Butuan City Charter Day in the Philippines Date in the current year: August 2, 2024

Butuan is a first-class highly urbanized city in the Philippines. It is situated in the province of Agusan del Norte and is its de facto capital and largest city, as well as the administrative center and most populous city of Caraga Region.

The name “Butuan” is believed to have derived from the word bantuan, the local name of the sour fruit of Garcinia morella, which is common in Mindanao. Another theory claims that it originated from Datu Buntuan, a chieftain who once ruled over the lands where the present-day city is situated.

Be that as it may, Butuan is one of the oldest settlements in the Philippines. During the pre-colonial era, the area was known as the Rajahnate of Butuan or the Kingdom of Butuan. It was a prosperous polity famous for its gold mining, gold wares, and extensive trade with other polities across Southeast Asia. The rajahnate flourished around the 10th and 11th centuries AD.

The first Europeans to arrive in the region were Ferdinand Magellan and his crew. On Easter Sunday of 1521, they served the first Catholic mass in the Philippines. According to some accounts, the mass was held in Butuan, while other accounts claim it was celebrated on the island of Limasawa in Southern Leyte.

Butuan officially became a municipality during the American rule. The municipality of Butuan was established on January 31, 1901, and the first municipal elections were held in March 1902. In 1942, Butuan was occupied by Japanese. More than half of the town (almost all of it, in fact) was burned in March 1943, when local guerrilla forces attacked the Japanese garrison in an attempt to liberate Butuan. Another battle between guerrillas and Japanese troops occurred near Butuan in January 1945. The town was liberated by the combined American and Philippine forces later in 1945.

Three years after the war, Butuan was ruined by fire, but it soon began to rebuild. Due to being surrounded by trees, the municipality focused on the logging industry and drew many investors, eventually earning the nickname “Timber City of the South”. This helped Butuan to rebuild and grow, and on August 2, 1950, it was converted from a municipality into a chartered city.

The importance of logging for Butuan’s economy began to decline in the 1980s, but the city still attracted many investors to other sectors and continued to develop, eventually earning the status of a highly urbanized city in 1995. Soon after, it was designated as the provincial capital of Agusan del Norte and the regional center of Caraga. In 2000, the provincial capital was transferred to Cabadbaran, but Butuan still serves as the de facto capital of Agusan del Norte.

The day when Butuan was granted cityhood is a special non-working holiday in the city, called Butuan City Charter Day. When August 2 falls on a Saturday or a Sunday, the non-working day is moved to the following Monday.