Metropolitan Manila, commonly shortened to Metro Manila and formally the National Capital Region, 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 619.57 km2 (239.22 sq mi) and with a population of 13,484,462 as of 2020, it is composed of sixteen highly urbanized cities: the capital city, Manila, 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 9th most populous metropolitan area in Asia and the 6th most populous urban area in the world.
Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the capital and second-most-populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City. 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.
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 the colonial administration 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.
The University Belt is the name of a de facto subdistrict in Manila, Philippines, referring to an area that has a significant concentration of major colleges and universities in the city. The districts of Quiapo, Sampaloc, and San Miguel are traditionally considered to be the University Belt, although other clusters of schools that lie along the southern bank of the Pasig River, mostly at the districts of Intramuros and Ermita, as well as the southernmost part of Malate near the city limits are also sometimes included. Each of the colleges and universities found in the district are a short walking distance of each other.
Bay City, also known as the Manila Bay Freeport Zone and Manila Bay Area, is the name for the reclamation area on Manila Bay located west of Roxas Boulevard and the Manila–Cavite Expressway in Metro Manila, the Philippines. The area is split between the cities of Manila and Pasay on the north side and Parañaque on the south.
Manila, also known as Tondo until 1859, was a province of the Philippines that encompassed the former pre-Hispanic polities of Tondo, Maynila, and Namayan. In 1898, it comprised the city of Manila and 23 other municipalities. In 1901, the province was dissolved, with the city of Manila absorbing six of its smaller neighboring municipalities. The remaining part was merged with the adjacent district of Morong to form the province of Rizal.
Quezon Boulevard is a short stretch of highway in Manila, Philippines running north–south through the district of Quiapo. It is a six- to ten-lane 1.1-kilometer-long (0.68 mi) divided boulevard designated as a component of National Route 170 (N170) of the Philippine highway network, except for its service roads, and Radial Road 8 (R-8) of Manila's arterial road network which links the center of Manila to North Luzon Expressway in Quezon City in the north. The boulevard is the main access to the popular Quiapo Church and is one of the main thoroughfares of the University Belt area.
Numerous events and festivals are held annually in Metro Manila. They include:
Plaza San Lorenzo Ruiz or Plaza Lorenzo Ruiz is a major public square in Binondo, Manila, bounded by Quintin Paredes Street to the east and Juan Luna Street to the west, parallel to the Estero de Binondo. It is the plaza that fronts the Minor Basilica of San Lorenzo Ruiz, one of the main churches of the City of Manila, and is considered the center of Binondo as a whole.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city and metropolitan area of Manila, the capital city of the Philippines.
The Liwasang Bonifacio, also known by its former name, Plaza Lawton, is a city square and transport hub in front of the Manila Central Post Office in the Ermita district of Manila, Philippines. It lies at the south end of Jones Bridge, MacArthur Bridge, and Quezon Bridge that link the northern districts of Binondo, Santa Cruz, and Quiapo to the central district of Ermita. The plaza straddles the dividing line between Ermita and Intramuros and is the starting point of Padre Burgos Avenue which connects to Taft Avenue and Roxas Boulevard in Rizal Park.
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:
Jose W. Diokno Boulevard, officially J. W. Diokno Boulevard, is a 4.38-kilometer (2.72 mi) long major collector road that runs north–south along the eastern perimeter of the SM Mall of Asia complex and parallel to Macapagal Boulevard in Bay City, Metro Manila, Philippines. It provides access from the Cultural Center of the Philippines Complex and Roxas Boulevard north to the shopping and lifestyle hub by Manila Bay in Pasay. Motorists tend to use the highway as the less congested alternative route from Manila to the Bay City vis-à-vis its parallel partner road in Macapagal Boulevard. It also connects to Entertainment City further south in Parañaque, and unlike Macapagal Boulevard is situated along the coastline overlooking Manila Bay.
The following is an alphabetical list of articles related to the Philippine capital region of Metro Manila.
