Banton, Romblon

Banton Jones
Municipality
Municipality of Banton
(From top, left to right) Banton Island, Fort San Jose, the 16th century St. Nicholas de Tolentino Parish Church, Macat-ang Beach in Barangay Mainit, pre-colonial artifacts found in Banton's Guyangan Cave System, Banton Civic Center, and Banton's poblacion viewed from Manamyaw Cliff.
Flag Seal
Map of Romblon with Banton highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Banton Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 12°56′46″N 122°05′46″E / 12.946°N 122.096°E / 12.946; 122.096
Country	Philippines
Region	Mimaropa
Province	Romblon
District	Lone district
Founded	1622[1]
Barangays	17 (see Barangays)
Government  [2]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Milagros F. Faderanga
• Vice Mayor	Loijorge F. Fegalan
• Representative	Eleandro Jesus F. Madrona
• Councilors	Allan Fabula Carmi Faderanga Monie Faderanga Bert Fadrilan Renato Faz Joemel Ferrancol Onad Ferrolino Bemboy Fonte
• Electorate	3,963 voters (2022)
Area [3]
• Total	32.48 km2 (12.54 sq mi)
Elevation	13 m (43 ft)
Highest elevation (Mount Ampongo)	607 m (1,991 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2020 census)[4]
• Total	5,737
• Density	180/km2 (460/sq mi)
• Households	1,495
Demonym	Bantoanon[5]
Economy
• Income class	5th municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	24.85 % (2021)[6]
• Revenue	₱ 55.8 million (2020)
• Assets	₱ 197.2 million (2020)
• Expenditure	₱ 57.92 million (2020)
• Liabilities	₱ 27.75 million (2020)
Service provider
• Electricity	Romblon Electric Cooperative (ROMELCO)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	5515
PSGC	1705902000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)42
Native languages	Bantoanon Tagalog
Patron saint	San Nicolas de Tolentino

Banton, officially the Municipality of Banton (Bantoanon: Banwa it Banton, Filipino: Bayan ng Banton, formerly known as Jones), is a 5th class municipality in the province of Romblon, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 5,737 people.^[4]

Its territory encompasses the entire Banton Island and a few uninhabited smaller islands. The island is located in the northern portion of the province and lies in the northern portion of the Sibuyan Sea near the southern tip of Marinduque. It is a town of about 5,000 people majority of which speak the Bantoanon language (also known as Asi), one of the five primary branches of the Bisayan languages.

Banton is thought to have been inhabited by Filipinos since the pre-colonial period, based on analysis of human remains, coffins, an ancient burial cloth and other archaeological finds discovered at the Guyangan Cave System by the National Museum in 1936. The present settlement was founded in 1622 by the Spanish and is the oldest settlement in the province. During the American colonial period, the municipality changed its name to Jones in honor of American congressman William Jones, who authored the Philippine Autonomy Act of 1916. Today, Banton is one of Romblon's thriving municipalities, with an economy dependent on copra farming, fishing, raffia palm weaving, and tourism. The island is collectively known as a cultural landscape due to its historical, cultural and archaeological value to humanity.