Southern Leyte

Southern Leyte (Cebuano: Habagatang Leyte; Kabalian: Habagatan nga Leyte; Waray: Salatan nga Leyte; Tagalog: Timog Leyte), officially the Province of Southern Leyte, is a province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital and largest city is Maasin. Southern Leyte comprised the third congressional district Leyte until it was made into an independent province in 1959. Southern Leyte includes Limasawa, an island to the south where the first Mass in Philippine soil is believed to have taken place and thus considered to be the birthplace of Christianity in the Philippines.

The province ranks as the second least populated in the region, after the province of Biliran. According to the 2024 census, the province has a population of 434,372.

Southern Leyte's geological features created several issues in the province after the flooding of the Subangdaku River and the 2006 mudslide in Guinsaugon. Organizations warned the province it was susceptible to natural occurrences like landslides and floods.

Southern Leyte forms an important part of the inter-island transportation system of the country, with ferries transporting people and goods between Liloan and Surigao del Norte in Mindanao. The province is well known for its quality abaca products and is the country's major producer of abaca fiber.

In September 2017, Representative Roger Mercado authored House Bill 6408, proposing to change the name of the province to Leyte del Sur.