Maitum, officially the Municipality of Maitum (; ,
Jawi: ايڠد نو مايتم; ), is a
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
in the
province
A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
Sarangani
Sarangani, officially the Province of Sarangani (; ; Maguindanao language, Maguindanaon: ''Dairat nu Sarangani'', Jawi Alphabet, Jawi: دايرت نو سرڠان; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the ...
,
Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 44,185 people, making it the least populated municipality in the province.
It is bordered on the west by the province of
Sultan Kudarat
Sultan Kudarat, officially the Province of Sultan Kudarat (; Maguindanao language, Maguindanaon: ''Dairat nu Sultan Kudarat'', Jawi Alphabet, Jawi: دايرت نو سولتان كودرت; ; Ilocano language, Ilocano: ''Probinsia ti Sultan Ku ...
, on the east by the municipality of
Kiamba, on the north by the province of
South Cotabato
South Cotabato, officially the Province of South Cotabato, is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Soccsksargen Regions of the Philippines, region in Mindanao. Its capital is Koronadal (also the regional cen ...
, and the south by the
Celebes Sea.
History
According to local folklore, "Maitum" refers to the black stones in the Saub River. It is believed that the river stones turned black when the local native princess and her warrior lover passed through it as they eloped and escaped from the wrath of the princess's father who disapproved of their marriage. The town's name is derived from the
Visayan word ''maitom'', literally meaning black.
In 1928, Maitum became part of the municipality of
Kiamba. It became a separate municipality on May 7, 1959, through
Republic Act
This article contains a partial list of Philippine laws.
Sources of Philippine laws
;Notes
: *Customs may be considered as supplementary source of law, however, customs which are contrary to law, public order or public policy shall not ...
No. 2189.
Geography
Barangays
Maitum is politically subdivided into 19
barangay
The barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as ''barrio'', is the smallest Administrative divisions of the Philippines, administrative division in the Philippines. Named after the Precolonial barangay, precolonial po ...
s. Each barangay consists of
purok
A ''purok'' () is an informal division within a barangay in the Philippines. While not officially considered a local government unit (LGU), a ''purok'' often serves as a unit for delivering services and administration within a barangay. ''Pur ...
s while some have
sitios
A ''sitio'' (Spanish language, Spanish for "site") in the Philippines is a territorial enclave that forms part of a barangay. Typically rural, a ''sitios location is usually far from the center of the barangay itself and could be its own bar ...
.
* Batian
* Kalaneg
* Kalaong
* Kiambing
* Kiayap
* Mabay
* Maguling
* Malalag
* Mindupok
* New La Union
* Old Poblacion
* Pangi
* Pinol
* Sison
* Ticulab
* Tuanadatu
* Upo
* Wali
* Zion
Climate
Demographics
The majority of the population are of
Ilocano origin. One of the indigenous peoples living in mountainous areas of Maitum is known as
T'boli. The annual Binuyugan Festival is celebrated in May.
Internationally, Maitum is known for the discovery of very old cave artifacts called
Maitum Anthropomorphic Potteries in one of the caves nearby. Ancient
burial jars were discovered by archaeologists from the
National Museum
A national museum can be a museum maintained and funded by a national government. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, while other museums are run by regional or local governments. In the United States, most nati ...
in Ayub Cave, Maitum, in 1991 and in 2008, at Sagel Cave, Maitum (now declared by
National Historical Institute
The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP; ) is a government agency of the Philippines. Its mission is "the promotion of history of the Philippines, Philippine history and culture of the Philippines, cultural heritage through ...
as a national historical sites). Amid
Mindanao
Mindanao ( ) is the List of islands of the Philippines, second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and List of islands by population, seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the ...
's armed conflicts,
artifacts found thereat prove settlements of pre-historic civilization in Maitum.
Economy

The economy of Maitum is largely based on agriculture and is often called the "rice-granary" of Sarangani due to its high level production of
rice
Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...
. Aqua-culture is the second biggest income earner, notably the culture of
milkfish (''bangus''),
prawn
Prawn is a common name for small aquatic crustaceans with an exoskeleton
An exoskeleton () . is a skeleton that is on the exterior of an animal in the form of hardened integument, which both supports the body's shape and protects the intern ...
s (particularly giant prawns) and
shrimp
A shrimp (: shrimp (American English, US) or shrimps (British English, UK)) is a crustacean with an elongated body and a primarily Aquatic locomotion, swimming mode of locomotion – typically Decapods belonging to the Caridea or Dendrobranchi ...
s for export. Other agricultural products are
coconut
The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...
s,
maize
Maize (; ''Zea mays''), also known as corn in North American English, is a tall stout grass that produces cereal grain. It was domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 9,000 years ago from wild teosinte. Native American ...
,
rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds.
Types of polyisoprene ...
,
banana
A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large treelike herbaceous flowering plants in the genus '' Musa''. In some countries, cooking bananas are called plantains, distinguishing the ...
s,
mango
A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It originated from the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South and Southeast As ...
es,
pork
Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig animal husbandry, husbandry dating back to 8000–9000 BCE.
Pork is eaten both freshly cooke ...
,
eggs,
beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). Beef can be prepared in various ways; Cut of beef, cuts are often used for steak, which can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness, while trimmings are often Ground beef, grou ...
,
fish
A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...
and
cacao. Maitum is also a food basket nationally famous for its marinated flying fish.
The economy has accelerated in the past decade driven by advances in global communication technology and the finishing of a modern highway that tremendously improved trade and transport.
Wildlife
Tarsiers have been discovered in Maitum's mountainous areas.
Caves and the rainforest of Maitum are the natural habitat of a rare
fruit bat species called
giant golden-crowned flying fox
The giant golden-crowned flying fox (''Acerodon jubatus''), also known as the golden-capped fruit bat, is a species of megabat endemism, endemic to the Philippines. Since its description in 1831, three subspecies of the giant golden-crowned flyi ...
(''Acedoron jubatus''), also known as "silent planter," since it contributes greatly to forest regeneration, because of eating many fruits and their seeds. The rare
writhed-billed hornbill
Walden's hornbill (''Rhabdotorrhinus waldeni'') locally called dulungan, also known as the Visayan wrinkled hornbill, rufous-headed hornbill or writhe-billed hornbill, is a critically endangered species of hornbill living in the rainforests on t ...
and
Mindanao hornbill are also found in the surrounding rainforest. The
Philippine eagle
The Philippine eagle (''Pithecophaga jefferyi''), also known as the monkey-eating eagle or great Philippine eagle, is a critically endangered species of eagle of the family Accipitridae which is Endemism, endemic to forests in the Geography of ...
(a
monkey
Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes. Thus monkeys, in that sense, co ...
-eating
eagle
Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...
) also thrives in the area.
Endangered
hawksbill turtles have their nesting grounds in Maitum's former main village called "Old Poblacion".
Other wild animals are
wild boar
The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a Suidae, suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The speci ...
,
deer
A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...
, monkeys, and various species of
snake
Snakes are elongated limbless reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (). Cladistically squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales much like other members of the group. Many species of snakes have s ...
.
Sea turtles or pawikan can also be found in Maitum, Sarangani specifically at the Pawikan Nesting Sanctuary founded in 2003.
Cultural Heritage
The town is the location where the
Maitum Anthropomorphic Pottery or Maitum Jars were found.
In 1991, the National Museum archaeological team discovered
anthropomorphic
Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics to ...
secondary burial jars in Ayub Cave, Barangay Pinol, Maitum, Sarangani, Mindanao, Philippines. The jars are commonly known today as Maitum jars. They are made of
earthenware
Earthenware is glazed or unglazed Vitrification#Ceramics, nonvitreous pottery that has normally been fired below . Basic earthenware, often called terracotta, absorbs liquids such as water. However, earthenware can be made impervious to liquids ...
, and are characterized by their design that suggests human figures with complete or partial facial features of the first inhabitants in Mindanao. Furthermore, they give emphasis to the Filipinos’ popular belief of life after death.
According t
Dr. Eusebio Dizon head of the archaeological team, this type of burial jars are “remarkably unique and intriguing” because they have not been found elsewhere in Southeast Asia. Thus, many
archaeologists
Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...
from Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, Burma and Indonesia gained interest on this initial find and a number of archaeological - either government or privately sponsored -
excavations have been conducted to recover these artifacts.
These jars have characteristics that belong to the Developed Metal Age Period in the Philippines
alibrated date of 190 BC to 500 AD According to the laboratory results determined through
radiocarbon dating
Radiocarbon dating (also referred to as carbon dating or carbon-14 dating) is a method for Chronological dating, determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of carbon-14, radiocarbon, a radioactive Isotop ...
, these secondary burial jars date back to the
Metal Age. Two conventional dates were 1830 +/-60 B.P.
alibrated date of AD 70 to 370and 1920 +/- 50 B.P.
alibrated date of 5 BC to 225 AD Experts used
soot
Soot ( ) is a mass of impure carbon particles resulting from the incomplete combustion of hydrocarbons. Soot is considered a hazardous substance with carcinogenic properties. Most broadly, the term includes all the particulate matter produced b ...
samples taken from the walls of a small earthenware vessel found inside one of the larger burial jars.
Most of the jars are now on display at the
National Museum of the Philippines
The National Museum of the Philippines () is an umbrella government organization that oversees a number of national museums in the Philippines, including Ethnography, ethnographic, Anthropology, anthropological, Archaeology, archaeological, an ...
in
Manila
Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...
. The town has a museum with Maitum jars, however, the jars are only replicas. According to the town government, they intend for the Maitum jars to be returned to Maitum town from Manila once a proper museum with high-tech conservation capabilities has been established. Unfortunately, funding for the museum from the national government is scarce. Museum researchers have speculated that many Maitum jars have been looted before their initial discovery, as many jars have been seen in the black market.
The Maitum Jars have been declared as ''National Treasures of the Philippines'' and ''Important Cultural Properties of the Philippines'', meaning, they must never get out from the country and should be conserved by all means. Found jars should be directly given to the government for proper conservation for future generations, and must not be sold to collectors. Violating the law that safeguards the Maitum jars will lead to imprisonment of up to 20 years and payment for damages up to 250,000 pesos. Unfortunately, despite the high regard of scholars on the Maitum jars, in an interview of townsfolk in 2012, majority of the residents of Maitum town are unaware of the cultural value of the jars. The interview noted the need for a public awareness campaign on the importance of the Maitum jars for the town's heritage, especially to the barangays within the caves they were found in.
Some locals have said that they have sold jars to foreigners, who pay them a hefty price. Locals would sometimes throw away jar shards as well. On top of that, the caves where the jars were initially found have repeatedly been ransacked since there are no physical protections in the site. There are no site guards or a conservation station located within the vicinity of the cave despite being discovered around 3 decades ago. Many jar shards exist in the caves and are left unprotected, despite the caves being declared as a heritage site. Due to these factors, despite many scholars wanting to campaign the declaration of the town as a
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
, such declaration would be hard to achieve due to the lack of public awareness in the town itself, mindfulness for cultural heritage in the town, and physical and a better legal protection for the caves and its jars.
References
External links
Maitum Profile at PhilAtlas.comMaitum Profile at the DTI Cities and Municipalities Competitive IndexMaitum Municipal Profile at the Province of Sarangani Official Website*
*
Philippine Standard Geographic CodePhilippine Census InformationLocal Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control
Municipalities of Sarangani