Samal, Davao del Norte

Samal
—  City  —
Map of Davao del Norte showing the location of Island Garden City of Samal
Samal Location in the Philippines
Coordinates: 7°3′N 125°44′E / 7.05°N 125.733°E / 7.05; 125.733Coordinates: 7°3′N 125°44′E / 7.05°N 125.733°E / 7.05; 125.733
Country	Philippines
Region	Davao Region (Region XI)
Province	Davao del Norte
District	2nd District of Davao del Norte
Founded	July 8, 1948
Cityhood	January 30, 1998
Barangays	46
Government
– Mayor	Aniano Antalan (Lakas-CMD)
Area
– Total	301.3 km2 (116.3 sq mi)
Population (2007)
– Total	90,291
– Density	299.7/km2 (776.1/sq mi)
Time zone	PHT (UTC+8)
ZIP Code
Income class	2nd class
Website	Official website

Island Garden City of Samal is a 2nd class city in the province of Davao del Norte, Philippines. The name is often abbreviated into IGaCoS. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 82,609 people in 17,388 households.

The Island Garden City of Samal is now a part of (Metropolitan Davao) Metro Davao.

History

Early Beginnings

The name Samal was derived from the word Sama, a tribal group found in the island. People used the word Samal because of the Visayans who miscalled the word Sama. The first datu in the island was Datu Taganiyug, a native of Peñaplata, Samal. In the past, the people of Samal name a place about what was the said place known for. For example, the name Peñaplata was derived from the word "piña" or pineapple because of the abundance of pineapple in the area. This, however, is folk etymology as peñaplata literally means "rock of silver" in Spanish. Tagpopongan is the first barangay in Samal which name was from the word "tagpo" or meet. It was called so because in the past, this place is chose by the datus as their meeting place. The word Samal was also known before because it was commonly used as surname by datus. Abu is the national costume of Samal long time ago. The first business transaction in the island was during the Chinese era. Spanish influence was also felt in the island.

World War II

The Pacific War also struck the island. Japanese fighter planes bombed Samal. Japanese occupied the island and forced the people to work for four years until they were expelled by the Allied forces. After the war, infrastructure was built, like schools, churches and stores.

Proposed Province

In 1969, a proposal to create the sub-province of Samal was created by Republic Act No. 5999[1] and covered the area of the present-day city. The act was enacted without President Ferdinand Marcos' approval. However, the sub-province was never inaugurated.

Chartered City

The city was created through Republic Act No. 8471 in 1998. This organic act paved the way for the dissolution and merger of the three former-municipalities of Samal, Babak, and Kaputian into one local government unit, now officially named as the Island Garden City of Samal.

Barangays

The Island Garden City of Samal is politically subdivided into 46 barangays. In 1955, the sitios of Mambago, San Isidro, Sto. Niño, San Antonio, San Agustin, Dangcaan, Balet, Tambo, Camudmud, and Cogo were converted into barrios.^[1]

Adecor Anonang Aumbay Aundanao Balet Bandera Caliclic (Dangca-an) Camudmud Catagman Cawag Cogon Cogon (Talicod) Dadatan Del Monte Guilon Kanaan

Kinawitnon Libertad Libuak Licup Limao Linosutan Mambago-A Mambago-B Miranda (Pob.) Moncado (Pob.) Pangubatan (Talicod I) Peñaplata (Pob.) Poblacion (Kaputian) San Agustin San Antonio

San Isidro (Babak) San Isidro (Kaputian) San Jose (San Lapuz) San Miguel (Magamono) San Remigio Santa Cruz (Talicod II) Santo Niño Sion (Zion) Tagbaobo Tagbay Tagbitan-ag Tagdaliao Tagpopongan Tambo Toril Villarica

References

1. ^ "An Act Converting Certain Sitios in the Municipality of Babak, Province of Davao, into Barrios". LawPH.com. http://lawph.com/statutes/ra1307.html. Retrieved 2011-04-11. 

External links

• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Local Governance Performance Management System
• Official Website of the Island Garden City of Samal
• Samal Island Resource Blog