MacArthur (IPA: ək 'ɑːrθər, officially the Municipality of MacArthur (; ), 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 ...

Leyte Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has been ...

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 21,578 people.

History

The name MacArthur can be traced back to the liberation of the Philippines from the hands of the Japanese forces. As an expression of gratitude, six years after American general

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American general who served as a top commander during World War II and the Korean War, achieving the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. He served with dis ...

landed at the Leyte Beach, the Leyteños named the town after the American general. This occurred after the lobbying efforts of

Daniel Romualdez Daniel Zialcita Romualdez (September 11, 1907 – March 22, 1965) was a Filipino politician who served as Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines from 1957 to 1962. He was first cousin to former First Lady Imelda Marcos. ...

, then Congressman of the First District of Leyte. In the latter part of 19th century, MacArthur was a flourishing village called Bagacay, named after a bamboo species, because of the abundance of the plant in the locality. Its first inhabitants were the families of Gabion, Matol, Echavez, Moquia, Jervoso and Galo who came from the neighboring towns of Abuyog, Tolosa, Tanauan and Burauen. Abuyog was its mother town. The name Bagacay was then changed to Tarragona by a parish priest of Abuyog, Friar Bernardo Tapiol, who choose the name in honor of his native city in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. Sometime in 1898, Tarragona became an independent town with Anastacio Jervoso as Captain, the chief executive. That was when the Spanish government changed hands with the short-lived

Philippine Republic The term "Philippine Republic" refers to a succession of republics during and after the Philippine Revolution in the Philippines. The current government of the Philippines recognizes five "Philippine republics" in the history of the Philippines: ...

. Leyte was then under the governorship of Gen. Mojica, Military Governor of Leyte. The local government, however, ended with the short-lived Philippine Republic, returning to its former status as 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 delimited by functional (e.g. residential, comm ...

. With the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Senator Jose Veloso proclaimed Tarragona as a municipality with Antonio Matoza as Mayor, Fabian Pantin as Vice-Mayor, Calixta Matoza as Municipal Secretary, Alejandro Nuevas as Municipal Treasurer, and Marciano Lumbre as Chief of Police. The municipality was then composed of the following barrios; Osmeña, Capudlosan, Causwagan, Pongon, Danao, Casuntingan, Tuyo, San Isidro, Maya, Pinocawan, Batug, Kiling, Palale, Liwayway, Burabod, Gen. Luna, Calzada, Bugho, Manarog, Pondoc and Tin-awan. When the American forces arrived in 1944, the municipality collapsed and returned to its being a barrio. The people re-petitioned President

Sergio Osmeña Sergio Osmeña Sr. (, ; zh, c=吳文釗, poj=Gô͘ Bûn-chiau; September 9, 1878 – October 19, 1961) was a Filipino people, Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the List of presidents of the Philippines, fourth president of the Ph ...

to make Tarragona as a municipality again, but it did not materialize. In 1947, the people organized the "Barrio Tarragona for Regular Town League." After the national elections in

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2025 * January 2 – Luis ...

, Daniel Z. Romualdez sponsored House Bill 141 creating the municipality of MacArthur with the seat of the municipal government at Tarragona. It was vetoed by then President

Elpidio Quirino Elpidio Rivera Quirino (; November 16, 1890 – February 29, 1956) was a Philippine nationality law, Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 6th President of the Philippines from 1948 to 1953. A lawyer by profession, Quirino entered p ...

. Later, a follow-up was made by Congressman Romualdez and Governor Catalina Landia. Finally, the President issued Executive Order No. 324, which created the Municipality of MacArthur, Leyte on June 17, 1950. The Municipality is composed of 31 barangays.

Geography

Barangays

MacArthur is politically subdivided into 31

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

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 ...

. * Batug * Burabod * Capudlosan * Casuntingan * Causwagan * Danao * General Luna * Kiling * Lanawan * Liwayway * Maya * Oguisan * Osmeña * Palale 1 * Palale 2 *

Poblacion ''Poblacion'' (from Spanish '' población'', meaning "population"), sometimes abbreviated as Pob., is a term used in the Philippines to refer to the administrative center, downtown, old town, or commercial area of a city or municipality. It ...

District 1 * Poblacion District 2 * Poblacion District 3 * Pongon * Quezon * Romualdez * Salvacion * San Antonio * San Isidro * San Pedro * San Vicente * Santa Isabel * Tin-awan * Tuyo * Doña Josefa * Villa Imelda

Climate

Demographics

In the 2020 census, the population of MacArthur, Leyte, was 21,578 people, with a density of .

Economy

References

External links

* Philippine Standard Geographic Codebr>Philippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Leyte (province)