About Cavite City

Long before the arrival of the Spaniards, Cavite City - then known as "Tangway" (peninsula), was already a trading center where Chinese traders or "Sanglay" conducted business with its people.

During the early Spanish time, it was known as "Ciudad de Oro" until the year 1614, when the Spaniards fortified the place with "muralla," (high thick walls) and surrounded it with moats, and called the place "Puerto de Cavite." Because of its strategic location, it was made the capital of the province.

Historians differ in their versions of the origin of Cavite. One group avers that the name came from the Tagalog word "Kabit-e" which means "attached", "joined" or "connected." Another group claims it came from the word "Kalawit" or "hook" because of the land which is shaped like a hook.

Another version says that when the Spaniards occupied Manila in 1571, occupation forces were sent southward to a place called "Kawit-e." Because of the lack of "K" and "W" in the Spanish alphabet, the colonizers substituted the letters C and V for K and W. Henceforth, the place was called "Cavite."

The shield or escudo stands for bravery and fortitude. The colors red, white and blue, yellow of the sun and its rays reflect the loyalty of the people of Cavite City to its government. The rays also signifies the role that Cavite played as one of the provinces which first rose up in arms against Spanish domination during the Philippine Revolution of 1896.The entire design is meant to be a tribute to the fortitude of the Cavitenos and their willingness to sacrifice their lives, if necessary, for their country.

Designed and conceptualized by former City Mayor Timoteo O. Encarnacion, Jr., the city flag symbolizes the many facets of the City and its people. The two red strips symbolize the courage and bravery of the Cavitenos, the courage to shed blood or even to die to protect and defend their country.LIkewise they symbolize the courage and bravery to uphold the noble values, tradition and culture or our country and people; courage to change what needs to be changed for the better, for the common good.

The middle green strip symbolizes and signifies the progress and advancement achieved so far by the city and the vision and dreams to achieve further progress and development, with the help and guidance of Almighty God.

The half sun signifies the rising sun, which embodies the hopes, dreams and visions of the Cavitenos for material, physical and spiritual progress. It can also signify the setting sun, to show that the western shores of the city provides one of the most beautiful sunsets in the country, if not the whole world.

The five yellow stars represent the five districts comprising Cavite City : San Roque including Fort San Felipe; San Antonio, including Sangley Point and the Corregidor Island and other islands nearby; Caridad, Sta. Cruz and Dalahican.

The half-circle below the sun composed of three sets of waves, in blue and white, stand for the fact that Cavite is a peninsula surrounded by sea, while the three sets of navy blue and light blue and white strips stand for the three bays that surround the city, namely: Canacao Bay, Bacoor Bay and Manila Bay.

Source : Socio-Economic Profile 2000 of Cavite City prepared by the City Planning and Development Office

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Updated September 2007







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