Paper short abstract:

This paper presents a new perspective on the search for Himolugan, the original settlement of the people of Cagayan de Oro City, based on the study of landscapes - both ancient and contemporary, place names, historical data, oral traditions and customs of Molugan and Huluga as frames of references.

Paper long abstract:

There is a decade old controversy regarding the true location of Himolugan, the original settlement of the people of Cagayan de Oro City in Mindanao, Philippines. The dispute is centered on a 1975 field report that is upheld by a group that pointed to an area in the outskirts of the city known as Huluga, as the site of Himolugan. However, a study published in 2005 by an archaeological team disproved the earlier report saying that the area was a habitational site and not a settlement. In 2010, a local historian came out with an independent research claiming a place called Molugan located several kilometers west of Cagayan de Oro, as the real site of Himolugan. This paper presents a new perspective on this controversial issue based on the study of landscapes - both ancient and contemporary, place names, historical data, oral traditions and customs of Molugan and Huluga as relevant frames of references in the search for the actual site of Himolugan.