The T'boli, also known as T’boli, Tiboli, and Tagabili, are an indigenous people living in the southern part of Mindanao, particularly in the municipalities of T’boli, Surallah, Lake Sebu, and Polomolok in the province of South Cotabato and in Maasim, Kiamba, and Maitum in Sarangani. They can also be found in the neighboring provinces of Sultan Kudarat, North Cotabato, and Davao del Sur. Sebu, the largest but also most culturally relevant lake, Siluton, often named as Seluton and Seloton, is the innermost lake. Lahit, the smallest lake, and Holon, a crater lake of Mount Melibengoy in the town of T'Boli, are the other three major lakes that have been essential to the T'boli. Its population as of the 2020 census is 101,049 people. The T'boli people, who are native to the area, are named after the town. Nevertheless, not all Tboli live upland: those who actually reside along of the coastlines of the Celebes Sea in the municipal governments of Maitum, Kiamba, and Maasim are referred to as the T'boli Mohin; those who live in the municipalities of Lake Sebu and T'Boli are referred to as the T'boli Sebu; and those reside on the western mountains close to the Manobo are referred known as the Tao B'lai.

Anthropologists say that the Tboli could be of Austronesian stock. It is believed that they were already, to some degree, agricultural and used to range the coasts up to the mountains. With the arrival of later groups, however, these people were gradually pushed to the uplands. There is reasonable speculation that the Tboli, along with the other upland groups, used to inhabit parts of the fertile Cotabato Valley until the advent of Islam in the region, starting in the 14th century. The Tboli and their Ubu (or Manobo) and Blaan neighbors resisted the aggressive proselytizing of a succession of Muslim warrior-priests, the best known being Sharif Muhammad Kabungsuan from Johore in present-day Malaysia, who established the sultanate of Maguindanao during the late 15th and early 19th centuries. According to the tarsila (Muslim oral accounts), those who accepted the new faith remained in the Cotabato Valley, while the others retreated to the relative safety and isolation of the mountains. Conflict between the Muslims and the non-Islamized tribes continued. Frequent slaving raids were conducted by the Maguindanaon Muslims on the non-Muslims, including the Tboli.

The T’Bolis are people of medium build. They are light in complexion. Some of them are square-jawed. Their hair may be curly or straight. T’Boli women dress in a long sleeved, tight-fitting, waist length, collarless blouse which is in plain black, dark or navy blue. Their tubular skirt is ankle length. For special occasions, the T’Boli woman is dressed in a pin-striped linen skirt. T’Boli men, no longer wear traditional attire. Today, they normally go about in ordinary pants and skirts, with the typical T’Boli sword which they always carry at their side. Like other hill people, the T’Boli subsist on hunting, fishing and cultivation. The rivers, lakes and marshes of the region have always been the source of the fish caught by using fishing rods, spews, nets and other traps. Mudfish, catfish, fresh water shrimp and snails are common food items. Ducks are also raised along the lake’s shores. T’Boli society is ruled by a datu who assumes several roles. He has social, economic, religious and political functions. There are a number of datus in the T’Boli society with varying degrees of power, fame and status achieved or ascribed by the datus to themselves and recognized by their followers. The position of datu is not hereditary. No datu enjoys primacy over the others, nor does he exercise specific jurisdictional control over specific areas or groups. Other datu might accord deferential treatment to one of their members, but this is not a sign of his superiority over them.

T'Boli Language

Tboli (IPA: ['tʔbɔli]), also Tau Bilil, Tau Bulul or Tagabilil language is a language of the Southern Philippine sub-branch of the Western Malayo-Polynesian branch of the Austronesian family. The Austronesian language is widely spoken in the southern Philippine island of Mindanao, mainly in the province of South Cotabato but also in the neighboring provinces of Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani. According to the Philippine Census from 2000, close to 100,000 Filipinos identified T'boli or Tagabili as their native language. In T'Boli language it is taboo to call parents, grandparents, and parents-in-law by their name instead of the kin term; it is also improper to address uncles, aunts, or children-in-law by their name. Tboli is used in school, and there is some written material in the language, including poetry, a dictionary, a grammar, and a translation of the Bible.

T'boli alphabet and pronunciation

• There is no standard way to write T'boli. This is one possible way, based on Tagalog.

Notes

• Stress normally falls on the final syllable, unless the final syllable is a schwa - then the stress moves to the penultimate syllable.

• The glottal stop is not usually indicated in writing. When it is, a grave accent is used, e.g. ngà [ŋaʔ]. When a letter already has an accent, a circumflex is used, e.g. sdô [sdoʔ].