and white catkins. Betel plan ...

industry. In time, the barrio became the flourishing trading center of eastern Laguna and attracted families from the surrounding communities of

and

Pila Pila may refer to: Architecture * Pila (architecture), a type of veranda in Sri Lankan farm houses Places *Pila, Buenos Aires, a town in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina *Pila Partido, a country subdivision in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina * ...

. On December 12, 1668, then-

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Juan Manuel de la Peña Bonifaz Juan Manuel de la Peña Bonifaz (died 1669) was a Spanish politician who served as the ad interim 26th governor and captain-general of the Philippines from September 28, 1668 to September 24, 1669. Prior to his term being the governor-general, h ...

issued a decree elevating its status to a town. In 1688, Pagsanjan replaced Bay as the capital of the province. It remained such until 1858, during which it bloomed as the cultural and commercial center of the province.

Geography

Pagsanjan has a land area of 26.4 square kilometres. It is located about 92 kilometres (57 mi) southeast of Manila. It is bounded on the east by the Balubad Mountain; on the west by the capital town of Santa Cruz; on the north by the San Isidro Hill and

Laguna de Bay Laguna de Bay (Spanish language, Spanish for "Lagoon/Lake of Bay, Laguna, Bay"; tl, Lawa ng Bay, ), also known as Laguna Lake, is the List of lakes of the Philippines, largest lake in the Philippines. It is located southeast of Metro Manila, b ...

; on the north-east by the town of Lumban; on the southeast by the towns of Cavinti and

Luisiana Luisiana, officially the Municipality of Luisiana ( tgl, Bayan ng Luisiana), is a 4th class municipality in the province of Laguna, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 20,859 people. Locals call the town ''Little ...

; on the south by Mount Banahaw; and on the south-west by the town of Magdalena.

Barangays

Pagsanjan is politically subdivided into 16

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 ...

Climate

Demographics

In the 2020 census, the population of Pagsanjan was 44,327 people, with a density of .

Economy

Culture

''Pagsanjan March''

The official song of the town is the ''Pagsanjan March''. The anthem was composed by Rogel Taiño, a native of Pagsanjan.

Notable personalities

Gregorio F. Zaide Gregorio F. Zaide (May 25, 1907 – October 31, 1986) was a Filipino historian, author and politician from the town of Pagsanjan, Laguna in the Philippines. A multi-awarded author, Zaide wrote 67 books and more than 500 articles about history, he ...

- historian and author, "Dean of Filipino Historiographers" *

Pedro Pelaez Pedro Peláez y Sebastián (June 29, 1812 – June 3, 1863) was a Filipino Catholic priest who favored the rights for Filipino clergy during the 19th century. He was diocesan administrator of the Archdiocese of Manila for a brief period of ...

- educator and priest, considered the "Father of Filipinization of the Church" and "The Godfather of the Philippine Revolution" * Leandro H. Fernández - educator, author and historian * Francisco Benitez - First Dean of

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

College of Education, educator and author, husband of

Paz Marquez Benitez Pas or PAZ may refer to: Places * Paz, Croatia, a village and castle ruin in Istria, Croatia * Pads, Iran or Faz, a village in Razavi Khorasan Province, Iran Organisations * Pavlovo Bus Factory or ''Pavlovsky Avtobusny Zavod'', a Russian bus co ...

Conrado Benitez Conrado Benitez (November 26, 1889 – January 4, 1971) is a Filipino statesman, writer, and educator. He founded the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement and was one of the drafters of the 1935 Constitution of the Philippines. Flavier, Juan M ...

- First Dean of the College of Liberal Arts at the University of the Philippines, educator and author, one of the drafters of the 1935 Constitution. * José Fabella - Filipino physician and a public health

advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...

, Father of Public Health and Social Welfare in the Philippines. * Gelia Tagumpay Castillo –

National Scientist of the Philippines The Order of National Scientists of the Philippines, abbreviated as ONS, is the highest award accorded to Filipino scientists by the Philippine government. Members of the order are known as National Scientists ( Filipino: ''Pambansang Alagad ng Ag ...

for Rural Sociology *

Ernesto Maceda Ernesto "Ernie" Madarang Maceda Sr. (March 26, 1935 – June 20, 2016) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, and columnist who served as a Senator of the Philippines from 1971 to 1972 and again from 1987 to 1998. He served as Senate President fro ...

- former councilor of Manila, former senator, columnist and lawyer *

Mario Montenegro Mario Montenegro (born Roger Collin Macalalag; July 25, 1928 – August 27, 1988) was a Filipino film actor best known for his heroic leading roles. Early life Montenegro was born in Pagsanjan, LagunaCCP Encyclopedia, p. 279 Montenegro was a F ...

- actor *

Louie Ignacio Luisito Lagdameo Ignacio (born April 2, 1968), better known as Louie Ignacio is a Filipino television director, film director, music video director, and painter. He studied AB Mass Communication in Centro Escolar University. Ignacio also dire ...

- TV director * E.R. Ejército - Actor, 17th Governor of Laguna and former Mayor of Pagsanjan

References

External links

www.pagsanjan.com.ph
* Philippine Standard Geographic Codebr>Philippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Laguna (province) Former provincial capitals of the Philippines