Various provinces are popular because of different reasons. There are some that are famous for their distinctive culinary specialties while other provinces are well-known for their products. When you hear the word “Leyte”, what comes into your mind? Is it the famous statue of Mac Arthur or Lucy Torres-Gomez, the famous actress who was raised in Ormoc, Leyte? If you can’t come up with something significant about this province, then you may keep on reading this topic.
Leyte (or the Northern Leyte) is a province that’s located in the Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. It has three cities, one is the Tacloban City which is the province’s capital, the Baybay City and the other is the Ormoc City. The province is surrounded by various provinces namely: Samar Island (East) and the Cebu Province in east (across Camotes Sea).
The discovery of the province started in the year 1543 when Ruy Lopez de Villalobos first stepped in the lands of Leyte. The spanish explorer then called the land Las Islas Felipinas. The land’s independence went unclear. Many conflicts transpired and even the territorial issues of surrounding seas became causes of battles to many parties. Then in the year 1944, the Battle of Leyte Gulf took place and hundreds battle ships clashed. This war was considered as the largest naval battle in modern history.
Today, the province is subdivided into three cities and 40 municipalities namely: Tacloban City, Baybay City, Ormoc City, Abuyog, Alanganlang, Albuera, Babatngon, Barugo, Bato, Burauen, Calubian, Capoocan, Carigara, Dagami, Dulag, Hilongos, Hindang, Inopacan, Isabel, Jaro, Javier, Julita, Kananga, La Paz, Leyte, Mac Arthur, Mahaplag, Matag-ob, Matalom, Mayoraga, Merida, Palo, Palompon, Pastrana, San Isidro, San Miguel, Santa Fe, Tabango, Tabontabon, Tanauan, Tolosa, Tunga and Villaba.
Although Leyte is a whole island, the people living here are primarily divided by language spoken. Cebuanos live in the western and southern part while the Waray-Waray are located in the northern and eastern part of the province. If you will read through the country’s history in religion, you will notice that some of the Visayan provinces and most parts of Mindanao were influenced by Islam. However, it’s amusing how Leyte, which is located near Mindanao, has a large percentage (97%) of Roman Catholic members while the other 3% are followers of various religions such as: Iglesia ni Cristo, Mormons, Baptists, Mennonites and Evangelicals.
When it comes to livelihood sources of the residents here, Leyte has something to show off. In this province lies the largest geothermal plant in Asia. The plant serves as a good provider of resources in the Philippines. Rice farming is also applied on lower and flatter areas of the land, primarily the places in Tacloban. On mountainous areas, coconut farming for the production of coconut oil is the main cash crop. Residents here also depend on fishing as one of the main source of livelihood.
However, since the establishment of Leyte Industrial Development Estate or LIDE, a lot of job opportunities came that boosted the province’s employment rate. Various infrastructure and services are now available like: Industrial Estate/Ecozone Development, Industrial Water System & Distribution, Seaport Development/Expansion, Mall-type Trading Center & Recreational Facilities, Real Estate Development, Bottled Mineral Water Firm, Sugarcane-based Processing and Citronella Plantation and Oil Extraction. As an overall rating, the province if Leyte can be considered as one of the successful provinces in the Philippines.