Victorias

This article is about the city in the Philippines. For the singular, see Victoria (disambiguation). For other uses, see Victorias (disambiguation).

Victorias
Component city
City of Victorias
City hall
Flag Seal
Nickname(s):  "The Sugarlandia of Negros" "The Sweet and Green City of Negros"
Map of Negros Occidental with Victorias highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Victorias Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 10°54′N123°05′E / 10.9°N 123.08°E / 10.9; 123.08
Country	Philippines
Region	Negros Island Region
Province	Negros Occidental
District	3rd district
Founded	October 2, 1906
Cityhood	March 21, 1998
Named for	Nuestra Señora de las Victorias (Our Lady of Victory)
Barangays	26 (see Barangays)
Government   [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Panlungsod
• Mayor	Javier Miguel L. Benitez
•  Vice Mayor	Abelardo D. Bantug III
•  Representative	Jose Francisco B. Benitez
•  City Council	Members Francis Frederick D. Palanca Teresita M. Sta. Ana-Bartolome Deilen Tornea-Hofileña Hermie B. Millan Dino Jose Maria O. Acuña Warlito T. Undar Dexter L. Senido Danilo A. de Asis Jr. Virginia M. Adorio Audie R. Malaga
•  Electorate	61,877 voters (2022)
Area [2]
• Total	133.92 km2 (51.71 sq mi)
Elevation	166 m (545 ft)
Highest elevation	1,568 m (5,144 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2020 census) [3]
• Total	90,101
• Density	670/km2 (1,700/sq mi)
•  Households	22,268
Economy
•  Income class	4th city income class
•  Poverty incidence	16.56 % (2021) [4]
•  Revenue	₱ 742.2 million (2020)
•  Assets	₱ 2,554 million (2020)
•  Expenditure	₱ 581.6 million (2020)
•  Liabilities	₱ 1,003 million (2020)
Service provider
• Electricity	Northern Negros Electric Cooperative (NONECO)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	6119
PSGC	064531000
IDD  :  area code	+63 (0)34
Native languages	Hiligaynon Tagalog
Website	www.victoriascity.gov.ph

Victorias, officially the City of Victorias (Hiligaynon : Dakbanwa sang Victorias; Filipino : Lungsod ng Victorias), is a 4th class component city in the province of Negros Occidental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 90,101 people. ^[3]

Victorias is notable for the St. Joseph the Worker Chapel, which was declared as an Important Cultural Property of the Philippines ^[5] in December 2015.

It is also the site of Victorias Milling Company, the world's largest integrated sugar mill, ^[6] sitting on a 7,000 hectares (17,000 acres) compound that makes it the Philippine's largest sugar refinery.

Victorias City also serves as the access point to the Northern Negros Natural Park, popular among hikers visiting Mount Mandalagan and Mount Silay.

Victorias City is 34 kilometres (21 mi) from Bacolod.

Geography

Barangays

Victorias City is politically subdivided into 26 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

• Barangay I (Poblacion)
• Barangay II (Quezon; Pob.)
• Barangay III (Poblacion)
• Barangay IV (Poblacion)
• Barangay V (Poblacion)
• Barangay VI (Estrella Village/Salvacion; Pob.)
• Barangay VI-A (Boulevard/Villa Miranda/Sitio Cubay/Pasil)
• Barangay VII (Poblacion)
• Barangay VIII (Old Simboryo)
• Barangay IX (Daan Banwa)
• Barangay X (Estado)
• Barangay XI (Gawahon)
• Barangay XII (Dacumon)
• Barangay XIII (Gloryville)
• Barangay XIV (Sayding)
• Barangay XV West Caticlan
• Barangay XV-A East Caticlan
• Barangay XVI (Millsite)
• Barangay XVI-A (New Barrio)
• Barangay XVII (Garden)
• Barangay XVIII (Palma)
• Barangay XVIII-A (Golf)
• Barangay XIX (Bacayan)
• Barangay XIX-A (Canetown Subdivision)
• Barangay XX (Cuaycong)
• Barangay XXI (Relocation)

Climate

Climate data for Victorias
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	28 (82)	29 (84)	30 (86)	32 (90)	32 (90)	31 (88)	30 (86)	29 (84)	29 (84)	29 (84)	29 (84)	28 (82)	30 (85)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	23 (73)	23 (73)	23 (73)	24 (75)	25 (77)	25 (77)	25 (77)	24 (75)	24 (75)	24 (75)	24 (75)	23 (73)	24 (75)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	57 (2.2)	37 (1.5)	41 (1.6)	42 (1.7)	98 (3.9)	155 (6.1)	187 (7.4)	162 (6.4)	179 (7.0)	188 (7.4)	114 (4.5)	78 (3.1)	1,338 (52.8)
Average rainy days	12.0	7.7	9.2	10.2	19.5	24.6	26.9	25.1	25.5	25.2	18.0	13.0	216.9
Source: Meteoblue [7]

Demographics

Population census of Victorias

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1903	8,372	—
1918	7,557	−0.68%
1939	19,547	+4.63%
1948	27,858	+4.02%
1960	34,290	+1.75%
1970	48,829	+3.59%
1975	53,994	+2.04%
1980	55,959	+0.72%
1990	69,892	+2.25%
1995	78,283	+2.15%
2000	81,743	+0.93%
2007	88,149	+1.05%
2010	88,299	+0.06%
2015	87,933	−0.08%
2020	90,101	+0.48%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority [8] [9] [10] [11]

The people in the city speak the Hiligaynon language (often called Ilonggo). Filipino and English are generally understood.

Economy

Victorias City main highway.

Victorias Milling Co. plant

Poverty incidence of Victorias

5 10 15 20 2006 18.40 2009 19.18 2012 15.60 2015 17.37 2018 12.86 2021 16.56 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19]

Religion

Notable religions include:

• Roman Catholicism
• Philippine Independent Church
• United Pentecostal Church International
• Baptist Bible Fellowship International
• Seventh-day Adventist Church
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Philippines
• Iglesia ni Cristo
• Jehovah's Witnesses
• Apostolic Pentecostalism
• Evangelical Protestantism
• IKTHUS

Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI) Mission Church of St. Andrew the Apostle in Brgy. Daan Banwa.

Churches

Notable churches include:

• St. Joseph the Worker Chapel, also known as the Angry Christ Church
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Victorias City
• IFI Mission Church of St. Andrew the Apostle
• Our Lady of Victory Parish Church

St. Joseph the Worker Chapel

St. Joseph the Worker Chapel.

Within the Victorias Milling Company's complex is the St. Joseph the Worker Chapel, a masterpiece considered the first example of modern sacral architecture in the Philippines ^[20] and raised to the status of Important Cultural Property by the National Museum of the Philippines in 2015. The chapel was designed by the famous Czech Architect Antonín Raymond. ^[5]

Its mural of the Angry Christ was painted by international artist Alfonso Ossorio. ^[5] The mural has been featured in various publications such as Life Magazine . Its fierce, vivid colors gave the church its most known name, the "Angry Christ Church". ^[5]

Festivals

The city celebrates the annual Kadalag-an Festival, a charter anniversary held on March 21, and the annual Malihaw Festival on April 26.

The city also celebrates the Kalamayan Festival every December. The word "Kalamayan" depicts what Victorias is known for, its “kalamay” or refined sugar and its sugar industry, the Victorias Milling Company.

Barangay Festivals

• Barangay I – Pasalamat Festival • Barangay II – Ratsada Festival • Barangay III • Barangay IV • Barangay V • Barangay VI • Barangay VI-A – Baybayanon Festival • Barangay VII – Ati-Atihan Festival • Barangay VIII – Simboryo Festival • Barangay IX • Barangay X • Barangay XI • Barangay XII • Barangay XIII – Hilinugyaw Festival • Barangay XIV – San Juan Festival

• Barangay XV • Barangay XV-A • Barangay XVI • Barangay XVI-A • Barangay XVII • Barangay XVIII • Barangay XVIII-A – May Flower Festival • Barangay XIX • Barangay XIX-A • Barangay XX – Kasadyahan Festival • Barangay XXI

Notable personalities

• Noven Belleza - first champion of Tawag ng Tanghalan; born in Victorias ^[21]
• Alfonso A. Ossorio - Filipino-American abstract expressionist artist; though born in Manila in 1916 to a Negros Occidental family, his Angry Christ Mural is connected to Victorias City ^[5]
• Albee Benitez - politician, business magnate ^[22]

Education

Notable educational institutions include:

• Central Philippines State University – Victorias City Campus
• Don Bosco Technical Institute, Victorias
• La Salle College–Victorias
• Negros Occidental National Science High School
• Colegio de Santa Ana de Victorias ^[23]
• Victorias National High School
• Abelardo D.L. Bantug, Sr. National High School (Hda. Amanda, Barangay VIII, Victorias City)
• Victorias City Farm School (Hda. Cuaycong, Barangay XX, Victorias City
• Barangay Estado National High School (Estado, Barangay X, Victorias City)
• Gawahon Integrated School (Barangay XI, Victorias City)
• Victorias Elementary School
• Villa Victorias Elementary School
• Laura Vicuña Women Development & Training Center (Hda.Malihao, Barangay XX, Victorias City)
• Jack & Jill School/Castleson High

References

1.   City of Victorias | (DILG)
2. "2015 Census of Population, Report No. 3 – Population, Land Area, and Population Density" (PDF). Philippine Statistics Authority. Quezon City, Philippines. August 2016. ISSN   0117-1453. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 25, 2021. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
3. Census of Population (2020). "Region VI (Western Visayas)". Total Population by Province, City, Municipality and Barangay. Philippine Statistics Authority . Retrieved July 8, 2021.
4. "PSA Releases the 2021 City and Municipal Level Poverty Estimates". Philippine Statistics Authority. April 2, 2024. Retrieved April 28, 2024.
5. "Inside the church with an angry-looking Christ". RAPPLER. November 1, 2019. Retrieved February 15, 2023.
6. Andres, Tomas Donato (2005). Understanding Ilonggo Values, Book 19. Giraffe Books. ISBN   978-971-0362-22-6.
7. "Victorias: Average Temperatures and Rainfall". Meteoblue. Retrieved May 7, 2020.
8. Census of Population (2015). "Region VI (Western Visayas)". Total Population by Province, City, Municipality and Barangay. Philippine Statistics Authority . Retrieved June 20, 2016.
9. Census of Population and Housing (2010). "Region VI (Western Visayas)" (PDF). Total Population by Province, City, Municipality and Barangay. National Statistics Office . Retrieved June 29, 2016.
10. Censuses of Population (1903–2007). "Region VI (Western Visayas)". Table 1. Population Enumerated in Various Censuses by Province/Highly Urbanized City: 1903 to 2007. National Statistics Office.
11. "Province of". Municipality Population Data. Local Water Utilities Administration Research Division. Retrieved December 17, 2016.
12. "Poverty incidence (PI):". Philippine Statistics Authority. Retrieved December 28, 2020.
13. "Estimation of Local Poverty in the Philippines" (PDF). Philippine Statistics Authority. November 29, 2005.
14. "2003 City and Municipal Level Poverty Estimates" (PDF). Philippine Statistics Authority. March 23, 2009.
15. "City and Municipal Level Poverty Estimates; 2006 and 2009" (PDF). Philippine Statistics Authority. August 3, 2012.
16. "2012 Municipal and City Level Poverty Estimates" (PDF). Philippine Statistics Authority. May 31, 2016.
17. "Municipal and City Level Small Area Poverty Estimates; 2009, 2012 and 2015". Philippine Statistics Authority. July 10, 2019.
18. "PSA Releases the 2018 Municipal and City Level Poverty Estimates". Philippine Statistics Authority. December 15, 2021. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
19. "PSA Releases the 2021 City and Municipal Level Poverty Estimates". Philippine Statistics Authority. April 2, 2024. Retrieved April 28, 2024.
20. Sayer, Derek (November 1, 2022). Postcards from Absurdistan: Prague at the End of History. Princeton University Press. ISBN   978-0-691-23951-4.
21. "Noven Belleza: his singing career before the scandal". PEP.ph. Retrieved February 15, 2023.
22. "Bacolod court dismisses appeal to exclude Albee Benitez from voter's list". RAPPLER. February 14, 2022. Retrieved February 15, 2023.
23. Colegio de Santa Ana de Victorias

External links

• Victorias City profile at the official website of Negros Occidental
• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Philippine census information
• Local Governance Performance Management System