Білиран провинциясы: Филиппин аралдарының кішкентай және жаңа провинциясы

Province in the Philippines

Biliran, officially the Province of Biliran (Waray Waray: Probinsya han Biliran; ; ), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region (Region VIII). Biliran is one of the country's smallest and newest provinces. Formerly a sub province of Leyte, it became an independent province in 1992. Biliran lies less than a kilometer north of the island of Leyte. A bridge causeway fixed link over Poro Island in the gateway town of Biliran connects the province to Leyte. Its capital is the municipality of Naval on the western coast of the island.

During the early Spanish era, what is now called Biliran was known as Isla de Panamao. The present name, believed to be adopted sometime between the late 17th century and the early 18th century, was, according to many publications, derived from a native grass called borobiliran which once grew abundantly on the island's plains. A contending theory states that the name came from the word bilir, which was defined in an old Visayan dictionary to be the “corner or edge of a boat, vase or anything protruding, like veins, or the furrow made by the plow.” The dictionary also gives biliran as an alternate spelling for bilir. This theory is supported by the fact that Biliran was site of the first large scale shipyard, built in the 17th century. Galleons were built to support the Galleon trade between Manila and Acapulco in Mexico.

The first town, named Biliran, was founded in 1712 after petitioning for a municipality and parish status. During this time, the island was a part of Cebu Province. Biliran, together with the islands of Samar and Leyte, were constituted into a separate province in 1735. Later when Samar and Leyte were split into two provinces in 1768, Biliran became part of Leyte Province as its sub province. The first parish priest was assigned in 1765, but its parish status was apparently withdrawn because of Padre Gaspar's apostasy. The parish was re established on February 22, 1782.

Biliran has a combination of warm and cool climatic zones, thus the prevailing climate is ideal for the cultivation of a wide range of agricultural crops. There is no distinct dry season but the heavy wet season generally occurs in December.

Biliran is subdivided into 8 municipalities, with a total of 132 barangays. All municipalities are located on Biliran Island, with the exception of Maripipi, which is an island municipality located to the northwest. The largest among the towns in terms of land area is the provincial capital Naval, while the smallest is Maripipi. Municipalityname=Coord Population Area Density Barangay (Total number of barangays) km2 /km2 Almeria 16,951 13 Biliran 16,882 11 Cabucgayan 20,788 13 Caibiran 22,524 17 Culaba 12,325 17 Kawayan 20,291 20 Maripipi 7,159 15 Naval † 54,692 26 Total 179,312 171,612 536.01 132 Provincial capital Municipality

The population of Biliran in the 2020 census was 179,312 people, with a density of
Based on the May 2000 census, the province had a total population of 140,274, which made it the fifth least populous province in the country, and the smallest in the region. There were 27,907 households in the province with an average size of 5.02 persons, slightly higher than the national average of 4.99. 87.05% of the population was Roman Catholic.

Waray Waray and Cebuano are the languages spoken by the majority of the people in Biliran Province. The latter is primarily spoken in Naval, Almeria and Kawayan. Whereas Waray waray is spoken in the towns of Caibiran, Culaba, Cabucgayan, Biliran and Maripipi. Both are Visayan languages. The majority of the residents also speak and understand English and Filipino.

The economy of Biliran is largely based on fishing. Most of its towns, especially Naval and Biliran, have excellent seaports. There are of brackish water fish ponds which produce prawns, shrimps and milkfish. Another of seawater are suitable for seaweed farming and 10 more hectares for fishcage culture. Being mountainous, Biliran can support various agricultural crops. The warm lowlands are conducive to rice (palay) production and other tropical crops. The cool highlands are favorable to high value crops such as cut flowers and varieties of upland vegetables. The inhabitants also engage in hunting, lumber, and manufacturing. The principal raw material produced is copra and coconut oil. Processed goods include white clay ceramics, dried fish, raw gulaman, and citronella oil. The untapped natural resources of the island include geothermal power and the abundant sulfur and gypsum deposits. Major industries includes fashion bags, Romblon bags, baskets, shellcrafts, placemats, hot pads, beverage coasters and trays. Biliran has been eyed as an emerging destination for mountaineers, bikers, canyoneers, hikers, and other adventure seekers. For example, Sampao River in the municipality of Almeria has been developed into a canyoning venue.