Metropolitan Manila, officially the National Capital Region, is the seat of government and one of three defined metropolitan areas of the Philippines. It is composed of 16 highly urbanized cities: the city of Manila, Quezon City, Caloocan, Las Piñas, Makati, Malabon, Mandaluyong, Marikina, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Parañaque, Pasay, Pasig, San Juan, Taguig, and Valenzuela, as well as the municipality of Pateros. The region encompasses an area of 619.57 square kilometers (239.22 sq mi) and a population of 13,484,462 as of 2020. It is the second most populous and the most densely populated region of the Philippines. It is also the 9th most populous metropolitan area in Asia and the 5th most populous urban area in the world.
Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on the island of Luzon, it is classified as a highly urbanized city. As of 2019, it is the world's most densely populated city proper. It was the first chartered city in the country, and was designated as such by the Philippine Commission Act No. 183 on July 31, 1901. It became autonomous with the passage of Republic Act No. 409, "The Revised Charter of the City of Manila", on June 18, 1949. Manila is considered to be part of the world's original set of global cities because its commercial networks were the first to extend across the Pacific Ocean and connect Asia with the Spanish Americas through the galleon trade; when this was accomplished, it was the first time an uninterrupted chain of trade routes circling the planet had been established. Manila is among the most-populous and fastest-growing cities in Southeast Asia.
Rizal, officially the Province of Rizal, is a province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region in Luzon. Its capital is the city of Antipolo. It is about 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) east of Manila. The province is named after José Rizal, one of the main national heroes of the Philippines. It is bordered by Metro Manila to the west, Bulacan to the north, Quezon to the east and Laguna to the southeast. The province also lies on the northern shores of Laguna de Bay, the largest lake in the country. Rizal is a mountainous province perched on the western slopes of the southern portion of the Sierra Madre mountain range.
Mandaluyong, officially the City of Mandaluyong, is a first class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 425,758 people.
Pasig, officially the City of Pasig, is a highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 803,159 people.
Marikina, officially the City of Marikina, is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 456,159 people.
Tondo is a district located in Manila, Philippines. It is the largest in terms of area and population of Manila's sixteen districts, with a Census-estimated 654, 220 people in 2020 and consists of two congressional districts. It is also the second most densely populated district in the city.
Taguig, officially the City of Taguig, is a 1st class highly urbanized city in Metro Manila, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 886,722 people. Located in the northwestern shores of Laguna de Bay, the city is known for Bonifacio Global City, one of the leading financial centers of the Philippines. Originally a fishing village during the Spanish and American colonial periods, it experienced rapid growth when former military reservations were converted by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) into mixed-use planned communities. Taguig became a highly urbanized city with the passage of Republic Act No. 8487 in 2004.
Antipolo, officially the City of Antipolo, is a 1st class component city and capital of the province of Rizal, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 887,399 people. It is the most populous city in the Calabarzon region, and the seventh most-populous city in the Philippines.
Caloocan, officially the City of Caloocan, is a 1st class highly urbanized city in Metro Manila, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 1,661,584 people making it the fourth-most populous city in the Philippines.
Binondo is a district in Manila and is referred to as the city's Chinatown. Its influence extends beyond to the places of Quiapo, Santa Cruz, San Nicolas and Tondo. It is the oldest Chinatown in the world, established in 1594 by the Spaniards as a settlement near Intramuros but across the Pasig River for Catholic Chinese, it was positioned so that colonial rulers could keep a close eye on their migrant subjects. It was already a hub of Chinese commerce even before the Spanish colonial period. Binondo is the center of commerce and trade of Manila, where all types of business run by Filipino-Chinese thrive.
Santa Cruz is a district in the northern part of the City of Manila, Philippines, located on the right bank of the Pasig River near its mouth, bordered by the districts of Tondo, Binondo, Quiapo, and Sampaloc, as well as the areas of Grace Park and Barrio San Jose in Caloocan and the district of La Loma in Quezon City. The district belongs to the 3rd congressional district of Manila.
Manila's history begins around 65,000 BC the time the Callao Man first settled in the Philippines, predating the arrival of the Negritos and the Malayo-Polynesians. The nearby Angono Petroglyphs, are then dated to be around 3,000 BC and the earliest recorded history of Manila, the capital of the Philippines, dates back to the year 900 AD as recorded in the Laguna Copperplate Inscription. By the thirteenth century, the city consisted of a fortified settlement and trading quarter near the mouth of the Pasig River, the river that bisects the city into north and south.
The geography of the City of Manila is characterized by its coastal position at the estuary of the Pasig River that flows to Manila Bay. The city is located on a naturally protected harbor, regarded as one of the finest harbors in Asia. The scarce availability of land is a contributing factor that makes Manila the densest populated city in the world.
Manila, also formerly known as Tondo until 1859, was a province in the Philippines, encompassing the former pre-Hispanic polities of Tondo, Maynila and Namayan. In 1898, it included the City of Manila and 23 other municipalities. Alongside the District of Morong, it was incorporated into the Province of Rizal in 1901.
Tourism is an important industry in Metro Manila, Philippines. In 2012, the city and region welcomed 974,379 overnight visitors. As the main gateway to the Philippines' many destinations, the city is visited mainly by international tourists to the country, with a total of 3,139,756 tourists visiting in 2012. Global Blue is ranked in Manila as eleventh as its "Best Shopping Destinations" in Asia. The city is ranked tenth in MasterCard's global top 20 fastest growing cities for international visitors from 2009-2013.
Circumferential Road 1 (C-1), informally known as the C-1 Road, is a network of roads and bridges that all together form the first and innermost beltway of Metro Manila in the Philippines. Spanning some 5.98 kilometers (3.72 mi), it connects the districts of Ermita, Intramuros, San Miguel, Quiapo, Sampaloc, Santa Cruz, Binondo, San Nicolas, and Tondo in Manila.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Metro Manila:
The following is an alphabetical list of articles related to the Philippine capital region of Metro Manila.
