Geographic Center
The island province of Marinduque prides itself as being the geographic center of the Philippines. The Marinduque governor has stated that their claim to be the Geographical Center of the Philippines has received notice and support from the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority (NAMRIA). The Luzon Datum of 1911 in Marinduque is used as point number one for all map makers in the country.
An article at the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism website says that Masbate "is supposed to be the geographic center of the Philippines."
The boundaries of the Philippine archipelago are described in Article III of the Treaty of Paris (1898), as comprising an irregular polygon. A box enclosing that polygon would have corners at 20°N 116°E, 20°N 127°E, 4.75°N 127°E, 4.75°N 116°E. The center of this box would lie at 121.5 E, 12.375 N. That point lies roughly in the center of the Tablas Strait between the islands of Tablas and Mindoro.
Republic Act No. 9522, "An Act to Define the Baselines of the Territorial Sea of the Philippines", describes an irregular polygon which fits within a box with its center at 121°44'47.45"E 12°46'6.1252"N, a point also roughly in the center of the Tablas Strait.
The CIA Factbook locates the Philippines at 13°N 12°E. This point, northwest of Romblon Island, is the approximate center of a box enclosing the land boundaries of the Philippine archipelago, not including the Spratley Islands.
The extreme points under Philippine control as of 2010 are:
| Direction | Location | Coordinates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Latitude (N) | Longitude (E) | ||
| North | Amianan Island, Batanes | 21º7’18.41" | 121º56’48.79" |
| East | Pusan Point, Davao Oriental | 7º17’19.80" | 126º36’18.26" |
| South | Frances Reef, Tawi-Tawi | 4º24’53.84" | 119º14’50.71" |
| West | Thitu Island, Kalayaan, Palawan | 11°3’10.19" | 114°16’54.66" |
The center of a box enclosing these points would be located at 12°46’6.13"N, 120°26’36.46"E. That point is located in the Mindoro Strait, about 12 km NNE of Apo Island, in Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro.
Read more about this topic: Geography Of The Philippines, Political Geography
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