Which ancient rice terraces in the Philippines are a UNESCO World Heritage Site?

Which ancient rice terraces in the Philippines are a UNESCO World Heritage Site? The Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras are the answer.

The Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras form a living cultural landscape in the highlands of Luzon, especially in Ifugao Province. Generations of Ifugao communities carved steep mountain slopes into layered fields, then supplied them with water through carefully managed forested watersheds and irrigation channels. The terraces are maintained through communal knowledge, farming traditions, rituals, and cooperation.

UNESCO inscribed the site in 1995 under cultural criteria recognizing its engineering, traditional agricultural system, and continuing relationship with the Ifugao people. The World Heritage property includes five principal clusters: Batad, Bangaan, Mayoyao, Hungduan, and Nagacadan. A frequent misconception is that every famous terrace near Banaue is part of the UNESCO property. The commonly photographed Banaue terraces are culturally important, but the officially inscribed clusters are specific sites within the broader Cordillera landscape. The terraces were once described as extremely ancient, although archaeological research continues to refine their precise dating.