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Mindanao
Mindanao (/ˌmɪndəˈnaʊ/ ⓘ MIN-də-NOW) 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 same name that also includes its adjacent islands, notably the Sulu Archipelago. According to the 2020 census, Mindanao had a population of 26,252,442, while the entire island group had an estimated population of 27,384,138 as of 2024.
Mindanao is divided into six administrative regions: the Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, the Caraga region, the Davao region, Soccsksargen, and the autonomous region of Bangsamoro. According to the 2020 census, Davao City is the most populous city on the island, with 1,776,949 people, followed by Zamboanga City (pop. 977,234), General Santos (pop. 722,059), Butuan (pop. 372,910), and Cotabato City (pop. 325,079). About 70% of residents identify as Christian and 24% as Muslim.[needs update] Mindanao is considered the major Bread Basket of the Philippines.
The name Mindanao is derived from a compound word in the Maguindanao language: min, a past tense verb prefix, and danao, meaning 'lake'. Together, they translate to 'land of where the lakes are found'. This name is also associated to the Maguindanaon people, where the Sultanate of Maguindanao once held significant influence and where lakes with varying depths are also common among the provinces of Mindanao.
Archaeological findings on the island point to evidence of human activity dating back about ten thousand years. Around 1500 BC, Austronesian people spread throughout the Philippines.
The Subanon are believed to have settled in the Zamboanga Peninsula during the Neolithic era c. 4500–2000 BC.[clarification needed][better source needed] Evidence of stone tools in Zamboanga del Norte may indicate a late Neolithic presence. Ceramic burial jars, both unglazed and glazed, Chinese celadons, gold ornaments, beads, and bracelets have been found in caves. Many of the ceramic objects are from the Yuan and Ming periods. Evidently, there was a long history of trade between the Subanon and the Chinese.
In the classic epoch of Philippine history (900 AD onwards), the people of Mindanao were heavily exposed to Hindu and Buddhist influence and beliefs from Indonesia and Malaysia. Indianized abugida scripts such as Kawi and baybayin were introduced from Java and an extinct intermediate from Sulawesi or Borneo respectively. Cultural icons of the sarong (known as malong or patadyong), the pudong turban, silk, and batik and ikat weaving and dyeing methods were introduced. Artifacts found from this era include a golden kinnara, a golden image believed by some to be a Tara, and a Ganesha pendant. These cultural traits passed from Mindanao into the Visayas and Luzon, but were subsequently lost or heavily modified after the Spanish arrival in the 16th century.
Hindu-Buddhist cultural influence took root in the coastal settlements, syncretizing with indigenous animist beliefs and customs among the tribes of the interior. The Butuan Rajahnate, a Hinduized kingdom mentioned in Chinese records as a tributary state in the 10th century, was concentrated along the northeastern coast of Butuan Bay.[failed verification] The Rajahnate of Sanmalan in Zamboanga, was also in Mindanao. The Darangen epic of the Maranao people harkens back to this era as the most complete local version of the Ramayana. The Maguindanao at this time also had strong Hindu beliefs, evidenced by the Ladya Lawana (Rajah Ravana) epic saga that survives to the present, albeit highly Islamized from the 17th century onward.
The spread of Islam in the Philippines began in the 14th century, mostly through the influence of Muslim merchants from the western Malay Archipelago. The first mosque in the Philippines was built in the mid-14th century in the town of Simunul, Tawi-Tawi. Around the 16th century, the Muslim sultanates of Sulu, Lanao and Maguindanao were established from formerly Hindu-Buddhist rajahnates.
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Mindanao
Mindanao (/ˌmɪndəˈnaʊ/ ⓘ MIN-də-NOW) 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 same name that also includes its adjacent islands, notably the Sulu Archipelago. According to the 2020 census, Mindanao had a population of 26,252,442, while the entire island group had an estimated population of 27,384,138 as of 2024.
Mindanao is divided into six administrative regions: the Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, the Caraga region, the Davao region, Soccsksargen, and the autonomous region of Bangsamoro. According to the 2020 census, Davao City is the most populous city on the island, with 1,776,949 people, followed by Zamboanga City (pop. 977,234), General Santos (pop. 722,059), Butuan (pop. 372,910), and Cotabato City (pop. 325,079). About 70% of residents identify as Christian and 24% as Muslim.[needs update] Mindanao is considered the major Bread Basket of the Philippines.
The name Mindanao is derived from a compound word in the Maguindanao language: min, a past tense verb prefix, and danao, meaning 'lake'. Together, they translate to 'land of where the lakes are found'. This name is also associated to the Maguindanaon people, where the Sultanate of Maguindanao once held significant influence and where lakes with varying depths are also common among the provinces of Mindanao.
Archaeological findings on the island point to evidence of human activity dating back about ten thousand years. Around 1500 BC, Austronesian people spread throughout the Philippines.
The Subanon are believed to have settled in the Zamboanga Peninsula during the Neolithic era c. 4500–2000 BC.[clarification needed][better source needed] Evidence of stone tools in Zamboanga del Norte may indicate a late Neolithic presence. Ceramic burial jars, both unglazed and glazed, Chinese celadons, gold ornaments, beads, and bracelets have been found in caves. Many of the ceramic objects are from the Yuan and Ming periods. Evidently, there was a long history of trade between the Subanon and the Chinese.
In the classic epoch of Philippine history (900 AD onwards), the people of Mindanao were heavily exposed to Hindu and Buddhist influence and beliefs from Indonesia and Malaysia. Indianized abugida scripts such as Kawi and baybayin were introduced from Java and an extinct intermediate from Sulawesi or Borneo respectively. Cultural icons of the sarong (known as malong or patadyong), the pudong turban, silk, and batik and ikat weaving and dyeing methods were introduced. Artifacts found from this era include a golden kinnara, a golden image believed by some to be a Tara, and a Ganesha pendant. These cultural traits passed from Mindanao into the Visayas and Luzon, but were subsequently lost or heavily modified after the Spanish arrival in the 16th century.
Hindu-Buddhist cultural influence took root in the coastal settlements, syncretizing with indigenous animist beliefs and customs among the tribes of the interior. The Butuan Rajahnate, a Hinduized kingdom mentioned in Chinese records as a tributary state in the 10th century, was concentrated along the northeastern coast of Butuan Bay.[failed verification] The Rajahnate of Sanmalan in Zamboanga, was also in Mindanao. The Darangen epic of the Maranao people harkens back to this era as the most complete local version of the Ramayana. The Maguindanao at this time also had strong Hindu beliefs, evidenced by the Ladya Lawana (Rajah Ravana) epic saga that survives to the present, albeit highly Islamized from the 17th century onward.
The spread of Islam in the Philippines began in the 14th century, mostly through the influence of Muslim merchants from the western Malay Archipelago. The first mosque in the Philippines was built in the mid-14th century in the town of Simunul, Tawi-Tawi. Around the 16th century, the Muslim sultanates of Sulu, Lanao and Maguindanao were established from formerly Hindu-Buddhist rajahnates.