Samar (province)

Samar
Western Samar
Flag of Samar
Official seal of Samar
Nickname: 
The Caving Capital Province of the Philippines[1]
Location in the Philippines
Location in the Philippines
OpenStreetMap
Map
Coordinates: 11°50′N 125°00′E / 11.83°N 125°E / 11.83; 125
CountryPhilippines
RegionEastern Visayas
FoundedAugust 11, 1841
CapitalCatbalogan
Largest cityCalbayog
Government
 • TypeSangguniang Panlalawigan
 • GovernorSharee Ann T. Tan (NP)
 • Vice GovernorArnold V. Tan (NP)
 • LegislatureSamar Provincial Board
Area
 • Total
6,048.03 km2 (2,335.16 sq mi)
 • Rank10th out of 81
Highest elevation890 m (2,920 ft)
Population
 (2020 census)[3]
 • Total
793,183
 • Rank39th out of 81
 • Density130/km2 (340/sq mi)
  • Rank64th out of 81
Divisions
 • Independent cities0
 • Component cities
 • Municipalities
 • Barangays951
 • DistrictsLegislative districts of Samar
Time zoneUTC+8 (PHT)
ZIP Code
6700–6725
IDD:area code+63 (0)55
ISO 3166 codePH-WSA
Spoken languages
Highway routes
Websitesamar.lgu-ph.com Edit this at Wikidata

Samar, officially the Province of Samar (Waray: Probinsya han Samar; Tagalog: Lalawigan ng Samar), or also known named as Western Samar, is a province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is the city of Catbalogan while Calbayog is the most populous city in the province. It is bordered by Northern Samar, Eastern Samar, Leyte and Leyte Gulf, and includes several islands in the Samar Sea. Samar is connected to the island of Leyte via the San Juanico Bridge.

In 1768, Leyte and modern Samar were created out of the historical province of Samar. In 1965, Northern and Eastern Samar were created.

Fishing and agriculture are the major economic activities in the province.[4]

On 8 November 2013, the province was significantly damaged by Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan), particularly the towns of Basey, Marabut and Santa Rita.[5]

  1. ^ Togonon, Mark Anthony (1 November 2015). "Enchanted". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved 23 March 2016. ... there are more than a thousand caves in the province alone, most of them still unexplored. "Samar isn't called the Caving Capital of the Philippines for nothing," he says.
  2. ^ "List of Provinces". PSGC Interactive. Makati City, Philippines: National Statistical Coordination Board. Retrieved 12 April 2013.
  3. ^ Census of Population (2020). "Region VIII (Eastern Visayas)". Total Population by Province, City, Municipality and Barangay. Philippine Statistics Authority. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  4. ^ http://www.samar.lgu-ph.com/econo.htm Economical Data
  5. ^ Mangosing, Frances (2013-11-10). "'Yolanda' kills 300 in Samar – official". inquirer.net. Retrieved 2021-12-21.