Eastern Visayas (Region VIII)

Summary data
Map of the Philippines highlighting Eastern Visayas
Typeregion
Island groupVisayas
Provinces6
Cities7
Municipalities136
Barangays4,390
Coastal/Landlockedcoastal
Marine waterbodiesPhilippine Sea, Samar Sea, Camotes Sea, Visayan Sea, Bohol Sea, Surigao Strait, Canigao Channel, San Bernardino Strait
Area (2013)232.35 km2 (8971 sq mi)
Population (2020)4,547,150
Density (2020)196 / km2 (507 / sq mi)

Eastern Visayas, officially designated as Region VIII, is an administrative region in the Philippines occupying the eastern section of the Visayas. It covers 6 provinces, namely, Biliran, Eastern Samar, Leyte, Northern Samar, Samar, and Southern Leyte, as well as 1 highly urbanized city. The regional center is the City of Tacloban.

Its population as determined by the 2020 Census was 4,547,150. This represented 22.09% of the overall population of the Visayas island group, or 4.17% of the entire population of the Philippines. Based on these figures, the population density is computed at 196 inhabitants per square kilometer or 507 inhabitants per square mile.

Map

Eastern Visayas is bordered, clockwise from the Northeast, by the Philippine Sea, Leyte Gulf, Surigao Strait, Bohol Sea, Canigao Channel, Camotes Sea, Visayan Sea, Samar Sea, Ticao Pass, and the San Bernardino Strait.

details
Map of Eastern VisayasMap of Eastern Visayas highlighting its regional center, component provinces and their capitals, and nearby major citiesBiliranEastern SamarLeyteNorthern SamarSamarSouthern LeyteTacloban, a highly urbanized city and the regional center

Local government units

Eastern Visayas has 6 provinces, 136 municipalities, and 7 cities (1 of which is a highly urbanized city administered independently from any province). The total number of barangays in the region is 4,390.

details
Local government units of Eastern Visayas
NameTypePopulation (2020)Population (2015)Annual Population Growth Rate (2015‑2020)Area (2013), in km2Density (2020), per km2City countMun countBrgy count
Biliranprovince179,312171,6120.93%536.0133508132
Eastern Samarprovince477,168467,1600.45%4,617.16103122597
Leyteprovince1,776,8471,724,6790.63%6,335.442802401,503
Northern Samarprovince639,186632,3790.23%3,694.96173024569
Samarprovince793,183780,4810.34%6,048.03131224951
Southern Leyteprovince429,573421,7500.39%1,801.46238118500
Taclobancity (HUC), capital, regional center251,881242,0890.84%201.721,249138
Eastern Visayas Total4,547,1504,440,1500.50%23,234.7819671364,390

Demographics

Population by age group

According to the 2015 Census, the age group with the highest population in Eastern Visayas is 10 to 14, with 513,551 individuals. Conversely, the age group with the lowest population is 80 and over, with 42,948 individuals.

details
Population of Eastern Visayas by age group (2015 census)
Age groupPopulation (2015)Age group percentage
Under 195,5432.15%
1 to 4403,5309.09%
5 to 9508,99811.46%
10 to 14513,55111.57%
15 to 19487,75310.99%
20 to 24393,8538.87%
25 to 29313,6297.06%
30 to 34273,7496.17%
35 to 39257,2305.79%
40 to 44236,5415.33%
45 to 49219,6374.95%
50 to 54190,6224.29%
55 to 59161,6703.64%
60 to 64125,8772.83%
65 to 6997,1642.19%
70 to 7470,1181.58%
75 to 7947,7371.08%
80 and over42,9480.97%
Total4,440,150100.00%
  • Youth Dependency Ratio: 57.19
  • Old Age Dependency Ratio: 9.7
  • Total Dependency Ratio: 66.89
  • Median Age: 22.67

Historical population

The population of Eastern Visayas grew from 655,159 in 1903 to 4,547,150 in 2020, an increase of 3,891,991 people over the course of 117 years. The latest census figures in 2020 denote a positive growth rate of 0.50%, or an increase of 107,000 people, from the previous population of 4,440,150 in 2015.

details
Population of Eastern Visayas (1903‑2020)
Census datePopulationGrowth rate
655,159
977,5252.56%
1,462,1592.03%
1,764,1031.94%
2,040,9661.29%
2,381,4091.52%
2,599,7281.78%
2,799,5341.49%
3,054,4900.88%
3,366,9171.84%
3,610,3551.51%
3,915,1401.12%
4,101,3221.71%
4,440,1501.52%
4,547,1500.50%

The total number of registered voters or electorate in Eastern Visayas for the year 2019 was 3,051,649.

Notes

  1. Unless otherwise specified, population count (excluding percentages) and land area figures are derived from the Philippine Statistics Authority.
  2. Data on registered voters is from the Commission on Elections.
  3. Maps utilize OpenStreetMap data available under the Open Data Commons Open Database License.
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