Masantol, officially the Municipality of Masantol (; ), 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 ...

Pampanga Pampanga, officially the Province of Pampanga (; ; ), is a province in Central Luzon in the Philippines. Lying on the northern shore of Manila Bay, Pampanga is bordered by Tarlac to the north, Nueva Ecija to the northeast, Bulacan to the east, ...

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 57,990 people.

Etymology

The municipality is named after the santol trees that used to grow abundantly in the area. Another theory suggests that the town was where santol fruits were heavily bartered (Kapampangans being fond of 'sinigang' dish). Still another legend of how the town got its name goes like this: 'A Spanish missionary came to the town for the first time. Upon reaching a roadside corner store, he parked his horse-driven vehicle and inquired from the storekeeper the name of the place. A middle-aged woman vendor, believing that the Spanish priest was asking for the name of the fruits she was selling, readily responded in broken Spanish language, ''Padre, todos dulce Masantol.'' The priest took from his pocket a pencil and a small diary and wrote down the word ''mas santol,'' referring to the name of the place he has visited. At the time, the locality abounded with santol trees, and santol fruits were in season when the priest visited the place.

History

San Miguel de Masantol May 1, 1878

Originally named San Miguel de Masantol and a part of the town of

Macabebe Macabebe, officially the Municipality of Macabebe (; ), is a municipality in the province of Pampanga, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 78,151 people. Etymology The town was named Macabebe because it is locat ...

, three of the town's leading patriarchs - Manuel Fajardo, Gregorio Bautista, and Juan Lacap - filed a motion on June 26, 1877, to separate the

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 ...

s of Bebe, Bulacus, Caingin and Nigui from Macabebe thereby creating a new Spanish

pueblo Pueblo refers to the settlements of the Pueblo peoples, Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, currently in New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. The permanent communities, including some of the oldest continually occupied settlement ...

called San Miguel. This new pueblo was approved by Spanish Governor General Domingo Moriones y Murillo and was inaugurated on May 1, 1878. On November 30, 1893, the Catholic Parish of San Miguel was formally acknowledged through a Royal Decree. For a while it came to be known San Miguel Masantol, until popular usage reverted it to the original name.

Balen ning Masantol 1907

On July 26, 1904, Masantol once more became part of Macabebe. However, in 1907, Masantol was again reinstated as a separate independent municipality and this lasted up to the present.

The Battle of Bangkusay Channel The Ruler of Macabebe

Tarik Sulayman Tarik Sulayman, also spelled Tarik Soliman (from Arabic طارق سليمان ''Tāriq Suleiman, Sulaiman''), is the most popular of several names attributed by Kapampangan people, Kapampangan historians to the individual that led the forces of Ma ...

Bambalino / Bankau or for some Historians the Unnamed ruler of Macabebe was the indigenous leader of Macabebe from the "Masantol area", who refused to ally with the Spaniards and therefore mounted an attack against the Spanish forces of

Miguel López de Legazpi Miguel López de Legazpi (12 June 1502 – 20 August 1572), also known as ''Adelantado, El Adelantado'' and ''El Viejo'' (The Elder), was a Spanish conquistador who financed and led an expedition to conquer the Philippines, Philippine islan ...

during the

Battle of Bangkusay Channel The Battle of Bangkusay (; ), on June 3, 1571, was a naval engagement that marked the last resistance by locals to the Spanish Empire's occupation and colonization of the Pasig River delta, which had been the site of the indigenous polities of t ...

on June 3, 1571. The Joint Force of Macabebe, Calumpit, Hagonoy and Maynila "Old Rajahnate of Maynila under Rajah Sulayman III / Rajah Mura/Muda of Manila" were defeated, by the Joint Force of Spanish Armada and Tagalog mercenaries and Tarik Sulayman himself was killed in the Battle, and Consequently, this victory enabled the Spaniards to establish themselves throughout the city "Territory of Kingdom of Tondo" and its neighboring Kingdoms and towns.

Tragedy

On January 7, 2008, one person drowned, another missing and 40 others were injured due to electric shocks, when a live cable hit the floating

pagoda A pagoda is a tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Thailand, Cambodia, Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist, but some ...

boat in the fluvial festival of Virgen La Purisima Concepcion at Barangay Alauli.chinapost.com.tw, ''One drowns, 40 injured in Philippine boat mishap''
/ref>

Geography

Masantol is almost surrounded by the municipality of

(For it was once a former part of the town). It is known to be the southernmost town in the province of Pampanga. It is bounded to the north by the municipality of Macabebe; to the east by the municipalities of Calumpit and Hagonoy in

Bulacan Bulacan, officially the Province of Bulacan (; ; ; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon Regions of the Philippines, region. Its capital is the city of Malolos. Bulacan was established on ...

; to the west by Macabebe; and to the south by some parts of Macabebe and

Manila Bay Manila Bay (; ) is a natural harbor that serves the Port of Manila (on Luzon), in the Philippines. Strategically located around the Manila, capital city of the Philippines, Manila Bay facilitated commerce and trade between the Philippines and ...

. Masantol is from San Fernando 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 ...

Climate

Barangays

Masantol is politically subdivided into 26

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 shown 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

sitio A ''sitio'' ( 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 barangay if its popu ...

s. * Alauli * Bagang * Balibago * Bebe Anac * Bebe Matua * Bulacus * San Agustin (Caingin) * Santa Monica (Caingin) * Cambasi * Malauli * Nigui * Palimpe * Puti * Sagrada (Tibagin) * San Isidro Anac * San Isidro Matua (

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 ...

) * San Nicolas (

) * San Pedro * Santa Cruz * Santa Lucia Matua * Santa Lucia Paguiaba * Santa Lucia Wakas * Santa Lucia Anac (

) * Sapang Kawayan * Sua * Santo Niño

Sitios

* Bebe Arabia * Sagrada 2

Demographics

In the 2020 census, the population of Masantol, Pampanga, was 57,990 people, with a density of .

Religion

The majority of the population are members of the Roman Catholic Church where each village or barangay has its own fiesta. The main

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

parish church of the town is the San Miguel Parish Church in Barangay San Nicolas which was established in the late 20th century. 80% of the population identified with the Roman Catholic Church and it is followed by the Iglesia Ni Cristo, Islam, and other beliefs.

Economy

Festivals

* Batalla San Miguel Arkangel (Apung Igue) - May 8, All Masantolenos * Battalla Santo Niño - every last Sunday of January. - Barangay Santo Nino * Batalla Santa Monica - May 4. - Barangay Santa Monica Caingin * Batalla San Roque de Montpelier (Apung Duque) - August 15,16,17 Sitio Bebe Arabia, Barangay Bebe Anac * Batalla San Roque (Apung Duque) - 3rd or 4th Sunday of April - Sitio Bebe Arabia, Barangay Bebe Anac, Barangay Bebe Matua * Batalla San Roque de Montpelier (Apung Duque) - August 15,16,17 Barangay Bebe Matua * Fiesta de San Nicolas (Apung Culas) - May 12 and September 10 - Barangay San Nicolas * Feast of The HOLY ROSARY - every 2nd Saturday of October in BULACUS MASANTOL * Batalla de Santa Lucia (Apung Lucia) - December 13 of the year. - Barangay Santa Lucia Wakas, Matua, Anac * Batalla de San Agustin (Apung Gustin)- August 28 Barangay San Agustin Caingin * Limbun at Libad or Labas Larawan (Celebration of the Saints) in each barrio/barangay celebrating their patron saint for ones a week in January. * Nuestra Señora Dela Paz Y Buenviaje Festival- Baranggay Sapang Kawayan

Education

Masantol is home to several primary, secondary, Vocational and Collage School among them are: * Pampanga institute (Collage) * TESDA Vocational Training Center (Under the Municipality support) * San Miguel Academy Semi-Catholic School (Christian School) (Junior/Señor High School) * Holy Child of Mary Academy Semi-Catholic School (Christian School) (Junior/Señor High School) * Pampanga Institute (Junior/Señor High School) 1st high school institution in town of Masantol * Masantol Central High School (Señor High) * Masantol National High School (Junior High) (Former, Santa Lucia High School) * Masantol High School Annex (Junior High) (Tarik Suliman High School) * Masantol High School Annex (Junior High) (Malauli High School) * St. Michael The Archangel Archdiocesan Parochial School Exclusive Catholic School (Masantol Parochial School) * Masantol Elementary School (Masantol Central Elementary School) * Bagang Elementary School * Caingin Elementary School * Palimpe Elementary School * Bebe Anac Elementary School * Bebe Matua Elementary School * Puti Elementary School * Sagrada Elementary School * Sua Elementary School * San Isidro (Talba) Elem. School * Balibago Elementary School * Santa Lucia Elementary school * Alauli Elementary School * San Pedro Elementary School * Santa Cruz Main Elementary School * Santa Cruz (Annex) Elem. School * San Nicolas Elementary School * Bagang Elementary School * Balibago Elementary School * Nigui Elementary School

Gallery

File:Masantol Municipal Hall, Pampanga, Jun 2025 (1).jpg, Municipal Hall File:Masantol Church, Pampanga, Jun 2025 (2).jpg, Saint Michael the Archangel Parish Church File:MasantolPampangajfvvMasantolPampangajf.JPG, Covered court and 1878 Masantol Monument File:Masantoljf7.JPG, Public Market File:MasantolPampangajfgg.JPG, Holy Child of Mary College File:Masantol Transport Terminal, Pampanga, Jun 2025.jpg, Transport Terminal

References

External links

Masantol Profile at PhilAtlas.com
* Philippine Standard Geographic Codebr>Philippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Pampanga Populated places on the Pampanga River