Luzon Philippines As The Political And Economic Center Of The Country

Forming part of the Philippine archipelago is Luzon Philippines. This is the largest amongst the more than 7,000 islands in the country.

This is also considered as the political and the economic center of the country since the country's capital, Manila is located in the island. The financial district of Makati is also located in the island. A number of industrial zones are also located in the island and the presence of these important zones and cities make the island the leading island in the Philippines. The other two major islands in the country are Visayas and Mindanao.

What is referred to as Luzon is actually an island group that will also include the following small islands:

. Batanes

. Babuyan groups of islands

. Catanduanes

. Marinduque

. Masbate

. Romblon

. Mindoro

The island of Luzon measures 104,688 square kilometers thus making this island as the world's 15th largest island. The island is also considered as the fifth most populous island in the world. The island is framed by the South China Sea in the west, the Philippine Sea to the east and to the north of the island is the Luzon Straight. The shape of the island resembles a rectangle and the peninsula of the Bicol Region protrudes to the southeast. The island is home to many mountains and mountain ranges. The northern part of the island hosts the largest mountain range in the country, the Cordillera Central. Mount Pulag is also located in the island. The longest river of the country, the Cagayan River is located in the island too. The island group of Luzon is divided into eight regions.

The eight regions in the Luzon island include:

. Ilocos Region or Region I

. Cagayan Valley or Region II

. Central Luzon or Region III

. CALABARZON or Region IV A

. MIMAROPA or Region IV B

. Bicol Region or Region V

. Cordillera Administrative Region and;

. National Capital Region

Region I includes the provinces of Ilocos Norte and Sur, La Union and Pangasinan. The administrative center of the region is San Fernando City in La Union. A noteworthy city in the region is the city of Vigan since the city is considered as the oldest surviving Spanish colonial city in the country. Ilokano and Pangasinense is the two important languages in the region. Region II is also situated at the northeastern portion of the island and the region includes the islands of Batanes and Babuyan. The provinces in the region are Isabela, Cagayan, Batanes, Nueva Viscaya and Quirino. The regional seat of the region is the city of Tuguegarao.

Region III is known for its almost flat land resources thus making the are well-suited to rice farming. In fact, rice farming is the main industry in the region. The region also plays host to two of the country's special economic zones. The city of San Fernando in Pampanga is considered as the center of the region. Other provinces in the region aside from Pampanga are Aurora, Bataan, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Tarlac and Zambales. Languages spoken in the region are Tagalog and Kapampangan. Region IV-A is also called CALABARZON and this is one of the newest regions created in the country. This region will include the provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon. The administrative center is Manila, though others are saying that Lucena is the administrative city. Manila is part of the National Capital Region. Region IV-B is MIMARO and this stands for Marinduque, Occidental Mindoro, Oriental Mindoro, Romblon and Palawan. The administrative center of the region is in Calapan.

Region V is known as Bicol Region and the administrative center of the region is Legazpi, City. The Bicol Peninsula also includes the islands of Masbate and Catanduanes. The Cordillera Administrative Region or the CAR is located on the northern part of the island and this was created in 1989. The region includes the provinces of Abra, Benguet, Apayao, Ifugao, Kaligna and Mountain Province. The city of Baguio is its administrative center. The island of Luzon Philippines is also home to the National Capital Region and this host the country capital, Manila. The region is also known as Metropolitan Manila and home to close to 10 million people.