The provinces of the Philippines are the primary administrative divisions of the Philippines. There are 80 provinces, further subdivided into component cities and municipalities. The National Capital Region as well as independent cities are autonomous from any provincial government. Each province is administered by an elected governor who oversees various local government entities.

The provinces are grouped into seventeen regions based on geographical, cultural, and ethnological characteristics. Fourteen of the regions are designated with numbers corresponding to their geographic location from north to south. The National Capital Region, Cordillera Administrative Region, and Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao do not have number designations.

Each province is member to the League of Provinces of the Philippines, an organization which aims to address issues affecting provincial and metropolitan government administrations.

Government

Provincial government is autonomous of other provinces within the Republic. Each province is governed by two main elected branches of government: executive and legislative. Judicial affairs are separated from provincial governance, administered by the Supreme Court of the Philippines.

National

National intrusion into the affairs of each provincial government is limited by the constitution. The President of the Philippines however coordinates with provincial administrators through the Department of the Interior and Local Government. For purposes of national representation, each province is divided into one or more congressional district. One congressional representative represents each district in the House of Representatives. Senate representation is elected at an at-large basis and not apportioned by provincial districts.

Executive

The provincial governor is chief executive and head of each province. Elected to a term of three years and limited to three terms, he or she appoints the directors of each provincial department which include the office of administration, engineering office, information office, legal office and treasury office.

Legislative

The vice-governor acts as the president of each Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP; English: Provincial Board), the province's legislative body. The Sanggunian is composed of members from provincial districts. The number of SP members to which a province is entitled is determined by its income class. First- and second-class provinces have ten SP members; third- and fourth-class provinces have eight, and fifth- and sixth-class provinces have six. The only exceptions to this rule are provinces which have more than five congressional districts. Cebu, Negros Occidental and Pangasinan have twelve board members each.

Each Sangguniang Panlalawigan has designated seats for ex-officio members. Such seats are given to the local president of the Association of Barangay Captains (ABC), the local president of the Philippine Councilors League (PCL), and the local president of the Sanggunian Kabataan (SK; English: Youth Council).

The vice-governor and members of the Sanggunian are elected by the citizens of the province. Ex-officio members are elected by members of their respective organizations.

Map

List of provinces

For a sortable table containing figures for all first-level subdivisions (provinces 'and independent cities), see List of primary local government units of the Philippines.

Province	Capital	Region	Population (2007)	Population rank	Area (km²)	Area rank	Pop. density (per km²)	Pop. density rank
Abra	Bangued	CAR	230,953	67	4,198.20	33		77
Agusan del Norte	Cabadbaran	Region XIII	612,405	46	3,546.86	40		49
Agusan del Sur	Prosperidad	Region XIII	609,447	47	9,989.52	5		74
Aklan	Kalibo	Region VI	495,122	56	1,821.42	66		24
Albay	Legazpi City	Region V	1,190,823	24	2,565.77	56		11
Antique	San Jose de Buenavista	Region VI	515,265	53	2,729.17	52		45
Apayao	Kabugao	CAR	103,633	77	4,351.23	31		80
Aurora	Baler	Region III	187,802	69	3,147.32	47		75
Basilan	Isabela City	ARMM	496,505	55	2,217.13	58		37
Bataan	Balanga City	Region III	662,153	43	1,372.98	72		9
Batanes	Basco	Region II	15,974	80	219.01	80		70
Batangas	Batangas City	Region IV-A	2,245,869	8	3,119.72	48		7
Benguet	La Trinidad	CAR	674,459	42	2,826.59	49		35
Biliran	Naval	Region VIII	150,031	74	536.01	77		23
Bohol	Tagbilaran City	Region VII	1,230,110	23	4,820.95	26		30
Bukidnon	Malaybalay City	Region X	1,190,284	25	10,498.59	4		63
Bulacan	Malolos City	Region III	2,826,936	4	2,774.85	50		5
Cagayan	Tuguegarao City	Region II	1,072,571	28	9,295.75	6		61
Camarines Norte	Daet	Region V	513,785	54	2,320.07	57		38
Camarines Sur	Pili	Region V	1,693,821	15	5,465.26	20		20
Camiguin	Mambajao	Region X	81,293	79	237.95	79		16
Capiz	Roxas City	Region VI	701,664	39	2,594.64	55		25
Catanduanes	Virac	Region V	232,757	66	1,492.16	71		51
Cavite	Imus	Region IV-A	2,856,765	3	1,512.41	69		2
Cebu	Cebu City	Region VII	3,848,730	1	5,331.07	23		6
Compostela Valley	Nabunturan	Region XI	637,366	44	4,479.77	28		54
Cotabato	Kidapawan City	Region XII	1,121,974	27	9,008.90	7		58
Davao del Norte	Tagum City	Region XI	847,440	32	3,426.97	44		32
Davao del Sur	Digos City	Region XI	2,185,743	10	6,667.06	13		18
Davao Oriental	Mati	Region XI	486,104	57	5,670.07	19		69
Dinagat Islands	San Jose	Region XIII	120,813	76	1,036.34	74		60
Eastern Samar	Borongan	Region VIII	405,114	62	4,640.73	27		68
Guimaras	Jordan	Region VI	151,238	73	604.57	76		31
Ifugao	Lagawe	CAR	180,711	71	2,628.21	53		73
Ilocos Norte	Laoag City	Region I	547,284	49	3,504.30	42		50
Ilocos Sur	Vigan City	Region I	632,255	45	2,595.96	54		33
Iloilo	Iloilo City	Region VI	2,110,588	11	7,899.35	10		26
Isabela	Ilagan	Region II	1,401,495	18	13,778.76	2		65
Kalinga	Tabuk	CAR	182,326	70	3,231.25	46		76
La Union	San Fernando City	Region I	720,972	36	1,503.75	70		10
Laguna	Santa Cruz	Region IV-A	2,473,530	6	1,823.55	65		3
Lanao del Norte	Tubod	Region X	846,329	33	3,824.79	35		39
Lanao del Sur	Marawi City	ARMM	1,138,544	26	12,051.85	3		66
Leyte	Tacloban City	Region VIII	1,722,036	14	6,515.05	14		27
Maguindanao	Shariff Aguak	ARMM	1,532,868	17	7,623.75	11		43
Marinduque	Boac	Region IV-B	229,636	68	952.58	75		34
Masbate	Masbate City	Region V	768,939	34	4,151.78	34		46
Misamis Occidental	Oroquieta City	Region X	531,680	52	2,055.22	62		29
Misamis Oriental	Cagayan de Oro City	Region X	1,302,851	19	3,515.70	41		14
Mountain Province	Bontoc	CAR	148,661	75	2,157.38	59		72
Negros Occidental	Bacolod City	Region VI	2,869,766	2	7,965.21	9		15
Negros Oriental	Dumaguete City	Region VII	1,231,904	22	5,385.53	22		36
Northern Samar	Catarman	Region VIII	549,759	48	3,692.93	37		53
Nueva Ecija	Palayan City	Region III	1,853,853	13	5,751.33	18		19
Nueva Vizcaya	Bayombong	Region II	397,837	63	4,378.80	30		67
Occidental Mindoro	Mamburao	Region IV-B	421,592	60	5,865.71	17		71
Oriental Mindoro	Calapan City	Region IV-B	735,769	35	4,238.38	32		48
Palawan	Puerto Princesa City	Region IV-B	892,660	30	17,030.75	1		78
Pampanga	San Fernando City	Region III	2,226,444	9	2,044.99	63		4
Pangasinan	Lingayen	Region I	2,645,395	5	5,451.08	21		8
Quezon	Lucena City	Region IV-A	1,882,900	12	8,926.01	8		41
Quirino	Cabarroguis	Region II	163,610	72	3,486.16	43		79
Rizal	Pasig City	Region IV-A	2,284,046	7	1,175.76	73		1
Romblon	Romblon	Region IV-B	279,774	65	1,533.45	68		47
Samar	Catbalogan	Region VIII	695,149	40	6,048.03	15		62
Sarangani	Alabel	Region XII	475,514	58	3,601.25	39		55
Siquijor	Siquijor	Region VII	87,695	78	337.49	78		28
Sorsogon	Sorsogon City	Region V	709,673	38	2,119.01	61		17
South Cotabato	Koronadal City	Region XII	1,296,797	20	4,428.81	29		21
Southern Leyte	Maasin City	Region VIII	390,847	64	1,797.22	67		40
Sultan Kudarat	Isulan	Region XII	675,644	41	5,251.34	24		57
Sulu	Jolo	ARMM	849,670	31	2,135.25	60		13
Surigao del Norte	Surigao City	Region XIII	409,468	61	1,972.93	64		42
Surigao del Sur	Tandag	Region XIII	541,347	51	4,925.18	25		64
Tarlac	Tarlac City	Region III	1,243,449	21	2,736.64	51		12
Tawi-Tawi	Bongao	ARMM	450,346	59	3,426.55	45		56
Zambales	Iba	Region III	720,355	37	3,714.40	36		44
Zamboanga del Norte	Dipolog City	Region IX	907,238	29	7,301.00	12		59
Zamboanga del Sur	Pagadian City	Region IX	1,688,685	16	5,914.16	16		22
Zamboanga Sibugay	Ipil	Region IX	546,186	50	3,607.75	38		52
Metro Manila	Manila (Regional center)	NCR	11,553,427	--	616.28	--		--

NOTES:

• All population and land area figures include cities independent from provinces. In this table, they are counted as part of the province to which they previously belonged, but in actuality they are governed independently from the province.
• Metro Manila is included for comparison although it is not a province but a region.
• Land area figures taken from 2007 IRA computation factors.
• Population figures taken from National Statistics Office.

Maps

Image:Provinces of Philippines by provincehood.PNG|Provinces by the years they achieved province status.Image:Island and landlocked Philippine provinces.PNG|Island (blue) and landlocked (red) provinces. The grey areas have both land and sea boundaries.Image:Philippine provinces by income classification.PNG|Provinces classified by income classification.Image:PH provinces population.PNG|Provinces classified by population.Image:PH provinces area.PNG|Provinces classified by area.Image:Philippine provinces by population density.png|Provinces classified by population density.

Etymologies

History

When the United States acquired the Philippines from Spain in 1898, the islands were divided into four gobiernos (governments), which were further subdivided into provinces and districts. The American administration initially inherited the Spanish divisions and placed them under military government. As insurgencies were pacified, civil government was gradually restored.

• 1901-06-11: Morong district merged with part of Manila Province to form Rizal Province.

• 1902: Mindoro merged with Marinduque; Amburayan province split from La Union; later, Marinduque province merged with Tayabas.

• 1903: Moro Province formed, consisting of the districts of Cotabato, Davao, Lanao, Sulu, and Zamboanga. Its capital was the town of Zamboanga.

• 1905: Name of Paragua province changed to Palawan. Masbate province merged with Sorsogon.

• 1907: Romblon merged with Capiz; split from it again in 1917.

• 1907-08-20: Agusan province split from Surigao.

• 1908: Abra province merged with Ilocos Sur; split from it again on 1917.

• 1908-08-13: Mountain Province formed by merging the provinces of Amburayan, Apayao, Benguet, Bontoc, Ifugao, Kalinga, and Lepanto, which became its sub-provinces.

• 1909: Batanes province split from Cagayan.

• 1916-08-29: Name and status of Moro Province changed to the Department of Mindanao and Sulu. Status of its districts (Bukidnon, Cotabato, Davao, Lanao, Sulu, and Zamboanga) changed to provinces.

• 1917-03-10: Most of the pre-war provinces formally established or re-established. Ambos Camarines province divided into Camarines Norte and Camarines Sur provinces; Abra and Romblon re-established.

• 1920-02-21: Marinduque province split from Tayabas.

• 1920-12-15: Masbate province split from Sorsogon.

• 1921-02-20: Mindoro province split from Marinduque.

• 1923-03-27: Leyte divided into Occidental Leyte and Oriental Leyte by law, but never proclaimed by the governor-general.

• 1929-11-02: Misamis province divided into Misamis Occidental and Misamis Oriental provinces (implemented 1939-11-28).

• 1945-09-26: Catanduanes province split from Albay.

• 1946: Romblon province merged again with Capiz; split from it again on 1947-01-01.

• 1946-09-07: Name of Tayabas province changed to Quezon.

• 1950-06-13: Mindoro province split into Mindoro Occidental and Mindoro Oriental.

• 1952-06-06: Zamboanga province split into Zamboanga del Norte and Zamboanga del Sur.

• 1956-04-25: Aklan province split from Capiz (implemented 1956-11-08).

• 1959-05-22: Lanao province divided into Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur; Southern Leyte province split from Leyte.

• 1960-06-19: Surigao province divided into Surigao del Norte and Surigao del Sur provinces.

• 1965-06-19: Samar province divided into Eastern Samar, Northern Samar, and Western Samar.

• 1966-06-18: South Cotabato province split from Cotabato; Benguet, Ifugao, and Kalinga-Apayao provinces split from Mountain Province; Camiguin province split from Misamis Oriental.

• 1967-05-08: Davao province divided into Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, and Davao Oriental provinces (implemented 1967-07-01).

• 1967-06-17: Agusan province divided into Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur provinces (implemented 1970-01-01).

• 1969-06-21: Name of Western Samar province changed to Samar.

• 1969-08-04: Samal sub-province created from Davao del Norte but never inaugurated.

• 1971-09-10: Quirino province split from Nueva Vizcaya.

• 1971-10-04: Maranaw province created from Lanao del Sur but never inaugurated.

• 1972-01-08: Siquijor province split from Negros Oriental.

• 1972-06-17: Name of Davao del Norte province changed to Davao.

• 1973-09-11: Tawi-Tawi province split from Sulu.

• 1973-11-22: Cotabato province divided into Maguindanao, North Cotabato, and Sultan Kudarat provinces.

• 1973-12-27: Status of Basilan changed from chartered city to province.

• 1975-11-08: Metro Manila established from four chartered cities, and towns of Rizal and Bulacan.

• 1979-08-13: Aurora province split from Quezon, following a plebiscite.

• 1983-12-19: Name of North Cotabato province changed to Cotabato.

• 1986-01-03: Negros del Norte province split from Negros Occidental.

• 1986-08-18: Negros del Norte creation found unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, reverts as part of Negros Occidental.

• 1992-03-16: Sarangani province split from South Cotabato.

• 1992-05-11: Biliran province split from Leyte; Guimaras province split from Iloilo.

• 1995-02-14: Kalinga-Apayao province split into Kalinga and Apayao provinces.

• 1998-03-07: Compostela Valley province split from Davao province. Name of Davao province changed back to Davao del Norte.

• 2001-02-23: Zamboanga Sibugay province split from Zamboanga del Sur.

• 2006-08-30: Shariff Kabunsuan province split from Maguindanao.

• 2006-10-02: Dinagat Islands province split from Surigao del Norte.

• 2008-11-18: Shariff Kabunsuan creation found unconstitutional by Supreme Court, reverts as part of Maguindanao.

Formally proposed provinces

Note: This section lists only those proposals that reached the stage where legislation was enacted for the purpose of establishing a province.

• Occidental Leyte and Oriental Leyte (March 27, 1923) Leyte was divided into two new provinces by Act No. 3117 on March 27, 1923. The division never took place however as no proclamation was issued by the governor-general.
  • The province of Oriental Leyte would have covered the present-day territories of the entire province of Biliran, the municipalities of Abuyog, Alangalang, Babatngon, Barugo, Burauen, Calubian, Capoocan, Carigara, Dagami, Dulag, Jaro, Javier, Julita, La Paz, Leyte, MacArthur, Mahaplag, Mayorga, Palo, Pastrana, San Isidro, San Miguel, Santa Fe, Tabango, Tabontabon, Tanauan, Tolosa, Tunga and Tacloban City (which was designated as the provincial capital).
  • The province of Occidental Leyte would have covered the present-day territories of the entire province of Southern Leyte, the municipalities of Albuera, Bato, Hilongos, Hindang, Inopacan, Isabel, Kananga, Matag-ob, Matalom, Merida, Palompon, Villaba and the cities of Baybay and Ormoc. The province capital of Occidental Leyte "SEC. 2. ... shall be designated by the Governor-General, until determined by a plurality vote of the electors of the new province at the next general election."
• Samal (1969) The sub-province of Samal was created by Republic Act No. 5999 and covered the area of the present-day Island Garden City of Samal (or in other words, the whole island of Samal). However, the sub-province was never inaugurated.
• Maranaw (1971) Republic Act 6406, which sought to create a new province out of eastern Lanao del Sur (now corresponding to the province's first congressional district), was approved on October 4, 1971. The province was to consist of Marawi City (the capital) and the municipalities of Bubong, Ditsaan-Ramain (including what is now Buadiposo-Buntong), Kapai, Lumba-Bayabao (including what is now Maguing), Marantao, Masiu, Mulondo, Saguiaran, Piagapo, Poona Bayabao, Tamparan, Taraka and Wao (including what is now Bumbaran). Lanao del Sur was to retain the remaining municipalities, with Malabang serving as its new capital. Without the political will or the resources to implement it, the division never took place. A legacy of this unimplemented division is the existence of two ZIP code series for Lanao del Sur: the 93 series was retained by what were to be the remaining towns of the province (with Malabang, the new capital, being assigned the code 9300), while a new series (97) was assigned to what was supposed to be the province of Maranaw (with Marawi City getting the code 9700).
• Negros del Norte (1985-1986) Batas Pambansa Blg. 885, which sought to create a new province out of the northern portion of Negros Occidental, took effect on December 23, 1985, with a plebiscite to ratify the law held on January 3, 1986. The province was to be composed of the cities of Cadiz (which was to serve as the capital), San Carlos and Silay, as well as the municipalities of Calatrava, E. B. Magalona, Escalante, Manapla, Salvador Benedicto, Sagay, Toboso and Victorias. Although the creation of the new province was ratified by voters in the proposed new province, the Supreme Court declared Batas Pambansa Blg. 885, as well as the proclamation of the province of Negros del Norte, null and void on July 11, 1986 after ruling that the enabling law was unconstitutional.
• Isabela del Norte and Isabela del Sur (1995) On February 20, 1995 Republic Act 7891, which sought to divide the province of Isabela, was approved. Isabela del Norte was to comprise municipalities belonging to the province's first and second congressional districts with Ilagan serving as capital. Isabela del Sur was to consist of the third and fourth congressional districts (excluding the independent component city of Santiago), with Cauayan as the capital. The proposed division was rejected in a plebiscite held on June 20, 1995.
• Quezon del Norte and Quezon del Sur (2007) The act dividing the province of Quezon into two, Republic Act 9495, lapsed into law without the president's signature on September 7, 2007. Quezon del Norte was to be composed of the first and second congressional districts of the province, with Lucena City as its capital. Quezon del Sur, with its capital at Gumaca, would have been composed of the third and fourth congressional districts. The COMELEC held the plebiscite on December 13, 2008 and majority of the votes cast rejected the division.

See also

• ISO 3166-2:PH

References

1. Figures include the independent city of Butuan.
2. Cabadbaran has been made the official capital of the province, as per Republic Act 8811. However, the seat of the provincial government is still in the process of being transferred from Butuan City, where the provincial government still holds office.
3. The province maintains another government center in Luna, where many national and provincial agencies now hold office. Philippine Information Agency - Apayao gov't center established in Luna
4. The city of Isabela is served by the offices of Region IX.
5. Figures include the independent city of Baguio.
6. Figures include the independent city of Naga.
7. The provincial government of Cavite makes it clear that Imus is the provincial capital, while the seat of the provincial government is Trece Martires City. Official Website of the Province of Cavite - Socio-economic Profile.
8. Figures include the independent cities of Cebu, Lapu-Lapu and Mandaue.
9. Because the provincial government holds office within an independent city, in effect the province maintains the seat of its government outside its jurisdiction.
10. Figures include the independent city of Davao.
11. Population figures for both Davao Oriental and Surigao del Sur exclude the 4,555 persons residing in areas disputed between these provinces.
12. Figures include the independent city of Iloilo.
13. Figures include the independent city of Santiago.
14. Figures include the independent city of Iligan.
15. Figures include the independent cities of Ormoc and Tacloban.
16. Figures include the independent city of Cotabato.
17. Figures include the independent city of Cagayan de Oro.
18. Figures include the independent city of Bacolod.
19. The provincial government still uses and maintains facilities in the former capital, Cabanatuan City.
20. Figures include the independent city of Puerto Princesa.
21. Figures include the independent city of Angeles.
22. Figures include the independent city of Dagupan.
23. Figures include the independent city of Lucena.
24. Population figures for both Metro Manila and Rizal Province exclude the 24,789 persons residing in areas disputed between the municipality of Cainta, Rizal and the city of Pasig in Metro Manila.
25. The provincial government has already transferred its operations to Antipolo City, although no legislation on the national level has been enacted yet recognizing the new capital. Yehey! News - Board wants Antipolo officially named capital of Rizal
26. Figures include the independent city of General Santos.
27. The National Statistical Coordination Board recognizes both Bongao and Panglima Sugala as capitals of the province. However, the provincial capitol is located in Bongao, the de facto seat of government.
28. Figures include the independent city of Olongapo.
29. Figures include the independent city of Zamboanga.

• Philippine Standard Geographic Code Interactive, National Statistical Coordination Board
• 2007 Census of Population Results, National Statistics Office, Republic of the Philippines
• The Local Government Code of the Philippines, Department of Interior and Local Government, Republic of the Philippines
• Provinces of the Philippines, Gwillim Law, Statoids.com

External links

• Flags of the World Philippines Provincial Flags