Baguio City, Benguet

Baguio was a mountainous area rich in highland forests and abundant wildlife, serving as a hunting ground for indigenous peoples like the Ibaloi, Kalanguya, Kankana-ey, and other Igorot groups. Despite Spanish attempts at subjugation, the intensive defense tactics of the indigenous Igorots in the Cordilleras prevented complete control by Spain.

Igorot oral history recounts the establishment of the Benguet upper class, or baknang, between 1565 and the early 1600s, through the union of a gold trader named Amkidit and a Kankanay maiden involved in gold panning in Acupan. Their son, Baruy, discovered a gold deposit in the area, which he developed with hired workers and slaves.

The arrival of Spanish colonizers in the 16th century marked a pivotal shift for the indigenous peoples in the Cordillera region. Spanish missionaries sought to convert some Igorot communities to Christianity, while others resisted, holding steadfast to their traditional beliefs.

Moving forward in history, Baguio, now known as the Summer Capital of the Philippines, originated as Kafagway, one of the 31 small settlements established around 1846 by Spanish colonizers in the pine-covered highlands of Benguet. The village was inhabited by the Kankana-ey and Ibaloi tribes.