Sarangani

Sarangani
Province
Province of Sarangani
Flag Seal
Anthem: Sarangani, Land of Beauty
Location in the Philippines
Coordinates: 5°52′N 125°17′E / 5.87°N 125.28°E / 5.87; 125.28Coordinates: 5°52′N 125°17′E / 5.87°N 125.28°E / 5.87; 125.28
Country	Philippines
Region	Soccsksargen
Founded	November 28, 1992
Capital	Alabel
Government
• Type	Sangguniang Panlalawigan
• Governor	Steve C. Solon (UNA/PCM)
• Vice Governor	Elmer T. de Peralta
• Representative	Rogelio D. Pacquiao
• Sangguniang Panlalawigan	show Members Cyril John Yap Hermie Galzote Vir Tobias Arman Guili Beboy Nallos Abdulracman Pangolima Annalie Edday
Area [1]
• Total	3,601.25 km2 (1,390.45 sq mi)
Area rank	37th out of 81
Highest elevation ()	2,064 m (6,772 ft)
Population  (2020 census) [2]
• Total	558,946
• Rank	55th out of 81
• Density	160/km2 (400/sq mi)
• Density rank	58th out of 81
Divisions
• Independent cities	0
• Component cities	0
• Municipalities	show 7 Alabel Glan Kiamba Maasim Maitum Malapatan Malungon
• Barangays	141
• Districts	Lone district of Sarangani
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	9501–9503, 9514–9517
IDD : area code	+63 (0)83
ISO 3166 code	PH-SAR
Spoken languages	Cebuano Hiligaynon Blaan Tboli Maguindanaon Sarangani Ilocano Tagalog English
Income classification	2nd class
Website	www.sarangani.gov.ph

Sarangani, officially the Province of Sarangani (Cebuano: Lalawigan sa Sarangani; Hiligaynon: Kapuoran sang Sarangani; Ilocano: Probinsia ti Sarangani; Filipino: Lalawigan ng Sarangani), is a province in the Philippines located in the Soccsksargen region. Its capital is Alabel. With a 230-kilometre (140 mi) coastline along the Sarangani Bay and Celebes Sea, the province is at the southernmost tip of Mindanao island, and borders South Cotabato and Davao del Sur to the north, Davao Occidental to the east, and the Celebes Sea to the south.

Sarangani is part of the South Cotabato-Cotabato-Sultan Kudarat-Sarangani-General Santos (Soccsksargen) development cluster, and is linked by paved roads to the international airport and harbor of General Santos.

The province is divided into two sections, separated by the Sarangani Bay and city of General Santos, and it used to be part of South Cotabato until it was made an independent province in 1992.^[3]

History[]

The earliest civilization in the province can be found in Maitum, Sarangani, where the Maitum Anthropomorphic Pottery or Maitum Jars were found. The jars have been dated to approximately 5 BC to 370 AD, one of the oldest in the entire Southeast Asian region and the Philippines. The discovery testified to the long history of cultural exchanges in Sarangani and its people.

The island of Sarangani (now part of Davao Occidental) was named by Spanish explorer Ruy López de Villalobos in 1543 as Antonia, in honor of Antonio de Mendoza y Pacheco who commissioned the Villalobos expedition to the Philippines. The early inhabitants who first inhabited Sarangani were the indigenous natives, called MunaTo, a native term for "first people."^[4]

An old map showing the present territories of Sarangani as part of the Province of Cotabato in 1918

In 1942, the Japanese troops occupied Southern Cotabato.^{[further explanation needed]} In 1945, Filipino troops of the 6th, 10th, 101st and 102nd Infantry Division of the Philippine Commonwealth Army and 10th Constabulary Regiment of the Philippine Constabulary entered in and liberated Southern Cotabato and fought against the Japanese Imperial Army forces during the Battle of Cotabato at the end of World War II under the Japanese Occupation.^{[citation needed]}

Before its inception in 1992, Sarangani was part of South Cotabato as the Third District of South Cotabato. The province was created by Republic Act No. 7228 on March 16, 1992,^[3] penned by Congressman James L. Chiongbian. His wife, Priscilla L. Chiongbian, was the first Governor of Sarangani.^{[citation needed]}

Geography[]

Sarangani covers a total area of 3,601.25 square kilometres (1,390.45 sq mi)^[5] occupying the southern tip of the Soccsksargen in central Mindanao. The province is bordered on the central-north by South Cotabato, northeast by Davao del Sur, east by Davao Occidental, south by the Sarangani Bay and Celebes Sea, and northwest by Sultan Kudarat.

Western coast of the province at Maitum

Sarangani is divided into two (eastern and western) sections, separated by the Sarangani Bay and General Santos in the middle. The western portion comprises the towns of Maitum, Kiamba, and Maasim, and is bounded on the north by South Cotabato and on the northwest by Sultan Kudarat. The eastern section consists of Alabel, Glan, Malapatan, and Malungon.

Administrative divisions[]

Sarangani comprises seven municipalities. A single legislative district encompasses all towns.^[5]

Political map of Sarangani

	Municipality [i]		Population			±% p.a.	Area[5]		Density (2015)		Barangay
			(2015) [6]		(2010) [7]		km2	sq mi	/km2	/sq mi
6°06′10″N 125°17′31″E / 6.1027°N 125.2920°E / 6.1027; 125.2920 (Alabel)	Alabel	†	14.8%	80,359	75,477	+1.20%	510.98	197.29	160	410	13
5°49′21″N 125°12′17″E / 5.8225°N 125.2046°E / 5.8225; 125.2046 (Glan)	Glan		21.7%	118,263	106,518	+2.01%	610.30	235.64	190	490	31
5°59′19″N 124°37′27″E / 5.9885°N 124.6241°E / 5.9885; 124.6241 (Kiamba)	Kiamba		11.2%	61,058	54,871	+2.06%	328.68	126.90	190	490	19
5°51′40″N 124°59′48″E / 5.8610°N 124.9967°E / 5.8610; 124.9967 (Maasim)	Maasim		10.9%	59,468	52,933	+2.24%	500.43	193.22	120	310	16
6°03′41″N 124°29′45″E / 6.0613°N 124.4957°E / 6.0613; 124.4957 (Maitum)	Maitum		8.2%	44,595	41,675	+1.30%	290.66	112.22	150	390	19
5°58′15″N 125°17′18″E / 5.9707°N 125.2882°E / 5.9707; 125.2882 (Malapatan)	Malapatan		14.1%	76,914	72,386	+1.16%	609.28	235.24	130	340	12
6°22′31″N 125°16′18″E / 6.3752°N 125.2717°E / 6.3752; 125.2717 (Malungon)	Malungon		19.0%	103,604	95,044	+1.66%	750.92	289.93	140	360	31
	Total			544,261	498,904	+1.67%	3,601.25	1,390.45	150	390	141
		†  Provincial capital					Municipality
^ The globe  icon marks the town center.

Demographics[]

The population of Sarangani in the 2020 census was 558,946 people, ^[2] with a density of 160 inhabitants per square kilometre or 410 inhabitants per square mile.

Religion[]

Christianity is the majority religion in the province with a total of 79% (48% Roman Catholicism^[9] and 31% evangelicals).^[10] Other religious minorities are Islam (9%)^[11] and Iglesia ni Cristo (2%).^[12] The remainder is usually divided among other Christian churches.

Economy[]

Coconut, corn, rice, banana, mango, durian, rubber, and sugarcane are major crops now being planted by the inhabitants. The province has plantations (mango, banana, pineapple, asparagus), cattle ranches, and commercial fishponds that have been operating in the area, some of which having existed as far back as 40 years.

Electricity comes from the National Power Corporation, and augmented by a 50 MW power plant in Alabel, the province's capital. Water is provided for by sustainable spring development projects.

Government[]

Sarangani Provincial Capitol

Tourism[]

Sarangani celebrates its foundation anniversary every November, named as MunaTo Festival.^[20]

Sarangani has ancient burial jars, discovered by archaeologists from the National Museum in Ayub Cave in Maitum, in 1991 and in 2008, and at Sagel Cave in Maitum (now declared by National Historical Institute as a national historical site). Amid Mindanao's armed conflicts, artifacts found thereat prove settlements of pre-historic civilization in Maitum.^[20][21]

See also[]

• Jinkee Pacquiao - wife of Manny Paquiao and former Sarangani vice governor (2013). Her family is from Sarangani.

References[]

External links[]

• Media related to Sarangani at Wikimedia Commons
• Geographic data related to Sarangani at OpenStreetMap
• Official Website of the Provincial Government of Sarangani
• Local Governance Performance Management System