Pandacan is a district of the City of Manila in the Philippines, located south of the banks of the Pasig River and belongs under the 6th congressional district of Manila, divided into forty three (43) barangays that includes Zone 90 to Zone 95 and barangays 829 to 872.
When Spanish colonizers reached the area of what is now known as Pandacan, the native pandan tree (Scientific name: Pandanus fascicularis Lam) grew abundantly along the banks of the Pasig River. Natives called the area where the pandan trees grew as "Pandanan" or translated as "where Pandan trees grew." Nuances in translation among the Spanish and the natives of that time misspelled and mispronounced "Pandanan" into Pandacan.
A portion of the Malacañan Palace, the official residence of the Philippine President is located in Pandacan. A well secured five (5) hectare property called Malacañan Park is located at the foot of the Nagtahan bridge and it serves as the barracks for the Presidential Security Guard.
The district is also home to a few well known historical figures including Apolinario Mabini, dubbed as the "sublime paralytic." Mabini served as one of the key figures of the Katipunan who revolted against the Spanish colonial masters. Mabini was the Philippines' first Foreign Affairs Secretary. The National Historical Institute has declared Mabini's former residence as a national historical shrine.
Former First Lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos also claims Pandacan as her home in Manila where the Romualdez clan keeps their ancestral home. Ever since Mrs. Marcos became the wife of former President Ferdinand Marcos in the sixties, only caretakers are now looking after the old house. The house is Mrs. Marcos' traditional and common reference to her ties as a resident of Manila, aside from her family's roots in Leyte province.