The Philippines is an archipelago that comprises 7,641 islands, and with a total land area of 300,000 square kilometers (115,831 sq mi), it is the world's fifth largest island country. The eleven largest islands contain 95% of the total land area. The largest of these islands is Luzon at about 105,000 square kilometers (40,541 sq mi). The next largest island is Mindanao at about 95,000 square kilometers (36,680 sq mi). The archipelago is around 800 kilometers (500 mi) from the Asian mainland and is located between Taiwan and Borneo.
Mount Apo, also known locally as Apo Sandawa, is a large solfataric, dormant stratovolcano on the island of Mindanao, Philippines. With an elevation of 2,954 meters (9,692 ft) above sea level, it is the highest-mountain in the Philippine Archipelago, Mindanao and 24th-highest peak of an island on Earth. Located on the tripartite border of Davao City and Davao del Sur in the Davao Region, and Cotabato in Soccsksargen, Mount Apo is the most-prominent mountain in the Philippines. The peak overlooks from Davao City 45 kilometers (28 mi) to the northeast, Digos 25 kilometers (16 mi) to the southeast, and Kidapawan 20 kilometers (12 mi) to the west. It is a protected area and a Natural Park of the Philippines.
Bukidnon, officially the Province of Bukidnon, is a landlocked province in the Philippines located in the Northern Mindanao region. Its capital is the city of Malaybalay. The province borders, clockwise from the north, Misamis Oriental, Agusan del Sur, Davao del Norte, Cotabato, Lanao del Sur, and Lanao del Norte. According to the 2020 census, the province is inhabited by 1,541,308 residents. The province is composed of 2 component cities and 20 municipalities. It is the third largest province in the country in terms of total area of jurisdiction behind Palawan and Isabela respectively.
South Cotabato, officially the Province of South Cotabato, is a province in the Philippines located in the Soccsksargen region in Mindanao. Its capital is Koronadal, and it borders Sultan Kudarat to the north and west, Sarangani to the south and northeast, and Davao del Sur to the far northeast. To the southeast lies Sarangani Bay.
Lake Sebu, officially the Municipality of Lake Sebu, is a 1st class municipality in the province of South Cotabato, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 81,221 people.
Maguindanaon, or Magindanawn is an Austronesian language spoken by Maguindanaon people who form majority of the population of eponymous provinces of Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur in the Philippines. It is also spoken by sizable minorities in different parts of Mindanao such as the cities of Zamboanga, Davao, and General Santos, and the provinces of North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, South Cotabato, Sarangani, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, Davao del Sur, as well as Metro Manila.
Lebak, officially the Municipality of Lebak, is a 1st class municipality in the province of Sultan Kudarat, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 88,868.
Koronadal, officially the City of Koronadal, also known as Marbel, is a 1st class component city and capital of the province of South Cotabato, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 195,398 people.
Arakan, officially the Municipality of Arakan is a 1st class municipality in the province of Cotabato, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 50,558 people.
Lake Sebu is a natural lake located in the municipality of Lake Sebu, South Cotabato within the Alah Valley region. The Philippine government has recognized it as one of the country's most important watersheds. Lake Sebu is one of the many bodies of water supplying important irrigation to the provinces of Sultan Kudarat and South Cotabato.
Banga, officially the Municipality of Banga, is a 1st class municipality in the province of South Cotabato, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 89,164 people.
Surallah, officially the Municipality of Surallah, is a 1st class municipality in the province of South Cotabato, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 89,340 people.
The Lumad are a group of Austronesian indigenous peoples in the southern Philippines. It is a Cebuano term meaning "native" or "indigenous". The term is short for Katawhang Lumad, the autonym officially adopted by the delegates of the Lumad Mindanao Peoples Federation (LMPF) founding assembly on 26 June 1986 at the Guadalupe Formation Center, Balindog, Kidapawan, Cotabato, Philippines. Usage of the term was accepted in Philippine jurisprudence when President Corazon Aquino signed into law Republic Act 6734, where the word was used in Art. XIII sec. 8(2) to distinguish Lumad ethnic communities from the islands of Mindanao.
The legislative districts of South Cotabato are the representations of the province of South Cotabato and the urbanized city of General Santos in the various national legislatures of the Philippines. The province is currently represented in the lower house of the Congress of the Philippines through its first and second congressional districts.
The Pulangi River ;, also spelled Pulangui, is one of the major tributaries of the Rio Grande de Mindanao, an extensive river system in Mindanao, Philippines. With a length of 320 kilometres (199 mi), it is the longest river in Bukidnon and the 5th longest river in the Philippines. It traverses through majority of the cities and municipalities of Bukidnon from its source in Barangay Kalabugao, Impasugong, Bukidnon.
The Peñablanca Protected Landscape and Seascape is a protected area and national park in Peñablanca, Cagayan. It is on the border with Isabela province, contiguous with the Northern Sierra Madre Natural Park. The protected area, best known as the location of Callao Cave, covers the largest block of forest under conservation in the province. It covers 118,781.582 hectares of the northern Sierra Madre mountain range and its adjacent Pacific coast.
The Bicol Natural Park is a protected area of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region of southern Luzon. It straddles the mountainous border between the provinces of Camarines Norte and Camarines Sur in the northern interior of the Bicol Peninsula. First declared as a national park covering 4,225 hectares on 13 February 1934 through Proclamation No. 657 of Governor General Frank Murphy, the Bicol National Park was later extended to its present area of 5,201 hectares through amendments made in Proclamation No. 655 signed by President Manuel Luis Quezon on 23 December 1940. The area was reclassified as a natural park on 29 December 2000 by virtue of Proclamation No. 43 by President Joseph Estrada.
The Mount Timolan Protected Landscape is a protected area covering Mount Timolan and its surrounding forested landscape in the region of Zamboanga Peninsula on Mindanao in the Philippines. The park encompasses an area of 1,994.79 hectares and a buffer zone of 695.39 hectares in the municipalities of San Miguel, Guipos and Tigbao in the province of Zamboanga del Sur. It was established on 14 August 2000 through Proclamation Order No. 354 issued by President Joseph Estrada. The park was also earlier established by the provincial government of Zamboanga del Sur as a provincial park and wildlife sanctuary known as the Zamboanga del Sur Provincial Park through Provincial Ordinance No. 3 in 1992.
The Allah River flows through the Allah Valley on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines. It is located in the provinces of South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat and Maguindanao. The name of the river could have come from the word of Allah itself, which is the meaning of God in Arabic.
Mount Diwata, colloquially nicknamed as Diwalwal, is a remote 1,261-metre (4,137 ft) high range of volcanic mountain and biodiversity area in Davao Region in the eastern part of Mindanao island of Philippines. Rich in gold and copper ores and mines, it is spread across the 3 municipalities: (a) Monkayo in the province of Davao de Oro; as well as (b) Cateel and (c) Boston in the province of Davao Oriental. Laguna Copperplate Inscription, the oldest written document in Philippines dated to 900 CE, refers to Mount Diwata.
