Bohol is one of the island provinces in the Philippines, the 10th largest in the country. It is roughly oval in shape with major axis trending to the northeast to southwest with the camotes Sea at the north and the Mindanao Sea at its south. The province is predominantly hilly and rolling with narrow coastal plains. It is composed of a mainland and 81 offshires islands and islets with an approxiamate total coastline of 654 kilometers. The coast is fairly regular and smooth and usually fringed with coral reefs. About 6,245 sq. kilometers of municipal waters minerals as well as abundant non-metallic minerals such as limestone, guano, high-grade silica and clay, among others. 73% of vegetation cover of Bohol is composedof grassland, coconut and forest. Out of nits total land area of 411.726 hectares, about 21% are protected land.
Bohol was made a province by virtue of Republic Act 2711 on 10 March 1971.It is classified as a first Class-A province by the Department of Finance. It is the homeland of revolutionary leaders Fransisco Dagohoy and Tamblot and of the 4th President of the Republic of the Philippines and President of the 1972 Constitutional, Pres. Carlos P. Garcia.
Bohol is the site of the 1st International Treaty in 1565, a treaty of friendship between Datu Sikatuna, a native chieftain and Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, representing the King of Spain through a blood compact known today as the “Sandugo”. In honor of this occasion, the late Pres. Elpiudio Quirino established the order of Sikatuna, a presidential decoration conferred upon diplomats. Long before the Spaniards came to Bohol in 1521, there was already contact with traders from China and other countries as evidenced by artifacts excavated from burial grounds. Local cotton was most desired by these traders as material for winter clothing and formed the basis of lucrative trade item to be bartered for Chinese porcelains.