To the Obos, davah also means "a place beyond the high grounds" (alluding to settlements at the mouth of the river surrounded by high, rolling hills). The aboriginal Obos, who inhabit the hinterlands of the region, called the river Davah (with a gentle vowel ending, although later pronunciation is with a hard v or b) the Clatta (or Giangan/Diangan) called it Dawaw, and the Tagabawas called it Dabo. The word davao came from the phonetic blending of three Bagobo subgroups' names for the Davao River, a major waterway emptying into the Davao Gulf near the city. The Bagobos were indigenous to the Philippines. The region's name is derived from its Bagobo origins. 2.7 Social unrest, martial law, and the 1980s.The city is also nicknamed the " Durian Capital of the Philippines" and " Chocolate Capital of the Philippines". Davao is home to Mount Apo, the highest mountain in the Philippines. The city serves as the main trade, commerce, and industry hub of Mindanao, and the regional center of Davao Region. The city is divided into three congressional districts, which are subdivided into 11 administrative districts with a total of 182 barangays.ĭavao City is the center of Metro Davao, the second most populous metropolitan area in the Philippines.
It is geographically situated in the province of Davao del Sur and grouped under the province by the Philippine Statistics Authority, but the city is governed and administered independently from it. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 1,776,949 people. It is the third-most populous city in the Philippines after Quezon City and Manila, and the most populous in Mindanao. The city has a total land area of 2,443.61 km 2 (943.48 sq mi), making it the largest city in the Philippines in terms of land area. Cebuano, English, Filipino, Hiligaynon, and Native Davaoeñoĭavao City, officially known as the City of Davao ( Cebuano: Dakbayan sa Dabaw Hiligaynon: Dakbanwa sang Dabaw Filipino: Lungsod ng Davao), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Davao Region, Philippines.