The district is divided into four gewogs (village blocks),[2] each corresponding to a major glacial valley: Choekor, Tang, Ura, and Chhume.

Bumthang directly translates as "beautiful field" – thang means field or flat place, and bum is said be an abbreviation of either bumpa (a vessel for holy water, thus describing the shape and nature of the valley), or simply bum ("girl", indicating this is the valley of beautiful girls).

Bumthang's primary agricultural products are wheat, buckwheat, dairy, honey, apples, potatoes, rice, and wool.

The northern two-thirds of the district (the gewogs of Chhoekhor and Tang) belong to Wangchuck Centennial Park, buffered by pockets of biological corridors.

Southern Bumthang (the gewogs of Chhumig and Ura) is part of another protected area, Thrumshingla National Park.