Samar is said[by whom?] to derive from the word Samad, a
Visayan word for "wound" or "cut", describing the rough physical features of the land which is rugged and deeply dissected by streams.
History
Pre-history
Around 2 million to 8000 B.C, based on geologic findings, during the ice ages (2 million years – 8000 B.C), the islands of Mindoro, Luzon, and Mindanao were connected as one big island through the islands of Samar, Leyte and Bohol.
Early history
In 8550 B.C., diggings in Sohoton Caves in Basey, Samar showed stone flake tools. In 1200 A.D., other diggings along the Basey River revealed other stone flakes used until the 13th century.[6]
Spanish colonial era
In 1543, the explorer
Ruy López de Villalobos, first came to the island and named it Las Islas Filipinas.
In 1596, many names (such as Samal, Ibabao, Tandaya) were given to Samar Island prior to the coming of the Spaniards in 1596. The name "Samar" was derived from the local language samad, meaning "wound" or "cut", aptly describing the rough physical features of the island, rugged and deeply dissected by streams. During the early days of Spanish occupation, Samar was under the jurisdiction of
Cebu.
On October 15, 1596, the first
Jesuit missionaries arrived in Tinago (now
Dapdap) in
Tarangnan. From Tinago, the missionaries, Fr. Francisco de Otazo, Bartolome Martes and Domingo Alonzo began teaching
Catechism, healing the sick and spreading the
Christian faith into the interior settlements.
On June 1, 1649, the people of
Palapag led by
Agustin Sumuroy revolted against the decree of
Governor GeneralDiego Fajardo requiring able bodied men from the
Visayas for service at the Cavite Shipyards. Like wildfire, the revolt quickly spread to the neighboring town in the Northern and Western coast of Samar and to the nearby provinces of Bicol,
Surigao,
Cebu,
Camiguin and as far as
Zamboanga. It was suppressed in 1650 by the combined forces of the
Spaniards, Lutaos, and Pampangos.
In 1735, Samar and Leyte were united into one province with
Carigara, in Leyte, as the capital town.
In 1747, Samar and Leyte were separated for administrative effectiveness.
In 1762, complaints from the Jesuits that the division was not working well, thus it was reunited again by the approval from the King of Spain.
In 1768, Jesuits were expelled in all Spanish dominions. The Franciscans arrived on September 25, 1768, and took over the administration of 14 of the 17 parishes which were under the spiritual care of the Jesuits for almost 172 years. The administration of the remaining three parishes namely Guiuan, Balangiga and Basey in the south of Samar were given to the Augustinians.
In 1777, the two provinces were divided for the last time, it was approved in Madrid in 1786 and had been effective in 1799.
In 1803, Guiuan, Balangiga and Basey were turned over to the Franciscans for the lack of Augustinian priests.
On April 15, 1900, the Filipino guerrillas launched a surprise attack on a detachment of the US 43rd Infantry Regiment, forcing the Americans to abandon Catubig town after the four-day siege.
On April 10, 1910, upon the papal bull of Pope Pius X separated the islands of Samar and Leyte from the Diocese of Cebu and erected the Diocese of Calbayog comprising both islands. Pablo Singzon de Anunciacion was named first Bishop and consecrated on June 12, 1910.
On June 19, 1965, the
Philippine Congress along with the three Samar
Representatives, Eladio T. Balite (1st District), Fernando R. Veloso (2nd District) and Felipe J. Abrigo (3rd District), approved Republic Act No. 4221 dividing the region of Samar into three divisions: Northern Samar, Eastern Samar, and Western Samar. Each region adopted a new capital:
Catbalogan (Western Samar),
Borongan (Eastern Samar), and
Catarman (Northern Samar).[7]
On June 21, 1969, under Republic Act No. 5650, Western Samar was renamed Samar with Catbalogan still as the capital.[8]
Contemporary
On November 8,
Typhoon Haiyan, locally known as Typhoon Yolanda hit Samar province.[9] More than 300 people perished on the first day it hit the province.[10]
Samar province covers a total area of 6,048.03 square kilometres (2,335.16 sq mi)[14] occupying the central-western sections of the
Samar island in the
Eastern Visayas region. The province is bordered on the north by
Northern Samar, east by
Eastern Samar, south by
Leyte and
Leyte Gulf, and west by the
Samar Sea.
Topography
Samar province is hilly, with mountain peaks ranging from 200 to 800 metres (660 to 2,620 ft) high and narrow strips of lowlands, which tend to lie in coastal peripheries or in the
alluvial plains and
deltas accompanying large rivers. The largest lowlands are located along the northern coast extending up to the valleys of
Catubig and
Catarman rivers. Smaller lowlands in Samar are to be found in the
Calbayog area and on the deltas and small valleys of Gandara and
Ulot rivers. Slopes are generally steep and barren of trees due to
deforestation. Run-off waters after heavy rains can provoke flooding in low-lying areas and the erosion of the mountains enlarges the coastal plains of the province.
Climate and rainfall
Areas near the eastern coast of the province have no dry season (with a pronounced maximum rain period usually occurring from December to January), and are thus open to the northeast
monsoon. Municipalities in the southeastern section of the province experience this type of climate.
Areas located in the northwestern portion of the province have a more or less evenly distributed rainfall throughout the year.
The population of Samar (province) in the 2020 census was 793,183 people,[3] with a density of 130 inhabitants per square kilometre or 340 inhabitants per square mile.
Residents of Samar are mostly
Waray, the fifth largest cultural-linguistic group in the country. 90.2 percent of the household population speaks the
Waray-Waray language, while 9.8 percent also speak
Cebuano; 8.1 percent
Boholano; 0.07 percent
Tagalog; and 0.5 percent other languages.
There are two types of Waray spoken in the province, Waray Lineyte-Samarnon which is spoken from the southernmost tip of the province up to the municipality of
Gandara and Waray Calbayog, an intermediary between the Waray of Northern Samar and the Waray of Samar, spoken in
Calbayog,
Santa Margarita, and in some parts of
Tagapul-an,
Santo Niño,
Almagro and
Matuguinao.
Economy
Poverty Incidence of Samar
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on
Phabricator and on
MediaWiki.org.
Lieutenant
Benedicto Nijaga[26]— nicknamed Biktoy, one of the "
Thirteen Martyrs of Bagumbayan", executed on January 11, 1897, in Bagumbayan (
Luneta Park). During a raid of a printing press in Binondo, the Spaniards found and confiscated subversive documents including a list of members of the Katipunan. Benedicto Nijaga was on the list as a collector of revolutionary funds. Upon the order of Gov. Polavieja to arbitrarily arrest all suspected members of the Katipunan, Nijaga was arrested while he was campaigning for revolutionary funds.
Cardinal
Julio Rosales[27] — (September 18, 1906 – June 2, 1983) the second Archbishop of Cebu, was a
Filipinocardinal of the
Roman Catholic Church. A native of
Calbayog, he made his studies at the Seminary of Calbayog and was ordained in his hometown on June 2, 1929. From 1929 to 1946, he did pastoral work in the diocese of Calbayog. He was consecrated bishop of
Tagbilaran on September 21, 1946.
Lucio Godina (March 8, 1908 – November 24, 1936) &Simplicio Godina (March 8, 1908 - December 8, 1936)[28] — were
pygopagusconjoined twins from the island of
Samar in the
Philippines.[29] Born in 1908, these boys from the Philippines later made the trip to the United States, where they became sideshow attractions in such hubs of ‘entertainment’ as Coney Island. In 1928, after various legal difficulties – including narrowly avoiding jail when a man was injured in an alleged drunk driving incident – they married identical (but not conjoined) twin sisters, Natividad and Victorina Matos, in Manila. At the age of 21 they married Natividad and Victorina Matos, who were
identical twins. They performed in various
sideshow acts, including in an orchestra on
Coney Island and in dance with their wives. After Lucio died of
rheumatic fever in
New York City, doctors operated to separate him from Simplicio. Simplicio survived the operation, but died shortly thereafter due to
spinal meningitis.[30]
Chito S. Roño[36] —(born April 26, 1954), also known as Sixto Kayko, is a
Filipino writer, film producer and film director from
Calbayog known for his expansive vision and special-effects-heavy films, most notably Yamashita: The Tiger's Treasure (2001) for which he won the
Metro Manila Film Festival for best director.[37] He is also known for his 1997 film Nasaan ang Puso which earned him his first MMFF for best director. There is an annual literary and visual arts competition held in Samar in honor of him.[38]
Tessie Tomas[39] — (born October 31, 1950), a Filipino actress and TV host from
Catbalogan,[40] best known for being the host of the ABS-CBN talk show Teysi ng Tahanan. In an interview with
GMA Network's Tunay Na Buhay, Tomas recalled working for an ad agency prior to her career as a presenter and actress. Tessie later appeared in both comedic and dramatic roles, notably in the 2012 remake of the film Mundo Man ay Magunaw and 2015's Buena Familia. In 2018, Tomas played a supporting role in the ABS-CBN soap opera The Blood Sisters.[41]
BishopMaximiano Tuazon Cruz[44] — born in
Catbalogan, Philippines and was ordained a priest on November 30, 1947. He was appointed titular bishop to Tanudaia as well as auxiliary bishop to the
Diocese of Calbayog on November 10, 1987, and ordained bishop on December 1, 1987. He was appointed bishop to the
Diocese of Calbayog on December 21, 1994, and retired from diocese on January 13, 1999. He died on October 9, 2013, at age 90.
Sergio Apostol[48] — (born January 17, 1935) is a Filipino politician born in
Catbalogan. In 2008, Sergio Apostol was Chief Presidential Legal Counsel for Philippine President
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. On October 8, 2008,
Eduardo Ermita confirmed Apostol's resignation, effective October 30, to prepare for his candidacy, for
Leyte congressional seat, in the
2010 Philippine general election. Apostol is a member of the board of
Union Bank and the legal consultant of the SSS’ Social Security Commission (SSC). After winning his district's seat as a Lakas-CMD party candidate of Arroyo, Apostol switched allegiance to the Liberal party of Benigno Aquino, the winner of the 2010 Presidential election.[49]
Romero Federico Saenz Quimbo[51] — (born December 12, 1969), also known as Miro Quimbo, is a Filipino politician who currently represents
Marikina's 2nd Legislative District in the
House of Representatives of the Philippines. He succeeded then-Rep.
Del R. De Guzman who won as
mayor. Quimbo spent the first two years of elementary school at the Sacred Heart College (now Saint Mary’s College of Catbalogan) in Catbalogan, Samar. He moved to the
Marist School in Marikina where he eventually finished his elementary and secondary education.[52]
Joel Porlares — (born January 1, 1961) the fourteenth
Supreme Bishop of the
Philippine Independent Church, officially the Iglesia Filipina Independiente and informally the "Aglipayan Church". The supreme bishop serves as the spiritual head, chief pastor, and chief executive officer of the said church. Porlares is the 14th in a line of succession that goes back from the first Supreme Bishop and prolific
revolutionary figure,
Gregorio Aglipay. He has been the incumbent supreme bishop since June 2023. Although born in
Tacloban, Porlares was raised in the municipality of
Basey in the province of Samar.
Tom Rodriguez[53] — a TV host, singer and actor from
Catbalogan,
Samar. He was born in Subic Naval Base in Zambales to an American serviceman father and a Filipina mother. One of six siblings, he moved with his two brothers and three sisters with their mother to
Pinabacdao, Samar (where their mother hails from). But they grew up in nearby Catbalogan, also in Samar, where Rodriguez studied at Saint Mary's College of Catbalogan (formerly Sacred Heart College) from kindergarten to elementary.[54] He popularized the OPM song “Ikaw Ang Sagot”.[55][56]
^Togonon, Mark Anthony (1 November 2015).
"Enchanted". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved 23 March 2016. ... there are more than a thousand caves in the province alone, most of them still unexplored. "Samar isn't called the Caving Capital of the Philippines for nothing," he says.
^"List of Provinces". PSGC Interactive. Makati City, Philippines: National Statistical Coordination Board. Retrieved 12 April 2013.