San Francisco, officially the Municipality of San Francisco (Cebuano: Lungsod sa San Francisco; Tagalog: Bayan ng San Francisco), is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Cebu, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 59,236 people.

It is one of the municipalities that comprise the Camotes Islands.

San Francisco is bordered to the north by the Province of Leyte in the Camotes Sea, to the west is the Camotes Sea Facing Catmon, to the east is the island of Poro with town of Poro and to the south is the Camotes Sea.

History

Protohistory

Carl Guthe, director of the University of Michigan Anthropological Museum, during his 1923-25 collecting trip and explorations of archaeological sites in the Philippines, conducted an archeological dig in a cave site on Tulang. Located on the southeastern coast of the island, the cave measures about 3.7 by 2.7 metres (12 by 9 feet). Guthe reported it to contain bone fragments and teeth of about 60 individuals. Associated grave goods included earthenware pottery, shell bracelets, bronze and iron artefacts (iron tang, bronze chisel, iron blade), glass and stone beads, hammerstone and pestle. Filed teeth were also recovered from this site.

21st century

Just before Typhoon Yolanda struck in November 2013, the mayor of San Francisco ordered the evacuation of all the residents (approximately 1,000) to the main island. This was credited with saving their lives as all houses on the island (about 500) were completely destroyed.

Geography

San Francisco consists primarily of Pacijan (also known as Pajican) and Tulang (area less than 1 square kilometre (0.39 sq mi), just north of Pacijan) islands, which are part of the Camotes Islands (which also include Poro and Ponson islands). They are located east of the main island of Cebu, south and west of Leyte and north of Bohol.

Pacijan (Pajican) Island

Pacijan Island is about 14.75 kilometres (9.17 mi) long and 8.5 kilometres (5.3 mi) wide. A 1,400-metre (1,530 yd) causeway crosses the mangrove swamp to connect Pacijan and Poro islands. It was constructed during the Spanish era, to bridge the islands for easier trading and attending services in Poro church.

Tulang

Tulang island (known locally as Tulang Diot) is a five-minute boat ride from Tulang Dako on the main island of Pacijan. Both Tulang Diot and Tulang Dako are part of Esperanza barangay. The islet is almost entirely covered with coconut palms and measures about 1.6 by 0.6 kilometres (1.0 by 0.4 mi): the residential area is confined to a small triangle at the southern end. Total area is less than 1 km (0.39 sq mi) or 40 ha (100 acres), of which only 3.5 ha (8.6 acres) (8.8%) is inhabited.

Barangays

San Francisco is politically subdivided into 15 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

PSGC	Barangay	Population			±% p.a.
		2020		2010
0702242002	Cabunga‑an	3.8%	2,226	1,764	▴	2.35%
0702242003	Campo	5.3%	3,123	2,517	▴	2.18%
0702242004	Consuelo	9.7%	5,750	4,827	▴	1.76%
0702242006	Esperanza	10.8%	6,370	5,629	▴	1.24%
0702242007	Himensulan	3.9%	2,331	2,169	▴	0.72%
0702242001	Montealegre	2.9%	1,735	1,288	▴	3.02%
0702242008	Northern Poblacion	8.1%	4,786	3,779	▴	2.39%
0702242009	San Isidro	7.3%	4,346	3,668	▴	1.71%
0702242010	Santa Cruz	9.2%	5,465	4,717	▴	1.48%
0702242011	Santiago	4.1%	2,412	2,132	▴	1.24%
0702242012	Sonog	6.4%	3,799	3,366	▴	1.22%
0702242013	Southern Poblacion	7.0%	4,143	3,453	▴	1.84%
0702242014	Unidos	1.7%	992	1,035	▾	−0.42%
0702242015	Union	8.5%	5,023	4,721	▴	0.62%
0702242016	Western Poblacion	4.5%	2,679	2,292	▴	1.57%
	Total		59,236	47,357	▴	2.26%

Climate

Demographics

Population census of San Francisco

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1903	8,110	—
1918	10,772	+1.91%
1939	16,980	+2.19%
1948	19,286	+1.42%
1960	20,894	+0.67%
1970	23,028	+0.98%
1975	27,766	+3.82%
1980	28,806	+0.74%
1990	36,521	+2.40%
1995	39,115	+1.29%
2000	41,327	+1.19%
2007	44,588	+1.05%
2010	47,357	+2.22%
2015	55,180	+2.95%
2020	59,236	+1.40%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority

Language

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The town is home to the Porohanon language, one of the most endangered languages in the Visayas. The language is only used in the Poro islands. The language is classified as distinct from Sebwano (Bisaya) by the Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino and is vital to the culture and arts of the Porohanon people.

Economy

Poverty incidence of San Francisco

10 20 30 40 50 60 70 2006 60.70 2009 59.49 2012 49.34 2015 44.13 2018 31.70 2021 54.32 Source: Philippine Statistics Authority