Misamis Occidental

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Misamis Occidental
Province
(from top: left to right) Mount Malindang as seen from Panguil Bay, Lake Duminagat, Downtown Ozamiz and Port of Ozamiz.
Flag Seal
Nickname:  Mis Occ
Location in the Philippines
Coordinates: 8°20′N 123°42′E / 8.33°N 123.7°E / 8.33; 123.7
Country	Philippines
Region	Northern Mindanao
Founded	November 2, 1929[1]
Capital	Oroquieta
Largest city	Ozamiz
Government
• Type	Sangguniang Panlalawigan
• Governor	Atty. Henry S. Oaminal (NP)
• Vice Governor	Rowena L. Gutierrez (Asenso Pinoy Party)
• Legislature	Misamis Occidental Provincial Board
Area [2]
• Total	2,006.63 km2 (774.76 sq mi)
• Rank	60th out of 81
Highest elevation (Mount Malindang)	2,404 m (7,887 ft)
Population  (2020 census)[3]
• Total	617,333
• Rank	50th out of 81
• Density	310/km2 (800/sq mi)
• Rank	26th out of 81
Divisions
• Independent cities	0
• Component cities	3 Oroquieta Ozamiz Tangub
• Municipalities	14 Aloran Baliangao Bonifacio Calamba Clarin Concepcion Don Victoriano Chiongbian Jimenez Lopez Jaena Panaon Plaridel Sapang Dalaga Sinacaban Tudela
• Barangays	490
• Districts	Legislative districts of Misamis Occidental
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	7200–7215
IDD : area code	+63 (0)88
ISO 3166 code	PH-MSC
Spoken languages	Cebuano Subanen Maranao Tagalog English
Income classification	1st class
Website	misocc.gov.ph

Misamis Occidental (Cebuano: Kasadpang Misamis; Subanen: Sindepan Mis'samis; Maranao: Sedepan Misamis; Filipino: Kanlurang Misamis), officially the Province of Misamis Occidental, is a province located in the region of Northern Mindanao in the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Oroquieta while Ozamiz is the most-populous city. The province borders Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur to the west and is separated from Lanao del Norte by Panguil Bay to the south and Iligan Bay to the east. The province of Misamis was originally inhabited by Subanens who were an easy target by the sea pirates from Lanao.

The province is named after the early settlement of the Spaniards at the entrance to the Panguil Bay. The name Misamis is believed to have been derived from the Subanen word kuyamis which is a variety of coconut, the staple food of the early settlers. During the years the name persisted as an inference of the geographical location, and upon the advent of the Spanish settlers, the word kuyamis easily gave way to the more convenient pronounceable but corrupted word Misamis.^[4]