[3] During the ancient era, the Zamboanga peninsula was a vast territory home to various ethnic groups – the largest of which was the Subanen people.

Sharif Kabungsuwan, a Johore-born missionary of Malay and Arab descent established the Sultanate of Maguindanao, which the entire island of Mindanao is named after.

Maguindanao's sultans provided Mindanao fierce armed resistance against the Spanish occupation, especially under the lead of Muhammad Kudarat.

A large chunk of the Spanish–Moro conflict, the war between the Spanish and Mindanao's Muslim natives took place in the Zamboanga Peninsula.

In 1569 Zamboanga was chosen as the site of the Spanish settlement and garrison on La Caldera (now called Barrio Recodo).

Zamboanga was one of the main strongholds in Mindanao, supporting colonizing efforts in the south of the island and making way for Christian settlements.

It also served as a military outpost, protecting the island against foreign invaders and Moro pirates and their Chinese allies.

The province, named and centered on Zamboanga City was partly founded by Peruvian soldiers brought by Sebastián Hurtado de Corcuera.

It was incorporated by the Insular Government into the Moro Province, which consisted of the central and western parts of Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago.

In 1942, the Zamboanga Peninsula along with the rest of the Philippine Islands was occupied by the Empire of Japan at the beginning of the Second World War.

The Peninsula was liberated in 1945 by joint American and Philippine Commonwealth forces fighting against the Imperial Japanese Army.

1 as part of the Integrated Reorganization Plan of President Ferdinand Marcos, that was signed on September 24, 1972.

In the same year, the residents of Basilan opted to join the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) in a plebiscite.

However, the citizens of the capital, Isabela, did not want to join so the city remained a part of this region as a result of Executive Order No.

However, it provided that the regional offices of the departments of Trade and Industry, Tourism, and Labor and Employment will remain in Zamboanga City, but shall establish a presence in Pagadian.

The Circular cited the high economic and social costs that the employees were experiencing in maintaining two residences and in fully transferring to Pagadian.

Known as the "Shrine City in the Philippines", this was where José Rizal, the national hero of the country, was exiled.

Named after Queen Isabella II, Isabela was the southernmost outpost of the Spanish Empire in the Philippines until the fall of Jolo in 1878.

Geographically located at the southwestern tip of the peninsula, the city continues to be the economic and industrial center of the region, generating more than half of its economy.

Poverty incidence of Zamboanga Peninsula Source: Philippine Statistics Authority[23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30] The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) released the first ever report of the Provincial Product Accounts (PPA) of Zamboanga Peninsula covering the period 2018 to 2022.

Its home industries include rattan and furniture craft, basket making, weaving and brass work.

[33][34] The region has vast forest resources and previously used to export logs, lumber, veneer and plywood.

The economic fulcrum of the region lies at the center of the peninsula that is the area connecting Ipil and Liloy.