Lakandula

Lakandula (Baybayin: ᜎᜃᜇᜓᜎ, Spanish orthography: Lacandola) was the title of the last lakan or paramount ruler of pre-colonial Tondo when the Spaniards first conquered the lands of the Pasig River delta in the Philippines in the 1570s.^[2]

The firsthand account of Spanish Royal Notary Hernando Riquel^[1]: 13 says that he introduced himself to the Spanish as "Sibunao Lacandola". While his given name has since been interpreted as being "Bunao",^[3] the historic meaning of the word Lakan, was a title equivalent to prince or paramount ruler, meaning he was the principal Datu or Prince of his domain.

Along with Rajah Matanda and Rajah Sulayman, Lakan Bunao Dula (or Lakan of Tondo), was one of three rulers who played significant roles in the Spanish conquest of the Pasig River delta polities during the earliest days of the Philippines' Spanish colonial period.^[3]

While it is questionable whether "Lakandula" represented a single titular name during his own lifetime, a few of his descendants in the first few generations after his death came to refer to themselves as the "Lakandula of Tondo", taking that name on as a noble title.^[4]