TABUK CITY, Kalinga (PIA) – Home to 46 distinct sub-tribes, Kalinga brims with culture which came on full display this February as the province celebrated its annual Bodong Festival and Founding Anniversary.
The “bodong” is Kalinga’s age-old peace pact system. Long before modern institutions, the bodong resolved conflict between tribes. It fostered harmony and brought peace – the foundation of the economic growth that Kalinga enjoys today.
In its seventh edition this year, the Bodong Festival revolved around the theme, “Naindaklan a kultura, isu’t bileg ti Kalinga” (Great culture is the strength of Kalinga).
On Thursday, February 12, 2026, as the sky brightened over Bulanao, the music and rhythms of traditional instruments, chants, and songs filled the streets as the municipalities of Pasil, Lubuagan, Tinglayan, Rizal, Balbalan, Pinukpuk, Tanudan, and the city of Tabuk led the Diddiga Cultural Parade and Showdown.
A centerpiece of the Bodong festivities, the Diddiga is a showcase of each locality’s rich heritage, featuring musical performances of rites and rituals, marking life’s milestones. Pasil portrayed the ‘salip’ (matrimonial rites), Lubuagan performed the ‘gabbok’ (firstborn dedication ceremony), Tinglayan showed the ‘funong’ (hospitality rite), Balbalan featured the ‘ani’ (harvest ritual), Pinukpuk, the ‘pasingan’ (wedding ritual), and Tanudan, the ‘igam’ (male rite of passage).
The Diddiga also saw the municipality of Rizal and the city of Tabuk expressing their cultural identity. Rizal highlighted their bountiful agricultural legacy with their performance called ‘PaMaNa Ti Rizal’, and Tabuk with the ‘Matagoan’ showcase dedicated to their role as the Kalinga’s ‘zone of life’.
Other ethnolinguistic groups who have made Kalinga their home also performed, including the Maranao group who featured their ‘sagayan’ (victory dance), the Bago group with their ‘Kintagowan Di Bago’ performance, and the Ga’dang group with their ‘mama’bal’ marriage ritual.
The Department of Tourism (DOT) touted the authenticity of Kalinga culture and recognized its significance in shaping the province’s growth and development.
“The mountains here, the river systems, the rice terraces, the tattoo traditions, the sound of the Diddiga, these are not products created for visitors, they are expressions of your identity. And because of its authenticity, people travel from far and wide to witness them and to be changed forever,” said DOT Secretary Christina Frasco in her keynote speech during the Diddiga formal program.
The official said Kalinga generated nearly P600 million in tourism receipts in 2024, highlighting the benefits of tourism to workers, communities, and the local economy.
To support the continued growth of tourism in Kalinga, Frasco reaffirmed the DOT’s commitment to programs that provide connectivity and accessibility, enhance the capacity of tourism workers, and strengthen community-based tourism enterprises.
“Growth must be guided carefully, accessibility must improve, skills must be further strengthened, infrastructure must support, not overwhelm our communities,” Frasco said. **JDP/IOS-PIA CAR
