Samar (province)
Samar
Western Samar | |
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(from top: left to right) San Juanico Bridge, Tarangnan town, Talalora Bay, San Pedro Bay, Rocks of Marabut and Samar Provincial Capitol | |
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Flag Seal | |
| Nickname: The Caving Capital Province of the Philippines | |
Location in the Philippines | |
Interactive map of Samar | |
| Coordinates: 11°50′N 125°00′E / 11.83°N 125°E | |
| Country | Philippines |
| Region | Eastern Visayas |
| Founded | August 11, 1841 |
| Capital | Catbalogan |
| Largest city | Calbayog |
| Government | |
| • Type | Sangguniang Panlalawigan |
| • Governor | Sharee Ann T. Tan (NP) |
| • Vice Governor | Arnold V. Tan (PFP) |
| • Legislature | Samar Provincial Board |
| Area | |
• Total | 6,048.03 km2 (2,335.16 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 10th out of 82 |
| Highest elevation (Mount Huraw) | 890 m (2,920 ft) |
| Population (2024 census) | |
• Total | 806,179 |
| • Rank | 39th out of 82 |
| • Density | 133.296/km2 (345.235/sq mi) |
| • Rank | 64th out of 82 |
| Divisions | |
| • Independent cities | 0 |
| • Component cities | |
| • Municipalities | |
| • Barangays | 951 |
| • Districts | Legislative districts of Samar |
| Time zone | UTC+8 (PHT) |
| IDD : area code | +63 (0)55 |
| ISO 3166 code | PH-WSA |
| Spoken languages | |
| Highway routes | |
| Website | samar |
Samar, officially the Province of Samar (Waray: Probinsya han Samar; Tagalog: Lalawigan ng Samar), or also known 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.
On 8 November 2013, the province was significantly damaged by Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan), particularly the towns of Basey, Marabut and Santa Rita.