Central Visayas (Filipino: Gitnang Kabisayaan) is a region of the Philippines, designated as Region VII. It is located in the central part of theVisayas island group, and consists of four provinces—Bohol, Cebu, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor— and the highly urbanized cities of Cebu City,Lapu-Lapu City, and Mandaue City. The region is dominated by the native speakers of Cebuano. Cebu City is its regional center.

The land area of the region is 15,875 km². As of the 2010 census, it has a population of 6,800,180 people, making it the 5th most populous of the country's 17 regions.^[1]

As of the 2010 census, Central Visayas had a population of 6,800,180 people, making it the 5th most populous of the country's 17 regions. At the 2007 census, the population was 6,398,628 with a population density of 403.1 people per square kilometer (6,129.4/mi²). The 2007 census showed an average annual population growth rate of 1.59% from 2000 to 2007, significantly less than the national average of 2.04%.^[2]

Cebuano is the dominant language of the region. Boholano is a dialectal variant of Cebuano spoken in Bohol. In the Camotes Islands, which is part of Cebu, Cebuano language is spoken in the towns of Tudela, Pilar and San Francisco. Except the town of Poro, in which, Porohanonis spoken (a variation or mixture of Cebuano, Hiligaynon (Ilonggo) and Masbateño language, with 87% Cebuano vocabulary). Tagalog,English and Spanish are also spoken in this region.

Media[edit source]

Cebu City is the main media hub for both the region and the island of Visayas. It is the home to many media outlets for both the million-nighttime and the 4-million daytime population of the city. Large media networks such as ABS-CBN Corporation, GMA Network, Inc., TV5, People's Television Network, and ETC 9 maintain their respective local stations and branches for viewership, commercial and news coverage purposes. Most of these stations broadcast local news and public affairs as well as entertainment and dramas to cater the local viewers.

Cable television operators are putting up cable TV stations in an effort to spread the TV signals all over the region. They also offer free worldwide array of television stations for various channels for news, sports, drama, cartoons, and advertisements.

Aside from the 24 national daily newspapers available, Cebu City also has 20 local newspapers. Among the widely-read are the Sun Star Cebu. The country's main Islamic news journal, The Voice of Islam, was founded in 1961 and published in this city. Visayas (Filipino: Gitnang Kabisayaan) is a region of the Philippines, designated as Region VII. It is located in the central part of theVisayas island group, and consists of four provinces—Bohol, Cebu, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor— and the highly urbanized cities of Cebu City,Lapu-Lapu City, and Mandaue City. The region is dominated by the native speakers of Cebuano. Cebu City is its regional center.

The land area of the region is 15,875 km². As of the 2010 census, it has a population of 6,800,180 people, making it the 5th most populous of the country's 17 regions.^[1]

Regions first came to existence in on September 24, 1972, when the provinces of the Philippines were organized into 11 regions by Presidential Decree No. 1 as part of the Integrated Reorganization Plan of President Ferdinand Marcos.

Since inception, the Central Visayas Region has remained unchanged in its boundaries.