Danao, Cebu

Danao, officially the City of Danao (Dakbayan sa Danao; Dakbanwa sang Danao; Lungsod ng Danao), is a 3rd class component city in the province of Cebu, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 156,321 people.

Danao is within the Metro Cebu area.

Etymology
According to the most popular legend, the town derived its name from the word danawan, which means pond in English when Captain del Rosario established the town as a municipio.

History
The origin of the name Danao lacks concrete historical records, though two legendary accounts exist regarding its establishment as a municipio. The most popular legend dates back to 1844, involving a Spanish captain named Manuel Anecito del Rosario. Commissioned by early Spanish authorities in Cebu province, del Rosario's mission was to establish municipios from Compostela to Borbon.

While traveling north on horseback, Captain del Rosario encountered natives in Cotcot, tending to their carabaos in a pond. Unfamiliar with the area, he asked the locals (in Spanish) the name of the place. Misunderstanding his question, the natives thought he referred to the pond and replied danawan, meaning pond. Due to the captain's limited understanding of the local dialect and defective hearing, he interpreted the response as "Danao." Consequently, the place was named Danao, and Captain del Rosario established it as a municipio.

Captain del Rosario stayed in Danao for several years, overseeing the construction of essential infrastructure, including the presidencia (town hall), the Roman Catholic Church completed in 1847, the convento, and town streets such as Calle Lapulapu, Calle Rizal, and Calle Marcelo del Pilar. Some of the Spanish-era culverts in these streets still exist today.

Following the establishment of Danao, del Rosario continued to the north, helping to organize the towns of Carmen, Catmon, and Borbon. In 1860, he returned to Danao, adopting the surname Gonzales and settling permanently in the town he favored most.

Efforts to document Danao’s pre-war and post-liberation history were unsuccessful, as many records were presumed lost or destroyed during World War II.

Establishment
Danao was officially established as a city on June 7, 1961, by virtue of Republic Act No. 3028. Each year, a Charter Day Celebration takes place from June 1-7, featuring various activities such as traditional games and customs enjoyed by Danawanons across generations.

Contemporary
In 2005, the definition of Metro Cebu was expanded, including Danao City as the northern boundary and Carcar City as the southern boundary.

Geography
Danao is in the Metro Cebu area and is 33 km from Cebu City. It is bordered on the north by Carmen, on the west by Asturias, on the south by Compostela and to the east by the Camotes Sea.

Barangays
Danao is politically subdivided into 42 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

Railways
The Cebu railway ran from Danao south to Argao. During World War II, the bridges, tracks and Central Station were bombed so extensively that the railway never recovered, and it closed in 1942. After that, whatever was left after the war was dug up to become the Cebu North Road.

Now a new light railway is to be built in Cebu.

Sugar
The old system of milling sugar cane used to produce sugar, called "intosan". Although the railway was originally to move coal, it was soon used too to move sugar cane to the docks.

Gun industry
Danao City was well known for its gun industry. The industry started around 1905–06. When World War II came, the Danao gunsmiths went underground, joined the guerrilla movement or were inducted into the United States Army Forces in the Far East. Their main task was to re-chamber the Japanese Arisaka rifles to fit the US .30 caliber round or to keep the original Japanese rifle in good service.

The industry went on, still underground. In the 1960s, the term paltik was given to the homemade (and illegal) guns. In the early 1990s the industry was legalized by the government, with the creation of two organizations of local gunsmiths. The organization now left with proper permit is Workers League of Danao Multi-purpose Cooperative (World MPC), in Dungguan, Danao City.

World MPC was incorporated in October 1994 with twenty-five initial members. In November 1996 it was given license to manufacture handguns from caliber .22 to .45 by the Philippine National Police (PNP). The organization had been a potent group in working for the legalization of gun-making industry in the country with the aim to upgrade the technology and skills of gun makers, to provide job security and additional revenue for the government. The gun-making industry in Danao was pioneered using brass or copper as materials. The Chairman of World MPC was in charge of the compliance of the requirements of the Firearms Explosives Security Service Agency and Guards Supervisory Section (FESSAGES) until his death in 2010 after which World MPC itself was then shutdown for non-compliance of FESSAGES policies.

Holiday industry


Tourism in the area is still in its infancy. All along the eastern seaboard of Cebu there are family-owned resorts.

In 2017, Danao hosted the Xterra Off-road Triathlon. This was held at the Coco Palms resort.

Mitsumi
Mitsumi is one of the largest employers in northern Cebu.

Metro Cebu Expressway
Work for the ₱50 billion, 74 km Metro Cebu Expressway, started in 2018. It will connect Naga City in the south to Danao City in the north.