Santa Elena, officially the Municipality of Santa Elena (), is a municipality in the province of Camarines Norte, Philippines. According to the , it has a population of people.
History Santa Elena, formerly known as Ilayang Santol, was then a sitio of barrio Pulonguit-guit, Capalonga. In 1948, through the efforts of local leaders, it became an independent barrio.
Santa Elena became a municipality with ten barangays out of Capalonga by virtue of Republic Act No. 5480 on June 21, 1969.
Territorial dispute
Santa Elena and Calauag in Quezon province were involved in a decade-long boundary dispute, leading to a Supreme Court case and presidential intervention. The dispute involved nine barangays: Don Tomas, Guitol, Kabuluan, Kagtalaba, Maulawin, Plaridel, Patag Ibaba, Patag Iraya, and Tabugon. In 1991, the Provincial Government of Quezon and Municipal Government of Calauag ordered the demolition of a boundary marker installed by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. In 1995, President Fidel V. Ramos intervened during his visit to Calauag, initially allowing Calauag to retain jurisdiction. However, the Supreme Court ultimately ruled in favor of Camarines Norte, transferring these barangays from Calauag's jurisdiction.
Geography Santa Elena is from Daet and from Manila.
Barangays
Santa Elena is politically subdivided into 19 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.
Basiad Bulala Don Tomas Guitol Kabuluan Kagtalaba Maulawin Patag Ibaba Patag Ilaya Plaridel Polungguitguit Rizal Salvacion San Lorenzo San Pedro San Vicente Santa Elena (Poblacion) Tabugon Villa San Isidro
The indicated barangays (‡) were formerly disputed with Calauag, Quezon, due to boundary realignment from Macahadok River to Tabugon Stream adjoining Quezon Canal in Barangay Tabansak in Calauag. In 2001, the case was elevated to the Supreme Court. The Case of Province of Quezon vs. Province of Camarines Norte eventually ruled in favor of Camarines Norte and Santa Elena was granted the said barangays.
Climate
Demographics
In the 2024 census, the population of Santa Elena was 42,585 people with a density of .
Economy
Education The Santa Elena Schools District Office governs all educational institutions within the municipality. It oversees the management and operations of all private and public, from primary to secondary schools.
Primary and elementary schools
Basiad Elementary School Bulala Elementary School Don Tomas Elementary School Dygico Elementary School Earth's Bounty Elementary School Guitol Elementary School Juan A. Amparo Elementary School Kagtalaba Elementary School M. Hebrado Elementary School Maria Aurora Academy Maulawin Elementary School Patag Ibaba Elementary School Patag Ilaya Elementary School Pulongguit-Guit Elementary School R. Oquindo Elementary School Rizal Elementary School Salvacion Elementary School San Pedro Elementary School Sta. Elena Adventist Elementary School Sta. Elena Parochial School Tabugon Elementary School Villa San Isidro Elementary School
Secondary schools
Bulala High School E.P. Borja High School Leocadio Alejo Entienza High School Lyceum of St. Dominic Maulawin National High School Rizal National High School San Pedro - Domingo Llarena High School Sta. Elena Integrated School
Higher educational institutions
Sta. Elena Adventist Academy Sta. Elena College Sta. Elena Institute of Science & Technology Southern Tagalog Rural High School
References
External links [ Philippine Standard Geographic Code] Philippine Census Information