LESSON 2

THE SETTING: MINSUPALA AND ITS PEOPLES AT

PRESENT

Overview:
While it is true that Filipinos are different from one another, they
nonetheless have many commonalities that are, strong bases for unity and
harmony. For instance, many of their ethnic groups belong to the same racial
stock; their languages originated from the same mother Malayo-Polynesian
language; they share common vocabularies, material culture and even values.
With special regard to Mindanao, they even share the same homeland, as
Mindanao has become a shared territory, whether its peoples like it or not.

Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this lesson, the students can:
1. describe Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan (MINSUPALA);
2. understand why Palawan is included in the setting of History 3;
3. identify the peoples of MINSUPALA at present and its categorization;

Materials Needed:

● printed module

● internet connection

● cellphone/laptop

● Philippine Map

Duration: 3 hours

Lesson Content:
1) Where are Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan?
Geographically, the name “Mindanao” is understood (or is it
misunderstood?) by people, mostly by Filipino speakers and writers, to mean two
things, which often results in some kind of prepositional confusion. First, it refers
to the second largest island in the archipelago, in which concept of the word
people are said to live and events takes place (with the correct preposition) “on
Mindanao,” that is, on that island. Second, to people’s minds, the term stands
also for the group of islands that comprises of mainland Mindanao and the
adjacent islands in the southern part of the country, in which case, people talk
about events taking place “in Mindanao,” the region. Most times, Filipino
speakers and writers use the preposition “in” even when they mean “on” the
island (as they would erroneously say, “in Luzon”); the prepositional tangle
continues as part of living history.

With a land area of 94,630 km2 (about 10,000 km2 smaller than Luzon),
the mainland of Mindanao provides a large amount of agricultural, industrial,
commercial and tourism potentials. Together with the island chains of Basilan,
Sulu and Tawi-Tawi, the Mindanao islands group provides 25% of rice; 67% of
cattle and tuna; more than 50% of corn, fish and chicken; 100% of pineapple,
rubber and banana exports; 90% of plywood and lumber; 63% (1 billion metric
tons) of nickel reserves; 48% (50.3 million metric tons) of gold reserves; 38.5%
(2.6 million hectares) of forest and 38% (3.73 million hectares) of farmlands for
the entire Philippine economy. Yet of the 20 poorest provinces in the Philippines
(MBN index), 13 are in the Mindanao region, including all the ARMM provinces.

The Mindanao islands group, with the southern portion of Palawan, is

home to the tri-people – at least 18 ethno linguistic groups of Lumads; 13 groups
of Moro (i.e., Bangsamoro) and at least nine migrant ethnic groups of “Christians”
from Luzon and Visayas. The islands group is divided into six regions, which are
further subdivided into 25 provinces. Collectively, the islands group of Mindanao
is bounded on the north by Bohol Sea, on the east by the Philippine Sea, on the
west by the Sulu Sea and on the south by the Celebes Sea. Mindanao itself, the
island, is mountainous, and is home to Mount Apo, the highest peak of the
country.

Islands Group of Mindanao

The islands group of Mindanao is an arbitrary grouping of islands in the

southern Philippines, which encompasses six administrative regions. These
regions are further subdivided into 26 provinces, of which only four are not on
Mindanao Island itself. The islands group includes the Sulu Archipelago to the
southwest, which consists of the major islands of Basilan, Jolo, and Tawi-Tawi,
plus the outlying islands in other areas such as Camiguin, Dinagat, Siargao,
Samal and Sarangani. The six regions are the following:
 Zamboanga Peninsula (Region IX), formerly Western Mindanao, is
located in the landform of the same name. It consists of the provinces of
Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, and the two
cities of Zamboanga and Isabela, which are independent of any province. Isabela
City is the only territory not on Mindanao Island itself and is located on the island
of Basilan. The region’s new administrative capital is Pagadian City and the
whole region used to be a single province named Zamboanga.

Northern Mindanao (Region X) consists of the provinces of Bukidnon,

Camiguin, Lanao del Norte, Misamis Occidental and Misamis Oriental, plus the
cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan. The province of Camiguin is also an island
just off the northern coast. The administrative center and capital of the region is
Cagayan de Oro City.

Davao Region (Region IX), formerly Southern Mindanao, is located in the

south-eastern portion of Mindanao Island. The region is divided into the
provinces of Davao Oriental, Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur and Compostela
Valley, plus Davao City. The region encloses the Davao Gulf to the south and
includes the island of Samal in the gulf and the Sarangani Islands further to the
south. Davao City is the region’s administrative center.

SOCCSKSARGEN (Region XII), formerly Central Mindanao, is located in

the south-central portion of the island. It consists of the provinces of South
Cotabato (which used to be part of Region XI), North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat,
and Sarangani plus Cotabato City. The names of the provinces together with
General Santos City spell the acronymous name of the region. Cotabato City,
geographically located in, but not part of Maguindanao province, is the region’s
former administrative center. Koronadal City, in South Cotabato, is the new
administrative center of the newly formed region.

Caraga (Region XIII) is located in the north western part of Mindanao. Its
provinces are Agusan del Norte, Agusan del Sur, Surigao del Norte, and Surigao
del Sur. The administrative center is Butuan City in Agusan del Norte. The region
also covers the outlying islands of Surigao del Norte such as Dinagat, Siargao
and Bucas Grande Islands.
 The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM)
is a special region, which covers the territories predominantly populated by
Muslims. It consists of almost the whole of the Sulu Archipelago (Isabela City of
Basilan is not part, as it is under the Zamboanga Peninsula region) and two
provinces in the mainland, namely: Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao. The
provinces located in the Sulu Archipelago are Basilan, Tawi-Tawi and Sulu. The
first two provinces (i.e., Basilan and Tawi-Tawi) are themselves the main islands
of their respective provinces, while the main island of Sulu is Jolo Island.
Ironically, Cotabato City, which is not part of the ARMM, is the region’s
administrative center.

While Palawan is not on Mindanao, it may be necessary to introduce the

island province at this point to answer the question posed above.
Administratively, Palawan is an island province that is attached to Region 4
(Southern Tagalog, with the acronym MIMAROPA). It stretches from Mindoro in
the northeast to Borneo in the southwest and lies between the South China Sea
and the Sulu Sea. The province is named after its largest island, Palawan Island,
measuring 450 kilometers (280 miles) long and 50 kilometers (31 miles) wide.

2) Why is Palawan included in the study of History 3?

Perhaps, one wonders why Palawan is included in the setting of History 3.
As pointed out already, Palawan is administratively attached to Luzon, being part
of the southern Tagalog region (Region IV) while, geographically, it is part of the
Visayas group of islands. However, at the time of the great sultanates, some
parts of Palawan, especially the southern portion, were under the jurisdiction of
the Sultan of Sulu, thus making the island historically attached to the Sulu
Sultanate. Also, the presence of Islamized tribes in Palawan culturally links the
island to Mindanao.

3) Who are the peoples of MINSUPALA at present and how may they
be categorized?
Broadly, the peoples of MINSUPALA may be categorized as:

● The Migrants and their descendants, and

● The Indigenous Groups.

The Migrants and Their Descendants

 The “migrant populations” of Mindanao refers to the people who were not
originally inhabitants of the island. Mostly, they were natives of Luzon or Visayas
who came to Mindanao and stayed beginning from the early 20th century. Their
migration began as a response to American invitation for permanent settlers on
Mindanao (either through the government-sponsored resettlement program or
through private efforts). As commonly used among Mindanaoans, the word
“migrant” or “settler” was often confused with the term “Christian.”

Of the migrant peoples, the following have significant populations on

Mindanao: the Cebuano from Cebu, the Ilonggo from Panay and Negros, the Bol-
anon from Bohol, the Waray from Samar and Leyte, the Siquijodnon from
Siquijor, the Tagalog from Central Luzon, the Bicolano from Bicol, the
Kapampangan from Pampanga and the Ilocano from Ilocos. The Chinese and
other non-Filipinos may well be included in the migrant category of “other
settlers” from Luzon and Visayas.

The Indigenous Groups

The indigenous groups refer to the people who inhabited Mindanao
“before history.” According to B.R. Rodil, this group can be further categorized
into three, namely: 1.) “Indigenous Christians”, 2.) Moros and 3.) Lumads.

1.) The “Indigenous Christians”

It may be stressed that when the Spaniards arrived on Mindanao in the
second decade of the 17th century, they already noted a significant number of
Visayan-speaking peoples in the northern and eastern parts of the island. These
people would eventually become the Christian communities in the Spanish
controlled territories of Mindanao whose population was noted to be 191,493 in
1892.Further on the “indigenous Christians” of Mindanao, B.R. Rodil says:

It is no longer easy to identify them because they have

assimilated into the migrant Visayan population which now
compose the majority of the place. They are known locally by their
place names like Davaweño in the Davao provinces… mostly in
Davao Oriental; Butuanon in Butuan, Camiguinon or Kinamigin in
Camiguin Island, Cagayanon in Cagayan de Oro… Iliganon in
Iligan… Dapitanon in Dapitan, Dipolognon in Dipolog, Chavacano
in Zamboanga… Surigaonon, Waya-waya and Jaon-jaon are
spoken in the towns of Surigao del Sur…
 It would seem, therefore, that the “indigenous Christians,” so-called, were
original Mindanao IPs who became Christianized; more exactly, perhaps, they
were Christianized IPs. In their case, therefore, being “Christian” did not
necessarily mean being a “migrant.” To further illustrate this point, try to consider
one oral tradition in Lanao which states that the Iliganons were originally
Maranaos who befriended the Spaniards. Later, these friendly Maranaos were
converted to Christianity and eventually aided the Spanish colonizers against the
hostile Maranaos of the Lake region. In the course of time, the Iliganons would
learn the language of the Visayan soldiers brought by the Spaniards so that they
(i.e., the Iliganons) were soon speaking the Visayan language among
themselves. This observation of an oral source is worth noting:

Kung tan-awon nimo ang batasan sa typical nga Iliganon,

actually Maranao na siya og batasan. Kanang dili magpapildi,
kanang taas nga garbo or maratabat, ug pagtinabangay sa
panahon sa away, Maranao na siya nga batasan. (Free translation:
If you observe the attitude of a typical Iliganon, you would notice
that his attitude is that of a Maranao. The way he makes sure he is
not defeated, his very high pride, and mutual aid during fights, is
simply typical among Maranaos).

Add to the above observation the fact that some Iliganon families or clans
trace their genealogies to prominent Maranao families in some places in the lake
region.

2.) The Moros

Name of Tribe Traditional Homeland
Panimusan Mainland Southern Palawan
Molbog Balabac Island (East of southern Palawan)
JamaMapun Cagayan de Sulu (South of Palawan)
Sama’a Tawi-tawi cluster of islands
Tausug Jolo cluster of islands
Yakan Basilan
Badjao / Sama Entire Sulu archipelago
Dilaut
Kalibugan Zamboanga peninsula
Iranun Illana bay area
 M’ranao/Meranao Lanao provinces
Maguindanaon Cotabato provinces
Sangir Sarangani and Samal island
Kalagan Davao provinces
The second group of indigenous peoples in the Mindanao islands group is
the Moro. As commonly understood at present, the term Moro refers the thirteen
Islamized tribes of Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan. A summary of the Moro tribes
with their corresponding places of cultural dominance is presented below.

THE THIRTEEN (13) MORO GROUPS

MORO GROUPS FOUND IN SULU ARCHIPELAGO AND PALAWAN

1. BADJAW (SAMA DILAUT)

“Sea gypsies”, they move with the wind and the tide in their
small house-boats (boat-dwelling). Badjaw is a Malay-Bornean word which
connotes “man of the seas” or “orang laut” in Bahasa Malayo. They are
the least intensively Islamized of all the Bangsamoro Groups and their
religious beliefs and customs are still largely animistic. Their area of
concentration is South Sulu.

2. SAMAL (SAMA)
“Sama-sama” which means “togetherness”; they are found in
Sulu archipelago specifically in Simunul and Sibutu Islands. They have an
Arab blood. They possessed highly developed boat-building techniques
and sometimes practicing simple garden agriculture. They are the most
widely dispersed of all ethnolinguistic groups in the Sulu chain.

3. JAMA MAPUN
They are found in Cagayan de Sulu or Tawi-tawi (Mapun
Island). Some are found in Southern Palawan. On closer examination may
not be a distinct group. They are another sub-group of Samal.

4. YAKAN
They are found in Basilan Island; they were formerly known
as Samales (coastal dwellers). Francisco de Combes called them
Sameacas, people who kept much to themselves. They are engaged in
making boats which they sell to the Tausugs. The word Yakan denotes
 “Dayak origin”. They are descendants of both Dayak from Northeast
Borneo and Sama from Johore.

5. TAUSOG (JOLOANO)
They are the dominant ethnic group in the Sulu archipelago,
are the sole residents of Jolo, the historical seat of the Sultanate of Sulu.
They are known as the “people of the sea/current”. However, there are
many farmers among the Tausog, locally called Tauguimba or
Guimbahanon “inland people” by the shore-dwellers. They are found all
over, ranging even to distant Palawan and the East Malaysian State of
Sabah.
6. MOLBOG
They are found in Balabac Island and Southern Palawan. The term
is derived from the word “Malubog” meaning “murky or turbid water”,
probably because they are migrants from North Borneo. In the past, they
were ruled by the Sulu sultans, forming the outer periphery of the Sulu
sultanate. Intermarriage between Tausogs and Molbog hastened the
Islamization of the Molbog.

7. PALAWANI (MUSLIM PINALAWAN or PANIMUSAN)

They are found in Southern Palawan. They are still in the stage of being
Islamized. “People in scattered places” as the Tausogs called them. They
closely resemble the Tagbanua.

MORO GROUPS FOUND IN MAINLAND MINDANAO

1. MAGINDANAWN
They are the “people of the flooded plain”. They are found in the
Cotabato region, known also as the Pulangi River Valley. Their name
derives from the fact that the river regularly overflows its banks, inundating
the adjacent plains. They are commonly found in the province of
Magindanaw.

2. IRANUN (ILANUN)
Lanaw-en is a word of Magindanaw origin meaning “people from
the lake”. The name I-Lanaw-en is a clue to the origins of the Iranun
marauders. It suggests that they were originally Mranaw; “people of the
 lake” from the lofty tableland around Lake Lanao in central Mindanao.
They are found from Buldon to Parang, along the shores of Ilana Bay.

James Francis Warren, a writer, called the Iranuns “Lords of the

Eastern Seas” because of their engagement in piracy and slave-raiding in
Southeast Asia in 1768 to 1830. They are known as the people of the
Ilana Bay. Lanun is the Malay term for “pirate”.

8. MRANAW/MERANAO
They are found in the Lanao region, “people of the lake”. The term
is from the word Ranaw means “lake”. They are walled in by mountains
and isolated in their highland fastness, Mranaw artisans developed arts of
weaving, wood carving, and metal work. The Mranaws remained little
known to Spanish invaders, European travelers, and traders because of
their upland agricultural orientation.

9. KALIBUGAN (KOLIBUGAN)
They are found in the Zamboanga peninsula. They are neither
Muslims nor Christians. They are close relatives of the Subanen, where
there is Subanen, there is also Kalibugan. Kolibugan or Kalibugan means
“half-breed”.

10. KALAGAN (KA’AGAN)

They are found in Davao Provinces, on the shores of Davao Gulf.
They are also relative of Tagakaolo.

11. SANGIL (SANGIR)

They are found in Sarangani Island group. The word Sangil is
derived from Sangihe, an archipelago in eastern Indonesia located
between Sulawesi and Mindanao, it was their original place. They were
among the buccaneers who attacked the Spanish forts. They had been
Muslims prior to their arrival in Southern Philippines. Their migration
perhaps comes about as a result of Dutch colonial pressure and
increasing Christianization of their homeland.

The definition of the term “Moro” is actually a product of evolution.

Etymologically, the word was derived from the Spanish term Mauru/s (“Moor” in
English), which referred to the Muslims of North Africa who colonized southern
Spain for more than seven hundred years. If the Filipinos complain about the 333
years of Spanish colonization in the Philippines, the Spaniards must have been
furious against the Muslims who colonized their country for almost eight
centuries.

We can therefore understand the bias and hatred the Spaniards had
against the Muslims. Being colonized for more than 700 years was not among
their more pleasant experiences. Nevertheless, if the Spaniards begrudged and
resented the Moorish colonization of southern Spain, it is important to stress that
the Muslims of Mindanao and Sulu had nothing to do with it. It would be quite
unfair if one let the Muslims of Mindanao and Sulu “pay” for the “mistakes” of
their North African religious counterparts.
Anyhow, the Spaniards appeared to have made the Muslims of Mindanao
and Sulu “pay” for some Spanish hurt incurred elsewhere in the globe, while the
Christianized natives of Luzon, Visayas and northern Mindanao were made to
enforce the collection of this “payment” by conscripting them to fight Spain’s war
of aggression against the Muslim Sultanates of Mindanao and Sulu. Unaware
that the Christianized natives were only forced into the military expeditions, the
Muslims started hating the Christianized natives, too. The latter would eventually
bear the brunt of the former’s retaliatory raids. As a consequence, the
Christianized natives started associating negative connotations with the term
“Moro.” Thus, the term became equated with pirate, kidnapper, enslaver, thief,
traitor, et cetera. Its negative connotation was so profound that it did not begin to
get turned around in meaning and accepted even among Muslims until around
the emergence of the Moro National Liberation Front, which, in effect, “cleansed”
the term of its unpleasant meanings. In the words of the MNLF:

Originally, the use of the term Moro by the colonialists was

meant to perpetuate an image of the Muslim people of Mindanao,
Basilan, Sulu and Palawan, as savage and treacherous, while they
were simply daring and tenacious in the defense of their homeland
and faith. But despite its colonial origins the Moro National
Liberation Front has cleansed the term of its unpleasant
connotation by propagating the more correct view that the tenacity
with which the natives conducted their war of resistance against
foreign intrusion was a classic exercise in heroism.
 Further, the MNLF even went to the extent of redefining the term to
include non-Muslims like the Christians and Lumads who share common
aspiration and political destiny with the Muslims of Mindanao and Sulu.

3.) The Lumads

The last but definitely not the least category of indigenous people is the
“Lumad.” As commonly understood, the Lumads refer to the tribes who were
neither Islamized nor Christianized upon the arrival of the Spaniards. A summary
of the Lumad tribes with their corresponding traditional homeland is presented
below.

LUMAD GROUPS TRADITIONAL HOMELAND

1. MANOBO Agusan del Sur, Bukidnon, Davao
Provinces, Cotabato Provinces,
Sarangani Province, Sultan Kudarat
2. SUBANEN Zamboanga Peninsula, Misamis
Occidental
3. B’LAAN Davao del Sur, South Cotabato,
Sarangani Province
4. T’BOLI South Cotabato (Lake Sebu, Siluton,
Lahit)
5. MANDAYA Davao Oriental, Davao del Norte,
Surigao del Sur
6. TEDURAY (TIRURAY) Maguindanao, North Cotabato
7. HIGAONON Bukidnon, Rongon in Iligan, Agusan
del Norte, Misamis Oriental
8. BAGOBO South and east of Mt. Apo, Eastern
part of Cotabato, Davao del Sur
9. BUKIDNON Bukidnon Province
10. MAMANWA Agusan del Norte and Surigao del
Norte
11. TALAANDIG/ TIGKALASAN Bukidnon Provinces
12. ATA MANOBO West and Northwest of Mt. Apo,
Davao del Norte, Davao City
13. TAGAKAOLO Davao del Sur, South of Mt. Apo,
Sarangani Province
 14. DIBABAWON Compostella Valley, Davao del Norte,
Agusan del Sur
15. MANGGUWANGAN Compostella Valley, Davao del Norte,
Davao Oriental
16. BANWAON Agusan del Sur
17. MANSAKA Compostella Valley, Davao del Norte
18. MATIGSALOG Bukidnon (Tigwa-Salug Valley)
19. And others

One may presume that the above-enumerated tribes, just like the Moros,
have long wanted to articulate their wish to exercise their right to self-
determination but, for a long time, they have been incapacitated by lack of
organization. In June 1986, after the EDSA-1 Revolution, representatives from
fifteen tribes converged and decided to organize the “Lumad-Mindanao,” the first
Lumad organization with the goal to achieve “self-governance within their
ancestral domain in accordance with their culture and customary laws.” The term
“lumad” was actually a borrowed word from Cebuano, which literally means,
“indigenous.” The tribes deemed it necessary to adopt the Cebuano term
because they had no common language except Cebuano.

References:
Caballero, Juvanni Yahya A. 2016, A HISTORY OF FILIPINO MUSLIMS AND

LUMADS OF MINSUPALA: A TEACHING AND LEARNING GUIDE,

General Editor: Mindanao State University System

Gowing, Peter G. 1979, Muslim Filipino – Heritage and Horizon. Quezon City:

New Day Publishers.

Kadil, B.J. 2002. History of the Moro and Indigenous Peoples in MINSUPALA,

Marawi City: MSU-Marawi.