Zamboanga

Zamboanga (sām'bōäng'gä), city (1990 pop. 442,345), Zamboanga del Sur prov., SW Mindanao, the Philippines, at the tip of the Zamboanga peninsula, on Basilan Strait. One of the chief cities of Mindanao and a busy seaport, it is the hub of a major iron-producing and lumbering area, which has large-scale rubber cultivation, plywood mills, and resin plants. The city is situated at the foot of high mountains. Although it is in a mostly Muslim area, the city is predominantly Christian. Points of interest include a 16th-century Spanish fort and the mosque at Talangkusay, a famous Moro ceremonial center.