Santa Ana, officially the Municipality of Santa Ana (; ), 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 61,537 people.

History of Santa Ana (Town and Parish)

The chapter of December 19, 1598 accepted the town of Pinpin ''(meaning "land laid aside")'' as a visita of Arayat. Sta. Ana was a track of forest and bordered by the towns of Arayat, Candaba, Mexico and San Luis. A settlement was established by people who came from the neighboring towns. They cleared the area and as the years passed, more people came to settle the place. Years later, they selected a leader among themselves, the bravest, most diligent and who can defend and provide the needs of the people, whom they addressed as DATU, CAT and APOL. The name of the town was changed to Santa Ana, who became the titular patroness of the town. The town continued as a visita of Arayat in 1617. Augustinian historians mark 1756 as the year the church was made independent. Rev. Fr. Lorenzo Guerra was the first parish priest. Fr. Vicente Ferrer started the construction of the present church in 1853. Fray Lucas Gonzalez, OSA finished it and constructed a five-store belfry in 1857. Materials used for the construction of the church vary from stones brought from Meycauayan and wood from Betis and Porac. Fray Antonio Redondo built the convent with stone in 1866. Fray Francisco Diaz, OSA began restoration work in 1872, which was continued by Fray Paulino Fernandez, OSA in 1877. On 1910, Sta. Ana became a barrio of Arayat, but on January 1, 1913 it is reinstated back to its status as a town. During the Japanese Occupation, the church convent was converted into a garrison where Japanese Soldiers torture captured Filipino and American soldiers using the "water cure" method. On November 29, 1945, Sta. Ana established its first private catholic school, the Holy Cross Academy thru the efforts of Rev. Msgr. Francisco Lansangan as its founder. In October 22, 2013, the National Historical Commission, installed a historical marker in the church belfry, bearing the church's history. It was inaugurated with the town former Mayor Rommel Concepcion, Archbishop Emeritus Paciano B. Aniceto D.D and the Rev. Fr. Nolasco L. Fernandez, parish priest. The town celebrates its annual town fiesta every July 26. In honor of their patroness Santa Ana, the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Santa Ana Parish also have a daughter parish, San Agustin Parish in Brgy. San Agustin (Sumpung) that established in 1992.

Majigangga Festival

If there’s one reason to visit Pampanga, it’s to attend one of their festivals. The practice of manufacturing Majiganggas in the town of Santa Ana, Pampanga, is one of the re-emerging festivals to look out for. The festival has proven to be one of the most memorable events in Santa Ana, being more colorful and vibrant than ever before. The Majiganggas, or enormous puppets, are claimed to be inspired by John the Baptist, who cleared the way for the arrival of the Savior. The Majiganggas follow the light processions in Santa Ana and are also present for the three major festivities such as Christmas, New Year’s, and the feast of the Three Kings. The puppets, which stand 10 feet tall, are made by both children and adults out of bamboo, springs, steel rods, and colorful paper mache and cloth. These puppets’ faces feature comically large eyebrows and mustaches made of dried durian bark, the body is constructed of discarded tarpaulins, and the hair is made of recycled sacks. During the event, the people also work together to control the huge puppets that dance around the streets of Santa Ana. The custom of making Majiganggas goes all the way back to before World War II and was pioneered by Jacinto Quiambao. It was supposedly suspended during the Japanese occupation, but was restored by Quiambao’s family members in the 1970s, and was ultimately brought back by the barangay and municipal administration in 2010 and is still going on today. The local administration intends to make it a popular celebration that future generations will enjoy.

Geography

Santa Ana is bordered by Arayat and Magalang to the north; Candaba to the east; San Luis to the south; and

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

to the west. The town can be accessed by via Olongapo-Gapan Road, Candaba-Santa Ana Road (Santa Lucia) and Magalang-Arayat-Santa Ana Road (San Pablo). Santa Ana is from San Fernando, 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 ...

, and from

Barangays

Santa Ana is politically subdivided into 14

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 puroks 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 ...

. * San Agustin (Sumpung) * San Bartolome (Patayum) * San Isidro (Quenabuan) * San Joaquin (Poblacion, Canukil) * San Jose (Catmun) * San Juan (Tinajeru) * San Nicolas (Sepung Ilug) * San Pablo (Darabulbul) * San Pedro (Calumpang) * San Roque (Tuclung) * Santa Lucia (Calinan) * Santa Maria (Balen Bayu) * Santiago (Barrio Libutad) * Santo Rosario (Pagbatuan)

Climate

Demographics

In the 2020 census, the population of Santa Ana, Pampanga, was 61,537 people, with a density of .

Economy

Government

Local government

The

Municipal Government A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

is divided into three branches: executive, legislative and judiciary. The

Judicial Branch The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

is administered solely by the

Supreme Court of the Philippines The Supreme Court (; colloquially referred to as the ' (also used in formal writing), is the highest court in the Philippines. It was established by the Taft Commission on June 11, 1901, through the enactment of Act No. 136, which abolished th ...

. The executive branch is composed of the mayor and the barangay captain for the barangays. The legislative branch is composed of the

Sangguniang Bayan The Sangguniang Bayan () is the local legislative branch of the municipal governments in the Philippines. It is responsible for passing ordinances and resolutions for the administration of a municipality. Its powers are defined by the Local Go ...

(town assembly),

Sangguniang Barangay The Sangguniang Barangay, known in English as the Barangay Council is the local government of a barangay, the smallest administrative division in the Philippines. Each of the 42,004 barangays in the country has its respective Sangguniang Baran ...

(barangay council), and the

Sangguniang Kabataan A Sangguniang Kabataan (abbreviated as SK; ) is a community council that represents the youth in a barangay in the Philippines. Established to provide young people with a platform for civic engagement and participation in Local government in ...

for the youth sector.

Education

Private schools

* Holy Cross College Pampanga * Saint Mary's Angels College of Pampanga * Adelle Grace Montesorri School Inc., Santa Ana

Public secondary schools

* Sta. Ana Central High School * Sta. Ana National High School * San Isidro High School * Telesforo and Natividad Alfonso High School

Elementary schools

* Fulgencio Matias Elementary School – San Joaquin * San Juan/San Pedro Elementary School – San Pedro * San Agustin Elementary School – San Agustin * Sto Rosario Elementary School – Sto Rosario * San Roque Elementary School – San Roque * San Pablo Elementary School – San Pablo * Santiago Elementary School – Santiago * San Isidro Elementary School – San Isidro * San Nicolas Elementary School – San Nicolas * Sta Lucia Elementary School – Sta Lucia * Sta Maria Elementary School – Sta Maria * Sta. Ana Elementary School - Sta. Lucia, Sta. Ana * Adelle Grace Montesorri School Inc Annex - Fausto Street, Sta. Ana

Notable personalities

* Michael Miranda, is a Filipino professional basketball player currently playing in 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 ...

. * Oca Rodriguez, is a Filipino politician, a former Member of the Philippine House of Representatives from Pampanga's 3rd district. * Paciano Aniceto, former archbishop of San Fernando from 1989 to 2014. * Larry Muyang, is a Filipino professional basketball player currently playing in MPBL.

Gallery

File:Santa Ana, Pampanga Town Hall.jpg, Town hall File:7Pampangajf.JPG, Public market File:Santa Ana Church facade (Santa Ana, Pampanga).jpg, St. Anne Parish Church (Founded 1756, Built on 1836) File:Saintmary'sjf2.JPG, Saint Mary's Angels College File:Staana56jf.JPG, Holy Cross College

References

External links

Santa Ana Profile at PhilAtlas.com
* Philippine Standard Geographic Codebr>Philippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Pampanga