Matuguinao

Matuguinao, officially the Municipality of Matuguinao (Waray: Bungto han Matuguinao; Tagalog: Bayan ng Matuguinao), is a municipality in the province of Samar, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 7,364 people, making it the least populated municipality in the province.^[5]

Matuguinao
Municipality
Municipality of Matuguinao
Forest in Matuguinao
Flag
Map of Samar with Matuguinao highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Matuguinao Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 12°09′N 124°53′E
Country	Philippines
Region	Eastern Visayas
Province	Samar
District	1st district
Founded	June 19, 1965
Barangays	20 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Aran D. Boller
• Vice Mayor	Cleofe D. Belonio
• Representative	Stephen James Tan
• Councilors	List • Salvador B. Floquencio • Valentin B. Morillo • Cristina D. Doroja • Sherly D. Loberando • Marcial E. Quitalig • Vilmar B. dela Cruz • Jaime D. Velasco • Bienvinida S. Velarde DILG Masterlist of Officials
• Electorate	6,241 voters (2025)
Area [2]
• Total	172.51 km2 (66.61 sq mi)
Elevation	188 m (617 ft)
Highest elevation	754 m (2,474 ft)
Lowest elevation	14 m (46 ft)
Population  (2024 census)[3]
• Total	7,708
• Density	45/km2 (120/sq mi)
• Households	1,545
Economy
• Income class	5th municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	42.56 % (2021)[4]
• Revenue	₱ 125.2 million (2022)
• Assets	₱ 288.6 million (2022)
• Expenditure	₱ 108.2 million (2022)
• Liabilities	₱ 150.4 million (2022)
Service provider
• Electricity	Samar 1 Electric Cooperative (SAMELCO 1)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	6708
PSGC	0806011000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)55
Native languages	Waray Tagalog

Etymology

Matuguinao or Matugnaw is a Waray-Waray word that literally means cold.

History

Waterfall in Matuguinao, 1937

Matuguinao was named as a municipal district of Gandara in the year 1948 to 1960. By virtue of Republic Act No. 4221, which divided the old province of Samar, it was later converted into a municipality and a part of the newly established province of Western Samar (now Samar) in 1965.^[6][7]

Geography

Barangays

Matuguinao is politically subdivided into 20 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

• Angyap
• Bag-otan
• Barruz (Barangay No. 1)
• Camonoan
• Carolina
• Deit
• Del Rosario
• Inubod
• Libertad
• Ligaya
• Mabuligon (Poblacion)
• Maduroto (Poblacion)
• Mahanud
• Mahayag
• Nagpapacao
• Rizal
• Salvacion
• San Isidro
• Santa Cruz
• San Roque (Mabuhay)

Climate

Climate data for Matuguinao
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	28 (82)	29 (84)	29 (84)	31 (88)	31 (88)	30 (86)	29 (84)	29 (84)	29 (84)	29 (84)	29 (84)	28 (82)	29 (85)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	21 (70)	21 (70)	21 (70)	22 (72)	24 (75)	24 (75)	24 (75)	25 (77)	24 (75)	24 (75)	23 (73)	22 (72)	23 (73)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	72 (2.8)	52 (2.0)	65 (2.6)	62 (2.4)	87 (3.4)	129 (5.1)	153 (6.0)	124 (4.9)	147 (5.8)	157 (6.2)	139 (5.5)	117 (4.6)	1,304 (51.3)
Average rainy days	17.4	13.4	16.8	18.0	22.0	25.3	26.2	24.2	24.9	26.0	23.3	20.8	258.3
Source: Meteoblue[8]

Demographics

Population census of Matuguinao

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1939	896	—
1948	2,216	+10.58%
1960	1,818	−1.64%
1970	2,198	+1.91%
1975	3,942	+12.43%
1980	5,020	+4.95%
1990	3,819	−2.70%
1995	5,205	+5.97%
2000	5,361	+0.64%
2007	6,589	+2.89%
2010	6,746	+0.86%
2015	7,288	+1.48%
2020	7,364	+0.22%
2024	7,708	+1.10%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[9][10][11][12][13]

Economy

Poverty incidence of Matuguinao

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 2000 72.16 2003 81.35 2006 64.20 2009 57.48 2012 51.78 2015 60.26 2018 39.77 2021 42.56 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]

Infrastructure

Water and sanitation

Water is abundant in this town, with cold and hot water sources.

Solid Waste Management

Garbage are being collected here manually by a karitilya. It is dumped on its garbage dumpsite along the provincial road going to Matuguinao and after barangay Barruz.