Jalajala (; also spelled as Jala-jala), officially the Municipality of Jalajala (), 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 ...

of Rizal,

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 34,017 people, making it the least populated municipality in the province.

Etymology

What is now the town's Barangay Punta was the seat of an earlier settlement later known as Halaán. During the summer from April to May, the shores of Laguna de Bay along Punta would be filled with small shellfish locally known as ''halaán''. As is typical with many modern Philippine

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 ...

s, the town's name supposedly resulted from miscommunication between early Spanish visitors and natives. The Spaniards enquired of some natives along the shoreline, "''¿Como se llama este sitio?''" ("What is the name of this place?") to which the latter replied, "''halaán pò,''" thinking that the foreigners referred to the shells. The Spaniards accepted the response as the name of the place, and began calling it ''halaán'', later corrupting it into ''Chimae'' then into ''Jalajala''. Another folk etymology is that Jalajala stems from an

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

breed of boar called ''berk jala'', which is abundant in the wilds around the town and is depicted on its seal. As with the other story, a Spaniard asked the Tagalog-speaking natives the place's name, and the locals' interjection of "''hala-hala''” (possibly a hunting chant) was taken by the Spaniards to be their answer.

History

In 1610, it became part of Villa de Pila, an

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 ...

in La Laguna where locals were encouraged to raise livestock. On September 7, 1676, Jalajala was separated from Villa de Pila for civil and ecclesiastical administration. A bamboo church was built in 1678, followed by a stone church in 1733. The first map of Jalajala was drawn by Engineer Feliciano Marquez in 1767, titled “Islas de Jalajala.” In 1786, Jalajala, initially a barrio, separated from

Pililla Pililla (), officially the Municipality of Pililla (), is a municipality in the province of Rizal, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 71,535 people. It is surrounded by farms, small mountains, plains, and trees. Pi ...

to become an independent town, with the help of Don Julio Dollar. However, it was reverted to a barrio of Pililla in 1816. According to a Spanish historian, the development of Jalajala as a pueblo or town began as early as 1823. The area became part of the '' Distrito delos Montes de San Mateo'' (later District of Morong) in 1853 and later Rizal in 1901. On October 12, 1903, it was returned to Pililla once again by virtue of Act No. 942. Jalajala was re-established as a chartered municipality on March 27, 1907 by virtue of Act No. 1720. Simeon Perez was elected as its first municipal president following the November 1907 election. It was auctioned in 1920 due to unpaid taxes, becoming the first Filipino-owned town. From 1942 to 1945, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Jalajala was occupied by Japanese forces, and local guerrilla groups resisted occupation. The town was liberated in 1945. In 1979, the

Japan International Cooperation Agency The Japan International Cooperation Agency (), also known as JICA'','' is a governmental agency that delivers the bulk of Official Development Assistance (ODA) for the government of Japan. It is chartered with assisting economic and social gr ...

(JICA) supported infrastructure development, fostering growth in transportation, education, and agriculture.

Geography

Jalajala is on a peninsula located southeast of

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 ...

in the largest freshwater lake in the Philippines, Laguna de Bay. It lies on the eastern part of the Rizal Province and has a land area of representing 3.77% of the total land area of the province. Jalajala's political boundary on the north is the Panguil River, wherein it shares the boundary with the town of Pakil in Laguna. On its southern, eastern, and western boundaries lies Laguna de Bay. Mount Sembrano forms the boundary of Jalajala and Pililla.

Barangays

Jalajala is politically subdivided into 11

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 (three urban, eight rural), as indicated in the matrix below and the image herein. 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 ...

. * Bagumbong * Bayugo * Second District (

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 ...

) * Third District (

) * Lubo * Pagkalinawan * Palaypalay * Punta * Sipsipin * First (Special) District (

) * Paalaman Bayugo, Palay-Palay, and Sipsipin were elevated to barrios in 1956.

Climate

Demographics

In the 2020 census, the population of Jala-jala, was 34,017 people, with a density of .

Economy

Government

Local government

The municipality is governed by a municipal mayor designated as its local chief executive and by a municipal council as its legislative body in accordance with the Local Government Code. The mayor, vice mayor, and the councilors are elected directly by the people through an election which is being held every three years.

Elected officials

List of current government officials from June 30, 2022.

List of mayors

Social services

Education

Hidilyn Diaz Weightlifting Academy

In July 2024, Hidilyn Diaz inaugurated her weightlifting academy in Jalajala, including the academy's training programs and the HDWLA Outreach Program. The single-storey training facility is built upon her lot in Sitio Manggahan, Barangay Second District. It is equipped with four platforms.

References

External links

Jalajala Profile at PhilAtlas.comJalajala official website
* Philippine Standard Geographic Codebr>Philippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Rizal (province) Populated places on Laguna de Bay 1780s establishments in the Philippines