Samar (province) explained

Samar
Official Name:Province of Samar
Flag Size:120x80px
Seal Size:100x80px
Nickname:The Caving Capital Province of the Philippines[1]
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Type1:Region
Established Title:Founded
Established Date:August 11, 1841
Seat Type:Capital
Leader Title:Governor
Leader Name:Sharee Ann T. Tan (NP)
Leader Title1:Vice Governor
Leader Name1:Arnold V. Tan (NP)
Leader Title2:Legislature
Leader Name2:Samar Provincial Board
Area Footnotes:[2]
Area Rank:10th out of 81
Elevation Max M:890
Elevation Max Point:Mount Huraw
Population Rank:39th out of 81
Population Density Km2:auto
Population Density Rank:64th out of 81
Demographics Type1:Divisions
Demographics1 Title1:Independent cities
Demographics1 Info1:0
Demographics1 Title2:Component cities
Demographics1 Title3:Municipalities
Demographics1 Title4:Barangays
Demographics1 Info4:951
Demographics1 Title5:Districts
Demographics1 Info5:Legislative districts of Samar
Timezone:PHT
Utc Offset:+8
Postal Code Type:ZIP Code
Blank Name Sec1:Spoken languages
Blank Name Sec2:Highway routes
Seat1:Calbayog
Seat1 Type:Largest city
Image Map1:
Frame-Width:250
Zoom:8

Samar, officially the Province of Samar (Waray: Probinsya han Samar; Tagalog: Lalawigan ng Samar), formerly named Western Samar, is a province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is the city of Catbalogan. 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.[3]

On 8 November 2013, the province was significantly damaged by Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan), particularly the towns of Basey, Marabut and Santa Rita.[4]

Etymology

Samar is said to derive from the word Samad, a Visayan word for "wound" or "cut", describing the rough physical features of the land which is rugged and deeply dissected by streams. Some historians however believe that Samar came Samaria, the ancient homeland of the lequios tribe that settled in the Lakanate of Lawan. Datu Iberein is said to be responsible for naming the island Samar.

History

Pre-history

Around 2 million to 8000 B.C, based on geologic findings, during the ice ages (2 million years – 8000 B.C), the islands of Mindoro, Luzon, and Mindanao were connected as one big island through the islands of Samar, Leyte and Bohol.

Early history

In 8550 B.C., diggings in Sohoton Caves in Basey, Samar showed stone flake tools. In 1200 A.D., other diggings along the Basey River revealed other stone flakes used until the 13th century.[5]

Spanish colonial era

In 1543, the explorer Ruy López de Villalobos, first came to the island and named it Las Islas Filipinas.

In 1596, many names (such as Samal, Ibabao, Tandaya) were given to Samar Island prior to the coming of the Spaniards in 1596. During the early days of Spanish occupation, Samar was under the jurisdiction of Cebu.

On October 15, 1596, the first Jesuit missionaries arrived in Tinago (now Dapdap) in Tarangnan. From Tinago, the missionaries, Fr. Francisco de Otazo, Bartolome Martes and Domingo Alonzo began teaching Catechism, healing the sick and spreading the Christian faith into the interior settlements.

On June 1, 1649, the people of Palapag led by Agustin Sumuroy revolted against the decree of Governor General Diego Fajardo requiring able bodied men from the Visayas for service at the Cavite Shipyards. Like wildfire, the revolt quickly spread to the neighboring town in the Northern and Western coast of Samar and to the nearby provinces of Bicol, Surigao, Cebu, Camiguin and as far as Zamboanga. It was suppressed in 1650 by the combined forces of the Spaniards, Lutaos, and Pampangos.

In 1735, Samar and Leyte were united into one province with Carigara, in Leyte, as the capital town.

In 1747, Samar and Leyte were separated for administrative effectiveness.

In 1762, complaints from the Jesuits that the division was not working well, thus it was reunited again by the approval from the King of Spain.

In 1768, Jesuits were expelled in all Spanish dominions. The Franciscans arrived on September 25, 1768, and took over the administration of 14 of the 17 parishes which were under the spiritual care of the Jesuits for almost 172 years. The administration of the remaining three parishes namely Guiuan, Balangiga and Basey in the south of Samar were given to the Augustinians.

In 1777, the two provinces were divided for the last time, it was approved in Madrid in 1786 and had been effective in 1799.

In 1803, Guiuan, Balangiga and Basey were turned over to the Franciscans for the lack of Augustinian priests.

On August 11, 1841, Queen Isabella II of Spain signed a Royal Decree declaring Samar as a province.

American invasion era

The Battle of Catubig occurred on April 15–18, 1900 during the Philippine–American War.

On April 15, 1900, the Filipino guerrillas launched a surprise attack on a detachment of the US 43rd Infantry Regiment, forcing the Americans to abandon Catubig town after the four-day siege.

In 1901, the Balangiga massacre occurred during the Philippine–American War.

On September 28, 1901, the people of Balangiga, Giporlos, Lawaan and Quinapondan in Eastern Samar surprised and attacked the American forces stationed there, killing 48 American soldiers. To avenge their defeat, American general Jacob H. Smith ordered his men to turn Samar into a "howling wilderness".

On April 10, 1910, upon the papal bull of Pope Pius X separated the islands of Samar and Leyte from the Diocese of Cebu and erected the Diocese of Calbayog comprising both islands. Pablo Singzon de Anunciacion was named first Bishop and consecrated on June 12, 1910.

Japanese occupation era

In 1942, the occupying Imperial Japanese forces arrived in the province of Samar.

On October 24, 1944, the Battle off Samar took place as Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita's Center Force warships clashed with several allied naval vessels in a collision course. His forces sank escort carrier, destroyers and, and escort destroyer, but at a cost of his cruisers Chikuma,, and . Despite being a tactical victory for the Imperial Japanese Navy, it did not alter the course of the Philippines campaign.

Philippine independence

On June 19, 1965, the Philippine Congress along with the three Samar Representatives, Eladio T. Balite (1st District), Fernando R. Veloso (2nd District) and Felipe J. Abrigo (3rd District), approved Republic Act No. 4221 dividing the region of Samar into three divisions: Northern Samar, Eastern Samar, and Western Samar. Each region adopted a new capital: Catbalogan (Western Samar), Borongan (Eastern Samar), and Catarman (Northern Samar).[6]

On June 21, 1969, under Republic Act No. 5650, Western Samar was renamed Samar with Catbalogan still as the capital.[7]

Contemporary

The capital town Catbalogan became a component city by virtue of Republic Act No. 9391 which sought to convert the municipality into a city. The law was ratified on June 16, 2007. However, the cityhood status was lost twice in the years 2008 and 2010 after the LCP questioned the validity of the cityhood law. The cityhood status was reaffirmed after the court finalized its ruling on February 15, 2011 which declared the cityhood law constitutional.

On November 8, 2013, Typhoon Haiyan, locally known as Typhoon Yolanda hit Samar province.[8] More than 300 people perished on the first day it hit the province.[9]

In June 2018, a friendly fire incident happened between Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines under the administration of Rodrigo Duterte. The incident led to the death of numerous police officials of Waray ethnic origin.[10] [11]

On January 22, 2019, House Bill No. 8824 was introduced in the House of Representatives by Representative Edgar Mary Sarmiento to establish a new province called "Northwest Samar", consisting of nine municipalities and one city of Samar's 1st congressional district, of which Calbayog would be the designated capital. The bill is yet to be reviewed.[12]

Geography

Samar province covers a total area of occupying the central-western sections of the Samar island in the Eastern Visayas region. The province is bordered on the north by Northern Samar, east by Eastern Samar, south by Leyte and Leyte Gulf, and west by the Samar Sea.

Topography

Samar province is hilly, with mountain peaks ranging from 200to high and narrow strips of lowlands, which tend to lie in coastal peripheries or in the alluvial plains and deltas accompanying large rivers. The largest lowlands are located along the northern coast extending up to the valleys of Catubig and Catarman rivers. Smaller lowlands in Samar are to be found in the Calbayog area and on the deltas and small valleys of Gandara and Ulot rivers. Slopes are generally steep and barren of trees due to deforestation. Run-off waters after heavy rains can provoke flooding in low-lying areas and the erosion of the mountains enlarges the coastal plains of the province.

Climate and rainfall

Areas near the eastern coast of the province have no dry season (with a pronounced maximum rain period usually occurring from December to January), and are thus open to the northeast monsoon. Municipalities in the southeastern section of the province experience this type of climate.

Areas located in the northwestern portion of the province have a more or less evenly distributed rainfall throughout the year.

Administrative divisions

The province of Samar comprises two congressional districts, 24 municipalities and two component cities. It has a total of 952 barangays.

City municipalityDistrictPopulationAreaDensityCoordinates
km2/km2
Almagro1st8,94251.36km2NaN9,273/51.362311.9104°N 124.2847°W
Basey2nd55,480513.01km2NaN56,685/513.015111.2827°N 125.0695°W
Calbayog City1st183,851880.74km2NaN186,960/880.7415712.0669°N 124.5946°W
Calbiga2nd22,982283.7km2NaN23,310/283.704111.6274°N 125.017°W
Catbalogan City2nd103,879274.22km2NaN106,440/274.225711.7753°N 124.8829°W
Daram2nd42,879140.26km2NaN41,608/140.265811.6351°N 124.7954°W
Gandara1st34,434573.49km2NaN35,242/573.496912.0132°N 124.8114°W
Hinabangan2nd13,673460.08km2NaN13,693/460.082111.7015°N 125.0657°W
Jiabong2nd18,34267.7km2NaN19,205/67.703511.7627°N 124.9503°W
Marabut2nd16,962143.55km2NaN17,842/143.552411.1075°N 125.2125°W
Matuguinao1st7,288172.51km2NaN7,364/172.512012.144°N 124.8852°W
Motiong2nd15,156174.4km2NaN15,276/174.402911.7782°N 124.9986°W
Pagsanghan1st7,94530km2NaN7,959/30.001311.9653°N 124.7212°W
Paranas 2nd30,557556.12km2NaN32,374/556.124411.7715°N 125.0225°W
Pinabacdao2nd18,252183.06km2NaN18,136/183.062411.6139°N 124.9845°W
San Jorge1st17,184241.2km2NaN17,579/241.204111.9794°N 124.8251°W
San Jose de Buan2nd7,769366.9km2NaN7,767/366.901412.0517°N 125.0263°W
San Sebastian2nd8,05739.07km2NaN8,704/39.071411.7109°N 125.0176°W
Santa Margarita1st26,348129.12km2NaN26,816/129.123612.0378°N 124.6584°W
Santa Rita2nd41,591411.77km2NaN42,384/411.773811.4513°N 124.9413°W
Santo Niño1st12,86329.53km2NaN12,519/29.531311.9255°N 124.4489°W
Tagapul-an1st8,47328.7km2NaN8,805/28.701412.0484°N 124.1574°W
Talalora2nd8,05727.96km2NaN7,856/27.961111.5284°N 124.8362°W
Tarangnan1st24,992132.49km2NaN25,713/132.494111.9023°N 124.7464°W
Villareal2nd28,23098.54km2NaN27,394/98.543811.5675°N 124.9281°W
Zumarraga2nd16,29538.55km2NaN16,279/38.552511.6394°N 124.8423°W
Total793,183 780,4816,048.036048.03km2NaNPD/km2NaNPD/km2951

Demographics

The population of Samar (province) in the 2020 census was 793,183 people, with a density of NaNPD/km2NaNPD/km2.

Religion

See main article: Religion in the Philippines.

Catholicism

Samar (Western Samar) is predominantly Roman Catholic. The Catholic Hierarchy (2014) states that 95 percent of its population adhere to Roman Catholicism.

Others

Some other Christian believers constitute most of the remainder such as Rizalista, Iglesia Filipina Independiente, Born-again Christians, Iglesia ni Cristo, Baptists, Methodists, Jehovah's Witnesses, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Seventh-day Adventist, and Members Church of God International (MCGI). Muslims are also present and a few mosques are located within the province.

Languages and dialects

Residents of Samar are mostly Waray, the fifth largest cultural-linguistic group in the country. 90.2 percent of the household population speaks the Waray-Waray language, while 9.8 percent also speak Cebuano; 8.1 percent Boholano; 0.07 percent Tagalog; and 0.5 percent other languages.

There are two types of Waray spoken in the province, Waray Lineyte-Samarnon which is spoken from the southernmost tip of the province up to the municipality of Gandara and Waray Calbayog, an intermediary between the Waray of Northern Samar and the Waray of Samar, spoken in Calbayog, Santa Margarita, and in some parts of Tagapul-an, Santo Niño, Almagro and Matuguinao.

Former governors

See main article: Governor of Samar.

Notable personalities

19th & 20th Centuries

21st Century

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Togonon. Mark Anthony. Enchanted. 23 March 2016. Manila Bulletin. 1 November 2015. ... 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. Web site: List of Provinces . PSGC Interactive . National Statistical Coordination Board . 12 April 2013 . Makati City, Philippines.
  3. http://www.samar.lgu-ph.com/econo.htm Economical Data
  4. Web site: Mangosing. Frances. 2013-11-10. 'Yolanda' kills 300 in Samar – official. 2021-12-21. inquirer.net. en.
  5. Web site: The Islands of Leyte and Samar . 2022-06-24 . National Commission for Culture and the Arts . en-US.
  6. Web site: Republic Act No. 4221 - An Act Creating the Provinces of Northern Samar, Eastern Samar and Western Samar. Chan Robles Virtual Law Library. 19 June 1965. 18 April 2016.
  7. Web site: Republic Act No. 5650 - An Act Changing the Name of the Province of Western Samar to Samar. Chan Robles Virtual Law Library. 17 April 2016. 21 June 1969.
  8. Web site: World's most powerful typhoon lands in PH. ABS-CBN News.
  9. Web site: 'Yolanda' kills 300 in Samar – official. Frances. Mangosing. newsinfo.inquirer.net. 10 November 2013.
  10. Web site: AFP disarms 16 soldiers in Samar 'misencounter'. philstar.com.
  11. Web site: PNP chief says probers looking into case of ambush in Samar misencounter. Jhoanna. Ballaran. newsinfo.inquirer.net. 28 June 2018.
  12. News: Charissa Luci-Atienza . January 22, 2019 . Creation of Northwestern Samar province pushed . . May 25, 2020.
  13. Web site: Senate President Jose Avelino. Senate of the Philippines. September 24, 2019.
  14. Web site: Pinoy Folk Tales: Filipino Martyr: Benedicto P. Nijaga. Den. 2013-01-19. Pinoy Folk Tales. 2019-09-21.
  15. Web site: Julio Cardinal Rosales y Ras [Catholic-Hierarchy]]. www.catholic-hierarchy.org. 2019-09-24.
  16. Web site: The Unusual Life and Times of the Godino Twins. Positively Filipino Online Magazine for Filipinos in the Diaspora. 26 April 2017 . en-US. 2019-09-24.
  17. Web site: 7 Most Incredible Siamese Twins in History. 2012-03-29. scribol.com. en-US. 2019-09-24.
  18. Web site: Video-Search for Simplicio. YStream.TV. bg. 2019-09-24.
  19. Web site: Tricycle driver wins national award on poetry. www.samarnews.com. 2019-09-19.
  20. Web site: Calbayog City: Tricycle driver wins national award on poetry. Ricafort. Ronald Ladrero. 2010-06-01. Calbayog. 2019-09-21.
  21. Web site: Wika / Pamunuan. wika.pbworks.com. 2019-09-19.
  22. Web site: Msgr. Pedro Dean Profile. calbayogko.tripod.com. 2019-09-24.
  23. Web site: Archdiocese of Palo, Philippines. GCatholic. 2019-09-24.
  24. Web site: Chito Roño movie now Philippines' official entry for Oscars 2019. philstar.com. 2019-09-24.
  25. Book: Capino, Jose B.. Dream Factories of a Former Colony: American Fantasies, Philippine Cinema. November 10, 2010. U of Minnesota Press. 978-0-8166-6972-1. 89–. May 8, 2011.
  26. Web site: Waray News: Mga nagdaog han 6th Chito S. Roño Literary Awards pinasidunggan. July 8, 2019. Leonilo D. . Lopido . pia.gov.ph. en. 2019-09-24.
  27. Web site: Fast Talk with Tessie Tomas. entertainment.abs-cbn.com. 2019-09-24.
  28. Web site: Tessie Tomas: Her own woman now. philstar.com. 2019-09-24.
  29. Web site: Actress Tessie Tomas praises Mayor Uy, requests for presence in tourist spots. www.samarnews.com. 2019-09-24.
  30. Web site: Michael Cinco news and updates Rappler. www.rappler.com. en. 2019-09-19.
  31. Web site: Vice Mayor Yoyong Martires Abante News Online. . en-US. 2019-09-24.
  32. Web site: Bishop Maximiano Tuazon Cruz [Catholic-Hierarchy]]. www.catholic-hierarchy.org. 2019-09-24.
  33. Web site: Filipino bowler Rosita Bradborn. Abante. September 24, 2019.
  34. Web site: Rosita Bradborn and Asuncion Bruce Concept News Central. conceptnewscentral.com. en-US. 2019-09-24.
  35. Web site: PH bags 3 medals in 2 int'l tourneys Philippine Canadian Inquirer. 19 March 2018 . en-CA. 2019-09-24.
  36. Web site: Apostol appointed chief GMA counsel. philstar.com. 2019-09-24.
  37. Web site: Chief presidential legal counsel Sergio Apostol resigns. Carmela . Fonbuena. ABS-CBN News. 2019-09-24.
  38. Web site: Justice Eduardo B. Nachura Senate Electoral Tribunal. en-US. 2019-09-19.
  39. Web site: 'Bayan bago sarili': Miro Quimbo drops mayoral bid in Marikina. ABS-CBN News. 2019-09-24.
  40. Web site: Romero Federico "Miro" S. Quimbo. Daily Inquirer. September 24, 2019.
  41. Web site: Tom Rodriguez returns to hometown in Samar. GMA News Online. en-US. 2019-09-24.
  42. Web site: Tom Rodriguez' education in showbiz. Tariman. Pablo A.. Rappler. 19 October 2013 . en. 2019-09-24.
  43. Web site: AZ Lyrics.az Tom Rodriguez - Ikaw Ang Sagot lyrics. m.lyrics.az. 2019-09-24.
  44. Web site: New DILG chief: Who is Senen Sarmiento?. philstar.com. 2019-09-24.
  45. Web site: DILG Secretary Mel Sarmiento in DILG Bicol Region. DILG Region V. September 24, 2019.
  46. Web site: CA confirms appointment of Sarmiento as new DILG chief. https://web.archive.org/web/20150929212459/http://cnnphilippines.com/news/2015/09/22/comission-on-appointments-confirms-sarmiento-new-dilg-chief.html. dead. September 29, 2015. cnn. en. 2019-09-24.
  47. Web site: The BFP Welcomes the New DILG Secretary, MEL SENEN SARMIENTO BFP : Bureau of Fire Protection. en-US. 2019-09-24.