Gandara, Samar
municipality of the Philippines in the province of Samar
Gandara, officially the Municipality of Gandara (Waray: Bungto han Gandara, Tagalog: Bayan ng Gandara), is a municipality in the province of Samar, Philippines. According to the 2024 census, it has a population of 36,826 people.
History
The town was formerly named Bangahon, but its population was resettled to its current location on September 29, 1902. After settling in its new location, the name Gandara was given to it in commemoration of the former Governor-General José de la Gándara y Navarro.
By virtue of Batas Pambansa Blg. 11 approved in 1978, 29 barangays were separated to create the new municipality of San Jorge.
Geography
Barangays
Gandara is politically subdivided into 70 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.
Geo-Political Boundaries
Climate
Demographics
Based on 2014 survey, the total population was 33,264, consisting of 17,046 males and 16,218 females. The number of households was 6,653, with an average household size of 4.87 persons and a density of 68/km2.
“Gandara, Samar” enters the record as municipality of the Philippines in the province of Samar. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Gandara, Samar and municipality can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Gandara, Samar” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Gandara, Samar and municipality provides the most credible route into that argument.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 23, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q816160. The first chronological checks are 2024, 1902, 1978 and 2014.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Gandara, Samar”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Gandara, Samar primary sources, Gandara, Samar archive and Gandara research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Gandara, Samar”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Gandara, Samar” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.