[3] Legend has it that the Manobo tribesmen first inhabited the area in the central part of Surigao del Sur.

The distinctive visual quality of the area was an endemic species of tree known as "barobo" (diplodiscus paniculatus), which was plentiful on the site of the settlement.

2786, series of June 1960, created the municipality of Barobo on October 24, 1960, by virtue of Executive Order No.

It is linked by a national road to the provincial capital of Tandag, Surigao del Sur, of 103 kilometers (64 mi) and the gateway to the regional center of the Caraga Region in Butuan of 107 kilometers (66 mi).

A native Barobohanon speaks Kamayo, a minor language spoken in the area of Barobo and also in Bislig, San Agustin and Marihatag, Surigao del Sur province in the southern Philippines.