Santa Elena, Camarines Norte

Santa Elena, officially the Municipality of Santa Elena (Tagalog: Bayan ng Santa Elena), is a municipality in the province of Camarines Norte, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 43,582 people.^[3]

Santa Elena
Municipality
Municipality of Santa Elena
Flag Seal
Nickname:  Gateway to Bicolandia
Map of Camarines Norte with Santa Elena highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Santa Elena Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 14°10′47″N 122°23′31″E
Country	Philippines
Region	Bicol Region
Province	Camarines Norte
District	1st district
Founded	June 21, 1969
Named after	Saint Helena
Barangays	19 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Bernardina E. Borja
• Vice Mayor	Ryan Jeffrey T. Mendoza
• Representative	Josefina B. Tallado
• Municipal Council	Members Darwin I. Argarin Howard Dom T. Mendoza Cecilia M. Fermo Cecilio P. Bactol Ramil P. Lagamayo Arnold C. Leynes Myrna M. Sibulo Edgardo N. de Guzman
• Electorate	28,229 voters (2025)
Area [2]
• Total	199.35 km2 (76.97 sq mi)
Elevation	68 m (223 ft)
Highest elevation	530 m (1,740 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2020 census)[3]
• Total	43,582
• Density	220/km2 (570/sq mi)
• Households	10,205
Economy
• Income class	3rd municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	23.62 % (2021)[4]
• Revenue	₱ 231.9 million (2022)
• Assets	₱ 640 million (2022)
• Expenditure	₱ 153.3 million (2022)
• Liabilities	₱ 161.6 million (2022)
Service provider
• Electricity	Camarines Norte Electric Cooperative (CANORECO) Quezon I Electric Cooperative (QUEZELCO I)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	4611
PSGC	0501610000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)54
Native languages	Tagalog

Santa Elena is 80 kilometers (50 mi) from Daet and 262 kilometers (163 mi) from Manila.

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.^[5]

Santa Elena became a municipality with ten barangays out of Capalonga by virtue of Republic Act No. 5480 on June 21, 1969.^[5][6]

Territorial dispute with Calauag, Quezon

Map of Camarines Norte in 1918 which excluded the eight barangays disputed with Calauag, apart from Kagtalaba.

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.^[7]

Geography

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.^[8]

Climate

Climate data for Santa Elena, Camarines Norte
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	26 (79)	27 (81)	29 (84)	31 (88)	31 (88)	30 (86)	29 (84)	29 (84)	29 (84)	29 (84)	28 (82)	27 (81)	29 (84)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	22 (72)	22 (72)	22 (72)	23 (73)	24 (75)	24 (75)	24 (75)	24 (75)	24 (75)	24 (75)	24 (75)	23 (73)	23 (74)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	51 (2.0)	35 (1.4)	37 (1.5)	39 (1.5)	91 (3.6)	131 (5.2)	168 (6.6)	132 (5.2)	162 (6.4)	184 (7.2)	166 (6.5)	101 (4.0)	1,297 (51.1)
Average rainy days	13.4	10.5	11.8	12.0	19.8	24.1	26.7	25.1	25.3	23.9	21.2	17.6	231.4
Source: Meteoblue[9]

Demographics

Population census of Santa Elena

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1970	8,608	—
1975	10,841	+4.73%
1980	13,092	+3.84%
1990	20,105	+4.38%
1995	33,955	+10.32%
2000	37,878	+2.37%
2007	40,300	+0.86%
2010	40,828	+0.47%
2015	40,786	−0.02%
2020	43,582	+1.31%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[10][11][12][13]

In the 2020 census, the population of Santa Elena, Camarines Norte was 43,582 people^[3] with a density of 220 inhabitants per square kilometre or 570 inhabitants per square mile.

Economy

Poverty incidence of Santa Elena

10 20 30 40 50 60 2000 47.55 2003 49.35 2006 50.30 2009 43.05 2012 30.37 2015 43.68 2018 35.79 2021 23.62 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]