The Malay settlers found the land fertile and agriculturally appropriate and the sea rich in marine resources, and they established their settlement in this once vast unknown land. As more Malay settlers arrived from distant lands, more settlements were founded until even the upland regions of the peninsula were settled. The inhabitants had their own form of village government. They were ruled by a headman, a datu, or a sultan, in case of big settlements. Malay civilization began to take roots. Rapid increase of population meant that it did not take long before several nearby regions were inhabited to comprise the whole province of Kumintang, better known later as Batangas.
