According to Ferdinand Blumentritt who wrote many articles about the Philippine history which were published in Boletin de la Sociedad Geografica in Madrid, Spain in 1866, Malvar’s history dates back to 1300 AD when Datu Puti, a member of the Ten Datus who escaped from Sultan Makatunao of Borneo, settled in what is now the province of Batangas. His descendants inhabited Laguna, Cavite, Bicol Region and in our place, then known as Luta.

Luta was formerly a barrio of the Municipality of Lipa, now Lipa City. When Luta was created to become an independent municipality, it included the adjoining barrios of Payapa, Kalikangan, San Gallo and Bilukaw. As the time went by, these original barrios were divided and were given other names. Payapa was divided and became San Fernando, Santiago and Bagong Pook. Kalikakan became the barrios of San Andres and San Juan. San Gallo became the barrios of San Pioquinto, San Pedro (including Sitio Calejon) and Bilucaw became San Isidro and Bilucao. These names given to each barrio were based on the names of the most powerful or honored man of the locality.

Luta retained its name perhaps due to its exciting and very memorable legend. It was said that the name Luta came from the name of a beautiful maiden, Dayang-Dayang, the youngest daughter of Datu Banga, a descendant of Datu Puti, then the chief of the tribe.

She was the most beautiful lady in the place. Loved and cherished by the inhabitants, she fell in love with a Chinese named Ling and was about to be married when her elder sister Kampupot took interest in her fiancé. Out of the treachery and jealousy of her sister, Luta was executed and died in the arms of her Chinese lover. From then on, the place was named Luta in her honor.

Luta’s march toward becoming a municipality could never be ignored. For this is where the seeds and the sentiments of becoming one were sown. This is where the Samahang Mag-aararo, the acknowledged pioneers of this movement was organized. They were Mariano R. Lat, Gregorio Leviste, Miguel L. Aranda, Simeon Esleigue, Constancio Manalo, Pedro Lat-Torres, Nicasio Gutierrez, Gregorio Villapando, Estanislaw Lat, Pelagio Wagan, Sebastian Trinidad and Julian Lantin. Through its dynamic organizers and members, the first steps to make the locality a municipality were made. It was in Luta where the seat of the Municipal Government was situated.

With their (The Samahang Mag-aararo) devotion, patience and perseverance and with the help of the Honorable Teodoro M. Kalaw, former Secretary of the Interior, Malvar was finally created a municipality by virtue of a proclamation by the acting Governor General of the Philippines Honorable Charles B. Yeater, on the 16^th day of December, 1918. The proclamation took effect on January 10, 1919, on the same day the municipality was inaugurated.

The town was named in honor of the late General Miguel Malvar, the last Filipino General to surrender to the Americans.

At present, Malvar is composed of fifteen (15) barangays: 1-Bagong Pook, 2-San Fernando and 3-Santiago (from Barrio Payapa); 4-San Andres and 5-San Juan (from Barrio Kalikangan); 6-San Isidro and 7-Bilucao (from Barrio Bilukaw); 8-San Pioquinto (from Barrio San Gallo); 9-San Pedro I, 10-San Pedro II and 11-San Gregorio (from San Gallo to San Pedro); and 12-Luta Sur, 13-Luta Norte, 14-Poblacion and 15-Bulihan (from Barrio Luta).

Today, Malvar is classified as 2^nd class municipality.