Zambales in the context of "Bataan Peninsula"

Mount Pinatubo is an active stratovolcano in the Zambales Mountains in Luzon in the Philippines. Located on the tripoint of Zambales, Tarlac and Pampanga provinces, most people were unaware of its eruptive history before the pre-eruption volcanic activity in early 1991. Dense forests, which supported a population of several thousand indigenous Aetas, heavily eroded and obscured Pinatubo.

Pinatubo is known for its VEI-6 eruption on June 15, 1991, the second-largest terrestrial eruption of the 20th century after the 1912 eruption of Novarupta in Alaska. The eruption coincided with Typhoon Yunya making landfall in the Philippines, which brought a dangerous mix of ash and rain to nearby towns and cities. Early predictions led to the evacuation of tens of thousands of people, saving many lives. The eruption severely damaged surrounding areas with pyroclastic surges, pyroclastic falls, and later, flooding lahars caused by rainwater re-mobilizing volcanic deposits. This destruction affected infrastructure and altered river systems for years. Minor dome-forming eruptions inside the caldera continued from 1992 to 1993.

Central Bikol, commonly called Bikol Naga or simply Bikol, is an Austronesian language spoken by the Bicolanos, primarily in the Bicol Region of southern Luzon, Philippines. It is spoken in the northern and western part of Camarines Sur, the second congressional district of Camarines Norte, the eastern part of Albay, the northeastern part of Sorsogon, San Pascual town in Masbate, and the southwestern part of Catanduanes. Central Bikol speakers can be found in all provinces of Bicol, and it is a majority language in Camarines Sur. The standard sprachraum form is based on the Canaman dialect. The language has also speakers outside their native regional homeland, especially in Metro Manila, Mindoro, Palawan, and Mindanao (particularly in Mati, Davao Oriental)

Central Bikol features some vocabulary not found in other Bikol languages nor in other members of the Central Philippine language family like Tagalog and Cebuano. Examples are the words matua and bitis, which are the same as the Kapampangan words meaning 'older' and 'foot, feet', respectively. The word banggi ('night') is another example of this as it is different from the usual Bikol word gab-i but closer to the word bengi of Kapampangan. There is no formal study on the relationship of the Central Luzon languages to Central Bikol but the latter has several words that are also found in the archaic form of Tagalog spoken in the Rizal and Quezon provinces that are believed to be the home of Central Luzon languages such as Kapampangan in Pampanga and southern Tarlac, and Sambalic languages in Zambales province.

The Zambales Mountains is a mountain range in western Luzon. The mountains spread along a north-south axis, separating Luzon's central plain from the South China Sea. The range extends into five provinces: Zambales, Pangasinan, Tarlac, Pampanga, and Bataan. One of its most prominent sections is known as the Cabusilan Mountain Range composed of Mount Pinatubo, Mount Negron and Mount Cuadrado, which are believed to be remnants of the ancestral Pinatubo peak. The highest elevation in the Zambales Mountains is Mount Tapulao, also known as High Peak, in Zambales province which rises to 2,037 metres (6,683 ft).

Tarlac, officially the Province of Tarlac (Kapampangan: Lalawigan ning Tarlac; Pangasinan: Luyag na Tarlac; Ilocano: Probinsia ti Tarlac; Tagalog: Lalawigan ng Tarlac; [tɐɾˈlak]), is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon region. It had a population of 1,503,456 people according to the 2020 census. Its capital is the city of Tarlac, which is the most populous in the province. It is bounded on the north by the province of Pangasinan, Nueva Ecija on the east, Zambales on the west, and Pampanga in the south. The province comprises three congressional districts and is subdivided into 17 municipalities and one city, Tarlac City, which is the provincial capital.

The province is situated in the heartland of Luzon, in what is known as the Central Plain also spanning the neighbouring provinces of Pampanga, Pangasinan, Nueva Ecija, and Zambales. Tarlac covers a total land area of 3,053.45 km (305,345 ha).

Pampanga, officially the Province of Pampanga (Kapampangan: Lalawigan ning Pampanga; Tagalog: Lalawigan ng Pampanga), is a province in Central Luzon, Philippines. Lying on the northern shore of Manila Bay, Pampanga is bordered by Tarlac to the north, Nueva Ecija to the northeast, Bulacan to the east, Manila Bay to the south, Bataan to the southwest, and Zambales to the west. Its capital is San Fernando, the regional center of Central Luzon. Angeles City is the largest city in Pampanga but is administratively independent. It has been self-governing since receiving its charter in 1964.

The name La Pampanga was given by the Spaniards, who found natives living along the banks (pampáng) of the Pampanga River. It was created in 1571 as the first Spanish province on Luzon (the province of Cebu in the Visayas is older, founded in 1565). The town of Villa de Bacolor briefly served as the Spanish colonial capital when Great Britain occupied Manila during the Seven Years' War. On the eve of the Philippine Revolution in 1896, Pampanga was one of eight provinces placed under martial law for rebelling against the Spanish Empire. It is represented on the Flag of the Philippines by one of the eight rays of the sun.

The Tagalog people are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the Philippines, particularly the Metro Manila and Calabarzon regions and Marinduque province of southern Luzon, and comprise the majority in the provinces of Bulacan, Bataan, Nueva Ecija, Aurora, and Zambales in Central Luzon and the island of Mindoro.

Kapampangan, Capampáñgan, or Pampangan, is an Austronesian language, and one of the eight major languages of the Philippines. It is the primary and predominant language of the entire province of Pampanga and southern Tarlac, on the southern part of Luzon's central plains geographic region, where the Kapampangan ethnic group resides. Kapampangan is also spoken in northeastern Bataan, as well as in the provinces of Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, and Zambales that border Pampanga. It is further spoken as a second language by a few Aeta groups in the southern part of Central Luzon. The language is known honorifically as Amánung Sísuan ('breastfed, or nurtured, language').

Kapampangan is assigned the ISO 639-2 three-letter code pam, but not an ISO 639-1 two-letter code.

Pangasinan (Pangasinense) is an Austronesian language, and one of the eight major languages of the Philippines. It is the primary and predominant language of the entire province of Pangasinan and northern Tarlac, on the northern part of Luzon's central plains geographic region, most of whom belong to the Pangasinan ethnic group. Pangasinan is also spoken in southwestern La Union, as well as in the municipalities of Benguet, Nueva Vizcaya, Nueva Ecija, and Zambales that border Pangasinan. A few Aeta groups and most Sambal in Central Luzon's northern part also understand and even speak Pangasinan as well.

Bataan (/bɑːtɑːˈʔɑːn/, /bɑːˈtɑːn/, IPA: [bɐtɐˈʔan]), officially the Province of Bataan, is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the entire Bataan Peninsula on Luzon, Bataan is bordered by the provinces of Zambales and Pampanga to the north. The peninsula faces the South China Sea to the west and Subic Bay to the north-west, and encloses Manila Bay to the east.

The Battle of Bataan is known in history as one of the last stands of American and Filipino soldiers before they were overwhelmed by the Japanese forces in World War II. The Bataan Death March was named after the province, where the infamous march started.