The Bontoc (or Bontok) ethnolinguistic group can be found in the central and eastern portions of Mountain Province, on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. They formerly practiced head-hunting and had distinctive body tattoos.

According to early ethnographic mapping by Albert Ernest Jenks, the specific Bontoc culture area is geographically bounded by the central and eastern mountains of Mountain Province. This cultural zone encompasses the current municipalities of Bontoc and Sadanga, extending eastward to include the settlements of Barlig Central and Lias.

However, this cultural map terminates at the eastern ridges of Barlig, specifically excluding the Kadaklan region, as well as the municipalities of Natonin (home of the Balangao people) and Paracelis (home of the Gaddang Baliwon). These eastern groups represent distinct ethnolinguistic lineages outside the core Bontoc cultural sphere.

The Bontoc live in a mountainous territory, particularly close to the Chico River and its tributaries. Mineral resources (gold, copper, limestone, gypsum) can be found in the mountain areas. Gold, in particular, has been traditionally extracted from the Bontoc municipality. The Chico River provides sand, gravel, and white clay, while the forests of Barlig and Sadanga within the area have rattan, bamboo and pine trees. They are the second largest group in the Mountain Province.

The Bontoc social structure used to be centered around village wards containing about 14 to 50 homes. Traditionally, young men and women lived in dormitories and ate meals with their families. This gradually changed with the advent of Christianity.^{[citation needed]} Bontocs have three different indigenous housing structures: the residence place of the family (katyufong), the dormitories for females (olog), and the dormitories for males (ato/ator). Different structures are mostly associated with agricultural needs, such as rice granaries (akhamang) and pigpens (khongo). Traditionally, all structures have inatep, cogon grass roofs. Bontoc houses also have numerous utensils, tools, and weapons: like cooking tools; agricultural tools like bolos, trowels, and plows, bamboo or rattan fish traps.

The Bontoc take pride in their kinship ties and oneness as a group (sinpangili) based on affiliations, history together against intruders, and community rituals for agriculture and matters which affect the entire province, like natural disasters. Kinship groups have two main functions: controlling property and regulating marriage. However, they are also important for the mutual cooperation of the group's members.

There are generally three social classes in Bontoc society, the kakachangyan (rich), the wad-ay ngachanna (middle-class), and the lawa (poor). The rich sponsor feasts, and assist those in distress, as a demonstration of their wealth. The poor usually work as sharecroppers or as laborers for the rich. The Bontoc people had a caste called the kadangyan whose members had specialised leadership roles, married only within the same caste, and wore specialised clothing.

The Bontoc speak Bontoc, Ilocano and Tagalog