Sariaya ([sɐɾiˈjajɐʔ]), officially the Municipality of Sariaya (Tagalog: Bayan ng Sariaya), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Quezon, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 161,868 people.^[3]

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Sariaya
Municipality
Municipality of Sariaya
From L-R: Sariaya Town Plaza , Saint Francis of Assisi Parish Church, Sariaya Municipal Building, Governor Natalio Enriquez Ancestral House, Facade of Gala-Rodriguez Ancestral House, Don Lucio Rodriguez Ancestral House, Emralino-Rodriguez Ancestral House, Don Catalino Rodriguez Ancestral House
Flag Seal
Nicknames:  Heritage Town of Quezon Art Deco Capital of Southern Luzon
Motto(s):  Gilas Sariaya! (Be valiant Sariaya!)
Map of Quezon with Sariaya highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Sariaya Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 13°58′N 121°32′E
Country	Philippines
Region	Calabarzon
Province	Quezon
District	2nd district
Founded	1599
Barangays	43 (see Barangays)
Government  [1]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Marcelo P. Gayeta
• Vice Mayor	Alexander A. Tolentino
• Representative	David C. Suarez
• Municipal Council	Members Arlene M. Genove Demia P. Maghirang Vince Rudolph A. Banta Renz Kevin E. Marcuap Minerva R. Remo Ofelia C. Villapando Haydee M. Caringal Mario M. Medrano
• Electorate	96,447 voters (2022)
Area [2]
• Total	212.16 km2 (81.92 sq mi)
• Rank	30th out of 41 in Quezon
Elevation	139 m (456 ft)
Highest elevation	2,167 m (7,110 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2020 census)[3]
• Total	161,868
• Rank	27th out 39 municipalities in Quezon 976th out of 1,489 municipalities in the Philippines
• Density	760/km2 (2,000/sq mi)
• Households	39,329
Demonym	Sariayahin
Economy
• Income class	1st municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	6.34 % (2018)[4]
• Revenue	₱ 442.1 million (2020)
• Assets	₱ 1,123 million (2020)
• Expenditure	₱ 369.3 million (2020)
• Liabilities	₱ 497.3 million (2020)
Service provider
• Electricity	Manila Electric Company (Meralco)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	4322
PSGC	045645000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)42
Native languages	Tagalog
Website	www.sariaya.gov.ph

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As the only Mount Banahaw town in both Quezon and Laguna Provinces that has a sea coast, the town is famous for its pristine beach resorts and nature-trekking activities that lead adventurous hikers to the peak of mythical Mount Banahaw. With more than a hundred of cultural properties and ancestral houses mostly built in Art Deco architecture within the municipality, Sariaya is considered as the Heritage Town of Quezon and the Art Deco Capital of Southern Luzon.^[5] This heritage town has been branded by various cultural experts as a 'cultural gem worthy of a UNESCO designation.' The local government of the municipality with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts of the Philippines were designated to work for the heritage town's inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

With the 2020 census population of almost reaching 161,000, Sariaya is the most populous municipality in the province of Quezon and the 19th most populous municipality in the Philippines. Cityhood might be coming to Sariaya in a matter of years.

The origin of the word Sariaya was allegedly came from the word Sadyaya — one of the town's numerous rivers, but words of the great ancestors and legends have it that it was named after Saria, an supposedly 'illiterate' (according to the Spanish) woman who encountered the first Spaniards in the town who were asking the name of the settlement. Saria can't understand the question as it was in Spanish, which was foreign and unknown to everyone in the area during that time. She was thus branded as illiterate by the Spanish despite being highly educated through Tagalog traditional knowledge. The woman gave her name as answer to the Spanish, assuming that they were asking her name. The Spaniards wrote "Saria" on their notebooks as the name of the settlement. And while the Spaniards were talking with each other, the natives heard them utter the words "Saria-ya". Hence, the words traveled from mouth to mouth and became a common saying until the two words were combined. ^[6]

Sariaya is an inland municipality in the province of Quezon, located 120 kilometres (75 mi) south of Metro Manila and 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from the provincial capital Lucena. The municipality is bordered by Tayabas City on north-east side, the city of Lucena on its southeast, the municipality of Candelaria on its west, and the town of San Juan in Batangas on its south-west. Mount Banahaw flanks it on the north and Tayabas Bay on the south side. It has a total land area of 24,530 hectares

According to the 2020 census of population, Sariaya has a total population of 161,868 people making the second most populous area in Quezon after the City of Lucena. Barangay Santo Cristo is the most populous area in Sariaya with a total population of 9,007 people according to the 2020 census, The Poblacion ranks second and Concepcion Palasan placed in the third rank.

• Agawan Festival

Celebrated every 15th day of May, this religious festivity pays tribute to San Isidro Labrador, the patron saint of farmers. This much-anticipated feast has close affinity with the 'Pahiyas Festival' of Lucban, Quezon. Pliant bamboo treetops and trellises (bagakay) weighed down by succulent fruits, native candies, rice cakes, and colorful rice krispies called "kiping" are deliberately pulled down on the streets by noisy merrymakers right after the afternoon procession. Festival revelers from the town's barangays, neighboring towns, and other provinces would then scramble to gather as many treats as they can snatch and carry, hence the term "Agawan."

• Town Fiesta

On September 14, pious devotees from far and wide pay homage to the miraculous image of the Santo Cristo de Burgos during the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. The Catholic feast is a day-long veneration of the replica of the Crucified Christ at the ancient Cathedral of Burgos, Spain long believed to be a gift of King Philip V of Spain in 1703 to the people of Lumangbayan in Sariaya. People from far-flung barangays flock to the Poblacion to attend the packed fiesta Masses. They also sell their farm products and handicrafts in the public market as they eagerly sample the gaudily-decorated and crowded venue for the annual "perya" (fiesta fair) for thrilling rides, occasional circus performances, and shows featuring human mutants, trained animals performing tricks, vendors peddling herbal medicines, and "peryantes," those hardy and itinerant peddlers of cheap clothing, toys, and kitchen utensils. The town's basketball tournament also holds its cherished championship game on the eve of this much-awaited day. Sometimes there are hired stage performances at the town plaza that feature some of the nation's stage, television and film celebrities as well as musical stars. .......

There are two private hospitals in Sariaya, with a dependable and well-staffed health center providing free medical and preventive services for residents of the forty-three barangays of the municipality.

• Greg Hospital, located at General Luna St., Barangay Poblacion 1
• Soler General Hospital, located at Mabini St., Barangay Poblacion 6

• Leo Austria — former professional basketball player and the head coach of San Miguel Beermen of the Philippine Basketball Association.
• Maximo Rodriguez — twice Sariaya Municipal President (Mayor) in 1906–1907 and 1914-1916 and twice Tayabas (Quezon) Provincial Governor in 1916–1922 and 1933–1937. He also became the principal sponsor of former Philippine president Manuel L. Quezon and Aurora Aragon at their Hong Kong wedding and he was also the instrument in the peaceful surrender of the dreaded Kapitan Kulas and became the Chairman-General Manager of the National Coconut Corporation (NACOCO), the fore runner of the Philippine Coconut Authority. He established the Maximo Rodriguez Solid Laboratory in Sariaya.
• Braulio de Villa — twice Sariaya Town Gobernadorcillo (Mayor) in 1889 and 1892 to 1894, and later became the Provincial Governor of Batangas, his home province.
• Natalio Enriquez – Sariaya Municipal President (Mayor) from 1938 to 1940 and later became the Provincial Governor of Tayabas (Quezon Province) from 1941 to 1945.
• Jovencio de Villa – became the Provincial Governor of Tayabas Province (Quezon Province) during the Japanese Occupation period.
• Roberto P. Racelis – was elected as Provincial Vice Governor of Quezon Province thrice but became Governor (by Operation of Law) from August 8, 1995, to July 25, 1996, and from April 4, 1998, to June 30, 1998.
• Don John L. Montalbo – is known for discovering the "Talon sa Bahanaw" on August 24, 1996.
• Lily Monteverde - movie producer

Sariaya has a sister city relationship with the foreign community of:

• Santa Clarita, California, United States, since 2003^[25][26]