San Juan, officially the City of San Juan (), is a highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the

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 had a population of 126,347 people. It is geographically located in Metro Manila's approximate center and is also the country's smallest city in terms of land area. The city is known historically for the site of the first battle of the

Katipunan The Katipunan (), officially known as the (; ) and abbreviated as the KKK, was a revolutionary organization founded in 1892 by a group of Filipino nationalists Deodato Arellano, Andrés Bonifacio, Valentin Diaz, Ladislao Diwa, José Dizon, an ...

, the organization which led the 1896

Philippine Revolution The Philippine Revolution ( or ; or ) was a war of independence waged by the revolutionary organization Katipunan against the Spanish Empire from 1896 to 1898. It was the culmination of the 333-year History of the Philippines (1565–1898), ...

against the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy (political entity), Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered ...

. Notable landmarks today such as the Pinaglabanan Shrine and heritage homes are located in the city. Other locations include Greenhills and Santolan Town Plaza, making the city a major shopping hub with a range of upscale, boutique, and bargain retail.

Etymology

"San Juan" is a contraction of the city's traditional name of "San Juan del Monte" (). As with numerous other places in the Philippines, the name combines a

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

and a

toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''wikt:toponym, toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage, and types. ''Toponym'' is the general term for ...

; in this case Saint

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

with the locale's hilly terrain and relatively higher elevation compared to surrounding areas. The city's official name is "Dakilang Lungsód ng San Juan" ().

History

Early history

During the pre-Hispanic period, the area of what is now San Juan was a part of the Kingdom of Namayan, whose last recorded rulers were King Lakan Tagkan and his

consort __NOTOC__ Consort may refer to: Music * "The Consort" (Rufus Wainwright song), from the 2000 album ''Poses'' * Consort of instruments, term for instrumental ensembles * Consort song (musical), a characteristic English song form, late 16th–earl ...

, Bouan.

Spanish colonial era

In the late 16th century, the kingdom and other polities in the islands were absorbed into the

Spanish Crown The monarchy of Spain or Spanish monarchy () is the constitutional form of government of Spain. It consists of a Hereditary monarchy, hereditary monarch who reigns as the head of state, being the highest office of the country. The Spanish ...

, with the realm of Namayan christened as the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of ''Santa Ana de Sapa''. (present-day Santa Ana,

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 ...

) The present area of San Juan was meanwhile re-classified as the small ''

encomienda The ''encomienda'' () was a Spanish Labour (human activity), labour system that rewarded Conquistador, conquerors with the labour of conquered non-Christian peoples. In theory, the conquerors provided the labourers with benefits, including mil ...

'' (town) of San Juan del Monte in 1590. In 1602, along the Camino de Mandaluyong (now F. Blumentritt Street), the

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers (, abbreviated OP), commonly known as the Dominican Order, is a Catholic Church, Catholic mendicant order of pontifical right that was founded in France by a Castilians, Castilian priest named Saint Dominic, Dominic de Gu ...

built a

novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

house in the town for their immediate use, where ageing or convalescing

friar A friar is a member of one of the mendicant orders in the Catholic Church. There are also friars outside of the Catholic Church, such as within the Anglican Communion. The term, first used in the 12th or 13th century, distinguishes the mendi ...

s stayed. Within the area, the Dominicans also constructed a

convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

and a stone church, the Santuario del Santo Cristo, dedicating it to the Holy Cross. To this day, the thrice-rebuilt church stands on the same site, adjacent to Aquinas School and Dominican College. Given the isolation that the town had from the city of

, the colonial government decided to establish a heavily fortified

gunpowder magazine A gunpowder magazine is a magazine (building) designed to store the explosive gunpowder in wooden barrels for safety. Gunpowder, until superseded, was a universal explosive used in the military and for civil engineering: both applications re ...

called the ''Almacén de Pólvora'' (also known as ''El Polvorín'') in San Juan del Monte in 1771. The gunpowder magazine (located at present-day San Juan Elementary School) was situated along the banks of the Salapang River (now known as Salapán Creek), with access provided by the Camino de Mariquina (now N. Domingo Street), which connected Manila and the nearby barrio of Santa Mesa across the San Juan River Bridge to the ''

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 ...

'' of Mariquina (now

Marikina Marikina (), officially the City of Marikina (), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 4 ...

Municipality established

In 1783, San Juan del Monte was promoted to 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' ...

, separating it from the Santa Ana parish and giving it its own local government as a barrio of the Province of Manila. As a result, the old ''

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 ...

'' at Santuario del Santo Cristo was moved to the Camino de Mariquina, where a new municipal hall (now the San Juan Medical Center) and a town plaza (now the San Juan Plaza Mayor) was constructed. In 1892, Father Bernardino Nozaleda, the

Archbishop of Manila The Archdiocese of Manila (; ; ) is the archdiocese of the Latin Church, Latin Rite of the Catholic Church in the Philippines, Catholic Church in Metro Manila, Catholic Church in the Philippines, Philippines, encompassing the cities of Manila, ...

, approved the creation of a new parish for the municipality of San Juan del Monte, with the

Franciscans The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor being the largest conte ...

establishing the San Juan Bautista Church (now Pinaglabanan Church) and a parochial house in the area now known as Pinaglabanan Street.

The Philippine revolution

When the

against Spain broke out in August 1896, the

revolutionaries led by

Andrés Bonifacio Andrés Bonifacio y de Castro (, ; November 30, 1863May 10, 1897) was a Filipino people, Filipino revolutionary leader. He is often called "The Father of the Philippines, Philippine Philippine Revolution, Revolution", and considered a nationa ...

and his aide

Emilio Jacinto Emilio Jacinto y Dizon (; December 15, 1875 – April 16, 1899) was a Filipinos, Filipino general during the Philippine Revolution. He was one of the highest-ranking officers in the Philippine Revolution and was one of the highest-ranking office ...

made their way from Pugad Lawin in

Caloocan Caloocan, officially the City of Caloocan (; ), is a highly urbanized city in Metro Manila, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 1,661,584 people making it the fourth-most populous city in the Philippines. Caloo ...

(now part of

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read and pronounced in Filipino language, Filipino as Kyusi), is the richest and List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 c ...

) to attack the ''El Polvorín'' and its military garrison in San Juan del Monte on the morning of August 30, 1896. Defended by a hundred Spanish troops consisting of

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

and

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

, the Katipuneros were able to eliminate the garrison commander and an artilleryman, forcing the remaining Spanish troops to retreat to the nearby El Deposito water

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

near the San Juan Bautista Church. Sustaining heavy losses, the Katipuneros were unable to capture El Polvorín, and retreated south towards Mandaluyong, where Bonifacio reorganized the surviving Katipuneros and issued a war manifesto, leading Katipuneros in other places to organize Filipinos to rise up in arms against the colonial government as revolts spread all across the archipelago.

American invasion and Philippine Commonwealth

Following the end of the Philippine Revolution and the Treaty of Paris in 1898 that seceded the Philippines to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, the

First Philippine Republic The Philippine Republic (), now officially remembered as the First Philippine Republic and also referred to by historians as the Malolos Republic, was a state established in Malolos, Bulacan, during the Philippine Revolution against the Spanish ...

that succeeded the Katipunan distrusted the occupying American forces that were arriving in droves, with both sides wanting to engage in combat. On the morning of February 4, 1899, Filipino troops from the 4th Company of the Morong Battalion under Captain Serapio Narvaez were fired upon by American troops of the 1st Nebraska Infantry Regiment from their defense line on the Santa Mesa side (now part of Sampaloc). The first shot was exchanged by Private William W. Grayson, an American sentry from the 1st Nebraska Infantry Regiment of the United States Volunteer Army, who killed Filipino corporal Anastacio Felix and another Filipino soldier of the Philippine Revolutionary Army, firing the first shot of the

Philippine–American War The Philippine–American War, known alternatively as the Philippine Insurrection, Filipino–American War, or Tagalog Insurgency, emerged following the conclusion of the Spanish–American War in December 1898 when the United States annexed th ...

. This prompted lines of Filipino troops in San Juan del Monte to open fire at the line of American troops in Santa Mesa. On the evening of February 4, Private William W. Grayson fired the war's first shots at the corner of Sociego Street and Tomas Arguelles Street. A study done by Ronnie Miravite Casalmir places the event at this corner, not at Sociego-Silencio where they erroneously have the marker. Throughout the war, various regiments of the United States Volunteer Army carried out multiple skirmishes against militias and soldiers of the First Philippine Republic in towns along the Camino de Mariquina, where they had cleared out Filipino forces at the ''El Deposito'' reservoir, its pumping station road (now Pinaglabanan Street, part of Santolan Road), and the santuario. Both the revolution and the war caused many of the original residents of San Juan del Monte to evacuate en masse, permanently settling in neighboring towns. This led to many lots becoming abandoned. From 1898 to 1899, some residents returned to the town, resettling in

shack A shack (or, in some areas, shanty) is a type of small shelter or dwelling, often primitive or rudimentary in design and construction. Unlike huts, shacks are constructed by hand using available materials; however, whereas huts are usually r ...

s. However, due to unsanitary conditions, a

malaria Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...

epidemic broke out in the area, with many casualties. Following the end of the Philippine-American War, the municipality was repopulated by families coming from Mariquina and San Mateo. The Dominicans had also returned to the municipality to establish their ownership of the Santo Cristo hacienda before the new American colonial government. As a result, much of San Juan del Monte was being leased to the municipal government by Dominican hacienda owners until these lands were eventually purchased by the municipal government. In 1901, the municipality was incorporated into the new province of Rizal through Act No. 137, with former Katipunan San Juan chapter ''sanggunian'' Andres Soriano serving as its first

municipal president A ''presidente municipal'' ( English: "municipal president") is the chief of government of municipios in Mexico. This title was also used in the Philippines during the Spanish and American colonial periods; it is comparable to a mayor of the tow ...

. In 1903, it was merged into the municipality of San Felipe Neri (present-day

Mandaluyong Mandaluyong ( ; ), officially the City of Mandaluyong (, ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly-urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a popula ...

) through Act No. 942 of the

Taft Commission The Taft Commission, also known as the Second Philippine Commission (Filipino language, Filipino: ''Ikalawang Komisyon ng Pilipinas'', Spanish language in the Philippines, Spanish: Segunda Comisión de Filipinas), was established by United Sta ...

. San Felipe Neri later became the capital of Rizal for several months in 1904. In 1907, San Juan del Monte was reconstituted as an independent municipality through Act No. 1625. 0727jfN

In 1916, the municipal government purchased the land along the intersection of N. Domingo and F. Blumentritt Streets, where the town market (present-day Agora Market) was located. Likewise, in 1919, businessmen Eusebio Orense and Florencio G. Diaz purchased a great bulk of the remaining hacienda lands, selling it to a Filipino-American consortium developing the San Juan Heights, a series of new subdivision developments all across the area. It was around this time that the municipality's name was contracted to San Juan. A report made by the Rizal provincial government in 1933 noted that San Juan increased in population due to the development of residential subdivisions, such as San Juan Heights, Manila Heights, San Francisco del Monte Heights, Addition Hills, New Manila, and Rosario Heights. At the time, the municipality consisted of the nine

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

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 ...

, Andres Bonifacio, Ermitaño, N. Domingo, Rincon, San Francisco del Monte, Sapang Camias, Sulapan, and Tibagan. Between 1939 and 1941, the barrios of Cubao, Diliman, and San Francisco del Monte, as well as Camp Crame, were ceded from San Juan to the newly established

Japanese occupation era

On January 1, 1942, San Juan was one of the municipalities of Rizal merged alongside Manila and Quezon City to form the City of Greater Manila as an emergency measure by President

Manuel L. Quezon Manuel Luis Quezon y Molina (, , , ; 19 August 1878 – 1 August 1944), also known by his initials MLQ, was a Filipino people, Filipino lawyer, statesman, soldier, and politician who was president of the Commonwealth of the Philippines from 1 ...

. It became a municipality of Rizal once again when the City of Greater Manila was dissolved by 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 ...

effective August 1, 1945.

Philippine independence

Martial law era

San Juan, especially its exclusive subdivisions in Greenhills, was home to many prominent personalities during the country's Martial Law era under

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...

. This included several

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 ...

generals, including Romeo Espino, Alfredo Montoya, and Romeo Gatan, who would later be tagged as members of the " Rolex 12"; Imelda Marcos’ secretary Fe Jimenez Roa; Presidential Assistant on Legal Affairs Ronaldo Zamora, who would later become a congressman for the lone congressional district of San Juan; San Juan Mayor Joseph Estrada, who would later become President of the Philippines; and prominent journalist Maximo Soliven, who was imprisoned when President Marcos first declared Martial Law in September 1972.

Incorporation into Metro Manila

When Presidential Decree No. 824 establishing the National Capital Region was signed on November 7, 1975, San Juan was among the towns excised from Rizal Province into the newly created metropolitan area.

People Power Revolution

Club Filipino, which had relocated to San Juan in 1970 from its original location in Santa Mesa, became an important part of the establishment of the Fifth Philippine Republic when

Corazon Aquino María Corazón "Cory" Sumulong Cojuangco-Aquino (; January 25, 1933 – August 1, 2009) was a Filipino politician who served as the 11th president of the Philippines and the first woman president in the country, from Presidency of Corazon ...

was inaugurated there on February 25, 1986, the last day of the civilian-led 1986

People Power Revolution The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, were a series of popular Demonstration (people), demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a ...

Contemporary

In 1992, San Juan had the fewest informal settler families out of all the municipalities and cities in Metro Manila based on data from the National Housing Authority.

Cityhood

Residents ratified the conversion of the municipality into a highly urbanized city on June 17, 2007, pursuant to Republic Act No. 9388 ("An Act Converting the Municipality of San Juan into a Highly Urbanized City to be known as the City of San Juan"). Then- Representative Ronaldo Zamora sponsored the Cityhood Bill in the House of Representatives and worked for its approval.

Presidential ties

Although not officially designated as such, San Juan is noted to be the "City of Philippine Presidents." Five presidents were official residents of San Juan. They were the Macapagal ''père et fille'', Diosdado (1961–1965) and

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 ...

(2001–2010); Marcos ''père et fils'', Ferdinand Sr. (1965–1986) and Ferdinand Jr. (2022–present); and

Joseph Estrada Joseph Ejercito Estrada (; born Jose Marcelo Ejercito; April 19, 1937), also known by the nickname Erap, is a Filipino politician and former actor, who served as the 13th president of the Philippines from 1998 until his resignation in 2001. ...

(1998–2001), who also served as Mayor when San Juan was still a municipality.

Geography

San Juan is the least-extensive city in the Philippines with a total area of just . San Juan is bounded by

on the north and east,

on the south, and the City of Manila in the west. The territory of San Juan was once much larger than it is now, having been adjacent to

and

prior to the creation of

. Parts of the present-day Districts 1, 3, and 4 of Quezon City, as well as areas of

, were originally within the town's colonial-era borders. This also explains why San Juan Reservoir is in nearby Horseshoe Village, a subdivision now part of Quezon City.

Climate

Barangays

San Juan is politically subdivided and comprises into 21

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 organized into two city council districts: , , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , June 24 , style="text-align:center;" , 1 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , Tuesday before

Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and marks the first day of Lent: the seven weeks of Christian prayer, prayer, Religious fasting#Christianity, fasting and ...

, style="text-align:center;" , 1 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , June 24 , style="text-align:center;" , 1 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , June 8 , style="text-align:center;" , 1 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , June 24 , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , June 24 , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , September 14 , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , May 3 , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , May 1,
Second Sunday of May , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , Last Sunday of January , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , November 30 , style="text-align:center;" , 1 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , May 14–15 , style="text-align:center;" , 1 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , December 12 , style="text-align:center;" , 1 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , July 25 , style="text-align:center;" , 1 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , Third Sunday of October , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , March 19 , style="text-align:center;" , 1 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , August 15 , style="text-align:center;" , 1 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , January 18 , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , Second Sunday of December , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , June 24 , style="text-align:center;" , 2 , , style="text-align:center;" data-sort-value="" , December 8

Demographics

Religion

Pinaglabanan Archdiocesan Shrine 2024-06-24

The city also has several notable places of worship. Archdiocesan Shrine of Saint John the Baptist, more commonly known as "''Pinaglabanan'' Church", is where the city's patron saint,

, is enshrined. The Santuario del Santo Cristo is the settlement's oldest existing church, while Mary the Queen Parish in West Greenhills serves the local Filipino-Chinese community. From 1925 to 1971, the

Iglesia ni Cristo The (INC; ; ) is an independent Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, church founded in 1913 and registered by Felix Manalo, Félix Manalo in 1914 as a corporation sole, sole religious corporation ...

once headquartered in the town at its former Central Office Complex, now known as the Locale of F. Manalo. It features Art-Deco designed ensembles, crafted by National Artist for Architecture Juan Nakpil. The chapel is the centerpiece of the Complex, which also contains the old Central Office and Pastoral House that was the home of the church's first Executive Minister, Felix Manalo, along with other Ministers and Evangelical Workers. When Manalo died in 1963, a mausoleum was constructed on the grounds of the Complex by architect Carlos Santos-Viola. INC adherents in San Juan comprise 4.2% of the city population. San Juan also has a number of Evangelical churches. Through the APOI (Association of Pastors for Outreach and Intercession), they have contributed to the spiritual atmosphere of the city. Every January, the city celebrates the National Bible Week, where the reading of the Scripture happens during the flag raising ceremony in the City Hall. Through the blessing of the mayor, a bible was planted in the heart of the new city hall during its construction. Major evangelical churches like Jesus is Lord and

Victory The term victory (from ) originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal duel, combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes a strategic vi ...

Greenhills are also found in the city of San Juan. San Juan is also home to two

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

s, namely: Masjid Hamza Bin Ahmed in Balong-Bato and Greenhills Masjid at Greenhills. On the 2024 feast of St.

, the local government declared him as

of San Juan City.

Economy

San Juan is predominantly residential, mixed with commercial and manufacturing businesses. The Greenhills shopping district is the hub of trade and commerce in San Juan. The shopping complex housed shopping malls, the Virra Mall, Shoppesville, Greenhills Theatre Mall, Promenade Mall, the former Greenhills Bowling Alley, and Unimart. As of 2022, San Juan had the labor force participation rate of 67%, the most in the Philippines.

Culture

Wattah Wattah Festival

Since 2003, San Juan celebrates the feast of its

, St.

every June 24 with its Wattah Wattah Festival, a festival with dancing, parades, and its traditional ''basaan'' or water dousing along the city streets. The festival and its activities are usually held along N. Domingo Street and Pinaglabanan Street as the procession of the image of St. John the Baptist goes down the streets. San Juan City Ordinance No. 51 series of 2018 prohibits dirty water, ice, water in glass bottles, and water or ice in other materials that will incite pain or injury upon impact from being used in the festival. Physical violence, inciting of threats, and deliberately entering

public transport Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whic ...

vehicles to douse commuters is also not allowed. However, in 2020 and 2021, due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, the festival was reduced to a parade of the image of St. John the Baptist with

social distancing In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious dise ...

and mask mandates in place. In 2022, due to a lower number of COVID-19 cases, the traditional ''basaan'' was included again in the Wattah! Wattah! Festival, accompanied by a street dancing competition, a free concert, and a fireworks display.

Sports

San Juan has a long history with sports, the Filoil EcoOil Centre has hosted numerous sporting events, including the

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines, composed of twelve company-branded Franchising, franchise teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia ...

, Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League,

Premier Volleyball League The Premier Volleyball League (PVL) is the top-level professional women's volleyball league in the Philippines organized by the Sports Vision Management Group, Inc. The PVL was established in 2004 as the inter-collegiate Shakey's V-League (SV ...

, and the Filoil EcoOil Preseason Cup. The city is also home to the San Juan Knights, which started in the now-defunct Metropolitan Basketball Association and now competes in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League. The Knights have won three league championships in its entire franchise history.

Transportation

Modes of public transportation in San Juan include

jeepney A jeepney (), or simply a jeep (), is a type of Public transport, public utility vehicle (PUV) that serves as the most popular means of Transportation in the Philippines, public transportation in the Philippines. Known for its crowded seating ...

s and buses. Jeepney routes ply the

Aurora Boulevard Aurora Boulevard is a four-to-ten-lane major thoroughfare in Quezon City and San Juan, Metro Manila, San Juan in Metro Manila, Philippines. It is named after Don (honorific), Doña Aurora Quezon, the consort of Commonwealth of the Philippines, Co ...

(R-6). The city is serviced by J. Ruiz station of the LRT Line 2 in the city proper and indirectly served by Santolan-Annapolis station of the MRT Line 3, at the city's eastern boundary with Quezon City. The C-3 (Araneta Avenue) also passes through San Juan. Secondary routes include Nicolas Domingo (abbreviated N. Domingo), which heads towards Cubao in

, and Pinaglabanan Street (which continues as Santolan Road) leading towards

Ortigas Avenue Ortigas Avenue is a highway connecting eastern Metro Manila and western Rizal in the Philippines. It is one of the busiest highways in Metro Manila, serving as the main thoroughfare of the metro's east–west corridor, catering m ...

and eventually the southern reaches of Quezon City near Camp Crame, the headquarters of the

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 ...

Education

The Schools Divisions Office (SDO) of San Juan oversees 9 public elementary schools, 2 public high schools, and a science high school within the city. The SDO also recognizes 24

private schools A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their financial endowme ...

in San Juan City, seven of which are preschools, four of which are elementary schools, and 13 of which are high schools. Public higher education is offered by the state

Polytechnic University of the Philippines The Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP; ) is a public, coeducational, research university in Santa Mesa, Manila, Philippines. It was founded on 19 October 1904, as the Manila Business School (MBS) and as part of Manila's public sch ...

, which maintains its San Juan campus in Barangay Addition Hills. Private higher education is offered by the Dominican College in Barangay Tibagan, one of the oldest schools in the city, having been established in 1924. The city also has two culinary schools, namely the Center for Asian Culinary Studies in Barangay Pasadena and the Instituto Culinario in Barangay Greenhills.

Notable personalities

* Alfred Vargas, actor and

5th district councilor *

Bongbong Marcos Ferdinand "Bongbong" Romualdez Marcos Jr. (, , ; born September 13, 1957), commonly referred to by the initials BBM or PBBM, is a Filipino politician who has served as the 17th president of the Philippines since 2022. He is the second child ...

, 17th

President of the Philippines The president of the Philippines (, sometimes referred to as ) is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of the Philippine government and is the commander-in-ch ...

, former senator, former Ilocos Norte governor, and former representative of Ilocos Norte 2nd District * Chris Tiu, TV host and basketball player * Don Allado, basketball player and coach, San Juan councilor * Edu Manzano, former

Makati Makati ( ; ), officially the City of Makati (), is a highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines, known for being one of the leading financial centers in the country. As of 2013, the city has the highest concent ...

vice mayor, actor and former US Military officer * Eraño Manalo,

Executive Minister (1963–2009) *

, 10th President of the Philippines, 3rd Prime Minister of the Philippines, 11th

President of the Senate of the Philippines The president of the Senate of the Philippines ( or ), commonly referred to as the Senate president, is the presiding officer and the highest-ranking official of the Senate of the Philippines, and third highest and most powerful official in the ...

, former representative of Ilocos Norte 2nd District * Francis Zamora, former San Juan Vice Mayor and incumbent San Juan Mayor (since 2019) * Franklin Drilon, senator * Gabby Concepcion, actor, singer, businessman *

, 14th President of the Philippines, 10th

Vice President of the Philippines The vice president of the Philippines (, also referred to as ) is the second-highest official in the executive branch of the Philippine government and is the first in the presidential line of succession. The vice president is directly elect ...

, 25th Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Philippines (the first woman to hold the position), deputy speaker of the 17th Congress and a member of the House of Representatives representing the 2nd District of Pampanga. * Grace Poe, senator and former MTRCB chairperson *

Imee Marcos Maria Imelda Josefa Remedios "Imee" Romualdez Marcos-Manotoc (; born November 12, 1955) is a Filipino politician and film producer serving as a Senate of the Philippines, senator since 2019. She previously served as governor of Ilocos Norte ...

, senator, former Ilocos Norte 2nd District representative * Irene Marcos, daughter of Ferdinand Marcos Sr. and Imelda Marcos *

Imelda Marcos Imelda Romualdez Marcos (; born Imelda Remedios Visitación Trinidad Romuáldez; July 2, 1929) is a Filipino politician who was First Lady of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986, wielding significant political power after her husband Ferdinand ...

, former First Lady and former Governor of Metro Manila * Jake Ejercito, actor * James Yap, basketball player, San Juan councilor * Janella Salvador, actress, singer, artist * Jaymee Joaquin, former TV host * Jinggoy Estrada, senator, former San Juan Mayor, and actor * Joross Gamboa, actor *

, 13th President of the Philippines, 9th Vice President of the Philippines, 26th

Mayor of Manila The City Mayor of Manila (, sometimes referred to as, ''Alkalde ng Maynila'') is the head of the executive branch of Manila's city government. The mayor holds office at Manila City Hall. Like all local government heads in the Philippines, the m ...

, 14th San Juan Mayor, actor * JV Ejercito, senator, former San Juan Mayor * Ericka Villongco, singer and actress * Krissy Villongco, singer * Luis Manzano, actor and TV host * Max Soliven, journalist, newspaper publisher, founder of

The Philippine Star ''The Philippine Star'' (self-styled ''The Philippine STAR'') is an English-language newspaper in the Philippines and the flagship brand of the Philstar Media Group. First published on July 28, 1986, by veteran journalists Betty Go-Belmonte, ...

* Ophelia Dimalanta, poet, editor, author, and teacher *

Paul Artadi Paul Anthony Dy Artadi (born May 5, 1981) is a Filipino politician, basketball coach, and former professional player. On his eleven-year career in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), he played the point guard position and was a three-ti ...

, basketball player and San Juan District 1 councilor *

Philip Cezar Philip Dudley Cezar (born December 1, 1952) is a Filipino former basketball coach, player and politician. Known by the monikers "Mr. Stretch", "''Tapal'' King" and "The Scholar", he was part of the fabled Crispa Redmanizers ballclub of the Phi ...

, PBA Player aka "Tapal King", San Juan vice mayor (1992–2001), and current basketball coach * Ronaldo Zamora, former congressman of lone district of San Juan and San Juan–Mandaluyong * Teofisto Guingona Jr., 11th Vice President of the Philippines * Yasmien Kurdi, actress * Diego Loyzaga, actor * Bayani Fernando, ex politician * E.R. Ejercito, actor * Mikha Lim, member of Bini

Sister cities

Local

Davao City Davao City, officially the City of Davao, is a City of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Davao Region, Philippines. The city has a total land area of , making it the List of Philippine cities and municipalities ...

Iloilo City Iloilo City, officially the City of Iloilo (; ; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Western Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region of the Philippines, located on the southeastern coast of th ...

International

Coquitlam Coquitlam ( ) is a city in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada. Mainly suburban, Coquitlam is the List of cities in British Columbia, sixth-largest city in the province, with an estimated population of 174,248 in 2024, and one of th ...

, British Columbia, Canada *

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan ( , ; Spanish for "Saint John the Baptist, John") is the capital city and most populous Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality in the Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the ...

Maui, Hawaii Maui (; Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ) is the second largest island in the Hawaiian archipelago, at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2). It is the List of islands of the United States by area, 17th-largest in the United States. Maui is one of ...

, United States *

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...

, United States

Gallery

City of San Juan Government Center - side view (Pinaglabanan, San Juan; 12-09-2019).jpg, The San Juan Government Center along Pinaglabanan Street corner Doctor P. A. Narciso Street in Barangay Corazon de Jesus San Juan, Metro Manila (2344411253).jpg, Santuario del Santo Cristo 02076jfSan Juan Del Monte Presidencia Hospital Barangays Progeso Rivera San Juan Cityfvf 04.jpg, The old municipal hall of San Juan, with the San Juan Medical Center in the background. No longer existing. It was replaced with front extension of San Juan Medical Center. Vmalljf.JPG, V Mall, one of many shopping areas in the Greenhills mixed-use development. Greenhills Shopping Center (35106417321).jpg, The ''tiangge'' area of the Greenhills Shopping Center in Barangay Greenhills. 01793jfMuseo Katipunan Pinaglabanan Shrine Barangays City of San Juanfvf 01.jpg, The Museo ng Katipunan located at Pinaglabanan Shrine. 02052jfErmitaño Linear Park Creek N. Domingo Street San Juan Metro Manilafvf 24.jpg, Commercial establishments along the city's main road, Nicolas Domingo Street. Xavier School Greenhills - panoramio.jpg, A panoramic view of San Juan from Xavier School Greenhills. San Juan-Mandaluyong boundary, close-up (Kalentong, Mandaluyong; 05-31-2019).jpg, San Juan City Welcome Arch on General Kalentong Street, Mandaluyong City.

References

External links

* * Philippine Standard Geographic Code* {{Authority control Cities in Metro Manila 1623 establishments in the Philippines Highly urbanized cities in the Philippines Populated places established in 1623