Lake Sebu, officially the Municipality of Lake Sebu ( Tboli: ''Benwu Sbù'', ; Hiligaynon: ''Banwa sang Sëbu'' ; Tagalog: ''Bayan ng Sëbu''), 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 ...

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 ...

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 81,221 people. Lake Sebu is a serene municipality nestled in a "bowl of forests and mountains" within the Allah Valley Protected Landscape in South Cotabato, Philippines. Spanning an area of 89,138 hectares, it serves as both an ecological sanctuary and a cultural treasure. The area is recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as a vital cultural landscape, embodying the rich heritage of the T'boli, Ubo, and other indigenous groups. Known for its three scenic lakes—Lake Sebu, Lake Seloton, and Lake Lahit—the municipality is a major ecotourism destination. It features lush forests, diverse flora and fauna, and breathtaking waterfalls, including the famed Seven Falls. Beyond its natural beauty, Lake Sebu is a center of indigenous artistry, from T'nalak weaving to vibrant cultural traditions, making it a unique convergence of biodiversity and heritage in Mindanao.

Geography

The placid lake of

Lake Sebu Lake Sebu ( Tboli: ''Lanaw Sbù'', ; Hiligaynon: ''Linaw sg Sëbu'', ; Filipino: ''Lawa ng Sëbu'') is a natural lake located in the municipality of Lake Sebu, South Cotabato within the Alah Valley region. The Philippine government has reco ...

can be found in Allah Valley near the municipality of Surallah, South Cotabato. Surrounded by rolling hills and mountains covered with thick rain forest, the lake has an area of , with an elevation of approximately .

Barangays

Lake Sebu 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 ...

. * Bacdulong * Denlag * Halilan * Hanoon * Klubi * Lake Lahit * Lake Seloton * Lamcade * Lamdalag * Lamfugon * Lamlahak * Lower Maculan * Luhib * Ned * Poblacion * Takunel * Talisay * Tasiman * Upper Maculan

Climate

Demographics

The lake's shores and the surrounding rainforest are home to the Indigenous Tbolis, Tirurays, Ubos, and

Manobo The Manobò (sometimes also spelled Menobò, Manuvù , Menuvù , or Minuvù) are an indigenous peoples from Mindanao in the Philippines, whose core lands cover most of the Mindanao island group, from Sarangani island into the Mindanao mainland in ...

s. One of the major tribes, the Tbolis are known for their weaving skills and brassware production as well as fishing skills. The rest of the population are made of Maguindanaons, Ilonggos, Cebuanos, Bicolanos, and Ilocanos.

Economy

The economy is based on aquaculture of

Tilapia Tilapia ( ) is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish from the coelotilapine, coptodonine, heterotilapine, oreochromine, pelmatolapiine, and tilapiine tribes (formerly all were "Tilapiini"), with the economically mos ...

grown in large fish cages floating in the lake. More than one half of the land around the lake is cultivated for agriculture. The Philippine government is also trying to promote

ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of nature-oriented tourism intended to contribute to the Ecological conservation, conservation of the natural environment, generally defined as being minimally impactful, and including providing both contributions to conserv ...

in the area. The finishing of a concrete road cut the travel time from 4 hours to less than 30 minutes greatly improving trade and commerce.

Wildlife

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 ...

s and Philippine Deer which are considered endangered live around the lake. The lake and the surrounding rainforest are natural habitat to

egret Egrets ( ) are herons, generally long-legged wading birds, that have white or buff plumage, developing fine plumes (usually milky white) during the breeding season. Egrets are not a biologically distinct group from herons and have the same build ...

kingfisher Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species living in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...

swallows The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae are a family of passerine songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica. Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance. The t ...

heron Herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 75 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genus ''Botaurus'' are referred to as bi ...

s, Philippine cockatoos and

kite A kite is a tethered heavier than air flight, heavier-than-air craft with wing surfaces that react against the air to create Lift (force), lift and Drag (physics), drag forces. A kite consists of wings, tethers and anchors. Kites often have ...

Environmental conservation

The Philippine government proclaimed a area as a protected landscape. On the south-eastern watershed of the lake, a bamboo plantation was established.

References

External links

Lake Sebu Profile at PhilAtlas.com

Lake Sebu Profile at the DTI Cities and Municipalities Competitive Index
* Philippine Standard Geographic Code
Philippine Census Information
{{Authority control Municipalities of South Cotabato