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 ...

Batangas Batangas, officially the Province of Batangas ( ), is a first class province of the Philippines located in the southwestern part of Luzon in the Calabarzon region. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,908,494 people, making ...

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 114,068 people. The town is known for its baroque church, ancestral houses, the Pinagbayanan excavation, the most important archaeological site in the municipality, and the famous Laiya Beach.

History

San Juan used to be called Bolbok during the Spanish colonial period up to the 1920s. In the years 1698 until 1836, it was just a barrio of the large town of

Rosario Rosario () is the largest city in the central provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Santa Fe Province, Santa Fe. The city, located northwest of Buenos Aires on the west bank of the Paraná River, is the third-most populous city in the ...

located in the eastern part of Batangas. From 1837, the barrio was governed by ''tinientes'' or deputies with a term of one to two years. However, when the barrio was recognized as a separate town in 1843, the position of ''tinientes'' was replaced by ''cabezas de barangay'' serving one for each new barrio. It was only in 1848 when the Spanish government officially recognized the independence of San Juan from its mother town of Rosario and was given the name San Juan de Bocboc. San Juan was headed by a

Gobernadorcillo The (, literally "little governor") was a municipal judge or governor in the Captaincy General of the Philippines, Philippines during the History of the Philippines (1565–1898), Spanish colonial period, who carried out in a town the combined ...

in 1864. The first Gobernadorcillo was Don Camilo Perez, a prominent citizen who initiated the separation of San Juan from Rosario. He is considered as the founder of the town, and was honored for his contribution in public works and peace and order in the newly created town. On October 28, 1883, San Juan experienced a major disaster due to continuous winds and intense storm rain. Huge flood from the Bancoro and Bangbang Rivers hit the town resulting to the destruction of houses, drowning of livestocks and planted crops, and the devastation of the church and its convent. In 1886, the flooding become worse in the town. The parish priest had to erect a temporary church and convent in a site seven kilometers away from the town. On January 18, 1886, the officials of the town initiated the transfer of the new town to Calitcalit. The transfer of the Lumang Bayan to its present location was approved by

Governor General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

Valeriano Weyler on December 12, 1890, during the administration of Gobernadorcillo Benedicto De Villa. San Juan de Bocboc was renamed to Bolbok by virtue of Act No. 2390 dated February 28, 1914. In the early years of 1920, Bolbok was then renamed as San Juan, in honor of San Juan Nepomuceno, the town's patron saint. On April 4, 1945, the town was liberated from Japanese occupation by the F Company, 188th Infantry of the United States Army as part of their clearing operations to liberate the Bicol peninsula from the hands of the Japanese.

Geography

San Juan is located at , at the easternmost part of Batangas province. North of San Juan is the neighboring town of Candelaria, with Malaking Ilog River defining its geographical boundary. Tayabas Bay lies east and the hills on the eastern portion separate it from the towns of Lobo and

. It is from Batangas City 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 ...

. 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 Batangas.

Barangays

San Juan is politically subdivided into 42

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 in the matrix 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

In the 2020 census, San Juan had a population of 114,068. The population density was .

Economy

San Juan is a first class

in the province of Batangas. It is initially identified as one of the Special Economic Zones ( ECOZONES). According to RA 7916 or the Special Economic Zone Act of 1995, ecozones are selected areas with highly developed or which have the potential to be developed into agro-industrial, industrial, tourist/recreational, commercial, banking, investment and financial centers. San Juan is a tourist destination known for its white-sand beaches. The tourism and

aquaculture Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. Nelu ...

industries provide jobs to the town's people and income to the town economy. Because of its fertile land, the municipality is one of the top suppliers of

agricultural Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...

products in the province. The town has also a coconut wine and pottery industry.

Income

Here's the list of the total annual income, assets, expenses and equity of San Juan since 2015, according to the Annual Audit Reports of the Commission on Audit:

Government

Government officials

The 2022 local elections in San Juan was held on May 9, 2022. Five municipal councilors, elected on May 13, 2019, were re-elected while the three others will serve their first term. The following are the elected government officials of San Juan. Their term will expire on June 30, 2025.

List of former Municipal Mayors

Official seal

* ''Horse'' – The municipality is known for its horses and other farm animals like cows, pigs, and goats. * ''Tuba Container'' – locally known as ''batang'', a container in which ''tuba'' is gathered from the coconut tree. * ''Fruits'' – Fruits such as mangoes, citrus, ''atis'' and tamarind which are grown abundantly in the town. * ''Roundels'' – signifies the number of barangays (42) comprising the municipality

Tourism

On June 29, 2010, then President

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo Maria Gloria Macaraeg Macapagal-Arroyo (; born April 5, 1947), often referred to as PGMA or GMA, is a Filipino academic and politician who served as the 14th president of the Philippines from Presidency of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, 2001 to 2010 ...

signed the Executive Order No. 904, series of 2010 designating the Municipality of San Juan, Batangas as a priority area for Tourism Development. Attractions include: * San Juan Nepomuceno Parish Church – The church was built during the Spanish colonial period. * Laiya Beach – San Juan has a coastline with several beach resorts for swimming, diving and other outdoor activities * Mount Daguldol – The highest mountain in San Juan, high * Mangrove Forest at Barangay Poctol – One of the largest mangrove areas in San Juan; located in Sitio Pontor * Ancestral houses – Built during Spanish and American colonial periods in the town. * Old Municipal Hall – Erected in 1928 under the administration of Juan R. Quizon, the then ''Presidente Municipal''. It has a simple yet enticing architectural style * Malaking River at Barangay Poctol – This river serves as a boundary between

and Quezon Province. * Naambon Falls - A secluded, undisturbed series of falls and small pools. It has several look-out points with views of dense forest and Tayabas Bay.

Education

Private schools in town include Joseph Marello Institute, Batangas Eastern Colleges, CCFI Christian Academy, South Ridge Asian Integrated Montessori School, and San Juan Institute of Technology founded in 1947, 1940, 1991, 2011, and 2018 respectively. San Juan has also a campus of

Batangas State University Batangas State University, The National Engineering University (; BatStateU The NEU) is a State university and college (Philippines), state university in the province of Batangas, Philippines. Established in 1903 as a training school, Batangas S ...

located at Barangay Talahiban II. Almost all barangays have their own elementary and high schools, where tuition fees are relatively low. Despite improvements of the town's education system, parents of some students from well-off families send their children to Metro Manila for college.

Notable personalities

Renato de Villa Renato "Rene" Salud de Villa (born July 20, 1935) is a Filipino former police and military officer and government official. He served as Chief of Philippine Constabulary, Director-General of the Integrated National Police, and Chief of Staff o ...

– Former chief of staff,

Armed Forces of the Philippines The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) () are the military forces of the Philippines. It consists of three main service branches; the Philippine Army, Army, the Philippine Air Force, Air Force, and the Philippine Navy, Navy (including the P ...

; former secretary, Department of National Defense; 1998 presidential election candidate * Rudy Salud – Founding secretary general, World Boxing Council; Former PBA commissioner; boxing manager and promoter * Leandro Mendoza – Former executive secretary under President

; former police director General,

Philippine National Police The Philippine National Police (PNP; ) is the national police force of the Philippines. Its national headquarters is located at Camp Crame in Bagong Lipunan ng Crame, Quezon City. Currently, it has approximately 228,000 personnel to police a pop ...

(2001) * Renee Magtibay Salud – Filipino fashion designer, "The Ambassador of Philippine Fashion" * Salvador Q. Quizon – Auxiliary bishop-emeritus, Archdiocese of Lipa * Alyssa Valdez – Volleyball player, Ateneo Lady Eagles * Mike Gutierrez – Fencing player, UE Fencing Team * Meynardo A. Sabili – former mayor of Lipa City

References

External links

* * Philippine Standard Geographic Code {{DEFAULTSORT:San Juan Municipalities of Batangas Beaches of the Philippines