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Gumaca, officially the Municipality of Gumaca (), 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
Quezon Quezon, officially the Province of Quezon () and historically known as Tayabas, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon Regions of the Philippines, region on Luzon. Lucena, a highly urbanized ci ...
, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 71,942 people.


History

Formerly known as Bumaka (meaning "the one who fought"), the town of Gumaca was a settlement founded at the southern bank of Palanas River in the 14th century. The earliest known ruler was Lakan Bugtali. Gumaca, one of the oldest towns in Quezon Province and only several years younger than the “Noble and Ever Loyal City of Manila”, was already a well-established community even before the Spaniards came. The community had a barangay government as early as the 14th century, Lakan Bugtali being the earliest ruler according to oral tradition and Lakan Gitingan being the last. The Barangay had for its territory much of the areas now under the territorial jurisdiction of the municipalities of Atimonan, Plaridel, Lopez, Calauag, Alabat, Perez, Quezon, Unisan, Pitogo, Guinayangan and Macalelon. Located at the mouth of what is now known as Pipisik River and nestling at the foot of Sierra Madre range, it was-as it is now-also the center of local trade and commerce. It is perhaps because of this Franciscan friar, Fray Diego de Oropesa, first set foot in the community and introduced Christianity to the people with St. Diego de Alcala being proclaimed as the pueblo’s patron saint. In 1582, the first “visita” was erected and 1686 marked the establishment of a full-pledged town with independent (civil) government, the earlier ones having been headed by the ever-present Spanish friars (the municipality boasts of a still complete line-up of chief executives from 1574 down to the present). From the early 1980s to the 1990s, there were calls to rename the town as Tañada, after nationalist and past Senator
Lorenzo Tañada Lorenzo Martinez "Ka Tanny" Tañada Sr. (, August 10, 1898 – May 28, 1992) was a Filipino statesman, lawyer, human and civil rights defender, and national athlete. He is often referred to as the "Grand Old Man of Philippine Politics." He s ...
, with his son Wigberto Tañada proposing to have a poll once elected congressman of
Quezon Quezon, officially the Province of Quezon () and historically known as Tayabas, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon Regions of the Philippines, region on Luzon. Lucena, a highly urbanized ci ...
's fourth district; the renaming eventually did not push through.


Geography

Gumaca is located at the mouth of what is now known as Pipisik River at the foot of the Sierra Madre range. It is from
Lucena Lucena (, American Spanish: , European Spanish: ), officially known as the City of Lucena (), is a highly urbanized city situated in the Calabarzon region (Region IV-A) of the Philippines. The city is the largest urban center and capital of ...
and from
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 ...
.


Barangays

Gumaca is politically subdivided into 59
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, as indicated below. Each barangay consists of
purok A ''purok'' () is an informal division within a barangay in the Philippines. While not officially considered a local government unit (LGU), a ''purok'' often serves as a unit for delivering services and administration within a barangay. ''Pur ...
s and some have
sitios A ''sitio'' (Spanish language, Spanish for "site") in the Philippines is a territorial enclave that forms part of a barangay. Typically rural, a ''sitios location is usually far from the center of the barangay itself and could be its own bar ...
.


Climate


Demographics


Economy


Transportation


By land

The municipality is connected with Manila by the
Pan-Philippine Highway The Pan-Philippine Highway, also known as the Maharlika Highway (; ), is a network of roads, expressways, bridges, and ferry services that connect the islands of Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao in the Philippines, serving as the country's p ...
and daily rail services to and from Naga & Legazpi are provided by the
Philippine National Railways The Philippine National Railways (PNR) (; ) is a government-owned and controlled corporation, state-owned railway company in the Philippines which operates one commuter rail service between Laguna (province), Laguna and Quezon, and local servic ...
. In order to spur development in the municipality, The Toll Regulatory Board declared Toll Road 5 the extension of South Luzon Expressway. A 420-kilometer, four lane expressway starting from the terminal point of the now under construction SLEX Toll Road 4 at Barangay Mayao, Lucena City in Quezon to Matnog, Sorsogon, near the Matnog Ferry Terminal. On August 25, 2020, San Miguel Corporation announced that they will invest the project which will reduce travel time from Lucena to Matnog from 9 hours to 5.5 hours. On June 3, 2022, the Department of Transportation and San Miguel Corporation signed a Supplemental Toll Operations Agreement (STOA) for SLEX Toll Road 5 which was approved by then President
Rodrigo Duterte Rodrigo Roa Duterte (, ; born March 28, 1945) is a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 16th president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. He is the first Philippine president from Mindanao, and is the oldest person to assum ...
24 days later. Another expressway that will serve Gumaca is the Quezon-Bicol Expressway (QuBEx), which will link between Lucena and San Fernando, Camarines Sur.


San Diego de Alcala Cathedral

The San Diego de Alcala Cathedral is the seat of the Diocese of Gumaca and is considered as the largest cathedral in
Quezon Quezon, officially the Province of Quezon () and historically known as Tayabas, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon Regions of the Philippines, region on Luzon. Lucena, a highly urbanized ci ...
, founded as early as 1582 as a ''visita'' by the Franciscan friars. The cathedral is under the patronage of
Saint Didacus of Alcala In Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Anglican, Oriental Ortho ...
(San Diego in Spanish).


Government


Local government

* Mayor: Webster Letargo


Municipal mayors

From the discovery in 1574 and official foundation of Gumaca in 1582, Franciscan Friars have been the Town Heads: * Sr. Padre Diego de Oropesa (1574–1587) * Sr. Padre Esteban Ortiz (1588–1598) * Sr. Padre Geronimo Monte (1599–1622) * Sr. Padre Gabriel Santo Tomas (1623–1637) * Sr. Padre Marcelo de la Guardia (1638–1661) * Sr. Padre Celestino de San Miguel (1662–1670) From 1671, Gobernadorcillos are the Heads of Town dof Gumaca (Spanish period): (Mostly composed of Dynasties of Hispanic-Filipino Families) * Don Diego Jose (1671–1672) * Don Francisco Santa Maria (1673–1676) * Don Pedro De Castro (1677–1679) * Don Simon Prada (1680–1681) * Don Mariano De Dios (1682) * Don Jose San Agustin (1683) * Don Santiago Abra (1684) * Don Felix Gimenos (1684–1685) * Don Juan Adriano (1686) * Don Antonio Lopez (1686) * Don Juan San Buenaventura (1687–1688) * Don Jose Ajan de Vera (1689) * Don Buenaventura dela Cruz (1690) * Don Diego Martinez Polintan (1690) * Don Manuel Cuello (1691) * Don Don Gregorio Dandan (1692) * Don Nicolas Sarmiento (1693) * Don Francisco de Victoria (1694) * Don Francisco Martinez (1695–1696) * Don Juan Cabig (1697) * Don Gaspar Catapang (1698) * Don Francisco Escobar (1698–1699) * Don Marcos Frias (1700) * Don Pedro Talavera (1701) * Don Francisco Martinez (1702) * Don Diego Martinez Polonio (1703) * Don Diego Salvador (1704) * Don Francisco Cortez (1705) * Don Antonio Santa Maria (1706) * Don Pedro Talavera (1707) * Don Francisco de Victoria (1708) * Don Diego Martinez Polonio (1709) * Don Pedro Talavera (1710) * Don Buenaventura Delos Santos (1711) * Don Francisco Clemente (1712) * Don Juan Bautista (1712) * Don Francisco Salvador Martinez (1713) * Don Alejo Alonzo de Victoria (1714) * Don Antonio Catapang (1715) * Don Pedro Gimenes (1716) * Don Francisco Clemente (1717) * Don Geronimo Gimenes (1718) * Don Pedro Almonte (1719) * Don Pedro Patilo (1720) * Don Santiago Martinez (1721) * Don Bartolome Dandan Casadia (1722) * Don Pedro Talavera (1723) * Don Antonio Peras Margas (1724) * Don Jose Pagayanon (1724–1725) * Don Francisco de Victoria (1725–1727) * Don Francisco Salvador (1728) * Don Gregorio Gimenes (1729) * Don Francisco Cordero (1730) * Don Juan de Reyes (1731) * Don Eugenio delos Santos (1732–1733) * Don Francisco delos Reyes (1734) * Don Francisco De Leon (1735) * Don Andres Martinez (1736) * Don Diego delos Santos (1737) * Don Miguel delos Reyes (1738) Presidentes Municipal (American period) * Don Donato T. Arcaya (1901–1903) (First elected Presidente Municipal de Gumaca) Gobernadrocillo Interim (1900) * Don Carlos Capisonda (1904–1905) * Don Rafael Castro (1906–1907) * Don Conrado Oliveros (1908–1909) * Don Tomas Tañada, Sr. (1909–1912) * Don Aurelio P. Nava (1912–1916) Son of Gobernadorcillo Don Antonino Nava * Don Deogracias Tañada (1916–1919) * Don Panfilo M. Tañada (1919–1923) * Don Valeriano Arcaya (1923–1925) Son of Presidente Don Donato Arcaya * Don Marciano Linay Principe (1925–1928) * Don Don Eriberto Caparros (1928–1931) * Don Francisco Omaña (1931–1934) * Don Vicente M. Mendoza (1934–1939) Japanese Occupation (1942–1946) * Sr. Juan R. Tañada (1940–1946) * Don Vicente D. Victoria (1946–1951) Son of Gobernadorcillo Don Pedro Victoria After the Liberation, the Head of Town has been changed to Municipal Mayor: * Sr. Mariano M. Tañada, Sr. (1952–1959) Son of Gobernadorcillo Don Vicente Tañada * Dr. Cesar A. Angulo (1960–1963) * Don Tomas C. Tañada, Jr. (1964–1967) Son of Presidente Don Tomas Tañada, Sr. Martial Law Era: (1972–1981): * Engr. Teodosio V. Principe (1968–1979) Son of Presidente Don Marciano Principe * Col. Robert T. Yap-Diangco (1980–1986) After EDSA People Power I: (1986): * Cirilo M. Tañada (1986–1995) Son of Mayor Mariano M. Tañada, Sr. * Col. Rodolfo B. Caralian (7/1/1995-8/16/1995) Died during his term of office * Juanito B. Bañal (1995–2007) * Engr. Joy Job Arcaya Cabangon (2007–2010) * Engr. Erwin P. Caralian (2010–2019) Son of Mayor Col. Rodolfo Caralian * Webster Letargo (2019 present)


Notable personalities

* Erin Tañada * Keith Micah Tan


Sister Cities

*
Zamboanga City Zamboanga City, officially the City of Zamboanga (; ; Subanen languages, Subanen: ''Bagbenwa Sembwangan''; Sama–Bajaw languages, Sama: ''Lungsud Samboangan''; ; ; ) is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city i ...
* Makati City


References


External links


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