Regions of the Philippines in the context of "Southern Tagalog"

The Philippines is divided into four levels of administrative divisions, with the lower three being defined in the Local Government Code of 1991 as local government units (LGUs). They are, from the highest to the lowest:

1. Regions (Filipino: rehiyon) are mostly used to organize national services. Of the 18 regions, only one—the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao—has an elected government to which the central government has devolved competencies.
2. Provinces (Filipino: lalawigan or probinsya), independent cities (Filipino: malayang lungsod or siyudad), and one independent municipality (Pateros)
3. Component cities (Filipino: nakapaloob na lungsod or siyudad) and municipalities (Filipino: bayan or munisipalidad) within a province
4. Barangays (formerly known and sometimes still referred to as barrios) within a city or municipality

Other divisions also exist for specific purposes, such as:

Batanes, officially the Province of Batanes, is an archipelagic province in the Philippines, administratively part of the Cagayan Valley region. It is the northernmost province in the Philippines, and the smallest, both in population and land area. The capital is Basco, located on the island of Batan, and is also the most populous municipality in the province.

The island group is located approximately 162 kilometers (101 mi) north of the Luzon mainland and about 190 kilometers (120 mi) south of Taiwan (Pingtung County). Batanes is separated from the Babuyan Islands of Cagayan Province by the Balintang Channel, and from Taiwan by the Bashi Channel.

As an archipelago, the Philippines comprises about 7,641 islands clustered into three major island groups: Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao. Only about 2,000 islands are inhabited, and more than 5,000 are yet to be officially named.

The following list breaks the islands down by region and smaller island group for easier reference.

Palawan (/pəˈlɑːwən/, Tagalog: [pɐˈlaː.wan]; officially the Province of Palawan; Cuyonon: Probinsya i'ang Palawan; Tagalog: Lalawigan ng Palawan) is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in terms of total area, with 14,649.73 km (5,656.29 sq mi). The capital and largest city is Puerto Princesa which is geographically grouped with but administered independently from the province. Palawan is known as the Philippines' Last Frontier and as the Philippines' Best Island.

The islands of Palawan stretch between Mindoro island in the northeast and Borneo in the southwest. It lies between the South China Sea and the Sulu Sea. The province is named after its largest island, Palawan Island, measuring 450 kilometers (280 mi) long, and 50 kilometers (31 mi) wide.

Metropolitan Manila (Filipino: Kalakhang Maynila [kalakˌhaŋ maɪˈnilaʔ]), commonly shortened to Metro Manila and formally the National Capital Region (NCR; Filipino: Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region and largest metropolitan area of the Philippines. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay, the region lies between the Central Luzon and Calabarzon regions. Encompassing an area of 636.00 km (245.56 sq mi) and with a population of 13,484,462 as of 2020, it consists of sixteen highly urbanized cities: Manila—the capital city—Caloocan, Las Piñas, Makati, Malabon, Mandaluyong, Marikina, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Parañaque, Pasay, Pasig, Quezon City, San Juan, Taguig, and Valenzuela, along with one independent municipality, Pateros. As the second most populous and the most densely populated region in the Philippines, it ranks as the 7th most populous metropolitan area in Asia and the 6th most populous urban area in the world.

The region is the center of culture (including arts and entertainment), economy, education, and the government. Designated as a global power city, the region exerts a significant impact on commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and entertainment both locally and internationally. It is home to all embassies in the Philippines, making it an important center for international diplomacy in the country. Its economic power establishes the region as the country's premier center for finance and commerce. The region accounts for 36% of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the Philippines. Greater Manila is the fourth largest ASEAN country subdivision by GDP, after Singapore, and the Jakarta, and Bangkok metropolitan regions.

In the Philippines, provinces (Filipino: lalawigan or probinsiya) are one of its primary political and administrative divisions. There are 82 provinces at present, which are further subdivided into component cities and municipalities. The local government units in the National Capital Region, as well as independent cities, are independent of any provincial government. Each province is governed by an elected legislature called the Sangguniang Panlalawigan and an elected governor.

The provinces are grouped into 18 regions based on geographical, cultural, and ethnological characteristics. Thirteen of these regions are numerically designated from north to south, while the National Capital Region, the Cordillera Administrative Region, the Southwestern Tagalog Region (Mimaropa), the Negros Island Region, and the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao are only designated by acronyms.

In the Philippines, local government is divided into three levels: provinces and independent cities, component cities and municipalities, and barangays, all of which are collectively known as local government units (LGUs). In some areas, above provinces and independent chartered cities are autonomous regions, such as the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. Some towns and cities remit their revenue to national government and is returned through the national government through a process called internal revenue allotment. Below barangays in some cities and municipalities are sitios and puroks. All of these, with the exception of sitios and puroks, elect their own executives and legislatures. Sitios and puroks are often but not necessarily led by an elected barangay councilor.

Provinces and independent cities are organized into national government regions but those are administrative regions and not separately governed areas with their own elected governments.

Zambales, officially the Province of Zambales (Sambal: Probinsya nin Zambales; Ilocano: Probinsia ti Zambales; Pangasinan: Luyag na Zambales; Kapampangan: Lalawigan ning Zambales; Tagalog: Lalawigan ng Zambales), is a province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. Its capital is Iba, which is located in the middle of the province. Olongapo is the largest city of the province wherein it is geographically located but politically independent.

Zambales borders Pangasinan to the north and northeast, Tarlac to the east, Pampanga to the southeast, Bataan to the south and the South China Sea to the west. With a total land area of 3,830.83 square kilometres (1,479.09 sq mi) (including the independent city of Olongapo), Zambales is the second largest among the seven provinces of Central Luzon after Nueva Ecija. The province is noted for its mangoes, which are abundant from January to April.