The (. It is bordered on the north by
Taguig City ; to the northwest by
Parañaque City ; by
Las Piñas City to the west; to the southwest by the municipality of
Bacoor, Cavite ; by the municipality of
San Pedro, Laguna ; and by
Laguna De Bay to the east, the largest lake in the country. It is nicknamed the "Emerald City of the Philippines". According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 379,310.
Muntinlupa City was once notoriously known as the home of the maximum security
National Bilibid Prison , where the country's most dangerous criminals were incarcerated. Nowadays, it has largely shaken-off this negative image to become one of the most progressive cities in the country.
Muntinlupa is home to some of the best commercial establishments in the metropolis and is the location of
Ayala Alabang Village , one of the country's biggest residential communities, where many of the wealthy and famous live. Among the village's well-known residents include former Philippine President
Fidel V. Ramos , actor
Aga Muhlach and his wife, actress/host
Charlene Gonzalez , the Prince of
Brunei , Simone Snoeijenbos and her brother Mateo Snoeijenbos.
The town of Alabang, part of the Second district of Muntinlupa City, has undergone tremendous growth in the last decade. As the Southernmost city of Metro Manila, it has boomed in the last 10 years and acquired urban standards. Because of two large scale commercial real estate development projects namely; the
Filinvest Corporate City by the
Filinvest Development Corporation , and
Ayala Land, Inc. 's Madrigal Business Park, both of which changed the landscape of Muntinlupa City--from what was once vast fields of cow pasture in the late 1980s, into a supercity that houses new residential, business, industrial and commercial establishments. Examples of these are: one of the country's premier shopping centers,
Alabang Town Center , the
Festival Supermall (One of ,
Taguig , or
Manila , during the weekend to enjoy the night out.
Many companies from other crowded cities are planning to, or already have moved their base of operations into Muntinlupa City, in a transformation reminiscent of Makati's development boom 30 years ago.
This city has recently acquired the status "Most Competitive City" and the "Most Improved City" in the Philippines.
The name “Muntinlupa” came from at least three versions. First, its association with the thin topsoil in the area. Second, residents, purportedly replying to a question by Spaniards in the 16th century what the name of their place was, said —apparently mistaking the question for what card game they were playing. Third, the topographical nature of the area, where the term '''''Monte''''' or mountain was expanded to Muntinlupa or mountain land.
Some documents suggest that the first and third versions of Muntinlupa and '' respectively eventually became Muntinlupa either through misspelling or mispronunciation. But no record to date can firmly establish which of the three versions is historically correct.
Muntinlupa is an old term, which refers to a barangay (which means a smaller branch of a city or a municipality;often referred to as a county) now known as the ''. As early as 1800, the Catholic priest Father Joaquín de Zúñiga chronicled it as '''''la población que sigue se llama Muntinlupa'''''.
Muntinlupa City is composed of a lone congressional district, and two legislative districts which are further subdivided into nine
Barangay . Legislative District One contains four Barangays in the southern half of the city, while legislative District Two occupies the five Barangays in the northern portion of the city.
While Barangays are the administrative divisions of the city, and are legally part of the addresses of establishments and homes, many residents indicate their subdivision (village) instead of their Barangay.
Listed below are the Barangays in each district plus some notable subdivisions (villages).
- Bayanan
- Poblacion
- Putatan
- Tunasan
- Alabang
- Ayala Alabang
- Buli
- Cupang
- Sucat
- Country Homes Subdivision
- Agro Homes
- Alabang Hills Village
- Alabang 400 Village
- Camella Homes I
- Camella Townhomes I (Townhomes of Camella I)
- Freewill Subdivision
- Freedom Hills Subdivision
- Kalipayan Homes
- Pacific Malayan Village
- Ayala Alabang Village
- Hillsborough Alabang
- JPA Subdivision
- Mutual Homes Alabang Village
- Victoria Homes Subdivision-Camella Rigdeview
- Pacific Village
- Don Juan Bayview Subd.
- Posadas Village
- San Jose Village
- Soldiers Hills Village
- Camella Homes III
- Camella Homes IV
- Sto. Niño Village
- Treelane Park Subdivision
- Parkhomes Subdivision
- Pleasant Village
- Lakeview Homes
- Lakeshore Village
- Lodora Village
- Villa Carolina 1
- Villa Carolina 2
- Katarungan Village 1
- Katarungan Village 2
- South Greenheights Village
- Southsuperville
- Teachers Village
- Tiosejo Village
- Intercity Homes Subdivision
- U.P. Side Subdivision
- Highway Homes Subdivision
- Liberty Homes Subdivision
- Asian College of Science and Technology
- Christ The King Technical School
- Criminal Justice College
- Every Nation Leadership Institute
- Imus Computer College (ICC) - Alabang
- International Electronics and Technology Institute (IETI) College
- Informatics College - Northgate Campus
- Muntinlupa Institute of Technology
