he town of Del Carmen is one of the oldest settlements opened by the Spaniards in the cluster of islands in the Pacific Ocean east of the mainland of Surigao del Norte known as Siargao, which has nine municipalities today.
        Records of missionaries dating to 1571, or barely 50 years after the discovery of the Philippines refer to the place as Caolo(derived according to oral history from the word Colo or Kolo which is the native name of a bread fruit). Thus, Caolo means land of bread fruits and thereafter as Caob also written variously as Kaob, Koob, Kacub, all of which mean sheltered, covered or landlocked. Eventually, it came to be popularly known as Numancia after a town in the Andalucian plains of Spain, possibly so named by Spanish priest or resident who came from that rainy region. This officially remained for over two centuries until it was changed to Del Carmen on June 18, 1966 by virtue of Republic Act No. 4786 during the administration of Mayor Galo C. Comon in honor of its Patroness, Virgen Del Carmen/Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, whose feast day falls on July 16.