San Juan, officially the Municipality of San Juan (; ), 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 Abra,

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 10,688 people.

History

The present-day town of San Juan was once inhabited by Tinguians, belonging to the Inlaud Tribe. Before the Spanish colonial era, the natives were believed to have traded with the Indo-Chinese. They were believed to have bartered with them as evidenced by the presence of antique jars, big bowls, gongs, arrows and shields, beads, jewel and gems. During the Spanish colonial era, a church was established and many of the people got baptized as Christians. The Spanish named the place San Juan. From 1907 to 1929, San Juan was a barrio of Dolores. By virtue of a

Philippine Legislature The Philippine Legislature was the legislature of the Philippines from 1907 to 1935, during the American colonial period, and predecessor of the current Congress of the Philippines. It was bicameral and the legislative branch of the Insular ...

bill sponsored by Abra's then-Representative Quintín Paredes and through the initiative of Dolores's then-Vice Mayor Manuel Magala, San Juan became a separate municipality. The new municipality was inaugurated on February 28, 1929. In the early hours of March 16, 1988, around 120 members of the

New People's Army The New People's Army (; abbreviated NPA or BHB) is the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP). It acts as the CPP's principal organization, aiming to consolidate political power from what it sees as the present "bourgeo ...

raided and burned down the town's municipal hall, though after four hours of fighting the responding government troopers were able to retake the establishment.

Geography

The Municipality of San Juan is located at . According to the

Philippine Statistics Authority The Philippine Statistics Authority (; PSA) is the central statistical authority of the Philippine government that collects, compiles, analyzes, and publishes statistical information on economic, social, demographic, political affairs, and gene ...

, the municipality has a land area of constituting of the total area of Abra. San Juan is situated from the provincial capital Bangued, and from the country's capital city of

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

San Juan is politically subdivided into 19

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 ...

Climate

The climate in San Juan is characterized by two distinct seasons. The dry season, which occurs from November to April, is marked by daily blue skies and clear starry nights. The wet season for the rest of the year is characterized with high rainfall intensities accompanied by storms and typhoons.

Demographics

In the 2020 census, San Juan had a population of 10,688. The population density was .

Economy

Agriculture

San Juan is an agricultural town. Its major products are

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

corn Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout Poaceae, grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago ...

and

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

. The town has two major rivers: the Malanas River and Tineg River. These two rivers supply the townspeople with fish and they are also used to transport bamboo which is sold to resort owners in

Vigan Vigan, officially the City of Vigan (; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and capital of the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Ilocos Sur, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...

. During the dry season, the townsfolk also plant string beans, eggplant, peanuts,

bitter gourd ''Momordica charantia'' (commonly called bitter melon, cerassee, goya, bitter apple, bitter gourd, bitter squash, balsam-pear, karela, karavila and many more names listed below) is a tropical and subtropical vine of the family Cucurbitaceae, w ...

squashes Squash most often refers to: * Squash (sport), the high-speed racquet sport also known as squash racquets * Squash (plant), the fruit of vines of the genus ''Cucurbita'' Squash may also refer to: Sports * Squash (professional wrestling), an extr ...

okra Okra (, ), ''Abelmoschus esculentus'', known in some English-speaking countries as lady's fingers, is a flowering plant in the Malvaceae, mallow family native to East Africa. Cultivated in tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate regions aro ...

, and tomatoes. Some also cultivate mangoes.

Government

Local government

San Juan, belonging to the lone congressional district of the province of Abra, is governed by a mayor designated as its local chief executive and by a municipal council as its legislative body in accordance with the Local Government Code. The mayor, vice mayor, and the councilors are elected directly by the people through an election which is being held every three years.

Elected officials

Education

The San Juan Schools District Office governs all educational institutions within the municipality. It oversees the management and operations of all private and public, from primary to secondary schools.

Primary and elementary schools

* Alimosgan Elementary School * Baug Primary School * Cabcaburao Elementary School * Colabaoan Primary School * Daoidao Elementary School * Lam-Ag Elementary School * Nangobongan Primary School * Quidaoen Elementary School * San Juan Central School * Silet Elementary School * Supiil Elementary School

Secondary schools

* Northern Abra National High School * Quidaoen National High School

References

External links

* Philippine Standard Geographic Code {{Authority control Municipalities of Abra (province)