Dumaguete

Dumaguete
Component city
City of Dumaguete
Dakbayan sa Dumaguete
Lungsod ng Dumaguete

Dumaguete City Hall

Seal
Nickname(s): The City of Gentle People

Map of Negros Oriental showing the location of Dumaguete City
Dumaguete

Location within the Philippines

Coordinates: 09°19′N 123°18′E / 9.317°N 123.300°ECoordinates: 09°19′N 123°18′E / 9.317°N 123.300°E
Country Philippines
Region Central Visayas (Region VII)
Province Negros Oriental
District 2nd district of Negros Oriental
Cityhood June 15, 1948
Barangays 30
Government[1]
 • Mayor Manuel "Chiquiting" Sagarbarria
 • Vice Mayor Woodrow Maquiling Sr.
Area[2]
 • Total 33.62 km2 (12.98 sq mi)
Population (2010)[3]
 • Total 120,883
 • Density 3,600/km2 (9,300/sq mi)
Demonym Dumagueteño
Time zone PST (UTC+8)
ZIP code 6200
Dialing code 35
Income class 1st class city (sub-highly urbanized)
Website dumaguetecity.gov.ph

Dumaguete, officially the City of Dumaguete, is a city in the Philippine province of Negros Oriental. It is the capital, principal seaport, and largest city of the province. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 120,883 people.[3] The city is nicknamed The City of Gentle People.[4]

Dumaguete is referred to as a university town because of the presence of four universities and a number of other colleges where students of the province converge to enroll for tertiary education. The city is also a popular educational destination for students of surrounding provinces and cities in Visayas and Mindanao. The city is best known for Silliman University, the country's first Protestant university and the first American university in Asia.[5][6] There are also 18 public elementary schools and 8 public high schools. The city's student population is estimated at 30,000.[4]

The city attracts a considerable number of foreign tourists, particularly Europeans, because of easy ferry access from Cebu City, the availability of beach resorts and dive sites, and the attraction of dolphin and whale watching in nearby Bais City.

The power source of the city comes from the geothermal power plant in Palinpinon, Valencia. The city has redundant fiber optic lines and is a focal point for telecommunications. It is the landing point for fiber optic cables linking it to Manila, the capital of the Philippines, the cities south of Luzon, as well as to other major cities in southern Philippines.[7]

Etymology

The Dumaguete Belfry is the city's landmark, built in the 1760s and rebuilt in the 1870s to warn townsfolk of marauding pirates.

"Dumaguete" was coined from the Visayan word dagit, which means "to snatch". The word dumaguet, meaning "to swoop", was coined because of frequent raids by pirates on this once coastal town, and its power to attract and keep visitors. In 1572, Diego López Povedano indicated the place as Dananguet, but cartographer Pedro Murillo Velarde in 1734 already used present name of Dumaguete for the settlement.[8]

Geography and climate

The promenade along Rizal Boulevard, facing the Tañon Strait.

The City has a land area of 3,362 hectares (8,310 acres),[2] situated on the plains of the southeastern coast of Negros Island near the mouth of the Banica River. Of the province's 19 municipalities and 6 cities, Dumaguete is the smallest in terms of land area. It is bounded on the north by the Municipality of Sibulan; on the south by the Municipality of Bacong; and on the west by the Municipality of Valencia. As a coastal city, it is bounded on the east by the Bohol Sea and the Tañon Strait, serving as a natural border to the neighboring provinces of Cebu, Bohol, and Siquijor.

The city's topography is generally flat from two to six kilometers from the shoreline. It slopes gently upwards to the adjoining municipality of Valencia. The highest ground elevation is located at the boundary of the municipality of Valencia, about one hundred meters above mean sea level. About 93% of the land have slopes of less than 3%. The remaining areas have 3% to 5% slope.

Barangays

Provincial Capitol of Negros Oriental.

Dumaguete is politically subdivided into 30 barangays, all classified as urban. The eight barangays in the city's downtown area are known primarily by number. The smallest barangay is Barangay 4 with an area of only 5.11 hectares, while the biggest barangay is Barangay Banilad with 362.71 hectares.

  • Bagacay
  • Bajumpandan
  • Balugo
  • Banilad
  • Bantayan
  • Batinguel
  • Buñao
  • Cadawinonan
  • Calindagan
  • Camanjac
  • Candau-ay
  • Cantil-e
  • Daro
  • Junob
  • Looc
  • Mangnao-Canal
  • Motong
  • Piapi
  • Barangay 1 (Tinago)
  • Barangay 2 (Upper Lukewright)
  • Barangay 3 (Business District)
  • Barangay 4 (Rizal Boulevard)
  • Barangay 5 (Silliman Area)
  • Barangay 6 (Cambagroy)
  • Barangay 7 (Mangga)
  • Barangay 8 (Cervantes Extension)
  • Pulantubig
  • Tabuctubig
  • Taclobo
  • Talay

Climate

Dumaguete has two seasons, namely; the dry and the wet seasons. The wet season covers the period from June to November, and the dry season starts from December to May, the hottest being April and May. The average maximum temperature is 34.3 °C and the average minimum temperature is 22.9 °C for the past years. The relative humidity of the locality for the past years was 78¾% with the month of December registering the highest.

Climate data for Dumaguete City
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 29
(84)		 29
(84)		 30
(86)		 31
(88)		 32
(90)		 31
(88)		 31
(88)		 32
(90)		 31
(88)		 31
(88)		 30
(86)		 30
(86)		 30.6
(87.1)
Average low °C (°F) 25
(77)		 24
(75)		 25
(77)		 25
(77)		 26
(79)		 25
(77)		 24
(75)		 24
(75)		 24
(75)		 25
(77)		 25
(77)		 25
(77)		 24.8
(76.6)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 41.6
(1.638)		 42.3
(1.665)		 39.8
(1.567)		 23.9
(0.941)		 56.9
(2.24)		 109.5
(4.311)		 86.4
(3.402)		 76.2
(3)		 72.9
(2.87)		 93.5
(3.681)		 88.8
(3.496)		 74.9
(2.949)		 806.7
(31.76)
Source: MSN Weather[9]

Demographics

Population census of Dumaguete
YearPop.±% p.a.
1990 80,262—    
1995 92,637+2.72%
2000 102,265+2.14%
2007 116,392+1.80%
2010 120,883+1.39%
Source: National Statistics Office[3]

As of the census of 2010, there are 120,883 people and 21,582 households residing in the city. The city has the least poverty incidence among urban centers in the Visayas and Mindanao, according to the 2009 Small Area Estimates (SAE) of Poverty done by the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB). It has an average daylight population of 400,000 people. Dumaguete is the most populous city in Negros Oriental, comprising 9.05% of the province's total population.

Education

Dumaguete is best known for Silliman University.[10]

Dumaguete has earned the distinction of being known as the "center of learning in the South," or a university town due to the presence of universities that have made their mark nationally and abroad. The city is a melting pot of students, professionals, artists, scholars and the literati coming from different parts of the country and the world.

Silliman University is the dominant institution of higher learning in Dumaguete, providing the city with a distinct university town atmosphere. It is the first Protestant university in the country and the first American university in Asia. The 610,000 m² campus is adjacent to and intermixed with the city's downtown district.[11] Some of its buildings have likewise been recognized as landmarks. These buildings include the Silliman Hall, Katipunan Hall, the Luce Auditorium, and the Silliman Main Library (considered as one of the biggest libraries in the Philippines)[4][12][13][14]

Other universities located in the city are Foundation University, a private non-sectarian university, it does not only offer college education but it also offers kindergarten, grade school, and high school education. Negros Oriental State University (or NORSU, with two main campuses: NORSU Main 1 and 2, founded 1907), and St. Paul University Dumaguete (1904), which is the first Saint Paul educational institution to be established in the Philippines by the Sisters of Saint Paul of Chartres (SPC) from France. SPUD is known for academic courses like Nursing, Tourism, HRM, History, and Mass Communication. With the exception of NORSU, these universities also have grade schools and high schools.

Economy

Tourism, the academe, BPO and technology-related activities and the retail industries are the major sources of income for the city. BPOs and IT firms, as well as retailing, are the fastest rising industries.

Hotel and Tourism

Data from the Department of Tourism show that Dumaguete and Negros Oriental are among the top ten most visited tourist destinations in the country.[15] Tourists visit popular sites such as the Rizal Boulevard, Silliman Hall, and Campañario de Dumaguete which is considered as one of the oldest heritage landmarks of Central Visayas.

TeleTech office in Dumaguete

Business Process Outsourcing

Dumaguete's diversified outsourcing industry services range from call centers, publishing, medical transcription, animation, editing, and architectural outsourcing. With more than a dozen IT and BPO locators, Dumaguete City is becoming one of the preferred Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and Information Technology (IT) hubs of the Philippines.[16]

Retail

Malls and shopping centers in Dumaguete include Lee Super Plaza in the down town area and the Robinsons Place Dumaguete about 2 kilometers south of town.

Employment

Due to the booming BPO industry in Dumaguete, many jobs were created and many Dumagueteños are hired.[17] There is also a none-fee charging job website named Dumjobs that offers free job posting for Dumaguete and Negros Oriental employers.[18]

Health Services

Dumaguete has three major tertiary hospitals, namely the Holy Child Hospital, Negros Oriental Provincial Hospital, and the Silliman Medical Center which is currently associated with St.Luke's Medical Center in Metro Manila[19] and considered one of the best hospitals outside Metro Manila and Metro Cebu. Under proposal is a medical resort with a 100 bed tertiary hospital, and which will cater primarily to the retirement market from North American, European, and East Asian countries. The City is one of the five areas identified by the Philippine government as retirement hubs. Dumaguete is also among the very few cities in the country that have world class laser eye centers.

Transportation

Air

Sibulan Airport

Sibulan Airport (IATA: DGT, ICAO: RPVD), also known as Dumaguete Airport, is the city's domestic airport located in neighboring Sibulan. It provides daily flights to and from Manila and Cebu City through Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines.[20] However, there is a proposal to transfer this via a Php2.5 billion airport to be built in Bacong, a town bordering Dumaguete in the south.[21]

Sea

From the port of Dumaguete, there are daily ferry connections to the islands of Bohol, Siquijor and Mindanao operated by Montenegro Lines, Ocean Jet Shipping, Cokaliong and other shipping companies. From smaller ports north of Dumaguete, there are short and frequent ferry connections to the island of Cebu.

Public transport

The main form of public transport in Dumaguete is the motorized tricycle (Philippines). The Dumaguete version of the motorized tricycle (Philippines) can fit up to 6-8 passengers at a time. For transport to destinations outside the city limit, there are jeepney and buses travelling set routes. Dumaguete has 3 major bus terminals.

Notable residents

The following people are notable residents, past and present, from Dumaguete City:

References

  1. ↑ "New Dumaguete Mayor: Manuel-Chiquiting-Sagarbarria". DumagueteInfo.com. Retrieved 2010-12-22.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Province: Negros Oriental". PSGC Interactive. Makati City, Philippines: National Statistical Coordination Board. Retrieved 13 March 2013.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Total Population by Province, City, Municipality and Barangay: as of May 1, 2010" (PDF). 2010 Census of Population and Housing. National Statistics Office. Retrieved 13 March 2013.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Dumaguete City, the City of Gentle People". Department of Tourism. Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  5. ↑ "CSF program up in Dumaguete". Manila Bulletin. By Atty. Ignacio Bunye. Posted July 5, 2009. Accessed October 14, 2009.
  6. ↑ "Heritage Diary of Negros Oriental". Inquirer.net. By: Dexter Matilla. Posted July 14, 2008. Accessed October 15, 2009.
  7. ↑ http://www.negroshub.com/dumaguete-city/ NegrosHub.com - Dumaguete City
  8. ↑ experiencephilippines.org
  9. ↑ "MSN Weather". Microsoft. Retrieved 2009-04-14.
  10. ↑ "Dumaguete, Negros Oriental". Philippine Airlines. Retrieved 2010-09-01.
  11. ↑ UP is No.1 based on PRC exams. UP Newsletter, Vol. XXVIII, No. 09. September 01, 2007. Accessed May 26, 2009.
  12. ↑ Philippine Travel Center: Negros Oriental. Accessed September 1, 2009.
  13. ↑ Negros Chronicle. Where to go in Negros Oriental. Accessed September 1, 2009.
  14. ↑ WOWPhilippines: Things to do and see in Negros Oriental. Accessed September 1, 2009.
  15. ↑ Top Tourist Destinations in the Philippines
  16. ↑ Baguio, Dumaguete now in top 10 BPO Next Wave Cities
  17. ↑ http://business.inquirer.net/money/topstories/view/20110227-322562/Small-city-hits-big-league-in-BPO-trade
  18. ↑ http://dumjobs.com/contact-us/
  19. ↑ "St. Luke's inks MOA with Silliman Medical Center". Philstar.com. Retrieved 2010-04-28.
  20. ↑ "CEB adds 2nd daily frequency to Manila-Dumaguete ". Cebu Pacific. Retrieved 2010-11-04.
  21. ↑ To a new site in bacong town Solon wants to relocate airport from Dumaguete
  22. ↑ 1992 Ramon Magsaysay Awardees: Angel Alcala. Accessed August 5, 2009.
  23. ↑ Office of the Press Secretary, Republic of the Philippines. Accessed August 5, 2009.
  24. ↑ "Cesar Ruiz Aquino". Panitikan.com.ph. Accessed November 27, 2009.
  25. ↑ "Former RP national treasurer receives prestigious award for women leaders". Philippine Information Agency. Retrieved 2011-04-22.
  26. ↑ Edgar A. Cadagat and Karl G. Ombion. "Bishop Antonio Y. Fortich: Pilgrim for the Poor ". Bulatlat.com. Accessed November 27, 2009.
  27. ↑ "PBB retains Beauty". Negros Chronicle. Accessed November 27, 2009.
  28. ↑ "Beauty Gonzales turns 18". ABS-CBN. Accessed November 27, 2009.
  29. ↑ "Another PBB Teen Edition placer joins showbiz". Telebisyon.net. Retrieved 2010-05-13.
  30. ↑ "Bret Alan Jackson". ABS-CBN. Retrieved 2010-06-22.
  31. ↑ "Bret Jackson". Facebook. Retrieved 2010-06-22.
  32. ↑ Cedelf P. Tupas. "Team Philippines leaves for Beijing in batches". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Accessed November 27, 2009.
  33. ↑ "RP’s best hope for Olympic gold medal climbs ring ". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Accessed November 27, 2009.
  34. ↑ National Artists of the Philippines: Eddie Romero. Accessed October 11, 2009.
  35. ↑ "RP Economy: Out of the woods at last?". Sun.Star. Accessed November 27, 2009.
  36. ↑ National Artists of the Philippines: Edith Tiempo. Accessed October 11, 2009.
  37. ↑ "National Artists for Literature: Edith L. Tiempo". Panitikan.com.ph. Accessed November 27, 2009.
  38. ↑ stylebible.ph

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dumaguete City.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Dumaguete.
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