Balangao people
iFarangao | |
|---|---|
| Total population | |
| 17,736"2020 Census of Population and Housing, Table B - Population by Ethnicity". Philippine Statistics Authority. 2020. Retrieved 2026-03-03. (2020 census) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Philippines (Cordillera Administrative Region) | |
| Languages | |
| Balangaw, Ilocano, Tagalog | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity, indigenous folk religion | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Igorot peoples |
The Balangao people predominantly inhabit the majority of the municipality of Natonin, with the exception of the barangays of Maducayan, Saliok, and Banao (home to the Majukayong and Kachakran peoples), and extend into parts of the neighboring municipality of Paracelis. According to the linguistic research of Joanne Shetler, the Balangao-speaking population consists of two primary sub-dialectal groups: the Ha'ki (inhabiting the western regions) and the Balangao proper. The Balangao have historically been conflated with neighboring groups, such as the Bontoc people, due to early 20th-century administrative classifications. They are frequently misidentified in colonial-era literature and modern aggregators by the exonym Baliwon (or Boliwon), a term more accurately applied to the highland Gaddang (Ga'dang) of Paracelis.