Western Visayas ( hil, Kabisay-an Nakatundan; tl, Kanlurang Kabisayaan or ''Kanlurang Visayas'') is an

administrative region Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, numerically designated as Region VI. It consists of six

provinces A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

(

Aklan Aklan, officially the Province of Aklan ( Akeanon: ''Probinsya it Akean'' k'ɣan hil, Kapuoran sang Aklan; tl, Lalawigan ng Aklan), is a province in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines. Its capital is Kalibo. The province is situa ...

Antique An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...

Capiz Capiz, officially the Province of Capiz (Capiznon/ Hiligaynon: ''Kapuoran sang Capiz''; tl, Lalawigan ng Capiz), is a province in the Philippines located in the central section of Western Visayas region. Its capital is the city of Roxas. It ...

Guimaras Guimaras , officially the Province of Guimaras ( hil, Kapuoran sang Guimaras; tl, Lalawigan ng Guimaras), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Jordan while its largest local government ...

Iloilo Iloilo (), officially the Province of Iloilo ( hil, Kapuoran sang Iloilo; krj, Kapuoran kang Iloilo; tl, Lalawigan ng Iloilo), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is the City of Iloilo, the ...

and

Negros Occidental Negros Occidental ( hil, Nakatungdang Negros; tl, Kanlurang Negros), officially the Province of Negros Occidental, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region. ...

) and two highly urbanized cities (

Bacolod Bacolod, officially the City of Bacolod (; hil, Dakbanwa/Syudad sang Bacolod; fil, Lungsod ng Bacolod), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the region of Western Visayas, Philippines. It is the capital of the province of Negros Occi ...

and

Iloilo City Iloilo City, officially the City of Iloilo ( hil, Siyudad/Dakbanwa sang Iloilo; fil, Lungsod ng Iloilo), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines on the island of Panay. It is the capital city of ...

). The regional center is

. The region is dominated by the native speakers of four

Visayan languages The Bisayan languages or Visayan languages are a subgroup of the Austronesian languages spoken in the Philippines. They are most closely related to Tagalog and the Bikol languages, all of which are part of the Central Philippine languages. M ...

: Hiligaynon,

Kinaray-a The Karay-a language ( krj, label=none, Kinaray-a, krj, label=none, Binisayâ nga Kinaray-a or krj, label=none, Hinaraya; en, Harayan) is an Austronesian regional language in the Philippines spoken by the Karay-a people, mainly in Antique, I ...

, Aklanon and

Capiznon Capiznon or Capiceño () is an Austronesian regional language spoken in Western Visayas in the Philippines. Capiznon is concentrated in the province of Capiz in the northeast of Panay Island. It is a member of the Bisayan language family and ...

. The land area of the region is , and with a population of 7,954,723 inhabitants, it is the second most populous region in the Visayas after

Central Visayas Central Visayas ( ceb, Tunga-tungang Kabisay-an; tl, Gitnang Kabisayaan) is an administrative region in the Philippines, numerically designated as Region VII. It consists of four provinces: (Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor) and thr ...

. On May 29, 2015, the region was realigned, when Western Visayas (Region VI) lost both the province of

and the highly urbanized city of

to the newly formed Negros Island Region. However, the region was dissolved, resulting in the return of

and

to Western Visayas Region on August 9, 2017.

Etymology

The region's current name is in reference to its geographic position in the greater

Visayas The Visayas ( ), or the Visayan Islands ( Visayan: ''Kabisay-an'', ; tl, Kabisayaan ), are one of the three principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Luzon and Mindanao. Located in the central part of the archipelago, ...

area.

History

Regions first came into existence on September 24, 1972, when the provinces of the Philippines were organized into 11 regions by ''Presidential Decree No. 1'' as part of the ''Integrated Reorganization Plan'' by President

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. ( , , ; September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under martial ...

. The provinces of

(including its then-subprovince of

), and

were grouped together to form the Western Visayas region. The province of

Palawan Palawan (), officially the Province of Palawan ( cyo, Probinsya i'ang Palawan; tl, Lalawigan ng Palawan), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in t ...

was transferred to Region VI (Western Visayas) on May 23, 2005, by ''Executive Order 429''. The

Department of the Interior and Local Government The Department of the Interior and Local Government ( fil, Kagawaran ng Interyor at Pamahalaang Lokal), abbreviated as DILG, is the executive department of the Philippine government responsible for promoting peace and order, ensuring public saf ...

announced in June 2005 that the transfer had been completed. However, Palaweños criticized the move, citing a lack of consultation, with most residents in Puerto Princesa City and all municipalities but one preferring to stay with Region IV-B. Consequently, ''Administrative Order No. 129'' was issued on August 19, 2005, to address this backlash. This Order directed the abeyance of ''Executive Order 429'' pending the approval of an implementation plan for the orderly transfer of Palawan from Region IV-B to Region VI. Hence, Palawan is currently still part of Region IV-B. By virtue of ''Executive Order No. 183'' issued on May 29, 2015, by President

Benigno Aquino III Benigno Simeon Cojuangco Aquino III (; February 8, 1960 – June 24, 2021), also known as Noynoy Aquino and colloquially as PNoy, was a Filipino politician who served as the 15th president of the Philippines from 2010 to 2016. The son of ...

, the province of

and its capital,

, were both removed from Western Visayas in order to form the Negros Island Region along with

Negros Oriental Negros Oriental ( ceb, Sidlakang Negros; tl, Silangang Negros), officially the Province of Negros Oriental, is a province in the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region. Its capital is the city of Dumaguete. It occupies the southeaste ...

. But later regained Negros Occidental and its capital, Bacolod City back into Western Visayas on August 9, 2017, when President

Rodrigo Duterte Rodrigo Roa Duterte (, ; born March 28, 1945), also known as Digong, Rody, and by the initials DU30 and PRRD, is a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 16th president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. He is the chairperson ...

dissolved the Negros Island Region, revoking Executive Order No. 183, s. 2015 through the signage of Executive Order No. 38, citing the reason of the lack of funds to fully establish the NIR according to Benjamin Diokno, the Secretary of Budget and Management.

Geography

Western Visayas consists of the major island of

Panay Panay is the sixth-largest and fourth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of and has a total population of 4,542,926 as of 2020 census. Panay comprises 4.4 percent of the entire population of the country. The City o ...

and the smaller

, as well as several outlying islands. It also includes the western half of the larger island of

Negros Negros is the fourth largest and third most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of . Negros is one of the many islands of the Visayas, in the central part of the country. The predominant inhabitants of the island region a ...

. The region is bordered to the north by the

Sibuyan Sea The Sibuyan Sea is a small sea in the Philippines that separates the Visayas from the northern Philippine island of Luzon. It is bounded by the island of Panay to the south, Mindoro to the west, Masbate to the east, and to the north Marinduque ...

, northeast by the

Visayan Sea The Visayan Sea is a sea in the Philippines surrounded by the islands of the Visayas. It is bounded by the islands Masbate to the north, Panay to the west, Leyte to the east, and Cebu and Negros to the south. The sea is connected to severa ...

, east by the province of

, south by the

Iloilo Strait The Iloilo Strait is a strait in the Philippines that separates the islands of Panay and Guimaras in the Visayas, and connects the Panay Gulf with the Guimaras Strait. It is the location of the Port of Iloilo, the third-busiest of the ports in t ...

and the Panay Gulf, and west by the

Sulu Sea The Sulu Sea ( fil, Dagat Sulu; Tausug: ''Dagat sin Sūg''; Chavacano: ''Mar de Sulu''; Cebuano: ''Dagat sa Sulu''; Hiligaynon: ''Dagat sang Sulu''; Karay-a: ''Dagat kang Sulu''; Cuyonon: ''Dagat i'ang Sulu''; ms, Laut Sulu) is a body o ...

Administrative divisions

Provinces

Western Visayas consists of 6

, 2 highly urbanized cities, 14 component cities, 117

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

and 4,051

barangay A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolita ...

=Governors and vice governors

Cities

----

Demographics

Languages

The native languages of Western Visayas are: * Aklanon/Akeanon, spoken in Aklan and northwestern Capiz. *

, spoken in Capiz, northeastern Iloilo, and eastern Aklan. * Cebuano, spoken in northeastern Negros Occidental. * Hiligaynon, spoken in Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Guimaras, Capiz, Antique, and Aklan. It is the regional lingua franca. *

, spoken in Antique, southwestern half of Iloilo, Guimaras, western Capiz, and southwestern Aklan. * Malaynon, spoken in northwestern Aklan including Boracay Island. * Caluyanon, spoken in the Semirara Islands (Semirara, Caluya, and Sibay Islands).

Economy

Transportation

Airports

International

Kalibo International Airport Kalibo International Airport ( Aklanon: ''Paeoparang Pangkalibutan it Kalibo'', hil, Pangkalibutan nga Hulugpaan sang Kalibo, fil, Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Kalibo; ) is an international airport that serves the general area of Kalibo, the capita ...

Iloilo International Airport Iloilo International Airport ( hil, Pangkalibutan nga Hulugpaan sang Iloilo, fil, Paliparang Pandaigdig ng Iloilo; ), also known as Iloilo Airport, and as Cabatuan Airport, after the municipality of Cabatuan, Iloilo where it is located, is th ...

Domestic

Bacolod–Silay Airport Bacolod–Silay Airport, also referred to as Bacolod–Silay International Airport ( hil, Hulugpaan sang Bacolod–Silay; fil, Paliparan ng Bacolod–Silay; ), is the main airport serving the general area of Metro Bacolod, in the Western Visayas ...

(Silay City, Negros Occidental ) *

Godofredo P. Ramos Airport Godofredo P. Ramos Airport ( Aklanon: ''Paeoparan it Godofredo P. Ramos'', Hiligaynon: ''Hulugpaan sang Godofredo P. Ramos'', fil, Paliparang Godofredo P. Ramos) , also known as Caticlan Airport and recently, Boracay Airport by its developer ...

(Caticlan, Malay, Aklan) *

Roxas Airport Roxas Airport ( Hiligaynon: ''Hulugpaan sang Roxas'', Tagalog: ''Paliparan ng Roxas'') is a domestic airport serving the general area of Roxas City and the province of Capiz, in the Philippines. The airport is currently classified as a Class 1 ...

(Roxas City, Capiz) *

Evelio Javier Airport Evelio B. Javier Airport (Kinaray-a: ''Hurugpaan kang Evelio B. Javier'', Hiligaynon: ''Hulugpaan sang Evelio B. Javier'', Filipino: ''Paliparang Evelio B. Javier'') , also known as San Jose Airport, and officially as Antique Airport is the onl ...

(Funda-Dalipe, San Jose de Buenavista, Antique)

Municipal

* Semirara Airport (Semirara Island, Caluya, Antique)

Other

Sipalay Airport Sipalay Airport ( Hiligaynon: ''Hulugpaan sang Sipalay''; Filipino: ''Paliparan ng Sipalay''), also known as San Jose Airstrip and formerly known as Maricalum Airstrip, is an airport serving the general area of the city of Sipalay, Negros Occiden ...

(Sipalay, Negros Occidental) *

Kabankalan City Domestic Airport Kabankalan City Domestic Airport ( Filipino: ''Paliparang Domestiko ng Lungsod ng Kabankalan'', Hiligaynon: ''Pangsulod-pungsod nga Hulugpaan sang Dakbanwa sang Kabankalan'') is a proposed airport designed to serve the general area of Kabankalan ...

(Kabankalan, Negros Occidental) *

Sicogon Airport Sicogón is an island in northern Iloilo, which is part of the municipality of Carles, Iloilo, Philippines. It is named after ''cogon'', a type of grass found in abundance on the island. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 5,238 ...

(Sicogon Island, Carles, Iloilo) * Guimaras Airport (Buenavista, Guimaras)

Rail

Proposals to re-connect again Iloilo-Roxas, Iloilo-Kalibo, Iloilo-Malay (Aklan) and Iloilo-San Jose (Antique) from the Iloilo City via rail was included in the revival of the currently defunct

Panay Railways Panay Railways Inc. is a government-owned and controlled corporation of the Philippines headquartered in La Paz, Iloilo City on the island of Panay. It is a subsidiary of Phividec Railways Inc. of the Philippine Veterans Investment Developmen ...

network which has a station in Santa Barbara town proper.

References

External links

* * * {{Authority control Regions of the Philippines Visayas Sulu Sea 1972 establishments in the Philippines