Bontoc, Mountain Province

Etymology

The name Bontoc is derived from the morphemes bun (heap) and tuk (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.

History

Samuel E. Kane, the American supervisor and then Governor, established the capital here after the Philippine Commission passed the Mountain Province Act in 1908, building a provincial building, hospital, doctor's office, nurse's home, a school, and provincial prison. He also built the Tagudin-Bontoc trail, which by 1926, could accommodate a small car.

Bontoc was one of several municipalities in Mountain Province which would have been flooded by the Chico River Dam Project during the Marcos administration, alongside Bauko, Sabangan, Sagada, Sadanga, and parts of Barlig. However, the indigenous peoples of Kalinga Province and Mountain Province resisted the project and when hostilities resulted in the murder of Macli-ing Dulag, the project became unpopular and was abandoned before Marcos was ousted by the 1986 People Power Revolution.

Geography

Bontoc is situated 387.10 km from the country's capital city of Manila.

Barangays

Bontoc is politically subdivided into 16 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

• Alab Oriente
• Alab Proper
• Balili
• Bayyo
• Bontoc Ili
• Calutit
• Caneo
• Dalican
• Gonogon
• Guinaang
• Mainit
• Maligcong
• Poblacion (Bontoc)
• Samoki
• Talubin
• Tocucan

Climate

| access-date = March 8, 2020 }}

Demographics

Languages

Most inhabitants speak the Bontoc language, with other major languages being Kankana-ey and Ilocano. Minor languages spoken include Tagalog, Pangasinan, Cuyonon, and Butuanon.

Economy

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.

Government

Local government

Main article: Sangguniang Bayan

Bontoc, belonging to the lone congressional district of the province of Mountain 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.

Elected officials

Members of the Municipal Council (2019–2022):

• Congressman: Maximo Y. Dalog Jr.
• Mayor: Jerome “Chagsen” Tudlong, Jr.
• Vice-Mayor: Eusebio S. Kabluyen
• Councilors:
  • Jupiter Kalangeg
  • Dan Evert Sokoken
  • Timothy Pongad
  • Glenn Bacala
  • Peter C. Kedawen
  • Julian Chumacog
  • Benedict Odsey II
  • Viola Okko

Culture

The highland town of Bontoc is home to two National Cultural Treasures of the Philippines. These are the Stone Agricultural Calendar of Bontoc and Petroglyphs of Alab.

The Alab petroglyphs are ancient figures carved on mountain walls by the prehistoric people of Bontoc. 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 the National Commission for Culture and the Arts of the Philippines to the UNESCO 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.

Education

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.

Primary and elementary schools

• Alab Elementary School
• All Saints' Mission School
• Balili Elementary School
• Bayyo Elementary school
• Bilig Elementary School
• Bontoc Central School
• Bontoc Ili Primary School
• Can-eo Elementary School
• Can-eo Chapyusen Multi Grade
• Dalican Elementary School
• Dantay Elementary School
• Gonogon Elementary School
• Guina-ang Elementary School
• Mainit Elementary School
• Maligcong Elementary School
• Mountain Province SPED Center
• Samoki Elementary School
• St. Vincent's School
• Talubin Elementary School
• Tocucan Elementary School
• Ut-Utan Elementary School

Secondary schools

• Albago National High School, Balili
• Dalican National High School, Dalican
• Guina-ang National High School, Guina-ang
• Mountain Province General Comprehensive High School, Poblacion
• Saint Vincent School, Poblacion
• Talubin National High School, Talubin
• Tocucan National High School, Tocucan

Technical and vocational school

• XiJen College of Mountain Province

Higher educational institution

• Mountain Province State University (Main campus)

Notable people

• Lamberto V. Avellana - National Artist of the Philippines for Film
• Francisco Claver, SJ - Roman Catholic bishop, Jesuit, and human rights activist

References

References

1. "2019 Election Results:Bontoc, Mountain Province". GMA News.
2. {{DILG detail
3. (July 17, 2024). "2024 Census of Population (POPCEN) Population Counts Declared Official by the President".
4. (April 12, 2018). "Feature: Lang-Ay Festival: Celebrating a Culture of Sharing". Philippine Information Agency.
5. "Brief History".
6. (August 18, 1908). "Act No. 1876".
7. Kane, S.E., 1933, Thirty Years with the Philippine Head-Hunters, New York: Grosset & Dunlap
8. (September 5, 1980). "Valley of Sorrow".
9. Doyo, Ma. Ceres P.. (2015). "Macli-ing Dulag: Kalinga Chief, Defender of the Cordillera". University of the Philippines Press.
10. (2011). "Annual Report; Local Government of Bontoc; CY 2011". Local Government of Bontoc.
11. "Mt. Province Travel Information".
12. "2019 National and Local Elections".
13. (August 1973). "Presidential Decree No. 260, s. 1973;".
14. (2010). "Annual Report 2010; National Museum". National Museum of the Philippines.
15. (January 15, 2021). "Masterlist of Schools".