Santo Tomas, officially known as the City of Santo Tomas (Tagalog: Lungsod ng Santo Tomas), is a 1st class component city in the province of Batangas, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 218,500 people. [4]

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Santo Tomas
Component city
City of Santo Tomas
Clockwise from top: Padre Pio Shrine, First Philippine Industrial Park, Santo Tomas City Hall, PUP Santo Tomas, Light Industry and Science Park III, Malvar Shrine
Flag Seal
Nickname:  Gateway to Batangas
Motto(s):  Masaganang Bukas, Santo Tomas English: Abundant Tomorrow, Santo Tomas
Anthem: Tangi sa Batangan English: Rise up to Batangan
Map of Batangas with Santo Tomas highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Santo Tomas Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 14°05′N 121°11′E
Country	Philippines
Region	Calabarzon
Province	Batangas
District	3rd district
Founded	7 March 1666
Cityhood	September 7, 2019[1]
Named for	St. Thomas Aquinas
Barangays	30 (see Barangays)
Government  [2]
• Type	Sangguniang Panlungsod
• Mayor	Arth Jhun A. Marasigan
• Vice Mayor	Catherine J. Perez
• Representative	Ma. Theresa V. Collantes
• City Council	Members Ross Allan D. Maligaya Leovino M. Villegas Raquel M. Salazar Danilo P. Mabilangan Arlene F. Mañebo Arturo U. Pecaña Gerardo M. Malijan Helengrace P. Navarro Victor O. Bathan Adrian C. Carpio
• Electorate	111,393 voters (2022)
Area [3]
• Total	95.41 km2 (36.84 sq mi)
Elevation	239 m (784 ft)
Highest elevation	1,094 m (3,589 ft)
Lowest elevation	5 m (16 ft)
Population  (2020 census) [4]
• Total	218,500
• Density	2,300/km2 (5,900/sq mi)
• Households	59,686
Economy
• Income class	1st city income class
• Poverty incidence	8.37% (2018)[5]
• Revenue	₱1,238,462,823.20 (2020)
• Assets	₱3,045,381,984.39 (2020)
• Expenditure	₱900,439,319.03 (2020)
• Liabilities	₱471,845,990.48 (2020)
Service provider
• Electricity	Manila Electric Company (Meralco)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	4234
PSGC	041028000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)43
Native languages	Tagalog
Patron saint	St. Thomas Aquinas
Website	https://cityofstotomas.gov.ph/

With the continuous expansion of Metro Manila, the city is now part of Manila's conurbation which reaches Lipa in its southernmost part. It borders the cities of Calamba to the north, Los Baños to the north-east, Alaminos to the east, Tanauan and Malvar to the west, and Lipa to the south.

Santo Tomas is the hometown of Philippine Revolution and Philippine–American War hero Miguel Malvar, the last Filipino General to surrender to the Americans. On September 7, 2019, the Republic Act 11086, or the City Charter of Santo Tomas, was ratified on a plebiscite by the electorate of Santo Tomas.

The patron saint of Santo Tomas is Saint Thomas Aquinas, patron of Catholic schools whose feast day is celebrated every March 7.

History

This section relies largely or entirely on a single source. (July 2022)

Santo Tomas was founded in 1666, with Manuel Melo as its first head. Originally, it was composed of a large poblacion. When the Spanish friars arrived, their first and foremost objective was to construct a church near the river to satisfy their inclination for water. Thus, the present site of a Roman Catholic church was chosen near the San Juan River. As years went by, more houses were built around the church. This became the center of the poblacion.

Other groups of houses were scattered all over the area. They were given such odd names as "Kabaong", because of coffin-shaped stones along the road; "Putol" because the trail was cut short by Mount Makiling; "Aptayin", because "apta" of fine shrimps were found in the brook; "Biga", because biga trees abounded there; and "Camballao", as in "kambal" (twin) because twin rivers divided the place. These different unit groups comprised the barrios of the town.

The natives were by nature God-fearing, peaceful and obedient. Colonial officials did not much have difficulty enforcing decrees and orders. One such irrevocable decree was to change the original names of the barrios to the names of saints in the Catholic calendar and to place each them under its patrotonio; the former "Pook" and "Aptayin" were joined and called San Bartolome, "Kabaong" was changed to San Vicente, "Biga" to Santa Anastacia, and "Camballao" to San Isidro Sur and San Isidro Norte. The whole town was given the name of Santo Tomas de Aquino, after a saint of the Dominican Order to where most of the first friars belonged. As time went by, more barrios were added to the list each with an assumed name of a saint.

From the year 1666, the head of the town had different titles, variously known as captain from 1666 to 1782, alcalde from 1783 to 1788, gobernadorcillo from 1789 to 1821, presidente local from 1822 to 1899, presidente municipal from 1900 to 1930, and mayor from 1931 to present.[6]

Cityhood

In 2015, Nelson P. Collantes, the then representative of Batangas's 3rd District, proposed a House bill to convert Santo Tomas into a component city. After few years, with a unanimous vote of 19–0, the Senate approved a bill for the municipality's conversion into a city on March 19, 2018.[7] On October 5, 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte signed Republic Act No. 11086 or "An Act Converting the Municipality of Santo Tomas in the Province of Batangas into a Component City to be known as the City of Santo Tomas."[8] It is the first municipality to be converted into a city under the Duterte administration,[9] effectively ratified on September 7, 2019.[1]

Geography

Santo Tomas is located at 14°05′N 121°11′E. It is situated at the foot of Mount Makiling and is 61 kilometres (38 mi) south of Manila and 44 kilometres (27 mi) from Batangas City.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the component city has a land area of 95.41 square kilometers (36.84 sq mi) [10] constituting 3.06% of the 3,119.75-square-kilometer (1,204.54 sq mi) total area of Batangas.

Barangays

Santo Tomas is politically subdivided into 30 barangays.[11] Most of the barangays were named after saints.

Climate

Demographics

In the 2020 census, Santo Tomas had a population of 218,500. [4] The population density was 2,300 inhabitants per square kilometre (6,000/sq mi).

Economy

The First Philippine Industrial Park which is owned by the Lopez Group of Companies is located in the city.[24]

Most of the city is residential with a lot of farmland. There are also some developed subdivisions along the city like the San Antonio Heights in Barangay San Antonio which was developed by Avida Land, a division of Ayala Land,[25] Camella Homes,[26] and Terrazza de Santo Tomas in Barangay San Roque which was developed by Ovialand. The city is well known for an entire strip of bulalo (bone marrow soup) restaurants and to a hospital named Saint Cabrini Medical Center which is located inside the city center.

Aside from various real estate development in the city, Santo Tomas also has a popular lifestyle and commercial complex in the locality. The AGOJO-Lifestyle Strip located in the Central Business District (CBD) along Maharlika Highway houses various restaurants, coffee shops, salons, clothing boutiques, videoke bars, fitness gym, and automotive services. Popular restaurants and coffee shops include both international brands and home grown establishments. AllHome Santo Tomas and Liana's Junction Santo Tomas are known shopping destinations that operate in the city.[27] SM City Santo Tomas, a future SM Supermall, is under construction along Maharlika Highway.[28]

Transportation

Roads

The Pan-Philippine Highway or Maharlika Highway connects the city with Calamba, the rest of Laguna, with the highway reaching as far as Bicol Region. The Southern Tagalog Arterial Road (STAR Tollway) and South Luzon Expressway start at the city connects the city with Batangas City and Metro Manila, respectively. The Jose P. Laurel Highway connects the city with Tanauan City, Lipa and Batangas City.

Public transport

Jeepneys (Filipino: "dyip") connect the city with Calamba to the north, Tanauan to the south, and San Pablo to the east. Buses from Manila to Batangas City, Lucena, or Bicol serve the city. UV Express service also connects Santo Tomas with San Pablo, Santa Rosa, Lipa, and Dasmariñas. Tricycles provide transportation within the barangays.

Government

• Mayor: Arth Jhun A. Marasigan
• Vice Mayor: Catherine J. Perez
• Councilors:
• Ross Allan D. Maligaya
• Leovino M. Villegas
• Raquel M. Maloles-Salazar
• Danilo P. Mabilangan
• Arlene F. Magboo
• Arturo U. Pecaña
• Gerardo M. Malijan
• Helengrace P. Navarro
• Victor O. Bathan
• Adrian C. Carpio
• ABC president: Ladislao M. Malijan
• SK Federation President: Kirby S. Palla

Education

Universities

The Polytechnic University of the Philippines has one campus in Santo Tomas. It is a constituent branch of the PUP System and the only institution of higher learning in Santo Tomas that serves the city and neighboring cities.

High schools

The city has 4 public high schools.[29]

• San Jose National High School
• San Pedro National High School
• Santa Clara National High School
• Santa Anastacia-San Rafael National High School

Public schools

There are 28 public elementary schools within Santo Tomas.[30]

Santo Tomas North District

Santo Tomas South District

Private schools

There are 18 private schools within the Santo Tomas.[31][32]

Mythology

In Philippine mythology, the homeland of the anggitays is believed to be somewhere in Santo Tomas, Batangas. The anggitays are creatures resembling centaurs but have a single horn on the forehead and are generally female.[33]

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Santo Tomas, Batangas.

• Official website
• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Santo Tomas, Batangas Wordpress

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