Eastern Samar

Eastern Samar Lalawigan han Sidlangan nga Samar Lalawigan sa Sidlakang Samar Lalawigan ng Silangang Samar
Province
Province of Eastern Samar
Flag
Location in the Philippines
Coordinates:
Country	Philippines
Region	Eastern Visayas (Region VIII)
Founded	June 19, 1965
Capital	Borongan City
Government
• Type	Province of the Philippines
• Governor	Conrado B. Nicart, Jr. (Liberal)
• Vice Governor	Marcelo Picardal (LDP)
Area
• Total	4,660.47 km2 (1,799.42 sq mi)
Area rank	26th out of 80
Population (2010)
• Total	428,877
• Rank	60th out of 80
• Density	92/km2 (240/sq mi)
• Density rank	68th out of 80
Divisions
• Independent cities	0
• Component cities	1
• Municipalities	22
• Barangays	597
• Districts	Lone district of Eastern Samar
Time zone	PHT (UTC+8)
ZIP code	6800 - 6822
Dialing code	55
Spoken languages	Waray-Waray, Cebuano, Tagalog, English
Website	easternsamar.gov.ph

Eastern Samar (Filipino: Silangang Samar; Cebuano: Sidlakang Samar; Waray-Waray: Sidlangan nga Samar) is a province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is the city of Borongan. Eastern Samar occupies the eastern portion of the island of Samar. Bordering the province to the north is the province of Northern Samar and to the west is Samar and to the east is the vast Pacific Ocean. off the coast of Leyte Gulf.

History

During his circumnavigation of the globe, Ferdinand Magellan had set foot on the tiny island of Homonhon in the southern part of the province. On March 16, 1521, the area of what is now Eastern Samar is said to be the first Philippine landmass spotted by Magellan and his crew.

Eastern Samar, as a province, was created from Samar by virtue of Republic Act No. 4221 on June 19, 1965. Congressmen Eladio T. Balite (1st Dist. Samar), Fernando R. Veloso (2nd Dist. Samar), and Felipe J. Abrigo (3rd Dist. Samar), authored Republic Act 4221 which was approved by Congress in 1963. The law, ratified in a plebiscite on June 19, 1965, divided Samar into three, namely, Northern Samar, Eastern Samar and (Western) Samar.

Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda), one of the strongest typhoons ever recorded, made landfall in the coastal town of Guiuan on November of 2013.

Geography

The province occupies a total land area of 466,047 hectares (1,151,630 acres). Because it faces the Pacific Ocean, Eastern Samar suffers heavily from powerful typhoons.

Administrative divisions

Political divisions

Eastern Samar is politically subdivided into 22 municipalities and one city.

City or Municipality Area (km²) Population (2010) Density (per km²) No. of barangays ZIP code Income class (DOF) Coordinates Arteche 169.82 15,164 89.3 20 6822 3rd Balangiga 190.05 12,756 67.1 13 6812 4th Balangkayan 207.05 9,046 43.7 15 6801 5th Borongan † 475 64,457 135.7 61 6800 — Can-avid 288.7 19,785 68.5 28 6806 4th Dolores 308.58 37,912 122.9 46 6817 5th General MacArthur 117.29 12,214 104.1 30 6805 5th Giporlos 97.51 12,040 123.5 18 6811 5th Guiuan 175.49 47,037 268 60 6809 2nd Hernani 49.42 8,070 163.3 13 6804 5th Jipapad 234.8 7,397 31.5 13 6819 5th Lawaan 162.56 11,612 71.4 16 6813 5th Llorente 496.07 19,101 38.5 33 6803 3rd Maslog 249.8 4,781 19.1 12 6820 5th Maydolong 399.63 13,614 34.1 20 6802 4th Mercedes 23.32 5,369 230.2 16 6808 5th Oras 188.7 34,760 184.2 42 6818 4th Quinapondan 83.24 13,841 166.3 25 6810 5th Salcedo 113.8 19,970 175.5 41 6807 5th San Julian 150.62 13,748 91.3 16 6814 5th San Policarpo 78 13,836 177.4 17 6821 5th Sulat 169.75 15,184 89.4 18 6815 4th Taft 231.27 17,183 74.3 24 6816 4th  †  Provincial capital and component city      Municipality Coordinates mark the city/town center vicinity, and are sorted according to latitude. Dashes (—) inside cells indicate unavailable information.

Demographics

The province has a population of 461,300 as of the 2010 census. The predominant language is Waray.

Population census of Eastern Samar
Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1990	329,335	—
1995	362,324	+1.80%
2000	375,822	+0.79%
2007	405,114	+1.04%
2010	428,877	+2.10%
Source: National Statistics Office

Languages Spoken (2000)
Language			Speakers
Waray			366,787
Kapampangan			2,067
Binisaya			1,613
Cebuano			680
Tagalog			621
Others			2,510
Not Reported			846

Religion

The people of the province are devoted Christians where 96% adhere to Roman Catholicism. The dominant Catholic faith influences the events of the provincial education, politics and social functions of the people. Other Christians usually form the remaining groups of believers such as Jehovah's Witnesses, Iglesia Ni Cristo, Baptists, Methodists, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Seventh-day Adventists. Non Christians (mostly Muslims) are also found.

Transportation

The province has one operational airport; Borongan Airport located in the capital city. Currently, only SkyJet Airlines operates out of Borongan Airport with flights weekly to serve locals and tourists to and from Manila.

By land, mini buses and vans ply from the regional center in Tacloban City to some towns in Eastern Samar. From Borongan City, buses ply to Manila. Motorized boats plies through the Leyte Gulf ferrying passengers going to Tacloban City seaport.

Borongan City's Wilsam Uptown Mall, the largest shopping mall in Eastern Samar.

Economy

Commercial activities in the province are centered on the provincial capital of Borongan City while tourism activities are centered in Guiuan town where Calicoan Island and the historical Homonhon Island are located. Generally, the province's major economic resource is fishery and agriculture which include production of copra, corn, rice, sugar, and vegetables. Tourism potential is untapped on the northern part of the province.

External links

• Geographic data related to Eastern Samar at OpenStreetMap
• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Local Governance Performance Management System

1. REDIRECT Template:Administrative divisions of the Philippines