Tacloban

Previously, the city was known under the name Kankabatok, produced from the ethnonym of taverns, the ancient inhabitants of the area. Translated, this name means "possession of the tribe of taverns." Later, other ethnic groups began to arrive here.

The settlement in this area was already in the 16th century, in 1770 missionaries , monks of the Order of the Augustinians arrived here, and later, in 1813, the Franciscans . Then the city was renamed Tacloban. The city was then inhabited mainly by fishermen who caught crabs and fish using ingenious devices called taclubs. By this term the city was named.

In 1770, Tacloban was proclaimed the center of the province of Leyte . Prior to this, in 1768 , Leyte and Samar , which constituted one province, were divided. It was favorably located geographically, playing the role of a seaport and a convenient point for trade between both provinces.

In 1901 , when Colonel Murray came to power, military rule was established on the island, the city was open to international trade. During the Second World War, it became a fairly large center of culture, education and trade in the Philippines. Here copra and abacus were produced in large quantities.

The leading educational institutions were: Junior School, High School, Trade School, Sacred Academy and T Acroban Catholic Institute .

In May 1942, the occupation of Leyte Island by Japanese troops began. The Japanese strengthened the city by making it their port, and placed an airfield here. This is the darkest page in the history of Tacloban. A partisan group began to operate on the island, led by Colonel Ruperto Kangleon . Of the territories captured by the Japanese, the island of Leyte was liberated first. The United States-Philippine forces were commanded by General Douglas MacArthur . Having landed initially in the area of ​​the cities of Tacloban, Palo and Dulag on the coast (otherwise - on the White, Red and Blue coast), the troops of the Philippines and the United States drove the Japanese out by October 1944 . After that, in the building of the Tacloban Capitol at a meeting of General MacArthur and President Sergio Osmen , the city was declared the residence of the Commonwealth of Governments, and also served as the capital until the country was completely liberated from the Japanese invaders.

In October 2008, Tacloban was declared a highly urbanized city.

The local government is called the Capitol, or else it is called Kanhurau , by the name of the hill on which the provincial government building is located. The head of government is the mayor, who has executive power. Legislative power belongs to the city council ( Sangguniang Panglusod ).

Most of the population speaks the language of Varay-Varay ( Austronesian languages ). The composition of the population is mixed. In addition to the native Filipinos, a fairly large group are the Spanish-Filipino and Spanish-Chinese mestizos . The population in 2000 was 178 639 people, in 2007 reached 217 119 people.

On November 9, 2013 , the city was destroyed as a result of the powerful super- typhoon Haiyan (Filipino name - Yolanda). Most of the buildings in the city, especially in the lowland western part and near the coast, were badly damaged or completely destroyed. The transport connection is broken, the city is practically isolated from neighboring regions. The terminal of the city airport ^{[1] was} completely destroyed, only the runway ^{[2] was} preserved.

• City Government of Tacloban City Official Website