Lucena, Quezon

Lucena City
Highly Urbanized City
City of Lucena
Clockwise from top: Urban Areas in Lucena City, Manuel L. Quezon Monument, Quezon Convention Center, Saint Ferdinand Cathedral, Busiest Streets of Lucena City.
Seal
Nickname(s): LC; Biofuel City; Cocopalm City of the South; The Gateway to the South; Entertainment Capital of Southern Luzon; Queen City of South Luzon; Bagong Lucena
Motto: Sama-Sama sa Bagong Lucena!
Map of Quezon showing the location of Lucena City
Lucena City Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 13°56′N 121°37′E / 13.93°N 121.62°E / 13.93; 121.62Coordinates: 13°56′N 121°37′E / 13.93°N 121.62°E / 13.93; 121.62
Country	Philippines
Region	CALABARZON (Region IV-A)
Province	Quezon (geographically only)
Congr. district	2nd district of Quezon
Incorporated	June 1, 1882 (Town)
Incorporated	August 20, 1961 (City)
Incorporated	July 1, 1991 (Highly Urbanized City)
Barangays	33
Government
• Representative	Vicente J. Alcala (LP)
• Mayor	Roderick A. Alcala (LP)
• Vice-Mayor	Philip M. Castillo (LP)
Area
• Total	80.21 km2 (30.97 sq mi)
Elevation	15.2 m (49.9 ft)
Population (2015 census)
• Total	266,248
• Density	3,300/km2 (8,600/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Lucenahin
Time zone	PST (UTC+8)
ZIP Code	4300, 4301
Dialing code	+63 (0)42
Income class	1st Class, Highly Urbanized
Website	lucenacity.gov.ph

Lucena, officially the City of Lucena (Filipino: Lungsod ng Lucena), is a first class highly urbanized city and it is the capital city of the province of Quezon, Philippines and the only first class Highly Urbanized City located in the Calabarzon Region. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of 266,248 people making the most populous area in the province.

For statistical and geographical purposes, Lucena City is grouped with Quezon but governed administratively independent from the province.

In the 1570s, Capitan Juan de Salcedo first explored what was the province of Tayabas. The Franciscan priests Juan de Plasencia and Diego de Oropesa between 1580 and 1583 founded its town, also named Tayabas. Tayabas was organized by the Spaniards through the Franciscan missionaries and Lucena was just one of its barrios.

The Spaniards of the 16th century called the area "Buenavista" because of its scenic beauty; several years later, the barrio was renamed "Oroquieta". A century later, Muslim pirates began terrorizing the entire Philippine coastline, and Oroquieta was not spared from the notorious raids. The barrio folks built forts along the seashores to defend it against the attacking pirates along the coast, particularly in the present-day Cotta and in Barangay Mayao, though these structures are no longer extant. Hence, the place became known as Cotta, the Spanish form of the Tagalog "kuta" ("fort"). The growth of local maritime trade facilitated in the Cotta port and the final defeat of Moro pirates plying the Luzon and Visayan waters, afforded the growth of Lucena as a town which eventually led to its being the capital of Tayabas province in 1901.

Finally on November 5, 1879, the Orden Superior Civil officially adopted the name 'Lucena" in honor of a Spanish friar by the name of Father Mariano Granja in Andalucia, Spain. Fr. Granja was responsible for the development of the barrio that became a Parish in 1881. Lucena became an independent municipality on June 1, 1882.

During the 1896 Philippine Revolution, the people of Lucena showed their brand of patriotism. José Zaballero led the local revolutionists who were under the barrage of Spanish muskets. Later, Miguel Arguilles with Jose Barcelona as President formed a revolutionary government in Lucena.