La Libertad, officially the Municipality of La Libertad (; ), 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 ...

Negros Oriental Negros Oriental (; ), officially the Province of Negros Oriental (; ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Negros Island. Its capital is the city of Dumaguete, one of the two regional centers of Negros Island Region, with the other b ...

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 ...

. As of the 2020

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, the city has a population of 41,089 people.

History

Before and during the Spanish Conquest of the Philippines, the Municipality of La Libertad was inhabited by indigenous tribes, mostly

Negritos The term ''Negrito'' (; ) refers to several diverse ethnic groups who inhabit isolated parts of Southeast Asia and the Andaman Islands. Populations often described as Negrito include: the Andamanese peoples (including the Great Andamanese, th ...

. Several families from neighboring

villages A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban village ...

and distant provinces began to settle, with one of the first pioneers being Pedro Absin. Early settlers in the region established communities that later became part of present-day La Libertad. Many of them engaged in farming and fishing. The fertile valleys of Hinoba-an drew several families who immigrated there in the later part of the Spanish period. The area was known for its fertile soil, which supported local farming activities. La Libertad was severely affected during the 2012 Visayas earthquake, which caused landslides that killed dozens of people.

Geography

The Tañon Strait lies to the east of this municipality. La Libertad is located north of

Dumaguete Dumaguete, officially the City of Dumaguete (; ; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and capital of the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Negros Oriental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it h ...

, the capital city of

Administration (barangays)

La Libertad is politically subdivided into 29

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 is further divided into

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 also include

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

Economy

Demographics

Tourism

The municipality is known for the white sand beach of Solangon. The nearby Mt. Panciao is often visited for hiking and exploration.

Education

The public schools in the town of La Libertad are administered by two school districts under th
Schools Division of Negros Oriental
Elementary schools: * Agbobolo Elementary School — Sitio Agbobolo, Aya * Aniniaw Elementary School — Aniniaw * Aya Elementary School — Aya * Bagtic Elementary School — Bagtic * Biga-a Elementary School — Biga-a * Busilac Elementary School — Busilak * Cangabo Elementary School — Cangabo * Eli Elementary School — Eli * Guihob Elementary School — Guihob * Kansumandig Elementary School — Kansumandig * La Libertad Central Elementary School — South Poblacion * La Libertad North Poblacion Primary School — North Poblacion * Mambulod Elementary School — Mambulod * Mandapaton Elementary School — Mandapaton * Manghulyawon Elementary School — Manghulyawon * Manluminsag Elementary School — Manluminsag * Mapalasan Elementary School — Mapalasan * Martilo Elementary School — Martilo * Nasunggan Elementary School — Nasunggan * Pacuan Elementary School — Pacuan * Pangca Elementary School — Pangca * Pisong Elementary School — Pisong * Pitogo Elementary School — Pitogo * San Jose Elementary School — San Jose * Solonggon Elementary School — Solonggon * Tala-on Elementary School — Tala-on * Talostos Elementary School — Elecia High schools: * La Libertad Technical-Vocational School—South Poblacion * La Libertad TVS - Manluminsag Extension—Manluminsag * Pacuan National High School—Pacuan * Pacuan NHS - Busilac Extension—Busilac * Pacuan NHS - Nasunggan Extension—Nasunggan Private schools: * Saint Francis School—North Poblacion

Government

Elected municipal officials (2010–2013): *Mayor: Emmanuel Iway *Vice Mayor: Lawrence Limkaichong *Councilors: ** Nancy Temonio Laturnas ** Ronald Opada ** Ronie Bulabon ** Emelia Luz Medes ** Leonida Rios ** Jellenito Cayetano ** Bertoldo Burlasa ** Jovito Sabanal ** ABC President: Ronald Gallosa ** SK Federation President: PJ Arriesgado

List of former elective officials

References

External links

* *

Philippine Standard Geographic Code The Philippine Standard Geographic Code (PSGC) is a systematic classification and coding for geographic areas in the Philippines. It classifies areas based on the country's four levels of administrative divisions: regions, provinces, municipalities ...

Philippine Census Information

Local Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Negros Oriental