Ambato, am bah'to, or Asiento de Ambato, a syayn'to da am bah'to, a town of Ecuador situated on the n. w. slope of Chimborazo, 78 mi. s. of Quito. The location is nearly 9,000 feet above the sea and in the midst of an earthquake region. The town has an important trade in the products of the neighboring country, and in grain, sugar and cochineal. An earthquake on August 5, 1949, destroyed most of the city. Population in 1910 about 8000; in 2001, 154,095.