Bohol

Bohol (Tagalog pronunciation: [buˈhol]), officially the Province of Bohol (Cebuano: Lalawigan sa Bohol; Tagalog: Lalawigan ng Bohol), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. It is home to Boholano people. Its capital is Tagbilaran, the largest city of the province. With a land area of 4,821 km (1,861 sq mi) and a coastline 261 km (162 mi) long, Bohol is the tenth largest island of the Philippines.
The province of Bohol is a first-class province divided into 3 congressional districts, comprising 1 component city and 47 municipalities. It has 1,109 barangays.
The province is a popular tourist destination with its beaches and resorts. The Chocolate Hills, numerous mounds of brown-colored limestone formations, are the most popular attraction. The formations can be seen by land (climbing the highest point) or by air via ultralight air tours. Panglao Island, located just southwest of Tagbilaran, is famous for its diving locations and is routinely listed as one of the top ten diving locations in the world. Numerous tourist resorts and dive centers dot the southern beaches. The Philippine tarsier, among the world's smallest primates, is indigenous to the island.
It was the home province of Carlos P. Garcia, the eighth president of the Republic of the Philippines (1957–1961) who was born in Talibon, Bohol.
On October 15, 2013, Bohol was devastated by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake whose epicenter was 6 km (3.7 mi) south of Sagbayan. The earthquake, which also hit southern Cebu, claimed 222 lives altogether and injured 374 people. It also destroyed or damaged a number of Bohol's heritage churches.
In 2023, Bohol Island was designated as a UNESCO Global Geopark, the first in the Philippines.
Bohol is also the province with the most towns in the Philippines, totalling 47 towns, and 1 component city, Tagbilaran City.
Bohol is accordingly derived from the local word bo-ol, a kind of tree that flourished on the island. Similar to Nahuatl, the h in the middle was used to transcribe a glottal stop which is a common phoneme in the languages of the Philippines. The original name survives as Bool, a barangay or village in Tagbilaran City where Miguel Lopez de Legazpi supposedly landed.
The region of Southeastern Bohol, particularly Cogtong Bay in Candijay and the Anda Peninsula are known as the "cradle of civilization of Bohol" from archaeological findings of pre-colonial petroglyphs, and ancient bodies from burial sites which were housed in boat-shaped wooden-coffins. Boat coffin burial has been found prevalent in Mindanao, Palawan, Negros, Panay, Maranduque, and Masbate as well as throughout Southeast Asia in Borneo and Vietnam. Today, local healers and shaman still practice pagdiwata rituals, or offerings to the spirits for good fortune, located in Lamanok Point in Anda. The wooden boat coffins are estimated to date back 6,000 years ago from the Metal Age to the Protohistoric Period. The National Museum of the Philippines has excavated and recorded 9 local caves for preservation. Human remains found in Southeastern Bohol also contained artificially modified crania or a form of head-binding, practiced by ancient communities throughout history.
Unfortunately, theft and extraction of sacred burial sites of human remains by U.S. universities occurred during the American colonial area, particularly conducted by the University of Michigan and Bucknell University in the 1920s. The University of Michigan has up to 22 human remains taken from Carmen and Mabini, Bohol.
In the early 17th century, Father Ignacio Alcina, recorded that a certain Datung Sumanga of Leyte wooed the princess, Bugbung Humasanum, of Bohol, and married her after raiding Imperial China and aftwards were the precursors of the people there. In 1667, Father Francisco Combes, in his Historia de Mindanao, mentioned that at one time in their history, the people of the Panglao invaded Bohol and subsequently imposed their economic and political dominance in the area. They considered the previous inhabitants of the islands as their slaves by reason of war, as witnessed for example by how Datu Pagbuaya, one of the rulers of Panglao, considered Datu Sikatuna as his vassal and relative. The invasion of Bohol by the people of Panglao ushered Bo-ol. Bo-ol prospered under the reign of the two brother rulers of Panglao - Datu Dailisan and Datu Pagbuaya, with trade links established with neighbouring Southeast Asian countries, particularly with the Sultanate of Ternate. The flourishing of trade is owed to its strategic location along the busy trading channels of Cebu and Butuan. For other countries such as Ternate to gain access to the busy trade ports of the Visayas, they need to first forge diplomatic ties with the Bohol "kingdom".
Relations between the Sultanate of Ternate and Bo-ol soured when the Ternatan sultan learned the sad fate of his emissary and his men who were executed by the two ruling chieftains of Bo-ol as punishment for abusing one of the concubines. Thus, in 1563, the Ternatans attacked Bohol. Twenty joangas deceitfully posing as traders were sent by the sultan of Ternate to attack Bohol. Caught unaware, the inhabitants of Bohol could not defend themselves against the Ternatan raiders who were also equipped with sophisticated firearms like muskets and arquebuses provided by the Portuguese, still unknown to Boholanos. Thousands of Boholanos lost their lives in this conflict, including Pagbuaya's brother Datu Dailisan. After the raid, Datu Pagbuaya, who was left as the sole reigning chief of the island, decided to abandon Bohol together with the rest of the freemen as they considered Bohol island unfortunate and accursed. They settled in the northern coast of the island of Mindanao, where they established the Dapitan settlement.
Bohol is derived from the word Bo-ho or Bo-ol. The island was the seat of the first international treaty of peace and unity between the native king Datu Sikatuna and Spanish conquistador Miguel López de Legazpi on 16 March 1565, through a blood compact alliance known today by many Filipinos as the Sandugo.
The earliest significant contact of the island with Spain occurred in 1565. On 16 March 1565, a Spanish explorer named Miguel López de Legazpi arrived in Bohol seeking spices and gold. After convincing the native chieftains that they were not Portuguese (who raided the islands of Mactan in 1521), Legazpi made a peace pact with Datu Sikatuna. This pact was signified with a sandugo (blood compact) between the two men. This event, simply called the Sandugo ("one blood"), is celebrated in Bohol every year during the Sandugo Festival. The Sandugo or blood compact is also depicted on Bohol's provincial flag and the Bohol provincial seal.
Two significant revolts occurred in Bohol during the Spanish Era. One was the Tamblot Uprising in 1621, led by Tamblot, a babaylan. This revolt met with reprisals from the Spanish forces in Cebu, who on 6 January 1635; under orders by Juan de Alcarazo the Alcalde-Mayor of Cebu, a force of 50 Spanish and 1,000 Visayan troops, battled the rebels and settled in Bohol.
The other was the famous Dagohoy Rebellion, considered the longest in Philippine history. This rebellion was led by Francisco Dagohoy, also known as Francisco Sendrijas, from 1744 to 1829.
Politically, Bohol was administered as part of Cebu Province. It was separated from Cebu on 22 July 1854, together with Siquijor. A census in 1879 found Bohol with a population of 253,103 distributed among 34 municipalities.
The culture of the Boholanos was influenced by Spain and Mexico during colonization. Many traditional dances, music, dishes and other aspects of the culture have considerable Hispanic influence.
After the United States defeated Spain in the Spanish–American War, the U.S. bought the entire Philippine islands. However, under the newly proclaimed independent government established by Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, which was not recognized by the U.S., Bohol was governed as a Gobierno de Canton.
During the resulting Philippine–American War, American troops peacefully took over the island in March 1899. However, in September 1900, Colonel Pedro Samson led 2,000 in rebellion, due to the harsh treatment imparted by these troops and the destruction they caused. In response to the Samson uprising, the U.S. forces pursued a "Scorched-Earth" policy and burned down 20 out of the 35 towns of Bohol, especially Southeastern area of towns such as Duero, Jagna and Candijay where whole barangay villages were burned down in search of freedom fighters resisting U.S. invasion to the newly independent Philippines. In Jagna, Philippine guerrillas led by Captain Gregorio "Guyo" Casenas planned to overtake an American garrison, unfortunately the local mayor had disclosed their plans to U.S. troops and this resulted in the Lonoy Massacre or Battle of Lonoy which U.S. troops ambushed and killed 406 Filipino soldiers while 3 Americans were killed. General Hughes led a campaign of repression in October 1901, destroying a number of towns, and threatening in December 1901 to burn Tagbilaran if the rebels did not surrender. Pantaleon E. del Rosario then negotiated the rebel to surrender. At about the same period, on 20 October 1901, Bohol was organized as a province under the provisions of the Provincial Government Act of the Philippine Commission. Two years later, some of its towns were consolidated reducing its 35 municipalities to 32.
Japanese troops landed in Tagbilaran on 17 May 1942. Boholanos struggled in a guerrilla resistance against the Japanese forces. Bohol was later liberated by the local guerrillas and the Filipino and American troops who landed on 11 April 1945.
A plaque placed on the port of Tagbilaran commemorating the liberation reads:
The convoy taking the Filipino and American liberation forces to Bohol consisted of a flotilla of six Landing Ships, (Medium)-(LSM), six Landing Craft (Infantry)-(LCI), two Landing Craft,(Medium)-(LCM), and one Landing Ship, Medium (Rocket)-[LSM(R)]. Upon arrival, the reinforced battalion combat team advanced rapidly to the east and northeast with the mission of destroying all hostile forces in Bohol. Motor patrols were immediately dispatched by Col. Considine, Task Force Commander, and combed the area to the north and east, approximately halfway across the island, but no enemies were found during the reconnaissance. Finally, an enemy group of undetermined strength was located to the north of Ginopolan in Valencia, near the Sierra-Bullones boundary.
By April 17 the Task Force was poised to strike in Ginopolan. The bulk of the Japanese force was destroyed and beaten in the ten days of action. Bohol was officially declared liberated on 25 May 1945, by Major General William H. Arnold, Commander of the Americal Division. About this time, most officers and men of the Bohol Area Command had been processed by units of the Eighth United States Army.
On 31 May 1945, the Bohol Area Command was officially deactivated upon orders of Lt. General Robert L. Eichelberger, Commanding General of the Eighth United States Army, together with the regular and constable troops of the Philippine Commonwealth Army, Philippine Constabulary, and the Boholano guerrillas.
During the Second Battle of Bohol from March to August 1945, Filipino troops of the 3rd, 8th, 83rd, 85th and 86th Infantry Division of the Philippine Commonwealth Army and 8th Constabulary Regiment of the Philippine Constabulary captured and liberated the island province of Bohol and helped the Boholano guerrilla fighters and U.S. liberation forces defeat the Japanese Imperial forces under General Sōsaku Suzuki.
After the death of President Ramon Magsaysay, Vice President Carlos P. Garcia, who had been born in Talibon, succeeded to the presidency. He won a full term in the 1957 presidential election. He ran for a second full term as president in the 1961 presidential election and was defeated by Vice President Diosdado Macapagal.
In 1965 after a number of attempts to convert Tagbilaran into a City, the three Congressmen of Bohol sponsored the Bill to which would become Republic ACt 4660, creating the City Charter of Tagbilaran on 18 June 1966.
The Philippines' gradual postwar recovery took a turn for the worse in the late 1960s and early 1970s, with the 1969 Philippine balance of payments crisis being one of the early landmark events. Economic analysts generally attribute this to the ramp-up on loan-funded government spending to promote Ferdinand Marcos’ 1969 reelection campaign, although Marcos blamed the unrest on the 1968 formation of the Communist Party of the Philippines in an effort to earn political and military support from the zealously anticommunist Nixon and Ford administrations in the US.
In Bohol, which had been marked by agricultural self-sufficiency and "unusually egalitarian" set of social norms for landholding patterns until then, these economic shocks were worsened by rapid population growth and declining rice yields. The introduction of intensive rice agriculture in the uplands led to large-scale deforestation, which then led to the loss of water for ricefields in the lowlands. Cases of land usurpation began rising, which then degraded the relationships between landowners and tenants.
In 1972, one year before the expected end of his last constitutionally allowed term as president in 1973, Ferdinand Marcos placed the Philippines under Martial Law. This allowed Marcos to remain in power for fourteen more years, during which Bohol went through many social and economic ups and downs. The economic difficulties, paired with crony capitalism, and personal expensive lifestyles of the Marcos Family resulted in disillusionment, and when protests were met with warranteless detentions and human rights abuses, many oppositionists who had previously held "moderate" positions (i.e., calling for legislative reforms) became convinced that they had no choice but to call for more radical social change. The activities of the Marcos administration had "mythologized" the CPP's New People Army (NPA), so many of the radicalized protesters reacted by joining the NPA. By 1981, NPA activities had begun to be noted in the upland areas of Sevilla, Bilar, Batuan and Balilihan.
During this time Camp Dagohoy in Tagbilaran functioned as one of many detention centers during the Marcos dictatorship, under the ambit of Regional Command for Detainees III (RECAD III) at Camp Lapu-Lapu in Cebu City. Among whose detainees of Camp Dagohoy was the 19-year old brother of Judge Meinrado Paredes, who was beaten with firearms so that he eventually suffered permanent damage to his hearing.
The immediate government response to the NPA presence was an integrated "social, economic, cultural and political" program which also saw the deployment of a "Special Action Force" to the island in 1985, but conflict continued and even intensified through the 1980s and 1990s. The government was only able to declare Bohol "NPA free" in the 2010s, after the success of an effort termed the "Bohol Model", which saw military action play a secondary role while highlighting the civil government's provision of services which addressed local poverty and other root causes of community discontent.
At 8:12 a.m. (PST) on 15 October 2013, the island province suffered a severe earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 on the Richter scale. Its epicenter was at 9°52′N 124°04′E﻿ / ﻿9.86°N 124.07°E﻿ / 9.86; 124.07 (6 km (3.7 mi) S 24° W of Sagbayan and 629 km (391 mi) from Manila), and its depth of focus was 12 km (7.5 mi). The quake was felt as far as Davao City, Mindanao. According to official reports by the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), 57 people died in Bohol, and 104 were injured, The North Bohol Fault or "Great Wall of Bohol" is a reverse fault was discovered on 15, October 2013 during the 2013 Bohol earthquake. It became one of the tourist attractions in Bohol province
It was the deadliest earthquake in the Philippines since the 7.8 magnitude 1990 Luzon earthquake. Earlier that same year, Bohol was struck by an earthquake (on February 8, 1990) with an epicentre almost exactly the same as in 2013, causing six fatalities and 200 injured. Several buildings were damaged and it caused a tsunami.
On 12 April 2017, 11 Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) militants staged an attack on Bohol. Three soldiers, a police officer and at least four of the armed men, including their leader Abu Rami, were killed in the clashes that started at 5 am. Also killed were two Inabanga villagers, though it was not clear whether they were killed in the crossfire or executed by the cornered militants. Security officials hunted down the remainder of the ASG who landed in Bohol from the hinterlands to a neighboring island in the province which ultimately led to the neutralization of Abu Asis, the last of the remaining bandits, in May. He was gunned down by police Special Weapons and Tactics operatives in Barangay Lawis, Calape while fighting it out to the end along with Ubayda. All 11 ASG members killed in the intrusion were given proper burials under Muslim tradition.
The tourism industry in Bohol was negatively affected by the ASG militants' incursion on the island, though tour operators believe the industry can recover.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization on 24 May 2023, added Bohol as one of the 18 new sites, and the Philippines country's first, in its Global Geoparks network. The United Nations cites geoparks as “single, unified geographical areas” where sites and landscapes have international geological significance and to also be “managed with a holistic concept of protection, education, and sustainable development,” UNESCO said. Bohol as a UNESCO Global Geopark covers 8,808 square kilometers of land surrounding lush marine protected areas. It features wondrous, not-yet-popular karstic geosites like caves, sinkholes, among others. UNESCO cited Bohol Island's “400 years of rich history and cultural traditions in harmony with its unique geological treasures.”
Some of the sites highlighted in UNESCO Global Geopark are the following: Danajon Bank Double Barrier Reef, Alicia Panoramic Park, Princess Manan-aw Cave, Can-umantad Falls, Loon Coastal Geomorphic Conservation Park, Maribojoc Uplifted Marine Terrace, Baclayon Marine Terraces, Hinagdanan Cave, Canawa Cold Spring, Cave pools of Anda, Lamanok Island and Batungay Cave.
To the west of Bohol is Cebu, to the northeast is the island of Leyte and to the south, across the Bohol Sea, is Mindanao. The Cebu Strait separates Bohol from Cebu, and both island provinces share a common language, but Boholano retains a conscious distinction from Cebuano. Bohol's climate is generally dry, with maximum rainfall between the months of June and October. The interior is cooler than the coast.
With a land area of 4,821 km (1,861 sq mi) and a coastline 261 km (162 mi) long, Bohol is the tenth largest island of the Philippines. The main island is surrounded by about 70 smaller islands, the largest of which are Panglao Island, facing Tagbilaran, in the southwest and Lapinig Island in the northeast.
The terrain of Bohol is basically rolling and hilly, and about half the island is covered in limestone. Near the outer areas of the island are low mountain ranges. The interior is a large plateau with irregular landforms.
Near Carmen, the Chocolate Hills are more than 1,200 uniformly cone-shaped hills named for the grass growing on the hills that turns brown in the summer, making the landscape look like chocolate mounds. They are hills made of limestone left over from coral reefs during the Ice Age when the island was submerged. The Chocolate Hills are considered one of Philippine's natural wonders and Bohol is often referred to as the Jewel of the Philippines. They appear on the provincial seal of Bohol.
Bohol has 114 springs, 172 creeks, and four main rivers that run through Bohol with a radial drainage pattern. The largest river, the Inabanga, runs in the northwestern part of the province; the Loboc River drains the center of the island to the mid-southern coast; the Abatan River runs in the southwest, and Ipil River in the north. The only natural lake in the province is Cabilao Island Lake, also called Lake Danao or Lanao, on Cabilao Island.
Numerous waterfalls and caves are scattered across the island, including Mag‑Aso Falls in Antequera. Mag‑Aso means smoke in the native tongue. The water is cool and often creates a mist in humid mornings which can hide the falls.
The Rajah Sikatuna Protected Landscape protects Bohol's largest remaining lowland forest and can be found in the island's southern portion near Bilar.
List of rivers in Bohol by length:
The 85 outlying islands surrounding mainland Bohol under the jurisdiction of the Bohol Provincial Government are:
In 1996 the Philippine Tarsier Foundation was established in Corella, Bohol in efforts to help conserve and protect tarsiers and their habitat. Forest and habitat sanctuaries have been created to ensure the safety of tarsiers while allowing visitors to roam and discover these miniature primates in their natural habitats.
The tarsier is the smallest living primate and exists in several Southeast Asian countries today. The Philippine tarsier, Tarsius syrichta, locally known as "mamag" in Boholano is near to threatened according to the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species. Adaptation to their large bulging eyes allows them to catch prey clearly at night, and with elongated limbs and fingers, leaping from tree to tree gives no limitation to the tarsier. Their brain is about the same size as their eyes. The connection between its eyes and brain serves a unique function to these animals which is important for their stability and balance. Tarsiers have incredible hearing abilities. They can hear a frequency of up to 91 kHz (kilohertz) and send sounds of 70 kHz.
From November to April, the northeast monsoon (amihan) prevails. Except for a rare shower, this is the mildest time of the year. Daytime temperatures average 28 °C (82 °F), cooling at night to around 25 °C (77 °F). The summer season from May to July brings higher temperatures and very humid days. From August to October is the southwest monsoon (habagat). The weather during this season is not very predictable, with weeks of calm weather alternating with rainy days. It can rain any day of the year, but a higher chance of heavy showers occurs from November to January.
The formation of the island of Bohol began during the Late Jurassic Period (about 160 to 145 million years ago). It was still submerged except for what is now Mt. Malibalibod in Ubay and its adjacent area in Alicia, Bohol. Approximately 66 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous Period, the northern portion of the island began to rise gradually. Volcanic activity during the time caused the deposition of numerous layers of volcanic rock in the region. Land mass increased and grew at the beginning of the Paleogene Period (about 60 million years ago). During this period, diorite, a form of igneous rock, was introduced into the Talibon area. Between the Eocene and Oligocene epochs, the island's development was halted for millions of years. At the beginning of the Miocene epoch (about 23 million years ago), the island's geologic evolution continued. The combination of uplift and volcanism resulted in the deposition of limestone and the expulsion of andesite, a form of volcanic rock. Only the eastern half of the island was above water during this time. Approximately 5 million years ago, the southeastern portion of the island began to emerge from the ocean. From the late Pliocene to the Pleistocene (approximately 3.6 to 1.8 million years ago), the rest of the once-submerged portion of the island of Bohol rose to the surface, giving the island its present form.
According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 1,394,329.
Boholano people, a distinct ethnic subgroup of Cebuano, comprise the majority of Bohol with many residents in Southern Leyte and northern parts of Mindanao. Eskayans, a distinct ethnic group also native in Bohol, are residents of the forest hinterland interior of the southeastern municipalities of Duero, Guindulman, Pilar and Sierra Bullones. Residing sizeably in the province are the non-natives that include Cebuanos (from the northeast), Butuanons, Surigaonon (both from the Caraga in Mindanao) Hiligaynons, Ilocanos (from Panay, Negros Occidental and Ilocandia respectively, either directly or via Mindanao where they also both significantly reside), and Warays (from Eastern Visayas).
Majority of Boholano residents speak Bohol Cebuano, a dialect of Cebuano native to the province. It also has speakers in Southern Leyte and in northern parts of Mindanao. Boholanos can also speak and understand standard Cebuano. Tagalog and English are mainly used for business, government affairs and in local academe. Eskayans has an artificial language of their own of the same name with its own alphabet. It is considered endangered language, leading to efforts to preserve the language by volunteers within the Eskayan community to teach it to younger fellow Eskayans. Butuanon, Surigaonon, Hiligaynon, Ilocano and Waray are also spoken varyingly in the province.
19th Congress
There are 47 municipalities, 1 component city, and 1,109 barangays in Bohol.
Tourism plays an increasing role in the island's economy. The Panglao Island International Airport is active since 2018 for domestic flights and international flights since 2023. The airport houses the most-visited and accessible beaches in the province. Proponents of the scheme hope that the new airport will increase Bohol's reputation as an international tourist destination although the plan has been dogged by ongoing criticism.
Scuba Diving and Free Diving are among Bohol's tourism industry driving forces. Panglao is the leader with more than 70 Panglao scuba diving centers and free-diving operators due to its numerous dive sites, including Pamilacan. The municipality of Dauis is a second runner in the province with many diving facilities directed to Pamilacan and Napaling. Anda and Cabilao also show some prominence in growing the diving industry in Bohol. Due to the rapid growth, private and public regulatory organizations are protecting the marine environment from manmade damages.
The province's main airport is the Bohol–Panglao International Airport on Panglao Island. It replaced Tagbilaran Airport in November 2018 and serves as the gateway to Panglao Island and the rest of mainland Bohol for domestic air travelers. The airport is officially classified as an international airport by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. Direct Bohol - Seoul-Incheon flight was inaugurated on June 22, 2017. It was previously served Chengdu - Bohol flights, but was halted in 2020 amid the pandemic.
Port of Tubigon, the busiest among the smaller ports, offers more than ten daily round trips plying the Cebu-Bohol route, including fast-craft and roll-on/roll-off. Catagbacan Port in Loon serves the roll-on roll-off services between to Argao and Sibonga in Cebu. Port of Jagna offers service between Bohol to Opol, Cagayan de Oro, Camiguin (Balbagon and Benoni), and Nasipit with (with roll-on/roll-off) routes.
The port of Ubay is the province's gateway to Eastern Visayas which offers service round trips to Bato, Hilongos, and Maasin City. It also offers daily round trips to Cebu City. The second port of Ubay, the Tapal Wharf, located in barangay Tapal, caters the daily President Carlos P. Garcia-Bohol mainland routes.
The ports of Buenavista, Clarin, Getafe, and Talibon also offers daily round trips to Cebu. Other known commercial passenger seaports are located in Baclayon, Buen Unido, and Pres. Carlos P. Garcia.
The literacy rate of the province of Bohol is high at 98%.
Institutions of Higher Learning are:
Bohol has 2 major AM radio stations, DYRD and DYTR, both based in Tagbilaran City. Another AM radio station, DYZD, based in Ubay, is being operated by DYRD. Both DYRD and DYTR also operate FM stations with the same names. There are multiple weekly or twice weekly newspapers like Bohol Tribune (formerly Sunday Post), Bohol Times, Bohol Standard and Bohol Bantay Balita. These days, Bohol Chronicle is now a daily paper. An online news website called Bohol News Daily aggregates news from various sources.