Melibengoy
Mount Melibengoy, also known as Parker Volcano is located in T’Boli, South Cotabato in the southern region of Mindanao. It is an andesitic-dacitic stratovolcano that rises 1,784 m above mean sea level with a basal area of 781.3 km2 , a basal width of 28 km, and a total volume of 9 km3 . The summit of the volcano is truncated by a 3-km-wide caldera with steep-sided walls that rise 200 to 500 m above the heart-shaped Lake Holon (formerly known as Lake Maughan). The lake drains into Ga-o River, a tributary of the Allah River, a prominent river system northwest of Mount Melibengoy. Melibengoy belongs to a north-trending volcanic chain in Central Mindanao that also includes Hibok-Hibok, Balingasag, Apo, Matutum, Ragang, Makaturing, and Balut. This volcanic arc appears to be an extension of the volcanoes in the Sangihe arc of Indonesia.
The presence of a caldera crater and young, extensive pumiceous pyroclastic fans around the vicinity of the volcano suggests an explosive volcanic history of this volcano. Radiocarbon dating of charcoal around the volcano indicates at least five eruption events in Mount Melibengoy in the past 50,000 years. The youngest dated samples yielded an age ranging from <200 to 350 ± 30 years before present, with more likelihood of a date in the 1640s. This time range coincides with a large eruption on January 4, 1641 in the Saranggani Region that was recorded and described in old Spanish documents. According to the accounts of Raymundo Magisa, a Jesuit priest, a sound that resembled artillery fire was heard for about half an hour on January 4, 1641, at 9 am. By 1 pm, the area was engulfed by total darkness due to the ash cloud from the large eruption. This darkness lasted until 2 am the following day. This eruption was also said to have produced a very loud noise that reached not only Manila but also as far as mainland Asia, including the Kingdoms of Cochin-China and Champá (both located in present-day Vietnam) and the Kingdom of Cambodia. The eruption of Melibengoy in 1641 is believed to be similar to the 1991 Pinatubo eruption in terms of volume and style.
Mount Melibengoy is one of the sacred places of the T’boli and B’laan people who live in the mountainous regions in Southern Mindanao. It is referred to as Falen in the local language. The origin of this name, however, is uncertain. When the Philippines was under American occupation, Mount Melibengoy was named by the United States Army Map Service after General Frank Parker who chartered flights over Mindanao in the 1930s. The majested crater lake, called Lake Maughan, was also named after a US Army captain named Russell Maughan, who was with General Parker during surveys around Mindanao in the 1930s.
The formation of the crater lake is also told in oral traditions by the T’boli and the B’laan people living along the flanks of the volcano. According to stories, there was once a strong torrent that wiped out and burned the forest, leaving behind a lake of fire (“lanao lifo”). According to another legend, there was once a great tree in the center of the forest where the lake now lies, believed to be a pathway to heaven. An evil man, unworthy of heaven, tried to climb this tree but was unsuccessful. Frustrated, he spent 40 years attempting to cut it down. When he finally succeeded, the land, which was once dry, was flooded. It was then when the lake formed with the surrounding areas left in ruin. Today, it is said that Sambulan, a god-like figure resembling a person, still resides near the crater lake, on a large rock visible on the northern side of the lake. The people still believe that the remnants of the great tree still exist around the volcano, manifesting as charcoal that can be collected in soils around the volcano.
Lake Holon is known for its clear and pristine water which is renowned to hikers. According to the beliefs of the natives living in the volcano, a portal at the center of the lake is said to transport all the dirt and garbage around the lake which helps maintain the cleanliness of the lake water. Mount Melibengoy is also the home of diverse groups of flora and fauna, housing several endemic species, including the rarely observed Mindanao lorikeet (Saudareous johnstoniae).
Other Names: Melibengoy / Mélébingóy, Falen (T’Boli / B’laan)
Latitude and Longitude: 6.10119 124.88868
Region: Region XII – SOCCSKSARGEN
Tectonic Setting: Subduction (Cotabato Trench)
Volcanic Arc/Belt: Cotabato Arc, Sangihe Volcanic Arc
Volcanic Region/Field: South Mindanao VR
Volcano Type: Stratovolcano
Last Known Eruption: 26 December 1640 ± 5 days – 4 January 1641
Morphometry Type: Massif
Highest Peak (masl): 1,780
Coordinates of Highest Peak: 6.11362 124.89076
Prominence (m): ~24 – 94
Basal Area (km2): 781.3
Basal Width (km): 28
Volume (km3): 155
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References:
Delfīn Jr, F. G., Newhall, C. G., & Martinez, M. L. (1997). Geological, 14C, and Historical Evidence for a 17th Century Eruption of Parker Volcano, Mindanao, Philippines. Journal of the Geological Society, 52(1), 25-42.
Delfin, F. G., Newhall, C. G., Martinez, M. L., Trimble, D., Salonga, N. D., Bayon, F. E. B., & Solidum, R. U. (1998). Formation of a caldera ~300 ybp at Mt. Parker, southern Philippines. In 11th Geological Society of the Philippines Geological Convention (pp. 61–69).
Global Volcanism Program, 2025. Mélébingóy (271011) in [Database] Volcanoes of the World (v. 5.2.6; 5 Feb 2025). Distributed by Smithsonian Institution, compiled by Venzke, E. https://doi.org/10.5479/si.GVP.VOTW5-2024.5.2
Henares, I., & Lasco, G. (2015, September 6). Mt. Parker/Lake Holon (1,400+). Pinoy Mountaineer. http://www.pinoymountaineer.com/2007/09/mt-parkerlake-holon-1400.html
Magisa, R. (1641). Succeso raro de tres volcanes, dos de fuego, y uno de agua que rebentaron a. 4. de Enero deste anode 1641, a unismo tiempo en diferented partes de estas islas Filipina, con grande