F R E E
Subscription to Living, Retiring, Traveling, Business In The Phils. Discussion List
16, 000+ members

SOUTH COTABATO Islamic religion was introduced in Cotabato in 1515 by Shariff Muhammad Kabungsuwan, founder of the Sultanate of Maguindanao. The first Spanish expedition to Cotabato was in 1525; the second in 1596; and the third in 1639. The fourth expedition was launched in June 1851. In 1854, the province was made a politico-military province under the jurisdiction of Zamboanga. Three campaigns were launched in 1861. In 1899, during the Philippine Revolution and the Spanish-American War, the Spaniards evacuated Cotabato. A local government was established in the province under Ramon Vilo. A rival Muslim government was also organized under Datu Ugalingan Piang. In 1967, Cotabato was divided into two, the southern part of which became South Cotabato.

Former Names: Mindanao and Maguindanao
Land Area: 7,468.8 square kilometers
Capital: Koronadal
Population: 770,473 (1980)
Principal Dialects: Hiligaynon, Cebuano, Ilocano, Tagalog and Maguindanao
Income Classification: First Class Province
No. of Cities: 1 (General Santos)
No. of Municipalities: 18 (Alabel, Banga, Glan, Kiamba, Koronadal, Lake Sebu, Maasin, Maitum, Malapatan, Malungon, Norala, Palamolok, Sto. Niño, Surallah, Tampakcan, Tantangan, Tboli and Tupi)
No. of Municipal Districts: None
Topography: The terrain of South Cotabato is characterized by Mountains, rolling hills, and plains. The highest peak in the Philippines, Mt. Apo, separates the province from Davao del Sur. There are several rivers which drain the province, the most important of which is the Allah River.
No. of Principal Rivers: 1 (Allah)
No. of Mountains: 4 (Apo, Matutum, Parker and Talaumpang)
Climate: Rainfall is evenly distributed throughout the year making the climate comfortable.
Average Annual Rainfall: 36.76 inches
Principal products/crops: Corn, rice and coconut
Industries: Pineapple canning, livestock and poultry raising (major industries), logging and fishing
Mineral Resources: Copper
Forest Resources: Timber, firewood, almaciga, rattan, nipa, lumbang nuts and gutta-percha.
Tourist Attractions: Pineapple plantations of Dole Philippines, the banana plantation of Standard Fruit Philippines, Sebu Falls in Allah Valley, the Tagabilis between Surallah and Kiamba, the palace of the late Sultan Jamalul Kiram at Darul Jambangan, Maubu beach and the cassava plantation of High Valley Company.
Governor: Ismael D. Sueno
Congressmen: Adelbert W. Antonio, Hilario L. de Pedro III, James L. Chiongbian

DAVAO The three Davao provinces (Davao, Davao del Sur and Davao Oriental) were formerly united until 1967 when they were separated into independent provinces. In the 19th century, seven major tribal groups occupied the Davao provinces. Of these, the Manobo and Bagobo groups were the most numerous. The Manobos occupy most of Davao del Norte while the Bagobo tribes settled on the northern part of Davao del Sur. The province of Davao dates back to 1914 but its structuring of municipalities was not completed until 1936. Political sub-division of Davao into the three provinces was made on May 8, 1967, by virtue of Republic Act No. 4867.On June 17, 1972, Congress approved Republic Act No. 6430 changing the official name of the province of Davao del Norte to Davao only.

Former Name: Davao del Norte
Land Area: 8,129.8 square kilometers
Capital: Tagum
Population: 725,153 (1980)
Principal Dialects: Cebuano and Panay- Hiligaynon
Income Classification: First Class Province
No. of Cities: None
No. of Municipalities: 21 (Asuncion, Babak, Carmen, Compostela, Kapalong, Kaputian, Mabini, Maco, Mawab, Monkayo, Montevista, Nabunturan, New Bataan, New Corella, Panabo, Pantukan, Samal, San Mariano, Santo Tomas, San Vicente, and Tagum)
No. of Municipal Districts: None
Topography: Majority of its lowland areas are located at the center of the province. This is known as the Davao Piedmont. It is drained by its principal rivers which run north to south and empty their waters into the Davao Gulf. Both Davao and Davao del Sur are separated from the surrounding provinces on the west by the Central Mindanao Highlands.
No. of Principal Rivers: 3 (Liguabanon, Saug and Tuganay)
No. of Mountains: 26 (Mt. Tagubud is the highest)
Climate: Generally mild with no marked rainy or dry season. The province is not within the typhoon belt and dry periods are not extreme as to cause drought even during the warm month of April.
Average Annual Rainfall: 93.69 inches
Principal products/crops: Corn and banana (major crops), rice, coconut, abaca, and other tropical fruits.
Industries: Logging, fishing, livestock and poultry raising (major industries)
Mineral Resources: Copper, gold, silver, limestone and marble
Forest Resources: Timber
Tourist Attractions: Davao Penal Colony, Madaum Beach, Mainit Hot Spring, Masarra Mines and Kamunod Cave.
Governor: Prospero S. Amatong
Congressmen: Lorenzo S. Sarmiento Jr., Baltazar A. Sator, Rodolfo P. del Rosario, and Jesus C. Dureza

DAVAO ORIENTAL is the easternmost province among the Davao provinces. Its shores face the Pacific Ocean and stretch from its northern boundaries to the southern peninsula tipped by Cape San Agustin. The Spaniards established their first permanent Spanish settlement in Caraga town in 1591. The long coastlines of Davao Oriental provide rich fishing grounds. The manufacturing concerns of this province include food processing plants which transform the prized Davao fruit, durian, into candies and preserves. There are also shoe factories, furniture shops, ice plants, cement factories, and repair shops. Home industries such as weaving, candle-making, crude pottery and rope making can be found in Davao Oriental, as in majority of Philippine provinces.

Former Name: None
Land Area: 5,164.5 square kilometers
Capital: Mati
Population: 339,931 (1980)
Principal Dialects: Cebuano and Panay-Hiligaynon
Income Classification: Third Class Province
No. of Cities: None
No. of Municipalities: 11 (Baganga, Banay-Banay, Boston, Caraga, Cateel, Governor Generoso, Lupon, Manay, Mati, San Isidro and Tarragona)
No. of Municipal Districts: None
Topography: The province is dominated by the highlands of the Pacific Cordillera running from north to south of the province. The whole east coast is irregular with deep embayments. Small river deltas can be found at the head of each bay constituting the arable lowlands.
No. of Principal Rivers: 2 (with other Davao provinces)
No. of Mountains: 26 (with other Davao provinces)
Climate: Generally mild with no marked rainy or dry season.
Average Annual Rainfall: 44.67 inches
Principal products/crops: Corn, rice, citrus, coconut and abaca
Industries: Logging, fishing, livestock and poultry raising
Mineral Resources: Copper, gold, silver, and residual magnetite
Forest Resources: Timber
Tourist Attractions: Lupon Beach, Atlas Mines, Caraga Catholic Church, Capitol Hillsides, Waniban Island, Aliwagwag Falls, Cateel Hot Springs, Kalapagan Hot Springs, Saguegue Caves, Bitoon Beach, and the Mount Apo and Mayo Rivers.
Governor: Leopoldo N. Lopez

DAVAO DEL SUR The elongated province of Davao del Sur stretches from Davao City southward to Sarangani Strait. The province has limited alluvial plains and shares some areas of the Davao Piedmont within Davao City. Little is known of Davao before the Spaniards came, but it appears that several scattered tribal groups occupied the shores of Davao Gulf, from the Sarangani Strait to the eastern side of the Gulf culminating at Cape San Agustin. These tribes belonged to the general Muslim group of the Maguindanao. By the time the Spaniards came, they had already settled in many sites away from the shores that were to become important towns. Some of these towns are Tagum in Davao, Samal in Davao del Sur, and Mayo which is now a part of Davao City. In 1970, Davao del Sur had the biggest share (53 percent) of the combined population count of the Davao provinces. This has made the province the most densely populated with 177.7 persons per sq. km. Half of the population, however, lives in Davao City.

Former Name: Nueva Guipuzcoa
Land Area: 6,377.6 square kilometers
Capital: Digos
Population: 1,133,599 (1980)
Principal Dialects: Cebuano and Panay-Hiligaynon
Income Classification: Second Class Province
No. of Cities: 1 (Davao)
No. of Municipalities: 15 (Bansalan, Digos, Don Marcelino, Hagonoy, Jose Abad Santos, Kiblawan, Magsaysay, Malalag, Malita, Matanao, Padada, Santa Cruz, Santa Maria, Sarangani, and Sulop)
No. of Municipal Districts: None
Topography: The province has limited alluvial plains and shares some areas of the Davao Piedmont within Davao City. Both Davao and Davao del Sur are separated from the provinces that bound them on the west by the Central Mindanao Highlands. This mountain ranges has its highest peak in Davao del Sur at Mt. Apo, an active volcano rising to 2,953.51 meters (9,690 feet).
No. of Principal Rivers: 2 (with other Davao provinces)
No. of Mountains: 26 (with other Davao provinces)
Climate: Generally mild with no marked rainy or dry season. The province is not within the typhoon belt and dry periods are not extreme as to cause drought even during the warm month of April.
Average Annual Rainfall: 75.92 inches
Principal products/crops: Corn, rice, citrus, coconut and abaca
Industries: Rice, corn, and sugar milling and various machine shops
Mineral Resources: None
Forest Resources: Timber
Tourist Attractions: Todaya Waterfalls, Aguinaldo Pearl Farms, Bago Inigo Fish Farm, Bago Experimental Station, Mt. Apo National Park and Reservation, Binaton, Bagabo Villages, Balut Island, Seven Hills, the Don Mariano Marcos Foundation School, Astorga beach resort, Apo Beach, and the Ligid Island Resort.
Governor: Douglas RA Cagas

SURIGAO DEL SUR is one of the provinces in the Philippines most laden with minerals. Large amounts of gold, copper, silver, chromite, lead, zinc, iron and nickel have been found in the province.About 28 percent of the total land area consists of farmlands. The towns of Cantilan, Tago and San Miguel are the rice granaries of the province.Surigao del Sur became the 56th province of the Philippines when it was created on September 26, 1960. It has 213 barangays at present and its irregular coastline has three bays which are important ports of the province, namely the Lenuza Bay, the Lianga Bay, and the Bislig Bay.

Former Name: None
Land Area: 4,552.2 square kilometers
Capital: Tandag
Population: 377,647 (1980)
Principal Dialect: Cebuano
Income Classification: Third Class Province
No. of Cities: None
No. of Municipalities: 19 (Barobo, Bayabas, Bislig, Cagwait, Cantilan, Carmen, Carrascal, Cortes, Hinatuan, Lanuza, Lianga, Lingig, Madrid, Marihatag, San Agustin, San Miguel, Tagbina, Tago and Tandag)
No. of Municipal Districts: None
Topography: The coastal regions are made up of small lowlands separated from each other by rugged promontories. The Diwata Range lines the northern boundaries of the province. Offshore are coral reefs and tiny islets which make Surigao del Sur almost inaccessible to big shipping vessels.
No. of Principal Rivers: 1
No. of Mountains: None
Climate: Rainfall is evenly distributed throughout the year with no distinct dry season. Surigao del Sur does not experience severe storms although it is exposed to the northeast monsoon and trade winds.
Average Annual Rainfall: 182.94 inches
Principal products/crops: Rice, corn, rootcrops, copra and abaca
Industries: Lumbering and farming
Mineral Resources: Gold, copper, silver, nickel, iron, chromite, lead, zinc, coal, cobalt and limestone Forest Resources: Timber and rattan
Tourist Attractions: Tandag Beach, Point Tugas (worlds largest iron reserves), and Dalahican and Tamoyas beaches.
Governor: Salvacion C. Cejoco
Congressmen: Mario Serra Ty, Ernesto T. Estrella.