Calabarzon
Calabarzon (officially stylized in all caps;[3] English: /kɑːlɑːbɑːrˈzɒn/; Tagalog: [kalɐbaɾˈsɔn]), sometimes referred to as Southern Tagalog[4] (Tagalog: Timog Katagalugan[5]) and designated as Region IV‑A, is an administrative region in the Philippines. The region comprises five provinces: Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Quezon, and Rizal; and one highly urbanized city, Lucena. It is the most populous region in the Philippines, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), having over 16.1 million inhabitants in 2020,[6] and is also the country's second most densely populated after the National Capital Region.[6] It is situated southeast of Metro Manila, and is bordered by Manila Bay and South China Sea to the west, Lamon Bay and the Bicol Region to the east, Tayabas Bay and the Sibuyan Sea to the south, and Central Luzon to the north. It is home to places like Mount Makiling near Los Baños, Laguna, and Taal Volcano in Batangas.
For the historical region, see Southern Tagalog.
Calabarzon
Southern Tagalog
16,873.31 km2 (6,514.82 sq mi)
2,170 m (7,120 ft)
16,195,042
960/km2 (2,500/sq mi)
PH-40
120
4,019
19
(5.2%)[2]
0.795 (High)
2nd in the Philippines (2019)
Prior to its creation as a region, Calabarzon, together with the Mimaropa region, the province of Aurora, and several parts of Metro Manila, formed the historical region known as Southern Tagalog, until they were separated in 2002 by virtue of Executive Order No. 103.[3]
The history of the area now known as Calabarzon dates back to early historic times.[7] Local historians[8] believe that three of the 10th century place-names mentioned in the Philippines' earliest known written document, the Laguna Copperplate Inscription, pertain to regions or polities (Tagalog: "bayan") along the shores of Laguna de Bay;[9] and some Filipino-Chinese scholars believe the 10th century trading polity known as Ma-i may actually have been the predecessor of the present day town of Bay, Laguna.[10] Since the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines, the region has served as home to some of the most important Philippine historical figures, including the Philippine national hero, José Rizal, who was born in Calamba.
History[edit]
On June 5, 1901, a convention was called on whether or not the province of Manila should annex the province of Morong, which was found to be unable to be self-sufficient as a province. Eventually, on June 11, Act No. 137 of the First Philippine Commission abolished Morong and created a new province, named after the Philippines' national hero, Jose Rizal, who, coincidentally, was a native of Laguna. The new province comprised 29 municipalities, 17 from Manila and 12 from Morong. In 1902, Macario Sakay, a veteran Katipunan member, established the Tagalog Republic in the mountains of Rizal. Ultimately, Sakay's Tagalog Republic ended in 1906 when he and his men were betrayed under the guise of holding a national assembly aimed at the self-determination of the Filipino people.[11]
On September 7, 1946, the Third Philippine Republic enacted Republic Act No. 14, which renamed the province of Tayabas to Quezon, in honor of Manuel Quezon,[12] the second President of the Philippines and a native of Baler (now part of Aurora), formerly one of the towns of Quezon Province. In 1951, the northern part of Quezon became the sub-province Aurora, named after Quezon's wife, also a native of Baler.[13]
On September 24, 1972, President Ferdinand Marcos enacted Presidential Decree No. 1, which organized the provinces into 11 regions as part of Marcos' Integrated Reorganization Plan.[14] The IRP created Region IV, known as the Southern Tagalog region, and was the largest region in the Philippines. At this time, Region IV consisted of Batangas, Cavite, Laguna, Marinduque, Oriental Mindoro, Occidental Mindoro, Quezon, Rizal, Romblon, and Palawan. In 1979, Aurora formally became a province independent of Quezon and was also included in Region IV.
On May 17, 2002, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo signed Executive Order No. 103, which reorganized the Southern Tagalog region. Due to its size, Region IV was split into two separate regions, Region IV-A (Calabarzon) and Region IV-B (Mimaropa). Aurora was transferred to Region III, Central Luzon, the province's geographic location.[3] [15] The next year, Arroyo signed Executive Order No. 246, which declared Calamba as the regional center of the region.[16]
Infrastructure[edit]
Roads and bridges[edit]
The Laguna Lake Highway, a joint project of DPWH NCR and Region IV-A, is the widening/rehabilitation at Taytay, Rizal segment, a 3.34-kilometer road.
Currently, there are two more bridges being built - Barkadahan Bridge and Napindan Bridge - which will provide additional 2 lanes crossing over Manggahan Floodway and Pasig River, respectively.[44]
