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| The large island of Mindanao and all the smaller
islands and islets to the south, including the Sulu archipelago,
are home to a diverse culture that cannot be adequately named.
For convenience, the terms "the Philippine South" and "Southern
Philippines" are sometimes resorted to. |
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| The cultural diversity of the region is the result
of a large influx of migrants from the north over a long period
of the region's history. Found here are three main cultural
groups: the early Filipinos who belong to various indigenous
tribes living in the highlands and remote areas of Mindanao,
the Muslim Filipinos who were early converts to Islam and who
regard the region as their traditional homeland, and the Christian
Filipinos who founded settlements and communities in the course
of their migrations from other parts of the country. |
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| The indigenous inhabitants generally shy away
from the centers of population and find refuge in the quiet
foothills of coastal and interior mountains. They are known
today as "the cultural communities." Most of the indigenous
groups in Mindanao speak a language belonging to one family--the
Manobo language family. In many areas the dialects are mutually
understandable, although in a few others only the formal structures
are similar. The Manobo language family, moreover, is structurally
related to the central and northern Philippine languages. This
similarity links the Mindanao groups to the larger national
population. |
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| Islam was introduced in Sulu in the fourteenth
century. It subsequently spread throughout the Sulu archipelago
and spilled over to Mindanao, where the major tribal groups
embraced the faith. There are seven Islam groups in Southern
Philippines. Three of these are on the island of Mindanao: the
Maranao around Lake Lanao, the Maguindanao of Cotabato, and
the Sanggil of the region further south of Cotabato. Four groups
are in the Sulu archipelago: the Yakan of Basilan Island, the
Taosug in Jolo, the Samal in Tawi-Tawi and adjacent islands,
and the Jama Mapun of Cagayan de Sulu. Today, the Muslim Filipinos
in Mindanao and Sulu constitute about 17% of the total Southern
Philippine population. |
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| The Christian Filipinos make up the great majority
(over 70%) of the Southern Philippine population. They are relative
newcomers to the area; the first wave of Christian migrants
came in the seventeenth century when the Spaniards sought to
populate Zamboanga, Jolo, Dapitan and other areas by encouraging
people from Luzon and the Visayas to settle there. In the nineteenth
century Spanish policy found considerable success in encouraging
migrations to Iligan and Cotabato. The Americans continued this
pattern during their colonial administration. In 1913 the American
colonial government provided resources for the establishment
of agricultural colonies in Mindanao. By the time the Philippine
Commonwealth was established, Mindanao had become a veritable
frontier. Wave upon wave of migrants poured into the region,
chief among them the Cebuanos, Hiligaynons, Ilokanos, Tagalogs,
Warays (Leyte-Samar), Pampangos, Aklanons, and Bicolanos. These
people did much to clear the virgin areas of Mindanao and open
them to extensive agriculture and industry. In time, the economy
of the region began to produce part of its promised boom. |
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| The confluence of cultures inevitably sowed tension
and conflict. The differences were real, and they were not to
be conciliated without much effort. But despite these differences,
there has always been a commonality among the inhabitants, whatever
their origin, that in time allowed them to identify their interests
with those of the nation. This kindred feeling, this commonality
of interests, served to pull together the indigenous, the Islamized,
and the Christianized traditions into a single Southern Philippine
culture that transcends the momentary conflicts. |
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