The Tboli people are one of the indigenous peoples of South Cotabato in

Southern Mindanao. The body of ethnographic and linguistic literature on Mindanao,

they are variously known as Tboli, T'boli, Tböli, Tagabili, Tagabilil, Tagabulul and Tau
Bilil. They term themselves Tboli. Their whereabouts and identity are somewhat
imprecise in the literature; some publications present the Tboli and the Tagabili as
distinct peoples; some locate the Tbolis to the vicinity of the Lake Buluan in
the Cotabato Basin or in Agusan del Norte. The Tbolis, then, reside on the mountain
slopes on either side of the upper Alah Valley and the coastal area
of Maitum, Maasim and Kiamba. In former times, the Tbolis also inhabited the upper
Alah Valley floor. After World War II, i.e., since the arrival of settlers originating from
other parts of the Philippines, they have been gradually pushed onto the mountain
slopes. As of now, they are almost expelled from the fertile valley floor.
Like their immediate tribal neighbors, the Úbûs, Blàan, Blit, Tàú-Segél and, for those
who have serious doubts in the hoax argumentation, the Tasaday, they have been
variously termed hill tribes, pagans, animists, etc., as opposed to the
indigenous Muslimpeoples or the Christian settlers. In political contexts, however, the
term Lumad groups (derived from the Cebuano term for native people) has become
popular as a generic term for the various indigenous peoples of Mindanao.

AN ERDERLY WOMAN WEARING HER TRADITIONAL ATTIRE

A Tboli elderly woman in traditional attire.

Total population

Approximately 100,000–150,000[1]
 Regions with significant populations

Philippines (Soccsksargen, Davao Region)

Languages

Tboli, Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Tagalog

Religion

Christianity, Animist, and Pagan

Related ethnic groups

Austronesian peoples, Lumad, and Sama-Bajau peoples

Musical

The Tboli have a musical heritage consisting of various

types of agung ensembles – ensembles composed of
large hanging, suspended or held,
bossed/knobbed gongs which act as drone without any
accompanying melodic instrument.

High up in the mountains in Brgy Tasiman is an Ubo

long house overlooking Lake Sebu. The host is an
unassuming fellow named Ma Fil Angkoy (half T’boli
and half Ubo), but you’ll realize why Ma Fil (or
Mafil) is popular in Lake Sebu once you put a
hegalong (or hegelung), a 2 string ethic guitar, on
his hands.
Indigenous Tboli Religion
The Tboli people believe in a highly-complex traditional religion that is unique to the
region. Their religion is regionally-complex and is composed of the life ways and belief
systems inherent to the Tboli psyche. However, in modern times, their religion has
been degraded to a certain extent due to the introduction of Roman Catholicism,
Protestanism, and Islam. Nevertheless, some communities continue to preserve and
conserve the religion practices of their ancestors, which has been established
thousands of years ago.

Tboli pantheon
Kedaw La Sambad - The sun god and supreme god. Married to Bulon La Mogoaw, they reside in the seventh
heaven. They begot seven sons and daughters who end up marrying each other.

Bulon La Mogoaw – The moon goddess and supreme goddess, wife of Kedaw La Sambad.

Cumucul - The eldest son who was given a cohort of fire, a tok (sword), shield, and the magical horse, Kaunting,
who can be as small as a mouse when not ridden and who can be kept in a box (This reflects the honor given by
the Tboli to eldest sons and the value they accord horses). Cumucul is married to Boi Kabil.

Sfedat - The second son who married his sister, the second daughter, Bong Libun. This marriage produced no
children, leading to Sfedat's despondency. One day, he asked his wife to kill him. His corpse became land from
which sprouted all kinds of plants and trees.

Dwata - The third son who married two of his sisters, Sidek We and Hyu We. His request for one of the powers
granted Cumucul is refused. Thus, he left the sky with his wives and seven children from Hyu We (Litik, Blanga,
Teme Lus, Tdolok, Ginton, Lmugot Mangay, and Fun Bulol) and six from Sedek We. For a place to stay, he asked
Bong Libun for the land that was once Sfedat's body. Bong Libun agreed on the condition that she married one
of his sons. Dwata spread the land, and planted the trees and other vegetation; the result is earth. The first
people were created after Dwata breathed life into the clay figurines made by Hyu We and Sidek We. However
Dwata did not fulfill his side of the bargain with Bong Libun, because his sons will not have her as wife.

Letek - The god of thunder.

Blanga - The god of stones and rocks.

Teme Lus - The god of wild beasts.

Tdolok - The god of death.

Ginton - The god of metallurgy.

Lmugot Mangay - The god of life and of all growing things.

Fun Bulul - The god of the mountains.

Bong Libun – Married to her brother Sfedat, however their marriage did not produce any children that lead to
Sfedat’s despondency. Sfedat asked her to kill him, when she did as she was told, the corpse of Sfedat became
land. Her other brother Dwata asked her for a piece of land that was once Sfedat’s body for a place to stay. She
agreed on the condition that she married one of his sons. Dwata spread the land, and planted trees and other
vegetation; the result is earth. The first people were created after Dwata breathed life into the clay figurines
 made by Hyu We and Sidek We. However, Dwata does not fulfill his side of the bargain with Bong Libun,
because his sons will not have her as wife. She married her youngest brother Datu Bnoling. With him she had
seven sons, who became scourges of the earth: Fun Kenkel, Fun Daskulo, Fun Lkef, Fun Kumuga, Fun Blekes,
and Fun Lalang.

Fun Kenkel - The god of fever.

Fun Deskulo - The god of head diseases.

Fun Lkef - The god of colds.

Fun Kemuga - The god of eye afflictions.

Fun Blekes - The god of skin diseases.

Fun Lalang - The god of baldness.

Loos Klagan and La Fun - The divine couple; to alleviate the damage done by the scourges (the sons of Bong
Libun and Datu Bnoling) they assumed the role of healers.

Muhen – A bird who is one of the most influential figures in the Tboli pantheon who is considered the god of
fate, whose song when heard is thought to presage misfortune. Any undertaking is immediately abandoned or
postponed when one hears the Muhen sing.
 THE T’BOLI NIPATRADITIONAL NIPA
HUT

Historic item by the Tboli tribe, from the

display of the Tboli
The Cooperative works with the leading T'Boli dream weavers in the sale of their T'nalak weavings,
include the National Artist Ms. Lang Dulay. As such, it can work with buyers to meet order
requirements while also ensuring the benefits in their entirety go to the artist and the T'boli
community. Weavings can be produced of varying lengths and widths. Prices vary depending on
the level of experience of the artist, the complexity of the design, size and other factors. With the
most sacred works of the master dream weavers, there are certain traditional practices that should be
observed - the material should not be cut, as the design has been provided to the weaver in her
dreams by her ancestors. It should not be used on the floor or walked on. It should be treated with
respect.
Images, from left above. A T'Boli member of the Cooperative shows a recently
completed weaving; a close-up view of a weaving by T'nalak master weaver
Hilda; Hilda demonstrates her craft, working on a design passed to her by her
mother, also a dream weaver.

Below from
left. Demonstrating the
back loom technique on a
recently begun piece; a
poster of National Artist
Lang Dulay in her
workshop in Lake Sebu; the
tied off design, using horse
hair, prior to dyei
 T’NALAK PRODUCTS
At the same time, a greater degree of flexibility is possible with
some T'boli t'nalak. Some weavers are willing to use commercial
dyes, providing brighter hues, for example. Such weavings are not
the traditional T'boli product, but are still produced in the homes of
weavers, by hand and using hand spun abaca fiber. Such designs
would not be considered sacred to the T'boli and as such can be
used in a variety of ways, although the T'boli would still hope for the
use of discretion. Due to the material's properties and linkages to
the lovely T'boli people, this less traditional t'nalak is being used in
the production of a variety of housewares and other products - table
runners, place mats, purses and clutches, for example. Some of
these can be seen below.