The Sama-Bajau include several
Austronesian ethnic group
An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
s of
Maritime Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia comprises the countries of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and East Timor. Maritime Southeast Asia is sometimes also referred to as Island Southeast Asia, Insular Southeast Asia or Oceanic Sout ...
. The name collectively refers to related people who usually call themselves the Sama or Samah (formally A'a Sama, "Sama people");
or are known by the
exonym
An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, ...
Bajau (, also spelled Badjao, Bajaw, Badjau, Badjaw, Bajo or Bayao). They usually live a seaborne lifestyle and use small wooden sailing vessels such as the ''
perahu
Proas are various types of multi-hull outrigger sailboats of the Austronesian peoples. The terms were used for native Austronesian ships in European records during the Colonial era indiscriminately, and thus can confusingly refer to the do ...
'' (''layag'' in
Meranau), ''
djenging
Djenging is a type of large double-outrigger plank boat built by the Sama-Bajau people of the Philippines. It is typically used as a houseboat, though it can be converted to a sailing ship. It was the original type of houseboat used by the Sama-Ba ...
'' (''balutu''), ''
lepa'', and ''
vinta
The vinta is a traditional outrigger boat from the Philippine island of Mindanao. The boats are made by Sama-Bajau, Tausug and Yakan peoples living in the Sulu Archipelago, Zamboanga peninsula, and southern Mindanao. Vinta are characterized ...
'' (''pilang'').
Some Sama-Bajau groups native to
Sabah
Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indone ...
are also known for their traditional
horse culture
A horse culture is a tribal group or community whose day-to-day life revolves around the herding and breeding of horses. Beginning with the domestication of the horse on the steppes of Eurasia, the horse transformed each society that adopted its ...
.
The Sama-Bajau are the dominant ethnic group of the islands of
Tawi-Tawi
Tawi-Tawi, officially the Province of Tawi-Tawi ( tl, Lalawigan ng Tawi-Tawi; Tausug: ''Wilaya' sin Tawi-Tawi''; Sinama: ''Jawi Jawi/Jauih Jauih''), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim M ...
in the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
. They are also found in other islands of the
Sulu Archipelago, coastal areas of
Mindanao
Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...
, northern and eastern
Borneo
Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and eas ...
,
Sulawesi
Sulawesi (), also known as Celebes (), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's eleventh-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Mindanao and the Sulu Ar ...
, and throughout the eastern
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
n islands.
In the Philippines, they are grouped with the religiously similar
Moro people
The Moro people or Bangsamoro people are the 13 Muslim-majority ethnolinguistic Austronesian groups of Mindanao, Sulu, and Palawan, native to the region known as the Bangsamoro (lit. ''Moro nation'' or ''Moro country''). As Muslim-majority ...
. Within the last fifty years, many of the Filipino Sama-Bajau have migrated to neighbouring
Sabah
Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indone ...
and the northern islands of the Philippines, due to the
conflict in Mindanao.
As of 2010, they were the second-largest ethnic group in Sabah.
Sama-Bajau have sometimes been called the "Sea Gypsies" or "Sea Nomads", terms that have also been used for non-related ethnic groups with similar traditional lifestyles, such as the
Moken
The Moken (also ''Mawken or'' ''Morgan''; ; th, ชาวเล, lit=sea people, translit=chao le) are an Austronesian people of the Mergui Archipelago, a group of approximately 800 islands claimed by both Myanmar and Thailand. Most of the 2,0 ...
of the Burmese-Thai
Mergui Archipelago
The Mergui Archipelago (also Myeik Archipelago or ''Myeik Kyunzu''; my, မြိတ်ကျွန်းစု) is located in far southern Myanmar (Burma) and is part of the Tanintharyi Region. It consists of more than 800 islands, varying in ...
and the
Orang Laut
The Orang Laut are several seafaring ethnic groups and tribes living around Singapore, peninsular Malaysia and the Indonesian Riau Islands. The Orang Laut are commonly identified as the Orang Seletar from the Straits of Johor, but the term ma ...
of southeastern Sumatra and the
Riau Islands
The Riau Islands ( id, Kepulauan Riau) is a province of Indonesia. It comprises a total of 1,796 islands scattered between Sumatra, Malay Peninsula, and Borneo including the Riau Archipelago. Situated on one of the world's busiest shipping la ...
of Indonesia. The modern outward spread of the Sama-Bajau from older inhabited areas seems to have been associated with the development of sea trade in
sea cucumber
Sea cucumbers are echinoderms from the class Holothuroidea (). They are marine animals with a leathery skin and an elongated body containing a single, branched gonad. Sea cucumbers are found on the sea floor worldwide. The number of holothuria ...
(
trepang).
Ethnonym
![Old Moro Sailing Boat (A Bajau lepa houseboat)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5d/Old_Moro_Sailing_Boat_%28A_Bajau_lepa_houseboat%29.jpg)
Sama-Bajau is a collective term, referring to several closely related indigenous people who consider themselves a single distinct ''bangsa'' ("ethnic group" or "nation").
It is generally accepted that these groups of people can be termed ''Sama'' or ''Bajau'', though they never call themselves ''Bajau'' in the Philippines. Instead, they
call themselves with the names of their tribes, usually the place they live or place of origin. For example, the sea-going Sama-Bajau prefer to call themselves the ''Sama Dilaut'' or ''Sama Mandilaut'' (literally 'sea Sama' or 'ocean Sama') in the Philippines; in Malaysia, they identify as Bajau Laut.
![Bajau Laut Pictures](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Bajau_Laut_Pictures.jpg)
Historically in the Philippines, the term ''Sama'' referred to the more land-oriented and settled Sama–Bajau groups, while ''Bajau'' referred only to more sea-oriented, boat-dwelling, nomadic groups.
Even these distinctions are fading as the majority of Sama-Bajau have long since abandoned boat living, most for Sama-style piling houses in the coastal shallows.
''Sama'' is believed to have originated from the Austronesian root word ''sama'' meaning "together", "same", or "kin".
The exact origin of the
exonym
An endonym (from Greek: , 'inner' + , 'name'; also known as autonym) is a common, ''native'' name for a geographical place, group of people, individual person, language or dialect, meaning that it is used inside that particular place, group, ...
''Bajau'' is unclear. Some authors have proposed that it is derived from a corruption of the
Malay
Malay may refer to:
Languages
* Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore
** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century
** Indonesi ...
word ''berjauh'' ('getting further apart' or 'the state of being away').
Other possible origins include the
Brunei Malay
The Brunei Malay language, or Kedayan (, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: ) is the most widely spoken language in Brunei and a lingua franca in some parts of East Malaysia, Sarawak and Sabah, such as Labuan, Limbang, Lawas, Sipitang and Papar.Clynes, A. (20 ...
word ''bajaul'', which means "to fish".
The term ''Bajau'' has pejorative connotations in the Philippines, indicating poverty in comparison to the term ''Sama'', especially since it is used most commonly to refer to poverty-stricken Sama-Bajau who make a living through begging.
British administrators in Sabah classified the Sama-Bajau as "Bajau" and labelled them as such in their birth certificates. Thus, the Sama-Bajau in Malaysia may sometimes self-identify as "Bajau" or even "Malay" (though the preferred term is "Sama"), for political reasons. This is due to the government recognition of the Sama-Bajau as legally
Bumiputera Bumiputera or Bumiputra, which is a Malay word, comes from the Sanskrit word ''Bhumiputra'' which may be transliterated as "son of earth" or "son of the soil" (Bhūmi; भूमि = earth; putra = son). It has different definitions in Brunei and M ...
(indigenous native) under the name "Bajau".
This ensures easy access to the
special privileges granted to ethnic Malays. This is especially true for recent Moro
Filipino migrants. The indigenous Sama-Bajau in Malaysia have also started labelling themselves as their ancestors called themselves, such as Simunul.
In the 17th-century, the Spanish priest
Francisco Combés
Francisco Combés (1620 – 1665) was a Spanish priest who established Christian monasteries in the Philippines in the 17th century.
Life
Combés was born in Zaragoza (Spain) in 1620. When he was twelve, he joined the Jesuit order as a novice at ...
calls the Sama-Bajau as the ''Lutao'' ("he who floats in the water") in his ''Historia de las Islas de Mindanao, Iolo, y sus adyacentes'' (1667), and describes them as building houses on the sea because they "hate land". They were described as being the subjects of the
Sultanates of Sulu and
Maguindanao
Maguindanao (, Maguindanao language, Maguindanaon: ''Prubinsya nu Magindanaw''; Iranun language, Iranun'': Perobinsia a Magindanao''; tl, Lalawigan ng Maguindanao) was a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines located in the ...
, and they were esteemed for their shipbuilding skills and were commonly hired as crews of warships.
History and origin
![Sea Nomads distribution map](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bb/Sea_Nomads_distribution_map.jpg)
For most of their history, the Sama-Bajau have been a
nomadic
A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the popu ...
, seafaring people, living off the sea by trading and subsistence fishing.
The boat-dwelling Sama-Bajau see themselves as non-aggressive people. They kept close to the shore by erecting
houses on stilts and travelled using ''lepa'', handmade boats which many lived in.
[ A 2021 genetic study shows that some Sama-Bajau have ]Austroasiatic
The Austroasiatic languages , , are a large language family
A language family is a group of languages related through descent from a common ''ancestral language'' or ''parental language'', called the proto-language of that family. The te ...
ancestry.
Oral traditions
Most of the various oral traditions and ''tarsila'' (royal genealogies
Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinsh ...
) among the Sama-Bajau have a common theme which claims that they were originally a land-dwelling people who were the subjects of a king who had a daughter. After she is lost by either being swept away to the sea (by a storm or a flood) or being taken captive by a neighbouring kingdom, they were then supposedly ordered to find her. After failing to do so they decided to remain nomadic for fear of facing the wrath of the king.
One such version widely told among the Sama-Bajau of Borneo claims that they descended from Johor
Johor (; ), also spelled as Johore, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. Johor has land borders with the Malaysian states of Pahang to the north and Malacca and Negeri Sembilan ...
ean royal guards who were escorting a princess named Dayang Ayesha for marriage to a ruler in Sulu. However, the Sultan of Brunei
The sultan of Brunei is the monarchical head of state of Brunei and head of government in his capacity as prime minister of Brunei. Since independence from the British in 1984, only one sultan has reigned, though the royal institution dates bac ...
(allegedly Muhammad Shah of Brunei
Muhammad Shah (born Awang Alak Betatar) established the Sultanate of Brunei and was its first sultan, possibly from 1363 to 1402. The genealogy of Muhammad Shah is unclear, and is based on several historical sources and legends.
Biography
Th ...
) also fell in love with the princess. On the way to Sulu, they were attacked by Brunei
Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely sur ...
ans in the high seas. The princess was taken captive and married to the Sultan of Brunei instead. The escorts, having lost the princess, elected to settle in Borneo and Sulu rather than return to Johor. This legend is popular among Sabah
Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indone ...
Sama-Bajau as it legitimizes their claim to "Malay-ness" and strengthens their ties to Islam, which puts them in a favorable position in the ''Bumiputera'' laws of Malaysia (similar to the usage of the name "Bajau" instead of "Sama").
Among the Indonesian Sama-Bajau, on the other hand, their oral histories place more importance on the relationship of the Sama-Bajau with the Sultanate of Gowa
The Sultanate of Gowa (sometimes written as ''Goa''; not to be confused with Goa in India) was one of the great kingdoms in the history of Indonesia and the most successful kingdom in the South Sulawesi region. People of this kingdom come fr ...
rather than Johor. The various versions of their origin myth tell about a royal princess who was washed away by a flood. She was found and eventually married a king or a prince of Gowa. Their offspring then allegedly became the ancestors of the Indonesian Sama-Bajau.
However, there are other versions that are more mythological and do not mention a princess. Among the Philippine Sama-Bajau, for example, there is a myth that claims that the Sama-Bajau were accidentally towed into what is now Zamboanga by a giant stingray. Incidentally, the native pre-Hispanic name of Zamboanga City
Zamboanga City, officially the City of Zamboanga (Chavacano and es, Ciudad de Zamboanga, Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Dāira sin Sambuangan'', fil, Lungsod ng Zamboanga, ceb, Dakbayan sa Zamboanga), is a city in the Zamboanga Peninsula region ...
is "Samboangan" (literally "mooring place"), which was derived from the Sinama word for a mooring pole, ''sambuang'' or ''samboang''.
Modern research on origins
The origin myths claiming descent from Johor or Gowa have been largely rejected by modern scholars, mostly because these kingdoms were established too recently to explain the ethnic divergence. Though whether the Sama-Bajau are indigenous to their current territories or settled from elsewhere is still contentious. Linguistically, they are distinct from neighbouring populations, especially from the Tausūg who are more closely related to the northern Philippine ethnic groups like the Visayans
Visayans (Visayan: ''mga Bisaya''; ) or Visayan people are a Philippine ethnolinguistic group or metaethnicity native to the Visayas, the southernmost islands of Luzon and a significant portion of Mindanao. When taken as a single ethnic group, ...
.
In 1965, the anthropologist David E. Sopher claimed that the Sama-Bajau, along with the Orang laut
The Orang Laut are several seafaring ethnic groups and tribes living around Singapore, peninsular Malaysia and the Indonesian Riau Islands. The Orang Laut are commonly identified as the Orang Seletar from the Straits of Johor, but the term ma ...
, descended from ancient " Veddoid" (Australoid)[The concept of an Australoid "race" is antiquated. Most modern literature refer to these peoples as the Australo-Melanesians. However, their exact relationship within their member groups and with other ethnic groups in Asia and Oceania is still debated.] hunter-gatherer
A traditional hunter-gatherer or forager is a human living an ancestrally derived lifestyle in which most or all food is obtained by foraging, that is, by gathering food from local sources, especially edible wild plants but also insects, fungi, ...
s from the Riau Archipelago
The Riau Archipelago is a ''geographic'' term (as opposed to administrative region) for the core group of islands within the Riau Islands Province in Indonesia, and located south of Singapore and east of Riau on Sumatra. Before the province of Ri ...
who intermarried with Austronesians
The Austronesian peoples, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples in Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar that speak Austrone ...
. They retained their hunter-gatherer lifestyle, though they became more maritime-oriented as Southeast Asia became more populated by later Austronesian settlers.
In 1968, the anthropologist Harry Arlo Nimmo, on the other hand, believed that the Sama-Bajau are indigenous to the Sulu Archipelago, Sulawesi, and/or Borneo, and do not share a common origin with the Orang laut. Nimmo proposed that the boat-dwelling lifestyle developed among the ancestors of the Sama-Bajau independently from the Orang laut.
A more recent study in 1985 by the anthropologist Alfred Kemp Pallasen compares the oral traditions with historical facts and linguistic evidence. He puts the date of the ethnogenesis
Ethnogenesis (; ) is "the formation and development of an ethnic group".
This can originate by group self-identification or by outside identification.
The term ''ethnogenesis'' was originally a mid-19th century neologism that was later introdu ...
of Sama-Bajau as 800 CE and also rejects a historical connection between the Sama-Bajau and the Orang laut. He hypothesises that the Sama-Bajau originated from a proto-Sama-Bajau people inhabiting the Zamboanga Peninsula
Zamboanga Peninsula ( tl, Tangway ng Zamboanga; cbk, Peninsula de Zamboanga; ceb, Lawis sa Zamboanga) is an administrative region in the Philippines, designated as Region IX. It consists of three provinces (Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga Sibu ...
who practised both fishing and slash-and-burn
Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed vegeta ...
agriculture. They were the original inhabitants of Zamboanga and the Sulu archipelago, and were well-established in the region long before the first arrival of the Tausūg people
The Tausūg or Suluk ( tsg, Tau Sūg), are an ethnic group of the Philippines and Malaysia. A small population can also be found in the northern part of North Kalimantan, Indonesia. The Tausūg are part of the wider political identity of Musl ...
at around the 13th century from their homelands along the northern coast of eastern Mindanao. Along with the Tausūg, they were heavily influenced by the Malay
Malay may refer to:
Languages
* Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore
** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century
** Indonesi ...
kingdoms both culturally and linguistically, becoming Indianised by the 15th century and Islamised
Islamization, Islamicization, or Islamification ( ar, أسلمة, translit=aslamāh), refers to the process through which a society shifts towards the religion of Islam and becomes largely Muslim. Societal Islamization has historically occur ...
by the 16th century. They also engaged in extensive trade with China for "luxury" sea products like trepang, pearl
A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...
s, and shark fin.
From Zamboanga, some members of these people adopted an exclusively seaborne culture and spread outwards in the 10th century towards Basilan, Sulu, Borneo, and Sulawesi. They arrived in Borneo in the 11th century. This hypothesis is currently the most widely accepted among specialists studying the Austronesian peoples
The Austronesian peoples, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples in Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar that speak Austro ...
. This would also explain why even boat-dwelling Sama-Bajau still practice agricultural rituals, despite being exclusively fishermen. Linguistic evidence further points to Borneo as the ultimate origin of the proto-Sama-Bajau people.
A genetic study of three groups—the Derawan of Northeast Borneo, the Kotabaru of Southeast Borneo, and the Kendari of Southeast Sulawesi—suggested that their origin was in southern Sulawesi. Their ethnogenesis is estimated to have dated back to around the 4th century CE by an admixture event between the Bugis people
The Bugis people (pronounced ), also known as Buginese, are an ethnicity—the most numerous of the three major linguistic and ethnic groups of South Sulawesi (the others being Makassar and Toraja), in the south-western province of Sulawesi, ...
and a Papuan group. The authors suggest that the Sama moved to eastern Borneo at around the 11th century CE, and then towards northern Borneo and the southern Philippines at around the 13th to 14th centuries CE. They hypothesize that they were driven to migrate during the increase of influence and trading activities of the Srivijaya Empire. Genetically, the Sama-Bajau are highly diverse, indicating heavy admixture with the locals or even language and cultural adoption by coastal groups in the areas they settled. However, the study is restricted to the Indonesian Bajo subgroup, and the authors recommend additional studies from Sama-Bajau groups in neighboring regions.
A 2021 genetic study discovered a unique genetic signal among the Sama-Bajau of the Philippines and Indonesia. This genetic signal (called the "Sama ancestry" by the authors) identifies them as descendants of an ancient migration of Austroasiatic
The Austroasiatic languages , , are a large language family
A language family is a group of languages related through descent from a common ''ancestral language'' or ''parental language'', called the proto-language of that family. The te ...
-affiliated hunter-gatherer
A traditional hunter-gatherer or forager is a human living an ancestrally derived lifestyle in which most or all food is obtained by foraging, that is, by gathering food from local sources, especially edible wild plants but also insects, fungi, ...
groups from mainland Southeast Asia
Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...
via the now sunken land bridge
In biogeography, a land bridge is an isthmus or wider land connection between otherwise separate areas, over which animals and plants are able to cross and Colonisation (biology), colonize new lands. A land bridge can be created by marine regre ...
s of Sundaland
Sundaland (also called Sundaica or the Sundaic region) is a biogeographical region of South-eastern Asia corresponding to a larger landmass that was exposed throughout the last 2.6 million years during periods when sea levels were lower. It ...
around 15,000 to 12,000 years ago. These populations admixed with both the preexisting Negrito
The term Negrito () refers to several diverse ethnic groups who inhabit isolated parts of Southeast Asia and the Andaman Islands. Populations often described as Negrito include: the Andamanese peoples (including the Great Andamanese, the Onge, ...
populations, and later on, the incoming migrations of the Austronesian peoples
The Austronesian peoples, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples in Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar that speak Austro ...
(also adopting an Austronesian language in the process). They are genetically clustered with the Lua
Lua or LUA may refer to:
Science and technology
* Lua (programming language)
* Latvia University of Agriculture
* Last universal ancestor, in evolution
Ethnicity and language
* Lua people, of Laos
* Lawa people, of Thailand sometimes referred t ...
and Mlabri people
The Mlabri ( Thai: มลาบรี) or Mrabri are an ethnic group of Thailand and Laos, and have been called "the most interesting and least understood people in Southeast Asia". Only about 400 or fewer Mlabris remain in the world today, with s ...
s of mainland Southeast Asia, as well as the Manobo people
The Lumad are a group of Austronesian indigenous people in the southern Philippines. It is a Cebuano term meaning "native" or "indigenous". The term is short for Katawhang Lumad (Literally: "indigenous people"), the autonym officially adopte ...
of mainland Mindanao
Mindanao ( ) ( Jawi: مينداناو) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of ...
. The study also identifies minimal South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...
n gene flow among Sama populations starting at around 1000 years ago. Sama ancestry was highest among the Sama Dilaut, followed by more land-based Sama. But it was also detected among other ethnic groups that do not self-identify as Sama in Palawan
Palawan (), officially the Province of Palawan ( cyo, Probinsya i'ang Palawan; tl, Lalawigan ng Palawan), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in ...
, Zamboanga, Basilan
Basilan, officially the Province of Basilan ( cbk, Provincia de Basilan; yka, Wilayah Basilanin; tsg, Wilaya' sin Basilan; fil, Lalawigan ng Basilan), is an island province of the Philippines located primarily in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Reg ...
, Sulu
Sulu (), officially the Province of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Wilāya sin Lupa' Sūg''; tl, Lalawigan ng Sulu), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines in the Sulu Archipelago and part of the Bangsamoro, Bangsamor ...
, and Tawi-Tawi
Tawi-Tawi, officially the Province of Tawi-Tawi ( tl, Lalawigan ng Tawi-Tawi; Tausug: ''Wilaya' sin Tawi-Tawi''; Sinama: ''Jawi Jawi/Jauih Jauih''), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim M ...
.
Historical records
The epic poem
An epic poem, or simply an epic, is a lengthy narrative poem typically about the extraordinary deeds of extraordinary characters who, in dealings with gods or other superhuman forces, gave shape to the mortal universe for their descendants.
...
''Darangen
''Darangen'' is a Maranao epic poem from the Lake Lanao region of Mindanao, Philippines. It consists of 17 cycles with 72,000 lines in iambic tetrameter or catalectic trochaic tetrameter. Each cycle pertains to a different self-contained story. T ...
'' of the Maranao people
The Maranao people (Maranao: mәranaw Filipino: ''Maranaw''), also spelled Meranao, Maranaw, and Mëranaw, is the term used by the Philippine government to refer to the southern indigenous people who are the "people of the lake", a predomi ...
record that among the ancestors of the hero Bantugan is a Maranao prince who married a Sama-Bajau princess. Estimated to have happened in 840 AD, it is the oldest account of the Sama-Bajau. It further corroborates the fact that they predate the arrival of the Tausūg settlers and are indigenous to the Sulu archipelago and parts of Mindanao.
Sama-Bajau were first recorded by European explorers in 1521 by Antonio Pigafetta
Antonio Pigafetta (; – c. 1531) was an Venetian scholar and explorer. He joined the expedition to the Spice Islands led by explorer Ferdinand Magellan under the flag of the emperor Charles V and after Magellan's death in the Philippine Islands, ...
of the Magellan-Elcano expedition
The Magellan expedition, also known as the Magellan–Elcano expedition, was the first voyage around the world in recorded history. It was a 16th century Spanish expedition initially led by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan to the Maluku I ...
in what is now the Zamboanga Peninsula
Zamboanga Peninsula ( tl, Tangway ng Zamboanga; cbk, Peninsula de Zamboanga; ceb, Lawis sa Zamboanga) is an administrative region in the Philippines, designated as Region IX. It consists of three provinces (Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga Sibu ...
. Pigafetta writes that the "people of that island make their dwellings in boats and do not live otherwise". They have also been present in the written records of other Europeans henceforth; including in Sulawesi
Sulawesi (), also known as Celebes (), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's eleventh-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Mindanao and the Sulu Ar ...
by the Dutch colonies in 1675, in Sulawesi and eastern Borneo by Thomas Forrest in the 1770s, and in the west coast of Borneo by Spenser St. John
Sir Spenser Buckingham St. John (22 December 1825 – 3 January 1910) was British Consul in Brunei in the mid 19th century.
Early life
On 20 September 1827, Spenser was baptised at St Pancras Old Church.
Diplomatic career
In 1847 St John's fa ...
in the 1850s and 1860s.
Sama-Bajau were often widely mentioned in connection to sea raids (''mangahat''), piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
, and the slave trade
Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...
in Southeast Asia during the European colonial period, indicating that at least some Sama-Bajau groups from northern Sulu (e.g. the Banguingui
Banguingui, also known as Sama Banguingui or Samal Banguingui (alternative spellings include Bangingi’, Bangingi, Banguingui, Balanguingui, and Balangingi) is a distinct ethnolinguistic group native to Balanguingui Island but also dispersed ...
) were involved, along with non-Sama-Bajau groups like the Iranun
The Iranun are a Moro ethnic group native to Mindanao, Philippines (in Maguindanao del Norte: Barira, Buldon, Parang, Matanog, Sultan Mastura, and Sultan Kudarat; North Cotabato: Alamada, Banisilan, Carmen, Libungan, and Pigcawayan; L ...
. The scope of their pirate activities was extensive, commonly sailing from Sulu to as far as the Moluccas
The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located eas ...
and back again. Aside from early European colonial records, they may have also been the pirates described by Chinese and Arabian sources in the Straits of Singapore
The Singapore Strait is a , strait between the Strait of Malacca in the west and the South China Sea in the east. Singapore is on the north of the channel, and the Indonesian Riau Islands are on the south. The two countries share a maritime ...
in the 12th and 13th centuries. Sama-Bajau usually served as low-ranking crewmembers of war boats, directly under the command of Iranun squadron leaders, who in turn answered to the Tausūg ''datu
''Datu'' is a title which denotes the rulers (variously described in historical accounts as chiefs, sovereign princes, and monarchs) of numerous indigenous peoples throughout the Philippine archipelago. The title is still used today, especial ...
'' of the Sultanate of Sulu.
The Bajoe harbour in Sulawesi was the site of a small settlement of Sama-Bajau under the Bugis
The Bugis people (pronounced ), also known as Buginese, are an ethnicity—the most numerous of the three major linguistic and ethnic groups of South Sulawesi (the others being Makassar and Toraja), in the south-western province of Sulawe ...
Sultanate of Bone. They were significantly involved in the First
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
and Second Bone War
The Second Bone WarThomas Gibson, ''And the Sun Pursued the Moon: Symbolic Knowledge and Traditional Authority Among the Makassar'' (University of Hawaii Press, 2005), pp. 200ff. was fought from 20 February 1859 until 20 January 1860 between the f ...
s (1824–1825) when the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
The Royal Netherlands East Indies Army ( nl, Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger; KNIL, ) was the military force maintained by the Kingdom of the Netherlands in its colony of the Dutch East Indies, in areas that are now part of Indonesia. Th ...
sent a punitive expedition in retaliation for Bugis and Makassar
Makassar (, mak, ᨆᨀᨔᨑ, Mangkasara’, ) is the capital of the Indonesian province of South Sulawesi. It is the largest city in the region of Eastern Indonesia and the country's fifth-largest urban center after Jakarta, Surabaya, Med ...
attacks on local Dutch garrisons. After the fall of Bone, most Sama-Bajau resettled in other areas of Sulawesi.
During the British colonial rule of Sabah, the Sama-Bajau were involved in two uprisings against the North Borneo Chartered Company
The North Borneo Chartered Company (NBCC), also known as the British North Borneo Company (BNBC) was a British chartered company formed on 1 November 1881 to administer and exploit the resources of North Borneo (present-day Sabah in Malaysia). ...
: the Mat Salleh rebellion
The Mat Salleh Rebellion was a series of major armed disturbances against the British North Borneo Chartered Company administration in North Borneo, now the Malaysian state of Sabah. It was instigated by Datu Muhammad Salleh (also known as Mat ...
from 1894 to 1905, and the Pandasan Affair of 1915.
Modern Sama-Bajau
Modern Sama-Bajau are generally regarded as peaceful, hospitable, and cheerful people, despite their humble circumstances. However, a significant number are also illiterate, uneducated, and impoverished, due to their nomadic lifestyle.
The number of modern Sama-Bajau who are born and live primarily at sea is diminishing. Cultural assimilation and modernisation are regarded as the main causes. Particularly blamed is the dissolution of the Sultanate of Sulu
The Sultanate of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Kasultanan sin Sūg'', كاسولتانن سين سوڬ; malay language, Malay: ''Kesultanan Sulu''; fil, Sultanato ng Sulu; Chavacano: ''Sultanato de Sulu/Joló''; ar, سلطنة سولك) ...
, the traditional patron of the Sama-Bajau for bartering fish for farm goods. The money-based fish markets which replaced the seasonal trade around mooring points necessitates a more land-based lifestyle for greater market penetration. In Malaysia, some hotly debated government programs have also resettled Bajau to the mainland.[
The Sama-Bajau in the Sulu Archipelago were historically discriminated against by the dominant ]Tausūg people
The Tausūg or Suluk ( tsg, Tau Sūg), are an ethnic group of the Philippines and Malaysia. A small population can also be found in the northern part of North Kalimantan, Indonesia. The Tausūg are part of the wider political identity of Musl ...
, who viewed boat-dwelling Sama-Bajau as 'inferior' and as outsiders (the traditional Tausūg term for them is the highly offensive ''Luwaan'', meaning "spat out" or "outcast"). They were also marginalised by other Moro peoples
The Moro people or Bangsamoro people are the 13 Muslim-majority ethnolinguistic Austronesian people, Austronesian groups of Mindanao, Sulu Archipelago, Sulu, and Palawan (island), Palawan, native to the region known as the Bangsamoro (lit. ''M ...
because they still practised animist
Animism (from Latin: ' meaning 'breath, Soul, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct Spirituality, spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things—Animal, animals, Plant, plants, Ro ...
folk religions either exclusively or alongside Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
, and thus were viewed as "uncivilised pagans". Boat-dwelling and shoreline Sama-Bajau had a very low status in the caste-based Tausūg Sultanate of Sulu. This survived into the modern Philippines where the Sama-Bajau are still subjected to strong cultural prejudice from the Tausūg. The Sama-Bajau have also been frequent victims of theft, extortion, kidnapping, and violence from the predominantly Tausūg Abu Sayyaf
Abu Sayyaf (; ar, جماعة أبو سياف; ', ASG), officially known by the Islamic State as the Islamic State – East Asia Province, is a Jihadist militant and pirate group that follows the Wahhabi doctrine of Sunni Islam. It is based i ...
insurgents as well as pirates.
This discrimination and the continuing violence in Muslim Mindanao have driven many Sama-Bajau to emigrate. They usually resettle in Malaysia and Indonesia, where they have more employment opportunities. But even in Malaysia, their presence is still controversial as most of them are illegal immigrants
Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwa ...
. Most illegal Sama-Bajau immigrants enter Malaysia through offshore islands. From there, they enter mainland Sabah to find work as manual labourers. Others migrate to the northern islands of the Philippines, particularly to the Visayas
The Visayas ( ), or the Visayan Islands (Bisayan languages, Visayan: ''Kabisay-an'', ; tl, Kabisayaan ), are one of the three Island groups of the Philippines, principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Luzon and Mindanao ...
, Palawan
Palawan (), officially the Province of Palawan ( cyo, Probinsya i'ang Palawan; tl, Lalawigan ng Palawan), is an archipelagic province of the Philippines that is located in the region of Mimaropa. It is the largest province in the country in ...
, the northern coast of Mindanao, and even as far as southern Luzon
Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...
. Though these are relatively safer regions, they are also more economically disadvantaged and socially excluded, leading to Filipinos sometimes stereotyping the boat-dwelling Sama-Bajau as beggars and squatter
Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there ...
s.
The ancestral roaming and fishing grounds of the Sama-Bajau straddled the borders of the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia. And they have sometimes voyaged as far as the Timor
Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is East Timor–Indonesia border, divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western p ...
and Arafura Sea
The Arafura Sea (or Arafuru Sea) lies west of the Pacific Ocean, overlying the continental shelf between Australia and Western New Guinea (also called Papua), which is the Indonesian part of the Island of New Guinea.
Geography
The Arafura Sea is ...
s. In modern times, they have lost access to most of these sites. There have been efforts to grant Sama-Bajau some measures of rights to fish in traditional areas, but most Sama-Bajau still suffer from legal persecution. For example, under a 1974 Memorandum of Understanding, "Indonesian traditional fishermen" are allowed to fish within the Exclusive Economic Zone of Australia, which includes traditional fishing grounds of Sama-Bajau fishermen. However, illegal fishing
Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU) is an issue around the world. Fishing industry observers believe IUU occurs in most fisheries, and accounts for up to 30% of total catches in some important fisheries.
Illegal fishing takes pl ...
encroachment of Corporate Sea Trawlers Trawler may refer to:
Boats
* Fishing trawler, used for commercial fishing
* Naval trawler, a converted trawler, or a boat built in that style, used for naval purposes
** Trawlers of the Royal Navy
* Recreational trawler, a pleasure boat built t ...
in these areas has led to concern about overfishing, and the destruction of Sama-Bajau vessels.[ In 2014, Indonesian authorities destroyed six Filipino Sama-Bajau boats caught fishing in Indonesian waters. This is particularly serious for the Sama-Bajau, whose boats are also oftentimes their homes.]
Sama-Bajau fishermen are often associated with illegal and destructive practices, like blast fishing, cyanide fishing, coral mining, and cutting down mangrove trees. It is believed that the Sama-Bajau resort to these activities mainly due to Sedentism, sedentarisation brought about by the restrictions imposed on their nomadic culture by modern nation state, nation-states. With their now limited territories, they have little alternative means of competing with better-equipped land-based and commercial fishermen and earn enough to feed their families. The Indonesian government and certain non-governmental organisations have launched several programs for providing alternative sustainable livelihood projects for Sama-Bajau to discourage these practices (such as the use of fish aggregating devices instead of explosives). Medical health centres (''puskesmas'') and schools have also been built even for stilt-house Sama-Bajau communities. Similar programs have also been implemented in the Philippines.
With the loss of their traditional fishing grounds, some refugee groups of Sama-Bajau in the Philippines are forced to resort to begging (''agpangamu'' in Sinama), particularly diving for coins thrown by inter-island ferry passengers (''angedjo''). Other traditional sources of income include selling grated cassava (''magliis''), mat-weaving (''ag-tepoh''), and jewelry-making (especially from pearl
A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...
s). Recently, there have been more efforts by local governments in the Philippines to rehabilitate Sama-Bajau refugees and teach them livelihood skills. In 2016, the Philippine Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources started a project for distributing fishing boats, gear, and other livelihood materials among Sama-Bajau communities in Luzon
Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...
. This was largely the result of raised awareness and an outpouring of support after a photo of a Sama-Bajau beggar, Rita Gaviola (dubbed the "Badjao Girl"), went viral in the Philippines.
Subgroups
The Sama-Bajau are fragmented into highly diverse subgroups. They have never been politically united and are usually subject to the land-based political groups of the areas they settle, such as the Sultanate of Brunei and the former Sultanate of Sulu
The Sultanate of Sulu (Tausug language, Tausūg: ''Kasultanan sin Sūg'', كاسولتانن سين سوڬ; malay language, Malay: ''Kesultanan Sulu''; fil, Sultanato ng Sulu; Chavacano: ''Sultanato de Sulu/Joló''; ar, سلطنة سولك) ...
.
Most subgroups of Sama-Bajau name themselves after the place they originated from (usually an island). Each subgroup speaks a distinct language or dialect that are usually mutually intelligible with their immediate neighbouring subgroup in a continuous linguistic chain. In the Philippines, the Sama-Bajau can be divided into three general groups based on where they settle:
* Sama Bihing or Sama Lipid – The "shoreline Sama" or "littoral Sama". These are the Sama-Bajau which traditionally lived in stilt houses in shallows and coastal areas. An example is the Sama Simunul. They are originally from the larger islands of Tawi-Tawi
Tawi-Tawi, officially the Province of Tawi-Tawi ( tl, Lalawigan ng Tawi-Tawi; Tausug: ''Wilaya' sin Tawi-Tawi''; Sinama: ''Jawi Jawi/Jauih Jauih''), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim M ...
. They have a more flexible lifestyle than the Sama-Gimba (Dilaut Origin) and will farm when there is available land. They usually act as middlemen in trade between the Sama Dilaut and other land-based peoples.
* Sama Dea, Sama Deya, or Sama Darat – The "land Sama". These are the Sama-Bajau which traditionally lived in island interiors. Some examples are the Sama Sibutu and the Sama Sanga-Sanga. They are usually farmers who cultivate rice, sweet potato, cassava, and coconuts for copra through traditional slash-and-burn
Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed vegeta ...
agriculture (in contrast to the Plough, plow agriculture technology brought by the Tausūg). They are originally from the larger islands of Tawi-Tawi and Pangutaran. In the Philippines, the Sama Dea will often completely differentiate themselves from the Sama Dilaut.
* Sama Dilaut, Sama Mandilaut, Sama Pala'u, or Bajau Laut – The "sea Sama" or "ocean Sama". In the Philippines, the preferred ethnonym is Sama Dilaut; while in Malaysia, they usually identify as Bajau Laut. This subgroup originally lived exclusively on elaborately crafted houseboats called ''lepa'', but almost all have taken to living on land in the Philippines. Their home islands include Sitangkai, Tawi-Tawi, Sitangkai and Bongao, Tawi-Tawi, Bongao. They are the Sama-Bajau subgroup most commonly called "Bajau", though Filipino Sama Dilaut considers it offensive. They sometimes call themselves the "Sama To'ongan" (literally "true Sama" or "real Sama"), to distinguish themselves from the land-dwelling Sama-Bajau subgroups. A recent study shows that the Sama-Dilaut people of the Philippines have Indian or South Asian ancestry.
Other minor Sama-Bajau groups named after islands of origin include the Sama Bannaran, Sama Davao, Sama Zamboanga Sikubung, Sama Tuaran, Sama Semporna, Sama Sulawesi, Sama Simunul, Sama Tabawan, Sama Tandubas (or Sama Tando' Bas), and Sama Ungus Matata. Mixed-heritage Sama-Bajau and Tausūg communities are sometimes known as "Bajau Suluk" in Malaysia. People of multiple ethnic parentage may further identify with a three-part self-description, such as "Bajau Suluk Dusun people, Dusun". The following are the major subgroups usually recognised as distinct:
* Bajo (Indonesia) – Also known as "Same'" (or simply "Sama") by the Bugis people, Bugis; and "Turijene" or "Taurije'n" (literally "people of the water"), "Bayo", or "Bayao" by the Makassar
Makassar (, mak, ᨆᨀᨔᨑ, Mangkasara’, ) is the capital of the Indonesian province of South Sulawesi. It is the largest city in the region of Eastern Indonesia and the country's fifth-largest urban center after Jakarta, Surabaya, Med ...
. They are Sama-Bajau groups who settled in Sulawesi
Sulawesi (), also known as Celebes (), is an island in Indonesia. One of the four Greater Sunda Islands, and the world's eleventh-largest island, it is situated east of Borneo, west of the Maluku Islands, and south of Mindanao and the Sulu Ar ...
and Kalimantan, Indonesia through the Makassar Strait from as early as the 16th century. They have spread further into nearby islands, including the Lesser Sunda Islands, Maluku Islands, and Raja Ampat Islands.
* Banguingui (Philippines, Malaysia) – Also known as "Sama Balangingi", "Sama Balanguingui", or "Sama Bangingi". Native to the Philippines. Some have recently migrated to Sabah. They are sometimes considered distinct from other Sama-Bajau. They have a more martial-oriented society and were once part of regular sea raids and piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
against coastal communities and passing ships.
* East Coast Bajau (Philippines, Malaysia) – are Sama Dilaut who settled in the eastern coast of Sabah, particularly around Semporna District, Semporna. They still identify themselves as Bajau Laut or Sama Laut. Though they are called East Coast Bajau to distinguish them from the Sama Kota Belud of western Sabah. They are also known by the exonym "Pala'u" ("boat-dwelling" in Sinama), but it is sometimes considered derogatory. Some have retained their original boat-dwelling lifestyle, but many others have built homes on land. They are known for the colourful annual Regatta Lepa festival, which occurs from 24 to 26 April.
* Samal (Philippines, Malaysia) – "Samal" (also spelled "Siamal" or "Siyamal") is a Tausūg and Cebuano language, Cebuano term and is sometimes considered offensive. Their preferred endonym is simply "Sama", and they are more accurately a general subgroup of Sama Dea ("land Sama") native to the Philippines. A large number are now residing around the coasts of northern Sabah
Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indone ...
, though many have also migrated north to the Visayas
The Visayas ( ), or the Visayan Islands (Bisayan languages, Visayan: ''Kabisay-an'', ; tl, Kabisayaan ), are one of the three Island groups of the Philippines, principal geographical divisions of the Philippines, along with Luzon and Mindanao ...
and southern Luzon
Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...
. They are predominantly land-dwelling. They are the largest single group of Sama-Bajau. In Davao del Norte, the Island Garden City of Samal was possibly named after them.
* Ubian (Philippines, Malaysia) – Originated from the island of South Ubian in Tawi-Tawi, Philippines, and make up the largest Sama-Bajau subgroup in Sabah. They reside in sizeable minorities living around the towns of Kudat and Semporna in Sabah
Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indone ...
, Malaysia.
* West Coast Bajau (Malaysia) – Also known as "Sama Kota Belud". Native to the western coast of Sabah
Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indone ...
, particularly around Kota Belud. They prefer to call themselves by the general ethnonym "Sama", not "Bajau"; and their neighbours, the Dusuns also call them "Sama". British administrators originally defined them as "Bajau". They are referred to as West Coast Bajau in Malaysia to distinguish them from the Sama Dilaut of eastern Sabah and the Sulu Archipelago. They are known for having a traditional horse culture
A horse culture is a tribal group or community whose day-to-day life revolves around the herding and breeding of horses. Beginning with the domestication of the horse on the steppes of Eurasia, the horse transformed each society that adopted its ...
.
The following are subgroups that do not self-identify as Sama, although they are culturally related to the Sama people and speak a Sama-Bajaw language:
* Abaknon (Philippines) - a subgroup from Capul, Northern Samar in the Visayas Islands that speak the Abaknon language. They were colonized and converted to Christianity early by the Spanish and today are culturally Visayans, Visayan.
* Jama Mapun (Philippines) – sometimes known by the exonyms 'Sama Mapun", "Sama Kagayan", or "Bajau Kagayan". They are from the island of Mapun, Tawi-Tawi (formerly known as Cagayan de Sulu). Their culture is heavily influenced by the Sulu Sultanate. They are relatively isolated and do not usually consider themselves as Sama.
* Yakan (Philippines) – Found in the mountainous interior of the island of Basilan
Basilan, officially the Province of Basilan ( cbk, Provincia de Basilan; yka, Wilayah Basilanin; tsg, Wilaya' sin Basilan; fil, Lalawigan ng Basilan), is an island province of the Philippines located primarily in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Reg ...
. Though they may have been the ancestors of the Sama-Bajau, they have become linguistically and culturally distinct and are usually regarded as a separate ethnic group. They are exclusively land-based and are usually farmers. Yakan are also a horse-riding culture, similar to the West Coast Bajau. They are renowned for their weaving traditions. They resisted Tausug rule during the early formation of the Sulu Sultanate, eventually gaining recognition as a separate political entity. They are only partially Islamized, with a significant minority retaining indigenous anito beliefs or practicing Folk Islam.
Languages
The Sama–Bajau peoples speak some ten languages of the Sama–Bajau subgroup of the Western Malayo-Polynesian languages, Malayo-Polynesian language family. Sama language, Sinama is the most common name for these languages, but they are also called Bajau, especially in Malaysia. Most Sama-Bajau can speak multiple languages.
The Sama-Bajau languages were once classified under the Central Philippine languages of the Malayo-Polynesian languages, Malayo-Polynesian geographic group of the Austronesian language family. But due to marked differences with neighbouring languages, they were moved to a separate branch altogether from all other Philippine languages. For example, Sinama pronunciation is quite distinct from other nearby Central Philippine languages like Tausūg and Tagalog language, Tagalog. Instead of the Stress (linguistics), primary stress being usually on the final syllable; the primary stress occurs on the second-to-the-last syllable of the word in Sinama. This placement of the primary stress is similar to Manobo languages, Manobo and other languages of the predominantly animistic ethnic groups of Mindanao, the Lumad peoples.
In 2006, the linguist Robert Blust proposed that the Sama-Bajaw languages derived from the Barito languages, Barito lexical region, though not from any established group. It is thus a sister group to other Barito languages like Dayak people, Dayak and Malagasy language, Malagasy. It is classified under the Bornean languages, Bornean geographic group.
Sama-Bajau languages are usually written in the Jawi alphabet.
Culture
Religion
Religion can vary among the Sama-Bajau subgroups; from strict adherence to Sunni Islam, forms of folk Islam (itself influenced by Sufism, Sufi traditions of early Muslim missionaries), to animistic beliefs in spirits and ancestor worship. There is a small minority of Catholics and Protestants, particularly from Davao del Sur in the Philippines.
Among the modern coastal Sama-Bajau of Malaysia, claims to religious piety and learning are an important source of individual prestige. Some of the Sama-Bajau lack mosques and must rely on the shore-based communities such as those of the more Islamised or Malay peoples. Some of the more nomadic Sama-Bajau, like the Ubian Bajau, are much less adherent to orthodox Islam. They practice a syncretism, syncretic form of Folk religion, folk Islam, revering local sea spirits, known in Islamic terminology as Jinn.
The ancient Sama-Bajau were animistic, and this is retained wholly or partially in some Sama-Bajau groups. The supreme deities in Sama-Bajau mythology are ''Umboh Tuhan'' (also known as ''Umboh Dilaut'', the "Lord of the Sea") and his consort, ''Dayang Dayang Mangilai'' ("Lady of the Forest"). ''Umboh Tuhan'' is regarded as the creator deity who made humans equal to animals and plants. Like other animistic religions, they fundamentally divide the world into the physical and spiritual realms which coexist. In modern Muslim Sama-Bajau, ''Umboh Tuhan'' (or simply ''Tuhan'' or ''Tuan'') is usually Syncretism, equated with Allah.['':wikt:tuhan, Tuhan'' (literally "god" or "master") is a common word referring to a supreme deity in various Austronesian languages in eastern Malaysia, southwestern Philippines, and eastern Indonesia. It originally referred to a different concept of a deity separate from the Abrahamic god, but Ethnic Malays, Malays and other Muslim Austronesian ethnic groups usually equate Tuhan with Allah. Compare with ''Bathala'' of the Tagalog people, Tagalogs and ''Kan-Laon'' of the ]Visayans
Visayans (Visayan: ''mga Bisaya''; ) or Visayan people are a Philippine ethnolinguistic group or metaethnicity native to the Visayas, the southernmost islands of Luzon and a significant portion of Mindanao. When taken as a single ethnic group, ...
.
Other objects of reverence are spirits known as ''umboh'' ("ancestor", also variously spelled ''omboh'', ''m'boh'', ''mbo, etc.). Traditionally, the ''umboh'' referred more specifically to Veneration of the dead, ancestral spirits, different from the ''saitan'' (Nature worship, nature spirits) and the ''jinn'' (familiar spirits); some literature refers to all of them as ''umboh''. These include ''Umboh Baliyu'' (the spirits of wind and storms), and ''Umboh Payi'' or ''Umboh Gandum'' (the spirits of the first rice harvest). They include totemic spirits of animals and plants, including ''Umboh Summut'' (totem of ants) and ''Umboh Kamun'' (totem of mantis shrimp).
The construction and launch of sailing vessels are ritualised, and the vessels are believed to have a spirit known as ''Sumangâ'' ("guardian", literally "one who deflects attacks").[ The ''umboh'' are believed to influence fishing activities, rewarding the Sama-Bajau by granting good luck favours known as ''padalleang'' and occasionally punishing by causing serious incidents called ''busong''.]
Traditional Sama-Bajau communities may have dukun, shamans (''dukun'') traditionally known as the ''kalamat''. The ''kalamat'' are known in Muslim Sama-Bajau as the ''wali jinn'' (literally "custodian of jinn") and may adhere to taboos concerning the treatment of the sea and other cultural aspects. The ''kalamat'' presides over Sama-Bajau community events along with mediums known as ''igal jinn''. The ''kalamat'' and the ''igal jinn'' are said to be "spirit-bearers" and are believed to be hosts of familiar spirits. It is not, however, regarded as a spirit possession, since the ''igal jinn'' never lose control of their bodies. Instead, the ''igal jinn'' are believed to have acquired their familiar spirit (''jinn'') after surviving a serious or near-fatal illness. For the rest of their lives, the ''igal jinn'' is believed to share their bodies with the particular ''jinn'' who saved them.
One important religious event among the Sama-Bajau is the annual feast known as ''pag-umboh'' or ''magpaay-bahaw'', an offering of thanks to ''Umboh Tuhan''. In this ceremony, newly harvested rice (''paay-bahaw'') are dehusked (''magtaparahu'') while Islamic prayers (''duaa'') are recited. They are dried (''magpatanak'') and are then laid out in small conical piles symbolic of mountains (''bud'') on the living room floor (a process known as the "sleeping of rice"). After two or three nights, two-thirds are set aside for making sweet rice meals (''panyalam''), while one-third is set aside for making sweet rice cakes (''durul''). Additional prayers (''zikir''), which includes calling the names of ancestors out loud, are offered to the ''Umboh'' after the rice meals have been prepared. ''Pag-umboh'' is a solemn and formal affair.
Another annual religious ceremony among the boat-dwelling Sama Dilaut is the ''pagkanduli'' (literally "festive gathering"). It involves ritual dancing to ''Umboh Tuhan'', ''Dayang Dayang Mangilai'', and ancestral ghosts called ''bansa''. The ritual is first celebrated under a sacred Balete tree, ''dangkan'' tree (strangler figs, known elsewhere in the Philippines as Balete tree, ''balete'') symbolising the male spirit ''Umboh Tuhan'' and afterwards in the centre of a grove of Pandanus, ''kama'toolang'' trees (pandan trees) symbolising the female spirit ''Dayang Dayang Mangilai''.
The trance dancing is called ''mag-igal'' and involves female and male and ''igal jinn'', called the ''jinn denda'' and ''jinn lella'' respectively. The ''jinn denda'' perform the first dance known as ''igal limbayan'' under the ''dangkan'' tree, with the eldest leading. They are performed with intricate movements of the hands, usually with metal fingernail extensions called ''sulingkengkeng''. If the dance and music are pleasing, the ''bansa'' are believed to take possession of the dancers, whereupon the ''wali jinn'' will assist in releasing them at the end of the dance.
The ''bansa'' are not feared as they are regarded as spirits of ancestors. Temporarily serving as hosts for the ''bansa'' while dancing to music is regarded as a "gift" by the living Sama Dilaut to their ancestors. After the ''igal limbayan'', the ''wali jinn'' will invite the audience to participate, to celebrate, and to give their thanks. The last dance is the ''igal lellang'', with four ''jinn lella'' performing a warrior dance, whereupon the participants will proceed to the ''kama'toolang'' grove. There they will perform rituals and dance (this time with male and female dancers together), symbolically "inviting" ''Dayang Dayang Mangilai'' to come with them back to the ''dangkan'' tree. Further games and celebrations are held under the original ''dangkan'' tree before the celebrants say their farewells to the spirits. Unlike ''pag-umboh'', ''pagkanduli'' is a joyous celebration, involving singing, dancing, and joking among all participants. It is the largest festive event among the Sama Dilaut communities.
Aside from ''pagkanduli'' and ''magpaay-bahaw'', public dances called ''magigal jinn'' may occur. During these celebrations, the ''igal jinn'' may be consulted for a public séance and nightly altered state of consciousness, trance dancing. In times of epidemics, the ''igal jinn'' is called upon to remove illness-causing spirits from the community. They do this by setting a "spirit boat" adrift in the open sea beyond the village or anchorage.
Boat dwelling
A few Sama-Bajau still live traditionally. They live in houseboats (''Lepa (ship), lepa'', ''balutu'', and ''vinta
The vinta is a traditional outrigger boat from the Philippine island of Mindanao. The boats are made by Sama-Bajau, Tausug and Yakan peoples living in the Sulu Archipelago, Zamboanga peninsula, and southern Mindanao. Vinta are characterized ...
'' being the most common types) which generally accommodate a single nuclear family (usually five people). The houseboats travel together in flotillas with houseboats of immediate relatives (a family alliance) and co-operate during fishing expeditions and in ceremonies. A married couple may choose to sail with the relatives of the husband or the wife. They anchor at common Mooring (watercraft), mooring points (called ''sambuangan'') with other flotillas (usually also belonging to extended relatives) at certain times of the year.
These mooring points are usually presided over by an elder or headsman. The mooring points are close to sources of water or culturally significant locations like island cemeteries. There are periodic gatherings of Sama-Bajau clans usually for various ceremonies like weddings or festivals. They generally do not sail more than from their "home" moorage. They periodically trade goods with the land-based communities of other Sama-Bajau and other ethnic groups. Sama-Bajau groups may routinely cross the borders of the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia for fishing, trading, or visiting relatives.
Sama-Bajau women also use a traditional sun-protecting powder called ''burak'' or ''borak (cosmetic), borak'', made from water weeds, rice, and spices.
Music, dance, and arts
Sama-Bajau traditional songs are handed down orally through generations. The songs are usually sung during marriage celebrations (''kanduli pagkawin''), accompanied by dance (''pang-igal'') and musical instruments like ''pulau'' (flute), ''gabbang'' (xylophone), ''kulintang, tagunggo''' (kulintang gongs), ''biula'' (violin), and in modern times, electronic keyboards. There are several types of Sama-Bajau traditional songs, they include: ''isun-isun'', ''runsai'', ''najat'', ''syair'', ''nasid'', ''bua-bua anak'', and ''tinggayun''.
Among the more specific examples of Sama-Bajau songs are three love songs collectively referred to as ''Sangbayan''. These are ''Dalling Dalling'', ''Duldang Duldang'', and ''Pakiring Pakiring''. The most well-known of these three is ''Pakiring Pakiring'' (literally "moving the hips"), which is more familiar to the Tausūg in its commercialised and modernised form ''Dayang Dayang''. The Tausūg claim that the song is native to their culture, and whether the song is originally Tausūg or Sama-Bajau remain controversial. Most Sama-Bajau folk songs are becoming extinct, largely due to the waning interest of the younger generations. Sama-Bajau people are also well known for weaving, needlework skills, and their association with tagonggo music.
In visual arts, Sama-Bajau have an ancient tradition of carving and sculpting known as ''okil'' (also ''okil-okil'' or ''ukkil''). These were used to decorate houseboats and animistic ritual objects. They were used most prominently for Sama grave markers which are found in the ancient traditional burial grounds of the Sama people in some (usually uninhabited) islands of Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. These include some of the oldest examples of ''okil'', which are usually carved from coral and limestone. Wooden carved grave markers are common later on, usually made from or carved from the boat belonging to the deceased. These are usually carved into human figures that represent the deceased. These graves are often decorated with buntings and food offerings, reflecting the ancient ancestor worship (''anito'') traditions of the Sama. ''Okil'' later inspired the very similar ''okir'' traditions of the Maranao people
The Maranao people (Maranao: mәranaw Filipino: ''Maranaw''), also spelled Meranao, Maranaw, and Mëranaw, is the term used by the Philippine government to refer to the southern indigenous people who are the "people of the lake", a predomi ...
.
Horse culture
The more settled land-based West Coast Bajau are expert equestrianism, equestrians – which makes them remarkable in Malaysia, where horse riding has never been widespread anywhere else. The traditional costume of Sama-Bajau horsemen consists of a black or white long-sleeved shirt (''badu sampit'') with gold buttons (''betawi'') on the front and decorated with silver floral designs (''intiras''), black or white trousers (''seluar sampit'') with gold lace trimmings, and a headpiece (''podong''). They carry a spear (''bujak''), a Crop (implement), riding crop (''pasut''), and a silver-hilted ''keris'' dagger. The horse is also caparisoned with a colourful outfit called ''kain kuda'' that also have brass bells (''seriau'') attached. The saddle (''sila sila'') is made from water buffalo hide and padded with cloth (''lapik'') underneath.
Society
Though some Sama-Bajau headsmen have been given honorific titles like "Datu", "Maharaja" or "Panglima" by governments (like under the Sultanate of Brunei), they usually only had little authority over the Sama-Bajau community. Sama-Bajau society is traditionally highly individualistic, and the largest political unit is the clan cluster around mooring points, rarely more. Sama-Bajau society is also more or less egalitarian, and they did not practice a caste system, unlike most neighboring ethnic groups. The individualism is probably due to the generally fragile nature of their relationships with land-based peoples for access to essentials like wood or water. When the relationship sours or if there is too much pressure from land-based rulers, the Sama-Bajau prefer to simply move on elsewhere. Greater importance is placed on kinship and reciprocal labour rather than formal authority for maintaining social cohesion. There are a few exceptions, however, like the Jama Mapun and the Sama Pangutaran of the Philippines, who follow the traditional pre-Hispanic Philippine feudal society with a caste system consisting of Tumao, nobles, Timawa, notables, and Alipin, commoners and serfs. Likely introduced by the Sultanate of Sulu.
Biological characteristics
Free-diving adaptations
Sama-Bajau are noted for their exceptional abilities in free-diving. Divers work long days with the "greatest daily apnea diving time reported in humans" of greater than 5 hours per day submerged. Some Bajau intentionally rupture their eardrums at an early age to facilitate diving and hunting at sea. Many older Sama-Bajau are therefore hard of hearing.
More than a thousand years of subsistence freediving associated with their life on the sea appear to have endowed the Bajau with several genetic adaptations to facilitate their lifestyle. A 2018 study showed that Bajau Spleen, spleens are about 50 percent larger than those of a neighboring land-based group, the Saluan language, Saluan, letting them store more haemoglobin-rich blood, which is expelled into the bloodstream when the spleen contracts at depth, allowing breath-holding dives of longer duration. This difference is apparently related to a variant of the PDE10A gene. Other genes that appear to have been under selection in the Bajau include BDKRB2, which is related to peripheral vasoconstriction, involved in the diving response; FAM178B, a regulator of carbonic anhydrase, which is related to maintaining blood pH when carbon dioxide accumulates; and another one involved in the response to Latent hypoxia, hypoxia. These adaptations were found to likely result from natural selection, leading to a uniquely increased frequency of the relevant alleles within the sampled Bajau population relative to other referenced eastern Asian populations. Members of another group, the Moken
The Moken (also ''Mawken or'' ''Morgan''; ; th, ชาวเล, lit=sea people, translit=chao le) are an Austronesian people of the Mergui Archipelago, a group of approximately 800 islands claimed by both Myanmar and Thailand. Most of the 2,0 ...
, have been found to have Moken#Way of life, better underwater vision than Europeans, although it is not known if this trait has a genetic basis.
Depictions in popular culture
It has been suggested by some researchers that the Sama-Bajau people's visits to Arnhem Land gave rise to the accounts of the mysterious Baijini people in the myths of Australia's Yolngu Aboriginals.
In 2010, the newly discovered squidworm, ''Teuthidodrilus samae'', was named after the Sama-Bajau people of Tawi-Tawi.
The Sama-Bajau have also been the subject of several films. They include:
* ''Badjao: The Sea Gypsies, Badjao'' (1957) – A Filipino film directed by Lamberto V. Avellana
* ''Bajau Laut: Nomads of the Sea'' (2008) – A Singaporean TV documentary produced by Matthew Malpelli.
* ''The Mirror Never Lies'' (2011) Indonesian film directed by Kamila Andini
* ''Thy Womb'' (2012) – A Filipino drama film directed by Brillante Mendoza
* ''Bohe': Sons of the Waves'' (2013) – A Filipino short film produced by Nadjoua and Linda Bansil
* ''Anak ng Badjao'' (1987) – A Filipino Film directed by Jose Antonio Alonzo and Jerry O. Tironazona
* ''Sahaya'' (2019) – A Filipino TV series directed by Zig Dulay
Notable Sama-Bajau
Politics
* Mat Salleh Rebellion, Mat Salleh (Datu Muhammad Salleh) – Sabah warrior from Inanam, Kota Kinabalu, during the British administration of North Borneo.
* Tun Datu Mustapha (Tun Datu Mustapha bin Datu Harun) – The first Yang di-Pertua Negeri of Sabah, Yang di-Pertua Negeri (Governor) of Sabah and the third List of Chief Ministers of Sabah, Chief Minister of Sabah
Sabah () is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indone ...
from Kudat.
* Mohd Said Keruak, Tun Said Keruak – The seventh Governor of Sabah and the fourth Chief Minister of Sabah from Kota Belud.
* Sakaran Dandai, Tun Sakaran Dandai – The eighth Governor of Sabah and also the eighth Chief Minister of Sabah from Semporna.
* Ahmadshah Abdullah – The ninth Governor of Sabah from Inanam, Kota Kinabalu.
* Salleh Said Keruak (Datuk Seri Panglima Mohd Salleh bin Tun Mohd Said Keruak) – The ninth Chief Minister of Sabah from Kota Belud and a former federal minister with the rank of Senator in the Dewan Negara.
* Osu Sukam (Datuk Seri Panglima Osu bin Sukam) – The twelfth Chief Minister of Sabah from Papar, Malaysia, Papar.
* Mohd Nasir Tun Sakaran (Dato' Mohd Nasir bin Tun Sakaran Dandai) – Sabah politician from Semporna.
* Shafie Apdal (Dato' Seri Hj Mohd Shafie Bin Apdal) – The fifteenth Chief Minister of Sabah from Semporna.
* Pandikar Amin Mulia – Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat, former Member of Parliament of Malaysia from Kota Belud.
* Askalani Abdul Rahim (Datuk Askalani Bin Abdul Rahim) – Former Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports from Semporna.
* Abdul Rahman Dahlan – Former Cabinet Minister from Kota Belud as well the former Member of Parliament in the Dewan Rakyat.
* Isnaraissah Munirah Majilis – Member of Parliament of Kota Belud in the Dewan Rakyat (also half Kadazan-Dusun ancestry on paternal side)
* Manis Muka Mohd Darah – Former Member of Sabah State Legislative Assembly for Bugaya (state constituency), Bugaya.
* Hajiji Noor – The sixtheenth Chief Minister of Sabah from Tuaran.
Arts and entertainment
* Haja Amina Appi — Filipino master mat weaver and teacher from Ungos Matata, Tandubas, Tawi-Tawi; recipient of the Philippine National Living Treasures Award (Philippines), National Living Treasures Award.
*Adam (Malaysian singer), Adam Akademi Fantasia (season 2), AF2 (Aizam Mat Saman) – Malaysian singer and actor, great-nephew of Tun Ahmadshah Abdullah (his grandmother is the elder sister of the latter).
* Sitti – Filipino singer.
* Zizi Kirana
* Yanie (Mentor) (the late Siti Suriane Julkarim) – Malaysian singer in the popular TV shows of Mentor (tv shows), Mentor on TV3 (Malaysia), TV3 from Likas, Kota Kinabalu.
* Wawa Zainal Abidin – Malaysian actress.
* Azwan Kombos – Malaysian actor.
* Rita Gaviola – Filipino actress in the Pinoy Big Brother: Lucky 7, Pinoy Big Brother Season 7.
Sports
* Bana Sailani – A Filipino Olympic Games, Olympic Swimming (sport), swimmer who represented the Philippines in the 1956 Summer Olympics, the 1958 Asian Games (where he won 5 bronze medals, and 1 silver), and the 1960 Summer Olympics. He was more popularly known as Bapa' Banana.
* Estino Taniyu – A Malaysian swimmer from the Royal Malaysian Navy who swam across the English Channel in 13 hours, 45 minutes, and 45 seconds on 21 September 2012.
* Matlan Marjan – Former Malaysian football player and the former Sabah F.C. (Malaysia), Sabah FA captain.
* Eldio "Imam" Gulisan – A Filipino freediving, freediver who set the Philippines national record at the Japanese Cup 2019 on September 7, 2019. Featured in Episode 3 of the Netflix series Home Game.
See also
* Lumad
* Gaya Island
*Orang laut
The Orang Laut are several seafaring ethnic groups and tribes living around Singapore, peninsular Malaysia and the Indonesian Riau Islands. The Orang Laut are commonly identified as the Orang Seletar from the Straits of Johor, but the term ma ...
* Sama–Bajaw languages
Notes
References
Further reading
Newspapers
Journey in Borneo with Bajaus
by Réhahn Croquevielle, Réhahn
More information on the Bajaus
at the BBC
The last of the sea nomads
at ''The Guardian''
The sea gypsies of Sulu
at the ''Khaleej Times''
Books
* François-Robert Zacot (2009). ''Peuple nomade de la mer, les Badjos d'Indonésie'', éditions Pocket, collection Terre Humaine, Paris
{{Portal bar, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Society
Bajau people,
Ethnic groups in Brunei
Ethnic groups in Indonesia
Ethnic groups in Sabah
Modern nomads
Ethnic groups in Mindanao
Ethnic groups in the Philippines
Muslim communities of the Philippines
Moro ethnic groups