Murcia, Negros Occidental

Murcia, officially the Municipality of Murcia, is a municipality in the province of Negros Occidental, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 88,868 people.^[5] It is 17 kilometres (11 mi) east of Bacolod.

Murcia
Municipality
Municipality of Murcia
Murcia Municipal Building
Flag Seal
Map of Negros Occidental with Murcia highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Murcia Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 10°36′N 123°02′E
Country	Philippines
Region	Negros Island Region
Province	Negros Occidental
District	3rd district
Named after	Murcia, Spain
Barangays	23 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Victor Gerardo M. Rojas (NPC)
• Vice Mayor	Johnny P. Reosura (Lakas)
• Representative	Javier Miguel L. Benitez (PFP)
• Municipal Council	Members Enegio C. Gravino, Jr. Phillip S. Belleza Carlito B. Yu, Jr. Alfredo L. Villarosa Joey R. Gomez Belen E. Magbanua Francoise O. Ginson Hernan C. Alintana
• Electorate	56,755 voters (2025)
Area [2]
• Total	279.14 km2 (107.78 sq mi)
Elevation	429 m (1,407 ft)
Highest elevation	2,432 m (7,979 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2024 census)[3]
• Total	90,123
• Density	320/km2 (840/sq mi)
• Households	21,101
Economy
• Income class	1st municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	22.95 % (2021)[4]
• Revenue	₱ 400.3 million (2022)
• Assets	₱ 865.7 million (2022)
• Expenditure	₱ 284.4 million (2022)
• Liabilities	₱ 342.4 million (2022)
Service provider
• Electricity	Negros Electric and Power Corporation (NEPC)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	6129
PSGC	064520000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)34
Native languages	Hiligaynon Tagalog
Named after	Murcia, Spain

History

Murcia was founded by an Augustinian Recollect priest named Fr. Miguel Alvarez in 1860.^[6]

During World War II, the municipal hall of the town was used as a garrison by the invading Japanese. Due to resistance from Filipino guerillas, the Japanese withdrew from the municipality on April 21, 1945.^[6]

Geography

Barangays

Murcia Public Plaza

Murcia is politically subdivided into 23 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

• Abo-abo
• Alegria
• Amayco
• Zone I (Poblacion)
• Zone II (Poblacion)
• Zone III (Poblacion)
• Zone IV (Poblacion)
• Zone V (Poblacion)
• Blumentritt
• Buenavista
• Caliban
• Canlandog
• Cansilayan
• Damsite
• Iglau-an
• Lopez Jaena
• Minoyan
• Pandanon (Silos)
• San Miguel
• Santa Cruz
• Santa Rosa
• Salvacion
• Talotog

Climate

Climate data for Murcia, Negros Occidental
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	27 (81)	28 (82)	29 (84)	31 (88)	30 (86)	29 (84)	28 (82)	29 (84)	28 (82)	28 (82)	28 (82)	27 (81)	29 (83)
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)	23 (73)	23 (73)	23 (74)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	120 (4.7)	87 (3.4)	95 (3.7)	97 (3.8)	187 (7.4)	263 (10.4)	251 (9.9)	220 (8.7)	227 (8.9)	268 (10.6)	220 (8.7)	158 (6.2)	2,193 (86.4)
Average rainy days	16.1	12.6	15.4	16.8	25.8	28.4	29.1	27.9	27.7	28.5	23.9	18.4	270.6
Source: Meteoblue (modeled/calculated data, not measured locally)[7]

Demographics

Population census of Murcia

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1903 4,227 —     1918 10,058 +5.95% 1939 18,948 +3.06% 1948 28,243 +4.53% 1960 23,482 −1.53% 1970 32,176 +3.20%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1975 38,668 +3.75% 1980 45,162 +3.15% 1990 50,996 +1.22% 1995 55,128 +1.47% 2000 59,358 +1.60% 2007 71,289 +2.56%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 2010 75,207 +1.97% 2015 81,286 +1.49% 2020 88,868 +1.89% 2024 90,123 +0.34%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[8][9][10][11][12]

Economy

Negros Occidental Eco-Tourism Highway (N69) along Murcia

Poverty incidence of Murcia

10 20 30 40 50 60 2000 54.01 2003 34.26 2006 25.10 2009 20.73 2012 23.26 2015 21.61 2018 21.26 2021 22.95 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]

Tourism

Lake in Mambukal

Tinabu-ay of Murcia Festival

The Mambukal Resort in Barangay Minoyan, Murcia, Negros Occidental has bats as tourist attraction. There resort has 3 species of bats – the Philippine Flying Fox (Philippine Giant Fruit Bat), the Philippine bare-backed fruit bat, and the Little Golden-mantled Flying Fox, which is already endangered. They produce a nitrogen-rich organic fertilizer called guano. Bats are included in the list of animals protected by Republic Act 9147 (Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act).^[21] The provincial government-owned Mambukal Resort inaugurated its "Butterfly Garden," in December 2007. Live predators of butterflies like tarantula, wild geckos, scorpions, millipedes and centipedes were displayed.^[22]

Aside from the Mambukal Mountain Resort, Murcia is also famous for its Pandanon River Resort situated in the Murcia-Don Salvador Benedicto municipality border. A golf and country club is situated in Barangay Blumentritt.

Notable personalities

• Donnie Nietes - Professional Boxing World Champion

Twin cities

• Murcia, Spain
• Baguio, Philippines