Bontoc | |
|---|---|
| Municipality of Bontoc | |
.jpg) Bontoc in 2022 | |
 Flag  Seal | |
 Map of Mountain Province with Bontoc highlighted | |
OpenStreetMap  | |
.svg)  Bontoc Location within thePhilippines | |
| Coordinates:17°05′24″N120°58′38″E / 17.09°N 120.9772°E /17.09; 120.9772 | |
| Country | Philippines |
| Region | Cordillera Administrative Region |
| Province | Mountain Province |
| District | Lone district |
| Founded | 1908 |
| Barangays | 16 (seeBarangays) |
| Government | |
| • Type | Sangguniang Bayan |
| • Mayor | Jerome B. Tudlong, Jr. |
| • Vice Mayor | Eusebio S. Kabluyen |
| • Representative | Maximo Y. Dalog Jr. |
| • Municipal Council | Members
|
| • Electorate | 16,723 voters (2025) |
| Area | |
• Total | 396.10 km2 (152.94 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 1,173 m (3,848 ft) |
| Highest elevation | 1,833 m (6,014 ft) |
| Lowest elevation | 804 m (2,638 ft) |
| Population (2024 census)[4] | |
• Total | 23,466 |
| • Density | 59.243/km2 (153.44/sq mi) |
| • Households | 6,452 |
| Economy | |
| • Income class | 2nd municipal income class |
| • Poverty incidence | 4.49 |
| • Revenue | ₱ 192.7 million (2022) |
| • Assets | ₱ 402.1 million (2022) |
| • Expenditure | ₱ 194.9 million (2022) |
| • Liabilities | ₱ 119.2 million (2022) |
| Service provider | |
| • Electricity | Mountain Province Electric Cooperative (MOPRECO) |
| Time zone | UTC+8 (PST) |
| ZIP code | 2616 |
| PSGC | |
| IDD : area code | +63 (0)74 |
| Native languages | Balangao Finontok Ilocano Tagalog Kankanaey language |
| Website | lgubontoc |
Bontoc, officially theMunicipality of Bontoc (Bontok:Ili nan Bóntoc;Balangao:Babley hen Bóntoc;Kankanaey:Ili di BóntocIlocano:Ili ti Bóntoc;Tagalog:Bayan ng Bóntoc;Spanish:Municipio de Bóntoc), is amunicipality and capital of theprovince ofMountain Province,Philippines. According to the 2024 census, it has a population of 23,466 people.[6]
Bontoc is the historical capital of the entire Cordillera region since the inception of governance in theCordillera. The municipality celebrates the annual Lang-ay Festival.[7]
Bontoc is home to the IndigenousBontoc people. The town also hosts the UNESCO tentatively-listed Alab petroglyphs.
The nameBontoc is derived from the morphemesbun (heap) andtuk (top), collectively meaning "mountains." The term is used to refer to the people of the Mountain Province, the capital municipality, including its cultural practices, and its native language.[8]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion. You can help byadding to it.(December 2015) |
Samuel E. Kane, the American supervisor and then Governor, established the capital here after thePhilippine Commission passed the Mountain Province Act in 1908,[9] building a provincial building, hospital, doctor's office, nurse's home, a school, and provincial prison.[10]: 281–284 He also built theTagudin-Bontoc trail, which by 1926, could accommodate a small car.[10]: 329
Bontoc was one of several municipalities in Mountain Province which would have been flooded by theChico River Dam Project during theMarcos administration, alongsideBauko,Sabangan,Sagada,Sadanga, and parts ofBarlig.[11] However, the indigenous peoples ofKalinga Province and Mountain Province resisted the project and when hostilities resulted in the murder ofMacli-ing Dulag, the project became unpopular and was abandoned before Marcos was ousted by the 1986People Power Revolution.[12]
Bontoc is situated 387.10 kilometres (240.53 mi) from the country's capital city ofManila.
Bontoc is politically subdivided into 16barangays. Each barangay consists ofpuroks and some havesitios.
| Climate data for Bontoc, Mountain Province | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 23 (73) | 24 (75) | 25 (77) | 27 (81) | 27 (81) | 26 (79) | 25 (77) | 25 (77) | 25 (77) | 25 (77) | 24 (75) | 23 (73) | 25 (77) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 16 (61) | 16 (61) | 17 (63) | 19 (66) | 20 (68) | 21 (70) | 21 (70) | 21 (70) | 20 (68) | 19 (66) | 18 (64) | 17 (63) | 19 (66) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 35 (1.4) | 46 (1.8) | 63 (2.5) | 117 (4.6) | 402 (15.8) | 400 (15.7) | 441 (17.4) | 471 (18.5) | 440 (17.3) | 258 (10.2) | 94 (3.7) | 68 (2.7) | 2,835 (111.6) |
| Average rainy days | 9.9 | 9.5 | 13.9 | 18.9 | 26.0 | 27.3 | 28.9 | 28.5 | 26.1 | 19.7 | 14.5 | 12.8 | 236 |
| Source: Meteoblue(modeled/calculated data, not measured locally)[13] | |||||||||||||
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| Source:Philippine Statistics Authority[14][15][16][17][18] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Most inhabitants speak theBontoc language, with other major languages beingKankana-ey andIlocano. Minor languages spoken includeTagalog,Pangasinan,Cuyonon, andButuanon.[19]
Poverty incidence of Bontoc
10 20 30 40 2000 37.87 2003 21.13 2006 15.10 2009 16.71 2012 10.86 2015 15.43 2018 10.01 2021 4.49 Source:Philippine Statistics Authority[20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27] |
The local economy depends largely on small trades and agriculture. This capital town's biggest economic potential is tourism with its smaller rice terraces in Barangay Bay-yo, Maligcong and other areas.[28]
Bontoc, belonging to thelone congressional district of the province ofMountain Province, is governed by a mayor designated as its local chief executive and by a municipal council as its legislative body in accordance with the Local Government Code. The mayor, vice mayor, and the councilors are elected directly by the people through an election which is being held every three years.
Members of the Municipal Council (2019–2022):[29]
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The highland town of Bontoc is home to twoNational Cultural Treasures of the Philippines. These are the Stone Agricultural Calendar of Bontoc andPetroglyphs of Alab.[30]
The Alabpetroglyphs are ancient figures carved on mountain walls by the prehistoric people of Bontoc.[31] The petroglyphs are the most important ancient rock art carvings in the Cordilleras and the second oldest in the entire country, second only to the Angono petroglyphs of Rizal. Due to its high significance, it was submitted by theNational Commission for Culture and the Arts of the Philippines to theUNESCO Tentative List of Heritage Sites in 2006, pending its inclusion in the World Heritage List along with the Singanapan charcoal-drawn petrographs of southern Palawan, Angono petroglyphs of Rizal province, charcoal-drawn Peñablanca petrographs of Cagayan, and the Anda red hermatite print petrographs of Bohol.
The Bontoc Schools District Office governs all educational institutions within the municipality. It oversees the management and operations of all private and public, from primary to secondary schools.[32]
Places adjacent to Bontoc, Mountain Province | |
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| International | |
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| National | |
