Editing Tacloban (section)

==History==
{{More citations needed|section|date=July 2022}}
[[File:TAKLUB.JPG|thumb|left|Street performers carrying ''taklub'' on their backs (Tacloban takes its name from the ''taklub'', a bamboo fish-catching contraption).]]
[[File:Philippine Island - Leyte - NARA - 68155994.jpg|thumb|left|Aerial view of Tacloban, 1931]]

Tacloban was first known as ''Kankabatok'', an allusion to the first inhabitants &ndash; ''Kabatok''. They established their dwellings in the vicinity of the present-day [[Santo Niño Church (Tacloban)|Santo Niño Church]]. Others who came later were ''Gumoda'', ''Haraging,'' and ''Huraw'' who erected their settlements on nearby sites. ''Huraw''<nowiki/>'s domain is the hill where the city hall now sits. The combined settlements acquired the name ''Kankabatok'', meaning "''Kabatok''{{'}}s property."{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

The constant threat of pirates due to its lack of a natural barrier hindered the development and progress of the settlement. And so the place never figured out the early centuries of the Spanish colonization of Leyte. When the Jesuits (the first evangelizers of Leyte) left in 1768, the Augustinians took over, and in 1770 they established the barrio with a chapel (visita) of Tacloban under the jurisdiction of Palo.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

The Augustinians who came from the Province of the Holy Name of Jesus based in Cebu were also responsible in introducing the devotion to the Santo Niño becoming therefore the heavenly patron of the settlement. With the Moro raids in check, the place became a hub for commercial activity and soon after the place was renamed Tacloban becoming an independent municipality and then capital of the province of Leyte. In 1843, the Augustinians ceded the administration of the parish to the Franciscans.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

The change of the name came about in this manner: ''Kankabatok'' was a favorite haunt of fishermen. They would use a bamboo contraption called a ''"taklub"'' to catch crabs, shrimps or fish.<ref name="etymology" /> When asked where they were going, the fishermen would answer, ''"(to) tarakluban"'', which meant the place where they used the device to catch these marine resources. Eventually, the name ''Tarakluban'' or Tacloban took prominence.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

It is not known when Tacloban became a municipality because records supporting this fact were destroyed during a typhoon. It is commonly believed that Tacloban was officially proclaimed a municipality in 1770s. In 1768, Leyte and Samar were separated into two provinces, each constituting a politico-military province. Due to its strategic location, Tacloban became a vital trading point between the two provinces.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

The capital of Leyte was transferred from one town to another with Tacloban as the last on February 26, 1830. The decision to make Tacloban the capital was based on the following reasons: 1) ideal location of the port and 2) well-sheltered and adequate facilities. On June 20, 1952, Tacloban was proclaimed a chartered city by virtue of Republic Act No. 760.<ref name=RA760 />

[[File:Madonna of Japan in the Kanfuraw Hill, Tacloban01.JPG|thumb|left|Madonna Maria Kanon, locally called Madonna of Japan, a peace commemoration statue in Kanhuraw Hill]]
The arrival of Colonel Arthur Murray in 1901 made him the first military governor of Leyte. His first official act was the opening of Tacloban port to world commerce. Before [[World War II]], Tacloban was the commercial, education, social and cultural center of the Province of Leyte. [[Copra]] and [[abaca]] were exported in large quantities. The leading institutions were: Leyte Normal School, Leyte High School, Leyte Trade School, Holy Infant Academy and Tacloban Catholic Institute.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

In November 1912, a [[1912 Tacloban typhoon|typhoon]] swept through the central Philippines and "practically destroyed" Tacloban. In Tacloban and [[Capiz]] on the island of [[Panay]], the death toll was 15,000, half the population of those cities at the time.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045433/1912-11-30/ed-1/seq-1/ |title= 15,000 Die in Philippine Storm |newspaper=Washington Herald |date=November 30, 1912 |access-date=November 19, 2013}}</ref>

On May 25, 1942, Japanese forces landed in Tacloban, signalling the beginning of their two-year occupation of Leyte. They fortified the city and improved its airfield. Since San Pedro Bay was ideal for larger vessels, the [[Imperial Japanese Navy|Japanese Imperial Naval Forces]] made Tacloban a port of call and entry. This time was considered the darkest in the history of Tacloban and the country due to the incidence of torture among civilians, including the elderly. In response, guerrilla groups operated in Leyte &ndash; the most notable of which was the group of [[Nieves Fernandez]].<ref name="Esquire">{{cite web|url=https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/nieves-fernandez-guerilla-wwii-a00293-20200915-lfrm|title=The Untold Story of 'Miss Fernandez,' the School Teacher Who Killed 200 Japanese in WWII|website=[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]|author=Limos, Mario Alvaro|date=September 15, 2020}}</ref><ref name="PKB">{{cite web|url=https://pkbnews.in/nieves-fernandez-death/|title=What Happened To Nieves Fernandez? Teacher Killed 200 Japanese in WWII Guerrilla war Philippines|website=PKB News|author=Israni, Prakash|date=April 9, 2023}}</ref> The Japanese established a "comfort station" in the city, where they kidnapped local girls, teenagers and young adults who they then forced into becoming sex slaves under the gruesome "[[comfort women]]" system.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/2020/11/29/939811000/philippine-survivor-recounts-her-struggle-as-a-comfort-woman-for-wartime-japan|title=Philippine Survivor Recounts Her Struggle As A 'Comfort Woman' For Wartime Japan|newspaper=NPR.org|publisher=NPR|access-date=15 August 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9IsBB-RVTlQC&dq=comfort+gay+philippines+japan&pg=PR9|title=The Other Empire: Literary Views of Japan from the Philippines, Singapore, and Malaysia|year=2008|publisher=The University of the Philippines Press|isbn=9789715425629|access-date=15 August 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.awf.or.jp/e1/philippine-00.html | title=Women made to be Comfort Women - Philippines }}</ref>

Leyte was the first to be liberated by the combined Filipino and American troops. [[General Douglas MacArthur]]'s assault troops landed in the Tacloban and Palo beaches (White Beach and Red Beach, respectively) and in the neighbouring town of Dulag (Blue Beach) on October 20, 1944. These landings signalled the eventual victory of the Filipino and American forces and the fulfillment of MacArthur's famous promise: "I Shall Return."{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

Three days later, on October 23, at a ceremony at the [[Leyte Provincial Capitol|Capitol Building]] in Tacloban, MacArthur, accompanied by President [[Sergio Osmeña]], made Tacloban the temporary seat of the Commonwealth Government and temporary capital of the Philippines until the complete liberation of the country.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1944/10/23/proclamation-of-general-douglas-macarthur-to-the-people-of-the-philippines-october-23-1944/|title=Proclamation of General Douglas MacArthur to the People of the Philippines, October 23, 1944|date=October 23, 1944|website=Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines|access-date=February 21, 2018}}</ref> The provincial government of Leyte and the municipal government of Tacloban were re-established.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

Paulo Jaro was the Liberation mayor of Tacloban. The first mayor of this capital upon inauguration of the Philippine Republic was Epifanio Aguirre.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

On January 8, 1960, MacArthur made his "sentimental" journey to Leyte. He was greeted with cheers by locals when he visited Tacloban.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}

The city was proclaimed as a highly urbanized city by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo on October 4, 2008<ref name="ReferenceA">Proclamation No. 1637 dated October 4, 2008</ref> and ratified by the people on December 18, 2008.<ref>{{cite news |publisher=Philippine Daily Inquirer|url=http://globalnation.inquirer.net/cebudailynews/visayas/view/20081220-179060/Tacloban-is-1st-highly-urbanized-city |title=Tacloban is 1st highly urbanized city |work=Cebu Daily News |date=December 20, 2008 |access-date=December 2, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522022049/http://globalnation.inquirer.net/cebudailynews/visayas/view/20081220-179060/Tacloban-is-1st-highly-urbanized-city |archive-date=May 22, 2011  }}</ref> Tacloban was officially declared an HUC at 10:40PM of that day.

=== 2013 Typhoon Haiyan ===
[[File:Tacloban Typhoon Haiyan 2013-11-14.jpg|thumb|Debris lines the streets of Tacloban after Typhoon Haiyan hit the city.]]
{{anchor|2013 Typhoon Haiyan damage and fatalities}}
{{main|Typhoon Haiyan}}
On November 8, 2013 ([[Philippine Standard Time|PST]]), Tacloban was hit by the full force of [[Typhoon Haiyan]], causing massive destruction across the city. Dead bodies were scattered on the streets, trees were uprooted, and a {{convert|13|ft|m|0|abbr=on}} [[storm surge]] largely destroyed the [[Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport|airport]], though it functioned soon after as a makeshift command and evacuation center.<ref name="guk-1">{{cite news|title=Typhoon Haiyan: thousands dead as devastation hampers aid efforts|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/10/typhoon-haiyan-dead-aid|date=November 11, 2013|access-date=November 11, 2013}}</ref> After taking a helicopter flight over the city, [[United States Marine Corps|US Marine]] Brigadier General Paul Kennedy was quoted as saying, "I don't believe there is a single structure that is not destroyed or severely damaged in some way – every single building, every single house."<ref>{{cite news|title=Philippines declares state of calamity President declares emergency measures as aid trickles in for millions of people left destitute by the Haiyan superstorm. |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2013/11/philippines-state-national-calamity-2013111116128730244.html|publisher=aljazeera.com|date= November 11, 2013|access-date= November 11, 2013}}</ref> Widespread looting and violence is reported to have taken place<ref>{{cite news|title=Philippine Red Cross says typhoon relief efforts being hampered by looters |url=https://www.foxnews.com/world/philippine-red-cross-says-typhoon-relief-efforts-being-hampered-by-looters/|publisher=[[Fox News]]|date= November 10, 2013|access-date= November 12, 2013}}</ref> and local government virtually collapsed, as many city officials were victims.<ref>{{cite news|title=Tons of aid arriving in Philippines, but debris, logistics hampering relief efforts |url=http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/11/12/tons-aid-arriving-in-philippines-but-debris-logistics-hampering-relief-efforts/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131112230903/http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/11/12/tons-aid-arriving-in-philippines-but-debris-logistics-hampering-relief-efforts/|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 12, 2013|publisher=[[Fox News]]|date= November 12, 2013|access-date= November 12, 2013}}</ref> [[Benigno Aquino III|President Aquino]] declared a [[state of emergency]] in Tacloban. The official final death toll stood at 6,201.<ref>{{cite report|url=http://www.ndrrmc.gov.ph/attachments/article/1125/NDRRMC%20Update%20re%20Sit%20Rep%2092%20Effects%20of%20%20TY%20%20YOLANDA.pdf|title=SitRep No. 92 : Effects of Typhoon "YOLANDA" (HAIYAN), Tab A : CASUALTIES|date=January 14, 2014|publisher=National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council of the Philippines|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140117232026/http://www.ndrrmc.gov.ph/attachments/article/1125/NDRRMC%20Update%20re%20Sit%20Rep%2092%20Effects%20of%20%20TY%20%20YOLANDA.pdf|archive-date=January 17, 2014}}</ref>

=== 2015 Papal visit ===
{{main|Pope Francis's visit to the Philippines}}
[[File:Pope Francis Tacloban 17.jpg|thumb|[[Pope Francis]] blesses the crowd after the mass near the [[Tacloban Airport]] on January 17, 2015, en route to [[Palo, Leyte]] to visit families of [[Typhoon Yolanda]] victims.]]

On January 17, 2015, [[Pope Francis]], the leader of the [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic Church]], arrived in Tacloban to celebrate Mass with the survivors of Haiyan ''(Yolanda)''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-30859609|title=Pope Francis cuts short visit to typhoon-hit Tacloban|work=BBC News|access-date=September 26, 2018}}</ref> The pope arrived at Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport on a flight operated by Philippine Airlines.