Misamis Oriental

Before the Spanish came, the main settlement of the area was Himologan, at today's Huluga, whose people the first missionaries described as a mix of Lumad and seafaring Visayans. Augustinian Recollect friars arrived in 1622, and by 1674 they had set up chapel-villages at Iponan, Agusan, Bayug, Gompot (Balingasag) and Tagoloan.

Cagayan de Oro is one of the most cosmopolitan cities in Mindanao — a melting pot of Visayan settlers, Maranao traders, Higaonon indigenous peoples, and more recent migrants from across the country. The city's university population (it has several large universities including Xavier University) gives it a distinctly youthful, educated character.

Higaonon People

The Higaonon are the indigenous inhabitants of the upland areas of Misamis Oriental and several neighboring provinces. They and the neighboring Bukidnon peoples are counted among the Lumad, the indigenous peoples of Mindanao. Higaonon communities maintain traditional rituals, agricultural practices centered on kaingin (swidden) farming, and a social system led by the datu. On Mount Sumagaya, a study by Mindanao State University credited Higaonon land management and farming practices with protecting the mountain's biodiversity. Their ancestral lands are threatened by land grabbing and clearing.

The Kagay-an Festival culminates on 28 August, the feast of the city's patron, St. Augustine, with street parties and cultural presentations. The festival has grown into one of the larger city festivals in Northern Mindanao.

Cagayan de Oro's food scene reflects the city's diversity and its function as a regional commercial hub. The market serves as the food distribution center for much of Northern Mindanao. Cebuano cooking is the baseline, but Maranao, Higaonon, and Manila-influenced dishes appear throughout the city's restaurants and street food stalls.

Cebuano is the primary language of Cagayan de Oro and the lowland municipalities of Misamis Oriental. Many people in the province speak the Bohol dialect of Cebuano, and around Jasaan there is a distinct local dialect called Jasaanon.

Maranao is the second most commonly heard language in CDO markets, brought by Maranao traders and residents who have settled in the city from the lake region to the south. Maranao traders have long connected the Lanao lake region with the coast.

Higaonon is spoken in the upland communities of the province's interior municipalities. It is an indigenous Manobo language of the Philippine family, distinct from Cebuano, and its survival depends on the vitality of Higaonon communities in the increasingly pressured upland areas.

Cagayan de Oro is well-connected by air, sea, and road. Laguindingan Airport serves the city with multiple daily flights from Manila and Cebu. The port at Cagayan de Oro handles RoRo ferries from Cebu, Manila, and other major ports. The city is the main road hub for Northern Mindanao, with highways extending to Davao, Zamboanga, and Lanao.

Misamis Oriental faces two bays, Macajalar and Gingoog, and rises inland to forested peaks such as Mount Balatukan and Mount Sumagaya. Mount Sumagaya has at least 52 plant species from 19 families, many of them important to the Higaonon, and 22 endemic bird species, including the Philippine eagle. Researchers credit Higaonon land management for protecting the mountain. Macajalar Bay supports fishing communities but has been hit by illegal logging, destructive fishing and mining, and industrial pollution. Higaonon communities help protect the forests of Misamis Oriental and neighboring Bukidnon.

Philippine Eagle

Pithecophaga jefferyi

Critically Endangered

The national bird is one of the 22 endemic bird species recorded on Mount Sumagaya.

Field note: Report sightings and never disturb nests; killing the eagle is punishable by law.

Golden-crowned Flying Fox

Acerodon jubatus

Endangered

One of the largest bats in the world, found only in the Philippines, including Mindanao. It roosts in forest and feeds on fruit, helping spread seeds.

Field note: Never disturb roosts; hunting flying foxes is illegal.

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Gaston Park stands where the history of Cagayan de Oro begins. In 1626 the Recollect friar Agustín de San Pedro persuaded Datu Salangsang, chief of the hilltop settlement of Himologan, to move his people down the Cagayan River to this spot. The town that grew around it became, in 1950, the City of Cagayan de Oro.