Geography of the

Philippines

The Philippines is an archipelago that

comprises 7,641 islands[7] with a total land
area of 300,000 square kilometers
(115,831 sq mi).[1][2] It is the world's 5th
largest island country.[8] The eleven largest
islands contain 95% of the total land area.
The largest of these islands is Luzon at
about 105,000 square kilometers
(40,541 sq mi). The next largest island is
Mindanao at about 95,000 square
kilometers (36,680 sq mi). The archipelago
is around 800 kilometers (500 mi) from
the Asian mainland and is located
between Taiwan and Borneo.
 Geography of the Philippines

Continent Asia

Region Southeast Asia

Coordinates 13°00'N 122°00'E

Area Ranked 72nd

 • Total 300,000[1][2] km2
(120,000 sq mi)

 • Land 99.38%

 • Water 0.62%
Coastline 36,289 km
(22,549 mi)

Borders None

Highest point Mount Apo

2,954 metres
(9,692 ft)[3][4]

Lowest point Galathea Depth

10,540 metres
(34,580 ft) (sea level)

Longest river Cagayan River

Largest lake Laguna de Bay

Exclusive economic 2,263,816 km2

zone (874,064 sq mi)
The Philippine archipelago is divided into
three island groups: Luzon, Visayas, and
Mindanao. The Luzon islands include
Luzon itself, Palawan, Mindoro,
Marinduque, Masbate, Romblon,
Catanduanes, Batanes and Polilio. The
Visayas is the group of islands in the
central Philippines, the largest of which
are: Panay, Negros, Cebu, Bohol, Leyte,
Samar, Siquijor, Biliran and Guimaras. The
Mindanao islands include Mindanao itself,
Dinagat, Siargao, Camiguin, Samal, plus
the Sulu Archipelago, composed primarily
of Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi.

Physical geography
Territorial limits of the Philippines

The Philippine archipelago lies in

Southeast Asia in a position that has led to
itself becoming a cultural crossroads - a
place where Malays, Hindus, Arabs,
Chinese, Spaniards, Americans, and others
had interacted to forge a unique cultural
and racial blend. The archipelago numbers
some 7,641 islands.[6] The Philippines
occupies an area that stretches for 1,850
kilometers (1,150 mi) from about the fifth
to the twentieth parallels north latitude.
The total land area is 300,000 square
kilometers (115,831 sq mi).[9][1][2] This
makes it the 5th largest island country in
the world.[8] Only approximately 1,000 of
its islands are populated, and fewer than
one-half of these are larger than 2.5
square kilometers (1 sq mi). Eleven
islands make up 95 percent of the
Philippine landmass, and two of these —
Luzon and Mindanao — measure 105,000
square kilometers (40,541 sq mi) and
95,000 square kilometers (36,680 sq mi),
respectively. They, together with the
cluster of islands in Visayas in between
them, represent the three principal regions
of the archipelago that are identified by the
three stars on the Philippine flag. The
Philippines is broken up in many islands by
the sea. This gives it the fifth longest
coastline of 36,289 kilometers (22,549 mi)
in the world.[10][11] The Exclusive economic
zone of the Philippines covers
2,263,816 km2 (874,064 sq mi), 200
nautical miles (370 km) from its shores.[12]

Off the coast of eastern Mindanao is the

Philippine Trench, which descends to a
depth of 10,430 meters (34,220 ft). The
Philippines is part of a western Pacific arc
system characterized by active volcanoes.
Among the most notable peaks are Mount
Mayon near Legazpi City, Taal Volcano
south of Manila, and Mount Apo in
Mindanao. All of the Philippine islands are
prone to earthquakes. The northern Luzon
highlands, or Cordillera Central, rise to
between 2,500 meters (8,200 ft) and 2,750
meters (9,020 ft), and, together with the
Sierra Madre in the northeastern portion of
Luzon and the mountains of Mindanao,
boast rain forests that provide refuge for
numerous upland tribal groups. The rain
forests also offer prime habitat for more
than 500 species of birds, including the
Philippine eagle (or monkey-eating eagle),
some 1,100 species of orchids, and some
8,500 species of flowering plants.

The country's most extensive river

systems are the Pulangi River, which flows
into the Mindanao River (Rio Grande de
Mindanao); the Agusan, in Mindanao
which flows north into the Mindanao Sea;
the Cagayan in northern Luzon; and the
Pampanga, which flows south from east
Central Luzon into Manila Bay. Laguna de
Bay, east of Manila Bay, is the largest
freshwater lake in the Philippines. Several
rivers have been harnessed for
hydroelectric power. r To protect the
country's biological resources, the
government has taken a first step of
preparing a Biodiversity Action Plan to
address conservation of threatened
species.

Most of the islands used to be covered by

tropical rainforests. However, illegal
logging has reduced forest cover to less
than 10% of the total land area.
Major volcanoes in the Philippines

Geology E…

The islands are volcanic in origin, being

part of the Pacific Ring of Fire, and are
mostly mountainous. The highest point in
the country is the peak of Mount Apo in
Mindanao, which is 2,954 meters (9,692 ft)
above sea level. The second highest point
can be found on Luzon at Mount Pulag, a
peak 2,842 meters (9,324 ft) above sea
level.

The Philippine Archipelago is geologically

part of the Philippine Mobile Belt located
between the Philippine Sea Plate, the
South China Sea Basin of the Eurasian
Plate, and the Sunda Plate. The Philippine
Trench (also called the Mindanao Trench)
is a submarine trench 1,320 kilometers
(820 mi) in length found directly east of
the Philippine Mobile Belt and is the result
of a collision of tectonic plates. The
Philippine Sea Plate is subducting under
the Philippine Mobile Belt at the rate of
about 16 centimeters (6.3 in) per year. Its
deepest point, the Galathea Depth, has a
depth of 10,540 meters (34,580 ft). The
Philippine Fault System consists of a
series of seismic faults that produce
several earthquakes per year, most of
which are not felt.

Many volcanoes in the country are active.

Mount Pinatubo is notorious for its
destructive VEI-6 eruption on June 15,
1991. Taal Volcano, one of the Decade
Volcanoes, had a VEI-3.7 eruption on
January 12, 2020. Mount Mayon is
renowned for having an almost perfect
cone, but has a violent history of 47
eruptions since 1616 and its VEI-4
eruption on June 23, 1897 rained fire for
seven days.

Topography E…
 1

3 45
6
78
9 10
11
12
13 14
15
17
19 21
16 18 20
25
24
23
22 27 28
26
30 29

Major geographic features of the

Philippines
1 Batanes group of 16 Palawan group of
islands islands
2 Babuyan group of 17 Panay island
islands 18 Negros island
3 Cordillera mountains 19 Cebu island
4 Cagayan valley 20 Bohol island
5 Sierra Madre mountains 21 Leyte island
6 Caraballo mountains 22 Zamboanga
7 Zambales mountains peninsula
8 Central Luzon plain 23 Bukidnon-Lanao
9 Sierra Madre (southern plateau
tip) 24 Davao-Agusan
10 Polillo group of islands Trough
11 Bicol peninsula 25 Diwata mountains
12 Mindoro island 26 Cotabato Basin
13 Romblon group of 27 Central Mindanao
islands highlands
14 Masbate island 28 Pacific Cordillera
mountains
15 Samar island
29 Tiruray highlands
30 Sulu archipelago
Luzon E…

Luzon in a satellite image

The La Paz San

Dunes in
Laoag, part of
 the Ilocos
coastline

Pasil Valley in
Kalinga of the

Cordillera
Central

The Sierra
Madre
Mountains

viewed from
Gabaldon
The plains of
Central Luzon,
showing the
Manila Bay
with Mount
Arayat in the
background

The Zambales
Mountains as

viewed from
San Narciso
 Laguna de Bay
at Cardona,
with the

Banahaw
volcano
complex in the
distance

Mayon Volcano
overlooking the
city of Legazpi.

The Batanes and Babuyan islands E…

The Batanes and Babuyan Islands are
situated on the northernmost extremity of
the Philippines at Luzon Strait facing
Taiwan. It contains the northernmost point
of land, the islet of Y'Ami in the Batanes
Islands, separated from Taiwan by the
Bashi Channel (c.80.4672 kilometers
(50.0000 mi) wide).

Western Luzon E…

This region stretches from Mairaira Point

in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte in the north to
Cochinos Point in Mariveles, Bataan in the
south. The terrain ranges from coastal
plains to rugged mountains bordered by
the South China Sea in the west and the
Cordillera Central and Zambales mountain
ranges in the east. Western Luzon is
known for its beaches, surf spots and
historic towns.

Cagayan Valley E…

Nestled between the Cordilleras in the east

and the Sierra Madre mountain ranges in
the west is the Cagayan Valley, also the
name of the administrative region which it
covers. Through its center runs the
country's longest river, the Cagayan,
flowing in a northward direction before
emptying its waters in the Luzon Strait at
the town of Aparri.

Cordilleras and Caraballos E…

The Cordilleras and Caraballos, together

with the Sierra Madre Range, form the
main mountain system in Northern Luzon.

The Cordilleras consists of two,

sometimes three, mountain ranges that
are found in northwestern central Luzon.
The first, called Caraballo del Sur, forms
the nucleus of the system and has its
highest peaks in the border between the
provinces of Abra, Ilocos Norte and
Cagayan. Caraballo Occidentalles, is
further divided into two ranges, the
Cordillera Norte and Cordillera Central.[13]
They line the central portions of the
Cordillera Administrative Region.

The Caraballos (Caraballo de Baler) start

where the Sierra Madre and the Cordilleras
meet. They are found south of Cagayan
Valley, northeast of the Central Luzon
Plains.

Sierra Madre Mountains E…

Lying in the eastern portion of Luzon is the

longest mountain range in the Philippines,
the Sierra Madre, stretching from Quezon
province in the south to Cagayan in the
north. 80 percent of the mountain range is
tropical rainforest, which is diminishing
from rampant illegal logging activity. The
range serves as the eastern wall of Luzon
Island that protects inhabitants from
tropical cyclones usually coming from the
Pacific Ocean.

Central Luzon Plains E…

The largest plain of the nation is situated

in the Central Luzon region and produces
most of the national rice supply, earning
itself the nickname "Rice Bowl of the
Philippines". The plains encompass the
provinces of Bulacan, Nueva Ecija,
Pampanga, Tarlac and Pangasinan.

Manila-Katagalugan plains E…

South of the Central Luzon plains lies the

largest inland freshwater lake in Southeast
Asia, the Laguna de Bay. To the east of the
lake is a plain that stretches westward to
the Manila Bay. Large rivers from bays and
mountain springs traverse the plain. In the
northern part of the region, that is, Manila
and Rizal, most of the plain had been
converted into cities and towns, and are
thus industrialized. Lying east of the lake
is the southern terminus of the Sierra
Madre mountain range at northern Quezon
province.

To the southwest of the Laguna de Bay is

the nation's third largest lake, the Taal,
bordered to the north by the Tagaytay
Ridge, a ridge stretching from southern
Cavite to northern Batangas provinces.

Bondoc Peninsula E…

The Bondoc Peninsula is located in the

southeastern part of Quezon Province.

Bicol Peninsula E…
Southeast of Laguna de Bay lies the Bicol
Peninsula, connected to mainland Luzon
by the isthmus of Tayabas. The
predominantly flat landscape features
several solitary peaks, usually active
volcanoes, which include Iriga, Mayon and
Bulusan.

The peninsula has an irregular coastline

that features large bays and gulfs, which
include the Lamon Bay, San Miguel Bay,
Lagonoy Gulf, and Albay Gulf to the north,
and the Tayabas Bay, Ragay Gulf and
Sorsogon Bay to the south.

Mindoro Island E…
Mindoro coastal plains E…

Mindoro's coastal plains are characterized

by rice and corn fields, rivers, beaches, and
extensive open space areas. Most of the
population is concentrated on the northern
and eastern coast of this island where the
city of Calapan and Puerto Galera are
located.

Mindoro highlands E…

The Mindoro mountain range begins with

Mount Halcon and is further divided into
three. The northwest ends at Calavite
Point and is a landmark for ships. The east
originates from Lake Naujan and the west
follows the Mindoro Strait.

Palawan E…

Kalayaan islands (Spratly Islands) E…

The Kalayaan Islands are located to the

west of Palawan. Kalayaan is a Filipino
word meaning "freedom".

Visayas E…
Visayan group of islands: Western Visayas (red),
Negros Island (green), Central Visayas (light blue),
and Eastern Visayas (pink).

Catbalogan plains E…

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Panay-Negros-Cebu area E…

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Mindanao E…
An old map of Mindanao from the Atlas of the
Philippine Islands (1900).

Eastern Pacific Cordillera E…

The eastern coast of Mindanao features a

long mountain range, the Eastern Pacific
Cordillera, which stretches from Bilar Point
at Surigao in the north to Cape San
Agustin at Davao in the south. Forming its
northern portion are the Diwata Mountains
(also spelled Diuata), separated from the
south by low passes situated at the
middle. To the east of the range are
narrow strips of lowland that feature
several inlets and bays, the most
prominent of which include the Lianga and
Bislig bays.[14][15]

Davao-Agusan Trough E…

To the west of the Pacific Cordillera lies an

extensive lowland, the Davao-Agusan
Trough. Its northern portion includes the
Agusan Valley which forms the lower river
basin of the Agusan River. The river flows
in a northward direction and empties into
the Iligan Bay. Draining the southern
portion of the lowland are several other
rivers, which include the Tagum, flowing
southward to the Davao Gulf.[14][15]

Central Mindanao highlands E…

Situated west of the Davao-Agusan Trough

is a complex series of mountain ranges
called the Central Mindanao Highlands
(also known as the Central Cordillera).
From these mountains form the
headwaters of several rivers which include
the Rio Grande de Mindanao, Pulangi,
Maridagao and Tagoloan rivers. Several
tall mountains, such as Mount Apo, the
country's highest are found within the
range.[14]

Bukidnon-Lanao plateaus E…

The north-central portion of Mindanao is

dominated by an extensive highland
region, the Bukidnon-Lanao Plateau, which
includes the Kitanglad and Kalatungan
mountain ranges. Within the plateau lies
the country's second largest lake, Lake
Lanao situated at an elevation of 2,296
feet, drained by the Agus River flowing
northward to its river mouth at Iligan
Bay.[14]

Cotabato Basin E…
South of the Bukidnon-Lanao Plateau lies
a large depression, the Cotabato Basin,
which forms the lower river basin of the
country's second largest river system, the
Rio Grande de Cagayan (also known as the
Mindanao River). Surrounded by three
mountain ranges, the basin's only opening
to the sea is to the northwest at Illana Bay,
where the Mindanao River empties into the
ocean.[14][15]

To the southeast of the main basin are two

large valleys, the Koronadal and Allah
valleys.[14]

Tiruray highlands E…
Situated south and west of the Cotabato
Basin are a moderately high mountain
range, the Tiruray Highlands, which block
off the Basin from the southern
coastline.[15] South of the highlands are
narrow strips of coastlines.[14]

Zamboanga peninsula E…

At the northwestern tip of Mindanao is the

generally mountainous Zamboanga
Peninsula. The chain of mountain ranges
in this region is called Zamboanga
Cordilleras, with the highest elevation at
Mount Dapi, which is 2,617 meters
(8,586 ft) high.
The southern coastline is irregular,
featuring two smaller peninsulas, the
Sibuguey and Baganian, extending
southward to the Moro Gulf.[14]

Outlying islands of Mindanao E…

Dinagat and Siargao Islands E…

To the north of the Diwata Mountains at

northeast Mindanao lie Siargao island and
the Dinagat group of islands.[14]

Sulu Archipelago E…

Southwest of the Zamboanga Peninsula is

the Sulu Archipelago, a chain of islands
which comprise the smaller archipelago
provinces of Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-
Tawi.[14]

Administrative geography
The Philippines is divided into a hierarchy
of local government units (LGUs) with the
81 provinces and 38 independent cities as
the primary unit. Provinces are further
subdivided into component cities and
municipalities, both of which consist of
barangays, the smallest local government
unit.

Regions E…
There are 17 regions comprising the
Philippines. Each region, with the
exception of the National Capital Region,
is further subdivided into component
provinces. The National Capital Region is
divided into four special districts.

Most government offices establish

regional offices in a city to serve the
constituent provinces. Such cities are
designated as "regional centers". The
regions themselves do not possess a
separate local government, with the
exception of the Bangsamoro
Autonomous Region.
Provinces E…

Forming the regions, with the exception of

the National Capital, are the 81 provinces.
Each province has a capital city or
municipality.

Landlocked and island provinces E…

Of the 81 provinces of the Philippines, 15

are landlocked, and 16 are island
provinces.
Landlocked provinces
Province Region Island
Apayao CAR Luzon
Abra CAR Luzon
Kalinga CAR Luzon
Mountain Province CAR Luzon
Ifugao CAR Luzon
Benguet CAR Luzon
Nueva Vizcaya II Luzon
Quirino II Luzon
Nueva Ecija III Luzon
Tarlac III Luzon
Laguna [A] IV-A Luzon
Rizal [A] IV-A Luzon
Bukidnon X Mindanao
North Cotabato XII Mindanao
Agusan del Sur XIII Mindanao
A These provinces have coastlines on Laguna
de Bay, a large lake. Since lakes do not allow
access to seaborne trade, they are considered
to be landlocked.
Island provinces
Province Region Island group
Batanes II Luzon
Marinduque IV-B Luzon
Romblon IV-B Luzon
Palawan IV-B Luzon
Catanduanes V Luzon
Masbate V Luzon
Guimaras VI Visayas
Cebu VII Visayas
Bohol VII Visayas
Siquijor VII Visayas
Biliran VIII Visayas
Camiguin X Mindanao
Dinagat Islands XIII Mindanao
Basilan BARMM Mindanao
Sulu BARMM Mindanao
Tawi-Tawi BARMM Mindanao

Climate

Philippines map of Köppen climate classification

zones

The Philippines has a tropical climate

dominated by a rainy season and a dry
season, although certain locations have no
dry season (meaning, all months have an
average rainfall of above 60 mm) and
certain higher-altitude areas can have a
subtropical climate. The summer
monsoon brings heavy rains to most of the
archipelago from May to October, whereas
the winter monsoon brings relatively
cooler and drier air from December to
February. Manila and most of the lowland
areas are hot and dusty from March to
May. Even at this time, however,
temperatures rarely rise above 37 °C
(98.6 °F). Mean annual sea-level
temperatures rarely fall below 27 °C
(80.6 °F). Annual rainfall measures as
much as 5,000 millimeters (196.9 in) in the
mountainous east coast section of the
country, but less than 1,000 millimeters
(39.4 in) in some of the sheltered valleys.

Monsoon rains, although hard and

drenching, are not normally associated
with high winds and waves. But the
Philippines sit astride the typhoon belt,
and it suffers an annual onslaught of
dangerous storms from July through
October. These are especially hazardous
for northern and eastern Luzon and the
Bicol and Eastern Visayas regions, but
Manila gets devastated periodically as
well.
In the last decade, the Philippines has
been hit severely by natural disasters. In
2005 alone, Central Luzon was hit by both
a drought, which sharply curtailed
hydroelectric power, and by a typhoon that
flooded practically all of low-lying Manila's
streets. Still more damaging was the 1990
earthquake that devastated a wide area in
Luzon, including Baguio and other
northern areas. The city of Cebu and
nearby areas were struck by a typhoon
that killed more than a hundred people,
sank vessels, destroyed part of the sugar
crop, and cut off water and electricity for
several days. The Philippines is prone to
about six to nine storms which make
landfall each year, on average. The 1991
Mount Pinatubo eruption also damaged
much of Central Luzon, the lahar burying
towns and farmland, and the ashes
affecting global temperatures.

Building construction is undertaken with

natural disasters in mind. Most rural
housing has consisted of nipa huts that
are easily damaged but are inexpensive
and easy to replace. Most urban buildings
are steel and concrete structures designed
(not always successfully) to resist both
typhoons and earthquakes. Damage is still
significant, however, and many people are
displaced each year by typhoons,
earthquakes, and other natural disasters.
In 1987 alone the Department of Social
Welfare and Development helped 2.4
million victims of natural disasters.

Statistics

CIA Statistics E…

Unless otherwise indicated, the

information below is taken from CIA
Factbook information for the
Philippines.[16]

Area E…
 Total: 300,000 square kilometres
(115,831 sq mi)
Land: 298,170 square kilometres
(115,124 sq mi)
Water: 1,830 square kilometres
(707 sq mi)
Coastline E…

36,289 kilometres (22,549 mi)

Maritime claims E…

(measured from claimed archipelagic

baselines)

Continental shelf: to depth of

exploitation
Exclusive economic zone:
2,263,816 km2 (874,064 sq mi) with 200
nautical miles (370 km)
Territorial sea: irregular polygon
extending up to 100 nautical miles
(190 km; 120 mi) from coastline as
defined by 1898 treaty; since late 1970s
has also claimed polygonal-shaped area
in South China Sea up to 285 nautical
miles (528 km; 328 mi) in breadth.

Luzon Strait
Channel Sea (Pacific Ocean)
BalintangPhilippine
Babuyan Channel
 Lingayen Gulf
Baler Bay

Manila Bay Polillo Strait

Lamon Bay
Tayabas Bay San Miguel Bay
Verde Island Passage Lagonoy Gulf
Ragay Gulf
Sibuyan Sea
Mindoro StraitAsid Tablas San Bernardino Strait
Strait
h China SeaJintotolo Channel Gulf Samar Sea
Linapacan StraitVisayan Sea San Juanico Strait
Guimaras StraitCamotes Sea Leyte Gulf
Panay Gulf Canigao Channel
Honda Bay CebuTañon Strait Strait
Surigao Strait
Butuan Bay
Bohol Macajalar
Sea
Iligan Bay Bay
Sulu Sea
alabac Strait Sibuguey Bay Illana Bay
Basilan Strait Moro Gulf
Tapiantana Channel Davao Gulf
Sarangani Bay
Celebes Sea

Oceans and Seas in the Philippines

Natural resources E…
 Timber, petroleum, nickel, cobalt, silver,
gold, salt, and copper.
Land use E…

Arable land: 19%

Permanent crops: 16.67%
Other: 64.33% (2005)
Irrigated land E…

15,500 square kilometers (5,985 sq mi)

(2003)
Natural hazards E…

The Philippines sit astride typhoon belt

and are usually affected by 15 and struck
by five to six cyclonic storms per year;
landslides; active volcanoes; destructive
earthquakes; tsunamis.

Environment - current issues E…

Uncontrolled deforestation in watershed

areas; soil erosion; air and water
pollution in Manila; increasing pollution
of coastal mangrove swamps which are
important fish breeding grounds; severe
water pollution that caused the death of
one of the country's major rivers, though
there are ongoing efforts at
resuscitation.[17]

Typhoon Haiyan in November 2013

caused major problems.
Environment - international agreements E…

Party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change,

Endangered Species, Hazardous
Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer
Protection, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical
Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
Signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-
Kyoto Protocol, Desertification

Subnational enclaves and exclaves E…

In political geography, an enclave is a

territory or part of a territory lying wholly
within the boundaries of another, and an
exclave is one which is politically attached
to a larger piece but not actually
contiguous with it. Many entities are both
enclaves and exclaves, but the two are not
synonymous.

Exclaves which are not enclaves E…

Caloocan City is divided in two by

Valenzuela City and Quezon City.
In Cotabato province, the municipality of
President Roxas is divided in two by
Antipas municipality.
Pene-enclaves/exclaves and
inaccessible districts E…

In Soccsksargen:
 Sarangani province is separated
into two sections by General Santos
City and Sarangani Bay.
In the Zamboanga Peninsula:
Isabela City, the provincial capital of
Basilan province (part of the
Bangsamoro Autonomous Region)
is part of Zamboanga Peninsula
despite it being separated from it by
the Basilan Strait.
Zamboanga City, a highly urbanized
independent city, is statistically part
of Zamboanga del Sur province, but
is separated from it by Zamboanga
Sibugay province.
Subnational quadripoint E…

A quadripoint is a point on the Earth that

touches four distinct regions. Such points
are often called "four corners", from the
corners of the four regions meeting there.

Four provinces in Mindanao meet at a

point at the summit of Mount Apo:
Bukidnon of Northern Mindanao Region,
Davao del Norte and Davao del Sur of
Davao Region, and Cotabato Province of
Soccsksargen
More than four E…

Four distinct geographic divisions

converging at a single point is not
uncommon in the Philippines, and there
are other points of convergence between
five or more divisions that can be found.
Count Cities/municipalities Location

Tagkawayan • Labo • Camarines

San Lorenzo Ruiz • Norte,
5
San Vicente • Camarines

Del Gallego Sur, Quezon

Cadiz • Sagay • Silay • Negros

5
Talisay • Calatrava Occidental

Batuan • Bilar • Carmen •

5 Bohol
Dimiao • Valencia

Alicia • Dagohoy • Pilar •

5 Bohol
San Miguel • Ubay

Baungon • Lantapan •
5 Sumilao • Talakag • Bukidnon
Malaybalay
5 Aleosan • Carmen • Cotabato,
Kabacan • Pikit • Maguindanao

Pagagawan

Tibiao • Barbaza •
Antique,
5 Madalag • Libacao •
Aklan, Capiz
Jamindan

Basey • Marabut • Eastern

6 Balangkayan • Llorente • Samar,
Balangiga • Lawaan Samar

Ligao • Legazpi •
Tabaco • Guinobatan • Albay (Mayon
8 Camalig • Daraga • Volcano
Malilipot • crater)

Santo Domingo
Mayon shared by 8 cities/towns

Geographic center E…

This article appears to contradict the article

Extreme points of the Philippines. Learn more

The island province of Marinduque prides

itself as being the geographic center of the
Philippines.[18] The Marinduque governor
has stated that their claim to be the
Geographical Center of the Philippines has
received notice and support from the
National Mapping and Resource
Information Authority (NAMRIA).[19] The
Luzon Datum of 1911 in Marinduque is
used as point number one for all map
makers in the country.[20]

The boundaries of the Philippine

archipelago are described in Article III of
the Treaty of Paris (1898), as comprising
an irregular polygon.[21] A box enclosing
that polygon would have corners at 20°N
116°E, 20°N 127°E, 4.75°N 127°E, 4.75°N
116°E. The center of this box would lie at
121.5 E, 12.375 N. That point lies roughly
in the center of the Tablas Strait between
the islands of Tablas and Mindoro.

Republic Act No. 9522, "An Act to Define

the Baselines of the Territorial Sea of the
Philippines",[22] describes an irregular
polygon which fits within a box with its
center at 121°44'47.45"E 12°46'6.1252"N,
a point also roughly in the center of the
Tablas Strait.

The CIA Factbook locates the Philippines

at 13°N 122°E.[16]

The extreme points under Philippine

control as of 2010 are:
 Coordinates
Direction Location Latitude
Longitude (
(N)

Amianan
North Island, 21º7’18.41" 121º56’48.7
Batanes

East Pusan 7º17’19.80" 126º36’18.2

Point,
Davao
Oriental[a]

Frances
Reef,
South 4º24’53.84" 119º14’50.7
Tawi-
Tawi

Thitu
Island[b],
’ " ’
 ,
West 11°3’10.19" 114°16’54.6
Kalayaan,
Palawan
a Pusan Point is the easternmost incorporate
territory of the Philippines, but the Benham
Plateau is the easternmost unincorporated
territory of the Philippines.
b Thitu island is the westernmost of all the
Spratly Island features controlled by the
Philippines as of December 2009.

The center of a box enclosing these points

would be located at 12°46’6.13"N,
120°26’36.46"E. That point is located in
the Mindoro Strait, about 12 kilometres
(7.5 mi) NNE of Apo Island, in Sablayan,
Occidental Mindoro.
Largest cities and towns E…

The following is a list of the most

populous cities in the country, with their
population according to the 2010 census.
Component cities and municipalities of
Metro Manila, Metro Cebu and Metro
Davao are taken as one to show the extent
of urbanization.

See also
Island groups of the Philippines
List of islands of the Philippines
List of headlands of the Philippines
List of mountains in the Philippines
 List of Ultras of the Philippines
List of volcanoes in the Philippines
List of active volcanoes in the
Philippines
List of potentially active volcanoes
in the Philippines
List of inactive volcanoes in the
Philippines
List of bays of the Philippines
List of lakes of the Philippines
List of rivers of the Philippines
Extreme points of the Philippines
Territories claimed by the Philippines
Borders of the Philippines
 Subduction tectonics of the Philippines

References
 This article incorporates public domain
material from the Library of Congress Country
Studies website http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/ .

1. https://psa.gov.ph/content/philippine
-population-density-based-2015-
census-population
2. "World Development Indicators -
DataBank" . databank.worldbank.org.
3. "Philippines Mountain Ultra-
Prominence" . peaklist.org. Retrieved
2009-06-19.
4. (2011-04-06). "The World Factbook –
Philippines" . Central Intelligence
Agency. Retrieved on 2011-03-14.
5. "More islands, more fun in PH" . CNN
Philippines. February 20, 2016.
6. "Namria discovers 400 to 500 new
islands in PHL archipelago" .
7. The count of islands was pegged at
7,107 in 1945, and was updated to
7,641 in 2017 after the Philippine
National Mapping and Resource
Information Authority (NAMRIA)
announced that it had identified 400
to 500 additional land features that
might be considered islands.[5][6]
 8. "Island Countries Of The World" .
WorldAtlas.com. Archived from the
original on 2017-12-07. Retrieved
2019-08-10.
9. "The Philippines" . Republic of the
Philippines, National Government
Portal. Retrieved 16 December 2017.
10. Anupol; Cayabyab; Chua; Luarca;
Shimamoto; Torio; Yumol (June 20,
2015). "PHILIPPINE MUSIC" (PDF).
Balikbayan family-union –
AboutPhilippines.
11. Central Intelligence Agency. (2009).
"Field Listing :: Coastline" .
 Washington, D.C.: Author. Retrieved
2009-11-07.
12. Exclusive Economic Zones – Sea
Around Us Project – Fisheries,
Ecosystems & Biodiversity – Data
and Visualization.
13. Sagmit, Rosario S.; Soriano, Nora N.
(1998). Geography in the Changing
World. Rex Book Store. p. 76.
ISBN 9712324516.
14. Wernstedt, Frederick L.; Spencer,
Joseph Earl (1978). The Philippine
Island World: A Physical, Cultural, and
Regional Geography . Berkeley:
University of California Press. pp. 32–
 37. ISBN 9780520035133. Retrieved
27 January 2016.
15. Hinz, Erhard (1985). Human
Helminthiases in the Philippines the
Epidemiological and Geomedical
Situation . Berlin, Heidelberg:
Springer Berlin Heidelberg. pp. 129–
131. ISBN 9783642708411. Retrieved
27 January 2016.
16. Philippines : Geography Archived
January 11, 2010, at the Wayback
Machine, CIA World Factbook.
17. Cezar Tigno, Resuscitating the Pasig
River Archived 2010-07-07 at the
 Wayback Machine, Asian
Development Bank, April 2009.
18. Regional Tourism Stakeholders to
meet in Marinduque Archived 2009-
12-06 at the Wayback Machine,
Marinduque.gov
19. STATE OF THE PROVINCE ADDRESS
of Gov.JOSE ANTONIO N. CARRION,
GOVERNOR OF MARINDUQUE
Archived 2009-12-06 at the Wayback
Machine, July 7, 2008.
20. Luzon Datum of 1911 Archived
2009-12-06 at the Wayback Machine,
Marinduque.gov
 21. Treaty of Peace Between the United
States and Spain , The Avalon
project.
22. Republic Act No. 9522 ,An Act to
Define the Baselines of the Territorial
Sea of the Philippines, as amended
by Section 1 of Republic Act No.
5446, The LawPhil project .

External links
Government Portal of the Republic of
the Philippines

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