What is the history of Davao City?

The beginnings of Davao as a distinct geopolitical entity started during the last fifty years of Spanish rule in the country. read more

The city was joyously inaugurated in March 1, 1937 with Hon. Elpidio Quirino, then the Secretary of Interior as President Quezon’s representative in the celebration program. Davao City’s territory of 244,000 hectares covered the municipality of Davao and the municipal district of Guianga. read more

But before then, the area what is now Davao City was already inhabited by Lumad peoples for centuries prior, and at that time it was under the control of a Bagobo chieftain Datu Bago who was also an ally of the Sultan of the Maguindanaoan Empire, the most powerful state in southern Philippines at the time (they controlled 60% of all Mindanao island at that time) and also the archrival of the Spanish in the entire archipelago. read more

Davao City, officially the City of Davao (Cebuano: Dakbayan sa Dabaw, Filipino: Lungsod ng Dabaw), is a highly urbanized city in the island of Mindanao, Philippines. read more