Metropolitan Manila (Filipino: Kalakhang Maynila [kalakˌhaŋ maɪˈnilaʔ]), commonly shortened to Metro Manila and formally the National Capital Region (NCR; Filipino: Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region and largest metropolitan area of the Philippines. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay, the region lies between the Central Luzon and Calabarzon regions. Encompassing an area of 636.00 km² (245.56 sq mi) and with a population of 13,484,462 as of 2020, it consists of sixteen highly urbanized cities: Manila—the capital city—Caloocan, Las Piñas, Makati, Malabon, Mandaluyong, Marikina, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Parañaque, Pasay, Pasig, Quezon City, San Juan, Taguig, and Valenzuela, along with one independent municipality, Pateros. As the second most populous and the most densely populated region in the Philippines, it ranks as the 7th most populous metropolitan area in Asia and the 6th most populous urban area in the world.

The region is the center of culture (including arts and entertainment), economy, education, and the government. Designated as a global power city, the region exerts a significant impact on commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and entertainment both locally and internationally. It is home to all embassies in the Philippines, making it an important center for international diplomacy in the country. Its economic power establishes the region as the country's premier center for finance and commerce. The region accounts for 36% of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the Philippines. Greater Manila is the fourth largest ASEAN country subdivision by GDP, after Singapore, and the Jakarta, and Bangkok metropolitan regions.

In 1975, in response to the need to sustain and provide integrated services to the growing population, the built-up area centered on Manila was formally recognized as a metropolitan area through Presidential Decree No. 824. A year later, Presidential Decree No. 879 established Metro Manila as an administrative region, retaining its earlier status as a metropolis, and designated it as Region IV, with the remainder of the Southern Tagalog region being designated as Region IV-A. Finally, in 1978, Metro Manila became the National Capital Region (NCR) of the Philippines, discontinuing its numerical designation and reverting Southern Tagalog to its original designation.

Manila, to the extent that it has this placename, was likely founded in the Middle Ages, in the early 16th century due to the Sanskrit origin of the component "nila" in its name which refers to "indigo", and the prevalence of the placename during the rule of Rajah Matanda, the old king of Maynila, who was born somewhere between the late 15th century to the early 16th century. The earliest evidence of Hinduism and Sanskrit influence in maritime Southeast Asia is in Sanskrit inscriptions from the late 300s in eastern Kalimantan (or Borneo). This analysis of the placename is supported by many other nearby placenames in the Tagalog region with the prefix "may-".

Manila has historically been a global city due to its role in international trade. During the 15th and 16th centuries, Manila was a walled and fortified city and was the capital of the Kingdom of Luzon. Its institution, government, and economy were associated with the Tagalogs and the Kapampangans, and the Malay language was extensively used for foreign affairs as customary in much of Southeast Asia at the time. It was also well known in other Southeast Asian kingdoms such as Cebu, Brunei, Melaka, other Malay kingdoms, and Ternate, and its existence as a center of trade was widely known in East Asia as far as China and Japan.

In the current territory of Metropolitan Manila, there were several lordships that were either sovereign or tributary such as Tondo (Tundun), Navotas (Nabútas), Tambobong (Tambúbong), Taguig (Tagiig), Parañaque (Palanyág) and Cainta (Kaintâ).

Shortly after Rajah Matanda's birth, sometime around the early 16th century while he was rajahmuda or heir apparent, his father, the King of Luzon, died, leaving his mother as the queen regent of Luzon. By 1511, Luzonians had been carrying out large-scale trade at least within maritime Southeast Asia with Luzonians being hired as officials in Melaka and merchants gaining royal favors in Brunei. It was in Melaka that Luzonians met the Portuguese before their eventual conquest of Melaka in 1511. Rajah Matanda, in 1521, was known in maritime Southeast Asia as the son of the King of Luzon. He married a princess of Brunei and served as an admiral for his grandfather, the Sultan of Brunei, in an attack near Java in exchange for soldiers and a fleet of ships. On the way home, he met and had an encounter with a Castilian fleet.

Some Luzonians in the 1500s had also been taking part in mercenary work in other kingdoms. The Luzonians' commercial influence also reached as far as Butuan. By the 1570s, the ruling class of Manila together with the international Luzonian merchants were Muslim and Islam was spreading through the freemen and the slaves.