Zamboanga City

Zamboanga City
Highly Urbanized City
City of Zamboanga
Clockwise from top: Zamboanga City Hall, Great Santa Cruz Island, Paseo del Mar, Zamboanga City view, Metropolitan Cathedral of Immaculate Conception, Santa Barbara Mosque
Seal
Nickname(s): Asia's Latin City, City of Flowers, Sardines Capital of the Philippines
Motto: "Build Back Better Zamboanga"
Map with Zamboanga City highlighted
Zamboanga City Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 6°55′N 122°05′E / 6.92°N 122.08°E / 6.92; 122.08Coordinates: 6°55′N 122°05′E / 6.92°N 122.08°E / 6.92; 122.08
Country	Philippines
Region	Zamboanga Peninsula (Region IX)
Province	Zamboanga del Sur (statistically only)
Established	June 23, 1635
Incorporated (city)	October 12, 1936
Established (city)	February 26, 1937
Official language(s)	Chavacano
Government
• Mayor	Beng Climaco (LP)
• Vice Mayor	César Iturralde (LDP)
• Representatives	Celso L. Lobregat District I (Costa Oeste) Manuel Jose M. Dalipe District II (Costa Este)
• City Council	District I Melchor Sadain Rogelio Valesco, Jr. Cesar Jimenez, Jr. Charlie Mariano Luis Biel III Josephine Pareja Myra Paz V. Abubakar Rodolfo Bayot District II Roel Natividad Benjamin Guingona IV Miguel Alavar III Kim Elago Eduardo Saavedra, Jr. Rommel Agan Percival Ramos Vincent Paul Elago
Area
• Land	1,483.38 km2 (572.74 sq mi)
Area rank	3rd largest by land area
Elevation	16.0 m (52.5 ft)
Population (2015 census)
• Total	861,799
Demonym(s)	Zamboangeño, Zamboangeña
Time zone	PST (UTC+8)
ZIP code	7000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)62
Income class	1st city income class
	097332000
Electorate	412,795 voters as of 2016
Website	www.zamboanga.gov.ph

Zamboanga City (Chavacano: Ciudad de Zamboanga) is a highly urbanized city located in Mindanao, Philippines. It has a population of 861,799 people as of the 2015 census. Zamboanga City is the 6th most populous and 3rd largest city by land area in the Philippines. It is the commercial and industrial center of the Zamboanga Peninsula Region. Zamboanga City is an independent city, chartered and Zamboanga became a highly urbanized city on November 22, 1983, and not part of or was never part in any of the three provinces in Zamboanga Peninsula.

Zamboanga City used to be known as Samboangan in historical records. It was founded by the Subanen people during the pre-Hispanic times. After independence from Spain in May 1899, Zamboanga became the Republic of Zamboanga with Chavacano as its official language and Spanish as its co-official language. After American intervention, the republic was incorporated into the Philippines and became the capital of the Moro Province, now Mindanao, from 1903 to 1913. On October 12, 1936, Zamboanga City became a chartered city under Commonwealth Act No. 39. It was inaugurated on February 26, 1937, which was declared a local holiday.

Known for its Hispanic influenced culture, the city bears the nickname "Asia's Latin City."

Zamboanga City was founded in the late 12th or early 13th century as a settlement by the Subanen people. Zamboanga peninsula was also the homelands of the ancestors of the Yakan, the Balanguingui, and other closely related Sama-Bajau peoples.

During the 13th century, the Tausūg people started migrating to Zamboanga and the Sulu archipelago from their homelands in northeastern Mindanao. They became the dominant ethnic group after they were Islamized in the 14th century and established the Sultanate of Sulu in the 15th century. A majority of the Yakan, the Balanguingui, and the Sama-Bajau were also Islamized, though most of the Subanen remained animist (with the exception of the Kolibugan subgroup in southwestern Zamboanga).