Pototan (, , ), is a 1st class

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 ...

Iloilo Iloilo ( ; ), officially the Province of Iloilo (; ; ; ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital and largest city is Iloilo City, the regional center of Western Visayas and politically independen ...

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 78,298 people. In December 1997, it was declared as the "Christmas Capital of

Western Visayas Western Visayas (; ; ) is an Regions of the Philippines, administrative region in the Philippines, numerically designated as Region VI. The region comprises the islands of Panay and Guimaras Island, Guimaras. It consists of five Provinces of the ...

" because of its famed Christmas Festival of Lights.

History

Early history

The first people of Pototan were the family of Datu Ramon, grandson of Datu Puti, a Malay from the town of Dumangas. They first settled at Barangay Naslo, which was formerly the

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 ...

(town center). In that place was found a luxuriant growth of trees called ''"putat"'', after which the place was subsequently called ''"Kaputatan"'' or "place of many Putat trees." However, due to its hilly terrain and poor water supply, they decided to move nearer the bank of the Suage River, now called Pototan. In the middle of the 16th century, the

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

traders arrived in Pototan.

Spanish era

The arrival of the

Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance-speaking ethnic group native to the Iberian Peninsula, primarily associated with the modern nation-state of Spain. Genetically and ethnolinguistically, Spaniards belong to the broader Southern a ...

in 1593 sparked new changes in the socio-economic and political life of the natives. It was the start of a new era, the natives were converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

through the efforts of

Augustinian Friars The Order of Saint Augustine (), abbreviated OSA, is a mendicant religious order of the Catholic Church. It was founded in 1244 by bringing together several eremitical groups in the Tuscany region who were following the Rule of Saint Augustine ...

. The settlement was subsequently made into a Parish. Education, though at the onset only for the privileged few, was introduced. The name ''"Kaputatan"'', which the Spanish have difficulty pronouncing, was changed to ''"Pototan"''. The Spanish built roads and bridges. Don Tomas Sajen and Don Escribano supervised the construction of the Tribunal (municipal hall) with the natives contributing the labor. The Tribunal withstood

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 ...

and in the early 50s was modified into what is now the Western Visayas Hospital. In 1874, Pototanons began to run their own political affairs with the appointment of Don Juan Marcelo as the first Capitan Municipal. This form of government continued until the arrival of the Americans. During the incumbency of Capitan Municipal Braulio Peñaranda in 1891, there was a

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

outbreak. During the

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), ...

, Pototanons such as

Teresa Magbanua Teresa Magbanua y Ferraris (October 13, 1868 – August 1947), better known as Teresa Magbanua and dubbed as the " Visayan Joan of Arc", was a Filipino schoolteacher and military leader. Born in Pototan, Iloilo, Philippines, she retired from e ...

(known as the Joan of arc of the Visayas) and her two brothers,

Elias Elias ( ; ) is the hellenized version for the name of Elijah (; ; , or ), a prophet in the Northern Kingdom of Israel in the 9th century BC, mentioned in several holy books. Due to Elias' role in the scriptures and to many later associated tradit ...

and

Pascual Magbanua Pascual is a Spanish given name and surname, cognate of Italian name Pasquale, Portuguese name Pascoal and French name Pascal. In Catalan-speaking area (including Andorra, Valencia, and Balearic islands) Pascual has the variant Pasqual. Pasc ...

took up arms and joined the revolution. The Americans arrived after Spain ceded 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 ...

in 1898. The remaining Spanish population fled to the hills together with many Filipinos including the last Gobernadorcillio, Don Maurilio Mendoza. He was later held prisoner by the Americans but subsequently named the first Municipal President.

American era

Under the Americans, the natives were granted the freedom of speech and worship. Education was liberalized; more and better roads and bridges were constructed. Improvements were also noticed in the economic, social and cultural life of the people. During the incumbency of Mun. President Maurillo Mendoza, the Pototanons again witnessed another unforgettable event: the burning of the entire half of the poblacion in November 1914. The cause of the fire is unknown. When the

Philippine Constitution The Constitution of the Philippines ( Filipino: ''Saligang Batas ng Pilipinas'' or ''Konstitusyon ng Pilipinas'') is the supreme law of the Philippines. Its final draft was completed by the Constitutional Commission on October 12, 1986, and rat ...

was ratified in 1935, another change in the town's local governance was introduced: the title of Municipal President was changed to Municipal Mayor. Santiago Puig was the first Municipal Mayor. He was succeeded by Mariano Peñaflorida in 1940. Peñaflorida served until September 16, 1942.

World War II

The coming of the

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese during

spread chaos and fear among Pototanons. Mayor Peñaflorida continued to act as Mayor under the Free Revolutionary Government of Tomas Confesor while the Japanese Imperial Forces designated Tomas Ferrariz as Puppet Mayor.

Geography

Pototan lies on the banks of the Suage River, from

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 ...

and from

Janiuay Janiuay, officially the Municipality of Janiuay (, , , Spanish: ''Municipio de Janiuay''), is a municipality in the province of Iloilo, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 66,786 people. The town was created in 176 ...

. The town has an area of 94 km², 85% of which is agricultural land. Considered the rice granary of

Panay Panay is the sixth-largest and fourth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of and a total population of 4,542,926, as of 2020 census. Panay comprises 4.4 percent of the entire population of the country. The City of Il ...

, the town is bordered by

Dingle Dingle ( or ''Daingean Uí Chúis'', meaning "fort of Ó Cúis") is a town in County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The only town on the Dingle Peninsula (known in Irish as ''Corca Dhuibhne''), it sits on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coa ...

to the north, Zarraga to the south,

Barotac Nuevo Barotac Nuevo, officially the Municipality of Barotac Nuevo (, ), is a municipality in the province of Iloilo, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 58,176 people. The town is officially known as the ''Football Cap ...

to the east, New Lucena and Mina to the west.

Barangays

Pototan is politically subdivided into 50

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. 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 ...

. * Abangay * Amamaros * Bagacay * Barasan * Batuan * Bongco * Cahaguikican * Callan * Cansilayan * Casalsagan * Cato-ogan * Cau-ayan * Culob * Danao * Dapitan * Dawis * Dongsol * Fundacion * Guinacas * Guibuangan * Igang * Intaluan * Iwa Ilaud * Iwa Ilaya * Jamabalud * Jebioc * Lay-ahan * Primitivo Ledesma Ward (Pob. * Lopez Jaena Ward (

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 ...

) * Lumbo * Macatol * Malusgod * Naslo * Nabitasan * Naga * Nanga * Pajo * Palanguia * Fernando Parcon Ward (

) * Pitogo * Polot-an * Purog * Rumbang * San Jose Ward (

) * Sinuagan * Tuburan * Tumcon Ilaya * Tumcon Ilaud * Ubang * Zarrague

Climate

Demographics

In the 2020 census, the population of Pototan, Iloilo, was 78,298 people, with a density of . Karay·a is the primary language in the municipality.

Economy

Education

Private Schools

*Adventist Academy - Iloilo, Inc. (West Visayan Academy) *Colegio de la Inmaculada Concepción - Hijas de Jesús *EXEL Montessori de Pototan *First Bible Baptist Academy *Pototan Baptist Church Learning Center *Pototan Christian Learning Center *The Integrated Academy School System, Inc.

Tertiary

* West Visayas State University - Pototan Campus

Secondary

*Alberto Sorongon Sr. Memorial NHS *Pototan National Comprehensive HS *Jamabalud NHS *Jose Facultad Memorial NHS *Palanguia NHS

Primary

*Barasan ES *Batuan ES *Cahaguikican ES *Cansilayan ES *Casalsagan ES *Danao ES *Dapitan ES *Doña Trinidad ES *Dolores P. Tirador ES *Edmundo Dayot Memorial ES *Guibuangan ES *Guinacas ES *Igang ES *Iwa-Macatol ES *Jamabalud ES *Juana Bolivar Peñaflorida ES (Amamaros ES) *Lay-ahan ES *Lumbo ES *Maravilla ES *Matias Yusay Memorial ES *Nabitasan ES *Naslo ES *Palanguia ES *Pototan Pilot ES *Rizal ES *San Juan ES *Sinuagan ES *Tuburan ES *Ubang ES

Government

List of chief executives

Gobernadorcillos

Capitán municipal

In 1893, the Maura Law was passed to reorganize town governments with the aim of making them more effective and autonomous. The law changed the title of chief executive of the town from ''gobernadorcillo'' to ''capitán municipal''.

Presidentes & vice presidentes municipal

Municipal Mayors

Municipal officials

The elected municipal officials of the

local government unit In the Philippines, local government is divided into three levels: provinces and independent cities, component cities and municipalities, and barangays, all of which are collectively known as local government units (LGUs). In some areas, abo ...

of Pototan, Iloilo for 2022-2025.

Notable personalities

Espiridion Guanco Espiridión Guanco y Cordero (29 December 1874 - 2 May 1925) was a Filipino politician during the American occupation. While serving for the Philippine senate, he was the Secretary to the Senate President Manuel L. Quezon. During the 1910s, Gua ...

– first

President pro tempore of the Senate of the Philippines The president pro tempore of the Senate of the Philippines is the second highest-ranking official of the Senate of the Philippines. During the absence of the president of the Senate, the Senate president '' pro tempore'' presides over the Sen ...

and Secretary to Senate 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 ...

References

External links

Philippine Standard Geographic Code The Philippine Standard Geographic Code (PSGC) is a systematic classification and coding for geographic areas in the Philippines. It classifies areas based on the country's four levels of administrative divisions: regions, provinces, municipalities ...

Philippine Census Information

Local Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Iloilo