Bicol Region Region V
—  Region  —
Map of the Philippines showing the location of Bicol Region
Country	Philippines
Island group	Luzon
Regional center	Legazpi City
Area
• Total	18,054.3 km2 (6,970.8 sq mi)
Population (2010)
• Total	5,420,411[1]
Time zone	PST (UTC+8)
Provinces	6
Cities	7
Municipalities	107
Barangays	3,471
Cong. districts	14
Languages	Bikol, Albayano, Masbateño, Rinconada, Pandan Bikol, Sorsoganon, Tagalog
Website	Bicol Region Official Website

Coordinates: 13°30′N 123°20′E / 13.5°N 123.333°E / 13.5; 123.333 The Bicol Region or Region V (also known as Bicolandia) is one of the 17 regions of the Philippines. Bicol (also spelled Bikol) is composed of four provinces in the Bicol Peninsula, the southeastern end of Luzon island, and two island-provinces adjacent to the peninsula.^[2] Its regional center is Legazpi City in Albay province.^[3][4]

Geography[link]

The Bicol Region is located in the southernmost tip of Luzon Island, the largest island in the Philippine archipelago. The total land area of the region is 18,054.3 km² (6,970.8 sq mi)^[5], which or 5.9% of the total land area of the country. Around 69.3% of the total land area is alienable and disposable while the remaining 30.7% is public forest areas.^[2]

The region is bounded by Lamon Bay to the north, Pacific Ocean to the east, and Sibuyan Sea and Ragay Gulf to the west. The northernmost province, Camarines Norte, is bordered to the north by the province of Quezon, thereby connecting the region to the rest of Luzon.

Political division[link]

Political map of Bicol Region

The region is composed of six provinces, namely, Albay, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Sorsogon and the island-provinces of Catanduanes and Masbate. It has one independent component city, Naga City, and six component cities - Iriga, Legazpi, Ligao, Masbate City, Sorsogon City, and Tabaco. Masbate City and Sorsogon City are cities within their namesake provinces.

As of 2010, Camarines Sur is the largest province in terms of area and population, occupying 5,481.6 km² (2,116.5 sq mi) or around 30.4% of the total land area with a population of 1,822,371. Catanduanes is the smallest in terms of area as well as population with only 1,511.5 km² (583.6 sq mi) or 8.4% of the total regional area and a population of 246,300.^[1]

The political and administrative center of the region is Legazpi City.^[2] Together with Naga and Sorsogon Cities, they are leading in the region in terms of urbanization and hubs of the economic activity, as well as the cultural, business and religious centers of the region.

Provinces[link]

Provinces			Capital	No. of Cities	No. of Municipalities	No. of Barangays	Income classification (2007)[6]	Area (km²)	Population (2010)[1]	ZIP Code	Governor
	20px	Albay	Legaspi City	3	15	720	1st Class	2,552.60[7]	1,233,432	4500-4517	Joey Salceda
	20px	Camarines Norte	Daet	0	12	282	2nd Class	2,320.07[8]	542,915	4600-4612	Edgardo Tallado
	20px	Camarines Sur	Naga City	2	35	1063	1st Class	5,481.60[9]	1,822,371	4400-4436	Luis Raymund Villafuerte, Jr.
	20px	Catanduanes	Virac	0	11	315	3rd Class	1,511.50[10]	246,300	4800-4810	Joseph Cua
		Masbate	Masbate City	1	20	550	1st Class	4,047.07[11]	834,650	5400-5421	Rizalina L. Seachon-Lañete
	20px	Sorsogon	Sorsogon City	1	14	541	2nd Class	2,141.45[12]	740,743	4700-4715	Raul Lee

Geology[link]

Bicol Region is volcanic in origin and part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. Known as the Bicol Volcanic Arc or Chain, the volcanoes are the results of the Philippine Sea Plate subducting under the Philippine Mobile Belt, along the Philippine Trench. Volcanism is evident by the number of hot springs, crater lakes, and volcanoes that dot the region starting from Mount Labo in Camarines Norte to the Gate Mountains in Matnog, Sorsogon.^[13] Mayon Volcano is the most prominent of the volcanoes in the region, famous for its almost perfect conical shape and for being the most active in the Philippines. Its eruptions have repeatedly inflicted disasters on the region, but during lulls in activity, it is a particularly beautiful mountain. The southernmost tip of the peninsula is dominated by Bulusan Volcano, the other active volcano in the region. Tiwi in Albay and the Bacon-Manito area between Sorsogon and Albay are the sites of two major geothermal fields that contribute substantially to the Luzon Power Grid.^[14][15]

Volcanoes of the Bicol Region[link]

From North to South

Photo	Name
200px	Mount Isarog, the closest to Naga City, is a 1,966-metre (6,450 ft) fumarolic volcano with a 2.5-kilometre (1.6 mi) wide crater breached to the east.[16] The mountain and vicinity covering 10,112 hectares (24,990 acres) is a protected area in the Bicol Region under the name Mount Isarog Natural Park.[17]
	Mount Iriga is a 1,196-metre (3,924 ft) volcano with a large horseshoe-shaped collapsed crater located adjacent to Lake Buhi (foreground).[18]
	Mount Malinao is a 1,548-metre (5,079 ft) volcano with a large crater about {{convert|3|km| at its widest, which is breached to the east, The geothermal fields of Tiwi are located on its lower eastern slope.[19]
	Mount Masaraga is a sharp-topped 1,328-metre (4,357 ft) Holocene volcano NW of Mayon.[20]
	Mayon Volcano, the highest at 1,196 metres (3,924 ft), is also the most popular in the region for its beautifully symmetrical cone. It is also the most active in the country.[21] The volcano is one of the protected areas of Region V under the name Mayon Volcano Natural Park encompassing 5,776 hectares (14,270 acres).[17]
	Pocdol Mountains with its highest elevation at 1,102 metres (3,615 ft), is a fumarolic group of volcanoes situated between Albay and Sorsogon provinces. It is the location of the Bac-Man Geothermal Power Plant and the PNOC Eco-Park, a 25,100-hectare (62,000-acre) ecotourism park maintained and protected by the Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC).[22][23]
	Bulusan Volcano, the other active volcano of the region, has an altitude of 1,565 metres (5,135 ft). It is located on the remains of the 11-kilometre (6.8 mi) Irosin Caldera.[24] The volcano is a protected area and the centerpiece of the 3,672-hectare (9,070-acre) Bulusan Volcano Natural Park.[17]

Language[link]

The people of the Bicol region, called Bicolanos, speak any of the several languages of the Bikol sociolinguistic language, also called Bikolano, an Austronesian language closely related to other Central Philippine languages such as Cebuano and Tagalog. Bicol languages include the Inland Bikol of Bikol-Rinconada (Rinconada area), Bikol-Cam. Sur (Buhi, Cam. Sur; Libon, Oas, Daraga, Albay and Donsol, Sorsogon), Bikol-Pandan (Northern Catanduanes). Standard Bikol is based from the coastal Bikol language of the dialect of Naga City and is understood widely throughout the region even though they cannot speak it fluently.

Bikol is the dominant language of the region. The Filipino language (Tagalog) is also spoken in northern parts of Camarines Norte as well as in the municipality of Del Gallego, Camarines Sur. Two Visayan languages, Sorsoganon and Masbateño or Minasbate, are spoken in Masbate and Sorsogon; they are collectively referred to as Bisakol.

Religion[link]

Celebration of Our Lady of Peñafrancia

The region retains Roman Catholicism as the overwhelming religion of the great majority. The Catholic religion has the highest number of followers than any other area in the Philippines.

Fiestas (Feast day of saints) are annual celebrations of parishes, from a simple barrio fiesta honoring a patron associated for good harvest, to a town fiesta honoring a miraculous saint, a diocesan fiesta like the feast of Our Lady of Salvation, or a regional one such as the Our Lady of Peñafrancia Fiesta, a week-long celebration to honor the Virgin Mary, dubbed as the "Queen Patroness of Bicolandia". It is widely acknowledged that in Luzon, it is Bicol Region that holds the most number of men entering the seminary for Catholic priesthood, or women entering the religious life to become Catholic nuns.^{[citation needed]}

Archaeology[link]

Albay's archaeology shows concrete evidence of trade with China, Malaya and Indonesia going back two thousand years. The first Spanish contact was in 1565, when a treasure-galleon returning to Cebu from Acapulco, Mexico, was swept off course and the captain recorded his awe at the sight of Mt. Mayon erupting.^{[citation needed]}

Economy[link]

Bicol Region has a large amount of rich flat land, and agriculture is the largest component of the economy with close to 50% depending their livelihood on the industry. Coconuts, abaca, banana, coffee and jackfruit are the top five permanent crops in the region. Rice and maize are among the chief seasonal crops of the region. Commercial fishing is also important with thirteen major fishing grounds supplying fish markets in places as far as Metro Manila. Agriculture and fishing are the major factors in the province's economy.^[2][25]

Mining is also one of the contributors to the region's economy. Several handicrafts, jewelry manufacturing, other small-scale industries and manufacturing enterprises bolster rural incomes.

Tourism[link]

Whale shark spotting in Donsol, Sorsogon

The region has recently seen a revival in its tourism industry, due to the popularity of Mayon Volcano, the new CamSur Water Sports Complex, whale shark spotting, among others, which consequently increased the number of upscale resorts in the region.

Owing to its location, Region V offers plenty of choices for visitors - beautiful natural features like beaches, mountains and waterfalls with lush vegetation; activities could include scuba diving to wrecked galleons, spelunking, mountaineering; or visits to man-made attractions like church architecture from the Spanish Colonial Period; etc.

The municipality of Daet and Catanduanes province have long been destinations for surfers.^[26] The opening of the Southern Luzon International Airport in Legazpi City, which is under construction, is hoped to further boost tourism in the region.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Bicol Region Official Website, Department of Interior and Local Government
• Department of Tourism at Wow Bicol
• Bicolano Radio Stations Online
• List of Bicol Region Festivals & Fiestas

v t e Regions of the Philippines Luzon I – Ilocos Region II – Cagayan Valley III – Central Luzon IV-A – CALABARZON IV-B – MIMAROPA V – Bicol Region CAR – Cordillera Administrative Region NCR – National Capital Region Visayas VI – Western Visayas VII – Central Visayas VIII – Eastern Visayas Mindanao IX – Zamboanga Peninsula X – Northern Mindanao XI – Davao Region XII – SOCCSKSARGEN XIII – Caraga ARMM – Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

v t e Political divisions of the Philippines Capital Manila National Capital Region Autonomous region Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Provinces Abra Agusan del Norte Agusan del Sur Aklan Albay Antique Apayao Aurora Basilan Bataan Batanes Batangas Benguet Biliran Bohol Bukidnon Bulacan Cagayan Camarines Norte Camarines Sur Camiguin Capiz Catanduanes Cavite Cebu Compostela Valley Cotabato Davao del Norte Davao del Sur Davao Oriental Dinagat Islands Eastern Samar Guimaras Ifugao Ilocos Norte Ilocos Sur Iloilo Isabela Kalinga La Union Laguna Lanao del Norte Lanao del Sur Leyte Maguindanao Marinduque Masbate Misamis Occidental Misamis Oriental Mountain Province Negros Occidental Negros Oriental Northern Samar Nueva Ecija Nueva Vizcaya Occidental Mindoro Oriental Mindoro Palawan Pampanga Pangasinan Quezon Quirino Rizal Romblon Samar Sarangani Siquijor Sorsogon South Cotabato Southern Leyte Sultan Kudarat Sulu Surigao del Norte Surigao del Sur Tarlac Tawi-Tawi Zambales Zamboanga del Norte Zamboanga del Sur Zamboanga Sibugay Former Provinces Agusan Ambos Camarines Camarines Cotabato Davao Kalinga-Apayao Lanao Lepanto-Bontoc Manila Mindanao and Sulu Mindoro Misamis Moro Province Negros Negros del Norte Occidental Leyte Oriental Leyte Samar Shariff Kabunsuan Surigao Tayabas Zamboanga Other subdivisions Island groups (Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao) Regions Cities Municipalities Barangays Legislative districts Territorial disputes North Borneo (Sabah) Scarborough Shoal Spratly Islands