Metropolitan
Manila (Filipino: Kalakhang Maynila) or the National Capital Region (NCR)
(Filipino: Pambansang Punong Rehiyon) is the capital of the Philippines and
among the world's thirty most populous metropolitan areas. Metro Manila is one
of the two defined metropolitan areas in the Philippines, the other being Metro
Cebu.
Metro Manila is
the metropolitan area that contains the city of Manila, as well as sixteen
surrounding cities and municipalities, including Quezon City, the capital from
1948 to 1976. Metro Manila is the political, economic, social, and cultural
center of the Philippines, and is one of the more modern metropolises in
Southeast Asia. Among locals, particularly those from Manila proper and those
in the provinces, Metro Manila is often simply referred to as Manila; however
locals from other parts of the metropolis may see this as offensive, owing to
city pride and also the fact that some cities are actually geographically
closer to the neighboring provinces than to Manila itself. Metro Manila is
often abbreviated as M.M.. The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA)
is located in Makati City.
Metro Manila is
the smallest of the country's administrative regions, but the most populous and
the most densely populated, having a population of 9,932,560 (2000 census) in
an area of only 636 square kilometers. It is also the only region without any
provinces. The region is bordered by the provinces of Bulacan to the north,
Rizal to the east, and Cavite and Laguna to the south. Metro Manila is also
sandwiched by Manila Bay to the west and Laguna de Bay to the southeast with
the Pasig River running between them, bisecting the region.
The term Metro
Manila should not be confused with the metro rail system of the region, and the
word metro itself always describes the metropolitan area (as in the metro). The
railways are called by their abbreviations, such as the LRT and the MRT, also
known as Light Rail Transit and Metro Rail Transit, respectively.
On paper, Manila
is the designated capital and seat of the Philippine government, but in
practice, the seats of government are all around Metro Manila. The executive
and administrative seat of government is located in Manila, so is the
judiciary. The upper house of the legislature (Senate of the Philippines) is
located in Pasay City, and the lower house (House of Representatives of the
Philippines) in Quezon City.