BASIC FACTS
Brief History
Dipolog began as a tribal settlement of
Subanons who were part of the second wave of Malay migrants to the
Philippines. Earliest recorded historical entries date back to 1834 when a
civil government was organized by the Spanish Provincial Government of
Misamis with the appointment of a Capitan as town executive, a Teniente
and an Aguacil to maintain law and order. Dipolog was formally declared a
municipality by then Mindanao Governor-General John J. Pershing on July 1,
1913. It became a city, and the capital of Zamboanga del Norte, on January
1, 1970 after R.A. 5520 was signed by President Ferdinand E. Marcos on
July 21, 1969.
Geography
Dipolog City is 241.1 square kilometers
of rolling hills with wide lowlands in northwestern Zamboanga del Norte.
It faces the provinces of Cebu and Negros in the Visayas. It sits at the
tip of the Zamboanga Peninsula and is known as the "Gateway to
Western Mindanao". It has 21 barangays, including the 4 districts in
the poblacion. From Manila, the city is situated in the south where it can
be reached in about an hour via direct air flight or about 40 hours
through sea transportation. It is a 40-minute flight or a 10-hour sea
cruise from Cebu City.
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Population and Languages/Dialects
Spoken
The city has close to 100,000 residents. Approximately 97.0 percent of the
total household population speak Cebuano. The original Subanon
dialect-speaking live in the highlands. Christian Catholics make up 72.0
percent of the total household population.
Climate
Dipolog has a mild and moderate climate
with rainfall more or less evenly distributed throughout the year. It has
a distinct dry and rainy season. February to April is when the sun shined
the most while rainshowers come in to mark the days from May to January.
Its generally pleasant climate is seasoned by the cool tangy air of the
eastern highlands mingling with the breezes of the Sulu Sea.
Major
Industries
Dipolog is basically an agricultural
city. A few large agro-industrial establishments deal in rubber and feed
processing, lumber, etc. Most of the small manufacturing establishments
are also agro-industrial in nature - saw mills, rice/corn mills, small to
medium cottage industries engaged in metalcraft, wood and rattancraft,
ceramics, and food processing (sardines, corned beef, dried fish, etc.)