Island groups of the Philippines
Encyclopedia
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
is divided into three island group
Archipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
s of Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
, Visayas
Visayas
The Visayas or Visayan Islands and locally known as Kabisay-an gid, is one of the three principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Mindanao and Luzon. It consists of several islands, primarily surrounding the Visayan Sea, although the Visayas are considered the northeast...
and Mindanao
Mindanao
Mindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The...
. Luzon and Mindanao are named after their main islands of the same names, while the Visayas (the Visayan Islands) is an archipelago.
Divisions
The different islands are grouped into separate island groups by virtue of their regionsRegions of the Philippines
In the Philippines, regions are administrative divisions that serve primarily to organize the provinces of the country for administrative convenience. Currently, the archipelagic republic of the Philippines is divided into 17 regions...
: Regions I to V, CAR and NCR are for Luzon, Regions VI to VIII are for Visayas, and Regions IX to XIII and ARMM are for Mindanao. If a province is reassigned into a new region, it can also be reassigned to a new island group, as is the case with Palawan
Palawan
Palawan is an island province of the Philippines located in the MIMAROPA region or Region 4. Its capital is Puerto Princesa City, and it is the largest province in the country in terms of total area of jurisdiction. The islands of Palawan stretch from Mindoro in the northeast to Borneo in the...
, when it was reassigned from MIMAROPA. The island groups themselves do not have governments of their own, but are instead divided into provinces, cities
Cities of the Philippines
A city is a tier of local government in the Philippines. All Philippine cities are chartered cities, whose existence as corporate and administrative entities is governed by their own specific charters in addition to the Local Government Code of 1991, which specifies the administrative structure...
, municipalities
Municipalities of the Philippines
A municipality is a local government unit in the Philippines. Municipalities are also called towns . They are distinct from cities, which are a different category of local government unit...
and barangay
Barangay
A barangay is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district or ward...
s, which do have their own local governments.
Government
Although the island groups do not have local governments, hence capitals, certain cities have become the political, economic and cultural centers of the island groups. ManilaManila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
is the national capital
Capital of the Philippines
This is a list of current and former national capital cities in the Philippines, which includes during the time of the Spanish colonization, the First Philippine Republic, the Commonwealth of the Philippines, the Second Republic of the Philippines , the Third Republic of the Philippines, the Fourth...
and is the de facto capital of Luzon, though Quezon City
Quezon City
Quezon City is the former capital and the most populous city in the Philippines. Located on the island of Luzon, Quezon City is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the National Capital Region. The city was named after Manuel L...
, the former capital, has more inhabitants than Manila. Cebu
Cebu City
The City of Cebu is the capital city of Cebu and is the second largest city in the Philippines, the second most significant metropolitan centre in the Philippines and known as the oldest settlement established by the Spaniards in the country.The city is located on the eastern shore of Cebu and was...
is the largest city of the Visayas. Mindanao's main city is Davao
Davao City
The City of Davao is the largest city in the island of Mindanao in the Philippines. Its international airport and seaports are among the busiest cargo hubs in the Philippines....
.
Luzviminda
Luzviminda is a portmanteau of the names of the island groups (Luzviminda stands for Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao and is also a popular name for Filipino women.Island groups
| Island group | Largest city | Area (km2.) | Population (2000 census) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luzon Luzon Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon... |
Quezon City Quezon City Quezon City is the former capital and the most populous city in the Philippines. Located on the island of Luzon, Quezon City is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the National Capital Region. The city was named after Manuel L... |
125,863 | 32,122,900 |
| Visayas Visayas The Visayas or Visayan Islands and locally known as Kabisay-an gid, is one of the three principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Mindanao and Luzon. It consists of several islands, primarily surrounding the Visayan Sea, although the Visayas are considered the northeast... |
Cebu Cebu City The City of Cebu is the capital city of Cebu and is the second largest city in the Philippines, the second most significant metropolitan centre in the Philippines and known as the oldest settlement established by the Spaniards in the country.The city is located on the eastern shore of Cebu and was... |
71,503 | 16,275,564 |
| Mindanao Mindanao Mindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The... |
Davao Davao City The City of Davao is the largest city in the island of Mindanao in the Philippines. Its international airport and seaports are among the busiest cargo hubs in the Philippines.... |
101,763 | 18,262,611 |
Major islands
- Luzon:
- LuzonLuzonLuzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
- PalawanPalawan IslandPalawan Island is the largest island of the Palawan Province, Philippines. The northern coast of the island is along the South China Sea, while the southern coast forms part of the northern limit of the Sulu Sea. This island is very undeveloped and traditional...
- MindoroMindoroMindoro is the seventh-largest island in the Philippines. It is located off the coast of Luzon, and northeast of Palawan. The southern coast of Mindoro forms the northeastern extremum of the Sulu Sea.-History:...
- MasbateMasbateMasbate is an island province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region. Its capital is Masbate City and consists of three major islands: Masbate, Ticao and Burias.-History:...
- CatanduanesCatanduanesCatanduanes is an island province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region in Luzon. Its capital is Virac and the province lies to the east of Camarines Sur across Maqueda Channel. As of 2007, the population of the province is 232,757 people.-Etymology:"Isla de Cobos" was Catanduanes' first...
- MarinduqueMarinduqueIn 1945, combined American and Philippine Commonwealth troops attacked from the Japanese Troops liberated to the Battle of Marinduque in the Second World War.-Archaeology:...
- RomblonRomblonRomblon is an island province of the Philippines located in the MIMAROPA region. It lies south of Marinduque and Quezon, east of Mindoro, north of Aklan and Capiz, and west of Masbate. Its capital is also named Romblon....
- Polillo Islands
- Burias IslandBurias IslandBurias Island is one of the three major islands of Masbate Province in the Philippines. The other two major Islands are Ticao Island and Masbate Island. The Island has two municipalities, Claveria and San Pascual....
- Ticao IslandTicao IslandTicao Island is one of the three major islands of Masbate Province in the Philippines. The other two major Islands are Masbate Island and Burias Island ....
- Tablas IslandTablas IslandTablas is the largest of the islands that comprise the province of Romblon in the Philippines.Odiongan, on the west central coast of the island, is a major port and the largest municipality of Romblon in terms of population...
- Sibuyan IslandSibuyan IslandSibuyan is a crescent-shaped island of Romblon Province, Philippines. It has an area of 445 km². The island has two prominent peaks, Mount Guiting-Guiting with a height of 2,058 m and Mount Nailog with a height of 789 m...
- Busuanga IslandBusuanga IslandBusuanga Island is the largest island in the Calamian Group in the province of Palawan in the Philippines. Busuanga Island is, in fact, the second largest island in the province after Palawan island itself. The island is located halfway between the islands of Mindoro and Palawan with the South...
- Culion Island
- Coron IslandCoron IslandCoron Island is the third largest island in the Calamian Group of Islands in northern Palawan in the Philippines. The island is part of the larger municipality of the same name. It is about southwest of Manila, is known for several Japanese shipwrecks World War II vintage. The island is part of...
- Balabac IslandBalabac IslandBalabac Island is the southern-most island of the Palawan province in the Philippines, only about north from Sabah, Malaysia, across the Balabac Strait.Administratively, the island forms the main part of Balabac Municipality and is divided into 14 barangays:...
- Babuyan Group of Islands
- BatanesBatanesThe Province of Batanes , also called the Batanes Islands, is a Philippine province comprising ten islands that are located in the Luzon Strait between the islands of Luzon and Taiwan...
- Calamian Group of Islands
- Cuyo Islands
- Kalayaan Group of Islands
- Luzon
- Visayas:
- CebuCebu IslandCebu is an island of the Philippines. It is the main island of Cebu Province at the center of the Visayan Islands, south of Manila.It lies to the east of Negros Island; to the east is Leyte and to the southeast is Bohol Island. It is flanked on both sides by the Cebu Strait and Tañon Strait...
- PanayPanayPanay may refer to*Panay Island*Panay *Panay, Capiz*Panay River*Panay Gulf* USS Panay *Panay incident...
- Negros
- BoholBohol IslandBohol Island is the main island of Bohol Province in the Visayas. It lies southeast from Cebu Island across Cebu Strait and southwest from Leyte Island, separated by the Camotes Sea and Canigao Channel...
- SamarSamar IslandSamar is an island in the Visayas, within the central Philippines. The island is divided into three provinces: Samar province, Northern Samar, and Eastern Samar. These three provinces, along with the provinces on the nearby islands of Leyte and Biliran are part of the Eastern Visayas region...
- LeyteLeyte IslandLeyte is an island in the Visayas group of the Philippines.The island measures about 180 km north-south and about 65 km at its widest point. In the north it nearly joins Samar, separated by the San Juanico Strait, which becomes as narrow as 2 km in some places...
- GuimarasGuimaras IslandGuimaras is an island of the Philippines.It is the main island of Guimaras Province....
- SiquijorSiquijorSiquijor is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region. Its capital is the municipality also named Siquijor. To the northwest of Siquijor are Cebu and Negros, to the northeast is Bohol and to the south, across the Bohol Sea, is Mindanao.Siquijor is the third...
- BiliranBiliran IslandBiliran is a volcanic island in the central Philippines. It is one of the active volcanoes in the Philippines.*Classification: Active*Current Summit Activities: Solfataric*Province: Biliran Region VIII*Nearby Cities/Towns:...
- Bantayan IslandBantayan IslandBantayan Island is in the Visayan Sea, Philippines, located just west off the northern tip of Cebu Island. The island, politically a part of the Province of Cebu, is about wide by long, with a total population of 120,101, as of the 2000 census. It is also the main and largest island of the...
- Camotes IslandsCamotes IslandsThe Camotes Islands are a group of islands that form part of the province of Cebu, in the Philippines. The island group is located east of Cebu Island, southwest of Leyte Island, and north of Bohol Island....
- BoracayBoracayBoracay is an island of the Philippines located approximately south of Manila and 2 km off the northwest tip of Panay Island in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. Boracay Island and its beaches have received awards numerous times. Boracay was awarded in the "Travelers' Choice...
- Semirara Island
- Panaon IslandPanaon IslandPanaon Island,Panaon Island is a small island in the Philippines, in the province of Southern Leyte. It lies south of Leyte, separated from Dinagat to the east, and Mindanao to the southeast by Surigao Strait. The Mindanao Sea lies to the southwest....
- Limasawa
- Cebu
- Mindanao:
- MindanaoMindanaoMindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The...
- BasilanBasilanThe Province of Basilan is an island province of the Philippines within the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao . Basilan is the largest and northernmost of the major islands of the Sulu Archipelago and is located just off the southern coast of Zamboanga Peninsula...
- JoloJolo IslandJolo is a volcanic island in the southwest Philippines. It is located in the Sulu Archipelago, between Borneo and Mindanao, and has a population of approximately 300,000 people....
- Samal Island
- Dinagat IslandDinagat Island' is a province in the Philippines, located on the south side of Leyte Gulf. Leyte is to its west, across Surigao Strait, and Mindanao is to its south...
- CamiguinCamiguinCamiguin is an island province of the Philippines located in the Bohol Sea, about off the northern coast of Misamis Oriental in Mindanao. It is the second-smallest province both in population and land area after Batanes...
- Siargao IslandSiargao Islandis a tear-drop shaped island in the Philippine Sea situated 800 kilometers southeast of Manila in the province of Surigao del Norte. It has a land area of approximately 437 square kilometers. The east coast is relatively straight with one deep inlet, Port Pilar. The coastline is marked by a...
- Bucas Grande IslandBucas Grande IslandBucas Grande is an island in the Mindanao region, Philippines. Its area is 128 km²....
- Sarangani Island
- Turtle IslandsTurtle Islands, Tawi-TawiTurtle Islands, also known as Turtle Isles, is a 5th class municipality composed of a remote group of seven islands in the province of Tawi-Tawi in the Southern Philippines.-Location:...
- Mindanao