A ''purok'' () is an informal division within a

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 ...

in the

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 ...

. While not officially considered a

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 ...

(LGU), a ''purok'' often serves as a unit for delivering services and administration within a barangay. ''Puroks'' are usually numbered (e.g. Purok 2, Purok B, Purok 7-C) but some have names. A ''purok'' is typically composed of twenty to fifty or more households, depending on the particular geographical location and cluster of houses. The term ''purok'' is often applied to a neighborhood (zone) within an urbanized barangay, or a portion (district) of a less densely populated, but still relatively geographically compact, barangay. This contrasts with the '' sitio'', which is usually a cluster of households (

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

) in a more dispersed, rural barangay. If created and given a mandate by an ordinance of the barangay, municipality, or city, a ''purok'' could perform government functions under the coordination and supervision of their local officials. Sometimes, a barangay councilor may be recognized as the leader of their ''purok''. New barangays are often created by officially enumerating which ''puroks'' and/or sitios are included within the territory. On rare occasions, a ''purok'' may also be enumerated in the creation of 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' ...

, as in the case of Shariff Saydona Mustapha, Maguindanao, where the ''puroks'' of Libutan East and Pagatin I were directly named as one of the constituent parts of the new municipality. These two ''puroks'' were later recognized as full-fledged barangays by the

Philippine Statistics Authority The Philippine Statistics Authority (; PSA) is the central statistical authority of the Philippine government that collects, compiles, analyzes, and publishes statistical information on economic, social, demographic, political affairs, and gene ...

in early 2010.

References

Barangays of the Philippines Subdivisions of the Philippines {{philippines-stub

See also

References