History

 

 

II. GENERAL INFORMATION

 

A. Brief History

Many names (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 dialect “samad”, meaning wound or cut, which aptly describes the rough physical features of the island that is rugged and deeply dissected by streams.

During the early days of Spanish occupation, Samar was under the jurisdiction of Cebu.  In 1735, Samar and Leyte were united into one province with Carigara, Leyte as the capital town and again Samar became a separate province in 1768.

B. Geography

Samar island occupies the eastern portion of the Philippines.  It lies southeast of Luzon and occupies the northernmost section of Eastern Visayas.  It is separated from Luzon on the north by San Bernardino Strait and from Leyte on the southwest by the narrow San Juanico Strait.  It is bounded on the east by the Pacific Ocean, on the south by Leyte Gulf and on the west by the Samar Sea.

C. Political Subdivision

The province of Samar comprised the whole Samar Island before the approval of Republic Act 4221 on June 19, 1965 which divided the island into three provinces: Northern Samar, with Catarman as capital; Eastern Samar, with Borongan as capital; and Western Samar (officially known as Samar) with Catbalogan as capital.  Eastern Samar and Northern Samar bound the province of Samar on the east and north, respectively, Leyte Gulf on the south and the Samar Sea on the west.  The province of Samar is composed of two (2) congressional districts, twenty four (24) municipalities and two (2) cities (Catbalogan and Calbayog).  It has a total of nine hundred fifty two (952) barangays.

First District	Second District
1. Almagro	1. Basey	11. San Jose de Buan
2. Calbayog City	2. Calbiga	12. San Sebastian
3. Gandara	3. Catbalogan City	13. Sta. Rita
4. Matuguinao	4. Daram	14. Talalora
5. Pagsanghan	5. Hinabangan	15. Villareal
6. San Jorge	6. Jiabong	16. Zumarraga
7. Sta. Margarita	7. Marabut
8. Sto. Niño	8. Motiong
9. Tagapul-an	9. Paranas
10. Tarangnan	10. Pinabacdao

D. Topography

Samar province is hilly, has some mountain peaks ranging from 200 to 800 meters 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 bare 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.

E. Climate and Rainfall

Samar province falls under the 2nd and the 4th type of climate. The 2nd type is characterized by having no dry season with a very pronounced maximum rain period which usually occur in December to January. Areas characterized by this climate are generally along or very near the eastern coast, thus are open to the northeast monsoon. Municipalities in the southeastern part of the province experience this type of climate.

For the 4th type of climate, rainfall is more or less evenly distributed throughout the year. This is an intermediate between the 1st and 2nd types, although it resembles the 2nd type more closely since it has no dry season. Those areas located in the northwestern part of the province has this type of climate.

Comparative Rainfall Data

Month	2004 Rainfall (mm)	2003 Rainfall (mm)
January	340.50	211.90
February	176.40	25.70
March	179.70	83.40
April	99.30	18.60
May	333.40	157.10
June	110.90	495.70
July	209.90	409.80
August	144.20	182.40
September	161.40	146.20
October	359.00	216.50
November	350.00	435.20
December	256.60	195.80
Total	2,721.30	2,578.30
Average	226.78	214.86

The total rainfall (2,721.3 mm) for the year 2004 was higher by 5.55% compared to 2003 (2,578.3). Likewise, its average rainfall was 226.78 mm, a difference of 11.92 mm from the previous year's (2003) figure, which was 214.86 mm. Highest rainfall recorded in 2004 was 359.0 mm in the month of October followed by the month of December at 350.0 mm. The month of April has the least rainfall at 99.3 mm.

F. Languages/Dialect

The province of Samar is a member of the Samar-Leyte (Waray Group), the sixth largest cultural-linguistic group in the country.  The majority (90.2%) of the total household population speaks the Waray dialect.  The remaining 9.8 percent speaks Cebuano (8.1%), Boholano (0.07%), Tagalog (0.5%) and other dialects.  Other languages used are English and Chinese.

G. Religious Sects

Majority of the Samareños is devout Roman Catholics, comprising about 95 percent of the total households population.  Other religious sects are United Church of Christ, Aglipay, Iglesia ni Cristo, Mormons, Baptist, Born Again Christians and the 7th Day Adventists.

H. Citizenship

Almost 95 percent of the total households population of the province of Samar are Filipino citizens.  The rest are Chinese, Americans and other foreign nationals.