The Island Garden City of Samal is a 2nd class city in the province of Davao del Norte, Philippines. The name is often abbreviated into IGaCoS. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 82,609 people in 17,388 households.

The Island Garden City of Samal is now a part of (Metropolitan Davao) Metro Davao.

History

The name Island Garden City of Samal was derived from the word Sama, a tribal group found in the island. People used the word Samal because of the Bisaya who miscalled the word Sama. The first Datu in the island was Datu Taganiyug, a native from Penaplata, Samal. In the past, the people of Samal name a place about what was the said place known for. For example, the name Penaplata was derived from the word "pinya" of pineapple because of the abundance of pineapple in the area. Tagpopongan is the first barangay in Samal which name was from the word "tagpo" or meet. It was called so because in the past, this place is chose by the Datus as their meeting place. The word Samal was also known before because it was commonly used as surname by Datus. Abu is the national costume of Samal long time ago. The first business transaction in the island was during the Chinese era. Spanish influence was also felt in the island. The Pacific War was also struck the island. Japanese fighter planes bombed Samal. Japanese colonized the island and forced the people to work for 4 years until the Philippines gained independence from Japan. After the war, infrastructures was built, like the schools, churches and stores. The city was created through Republic Act No. 8471 in 1998. This organic act paved the way for the dissolution and merger of the former three municipalities of Samal, Babak, and Kaputian into one local government unit, now officially named as the Island Garden City of Samal.