The Manóbos of Mindanáo | Page 6

stream, and on the Hiñgoog River in the
Province of Misamis. As we shall see later on, even in the Agúsan
Valley, the Manóbos were gradually split on the west side of the river
by the ingress, as of some huge wedge, of the Banuáons. Crossing the
eastern Cordillera, a tremendous mass of towering pinnacles--the home

of the Mamánuas--we find Manóbos occupying the upper reaches of
the Rivers Hubo, Marihátag, Kagwáit, Tágo, Tándag, and Kantílan, on
the Pacific coast. I questioned the Manóbos of the rivers Tágo and
Hubo as to their genealogy and former habitat and found that their
parents, and even some of themselves, had lived on the river Kasilaían,
but that, owing to the hostility of the Banuáons, they had fled to the
river Wá-Wa. At the time of the coming of the Catholic missionaries in
1875, these Manóbos made their way across the lofty eastern Cordillera
in an attempt to escape from the missionary activities. These two
migrations are a forcible example of what may have taken place in the
rest of Mindanáo to bring about such a wide distribution of what was,
perhaps, originally one people. Each migration led to the formation of a
new group from which, as from a new nucleus, a new tribe may have
developed in the course of time.
[11] Blair and Robertson, 40: 315, 1906.
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF THE MANÓBOS IN
EASTERN MINDANÁO[12] IN THE AGÚSAN VALLEY
[12] See tribal map.
The Manóbos occupy the whole Agúsan Valley as far as the town of
Buai on the upper Agúsan with the following exceptions:
1. The upper parts of the rivers Lamiñga, Kandiisan, Hawilian, and
Óhut, and the whole of the river Maásam, together with the
mountainous region beyond the headwaters of these rivers, and
probably the territory beyond in the district of Misamis, as far over as
the habitat of the Bukídnon tribe.[13]
[13] The reason for the insertion of this last clause is that the people
inhabiting the mountains at the headwaters of the above rivers have the
same physical types, dress, and weapons as the Bukídnons, if I may
judge from my slight acquaintance with the latter.
2. The towns of Butuán, Talakógon, Bunáwan, Veruéla, and
Prosperidad.

3. The town of Tagusab and the headwaters of the Tutui and
Binuñgñgaan Rivers.
ON THE EASTERN SIDE OF THE PACIFIC CORDILLERA
In this region I include the upper waters of the Liañga, Hubo, Oteiza,
Marihátag, Kagwáit, Tágo, Tándag, and Kantílan Rivers.
ON THE PENINSULA OF SAN AGUSTIN
I desire to call the reader's attention to the fact that this monograph has
no reference to the Manóbos of Port San Agustin nor to the Manóbos of
the Libagánon River and its tributaries, nor to the Manóbos that
occupy the hinterland above Nasipit as far as the Bugábus River. I had
only cursory dealings with the inhabitants of the last-named region but
both from my own scant observations and from the reports of others
more familiar with them, I am inclined to believe that there may be
differences great enough to distinguish them from the other peoples of
the Agúsan Valley as a distinct tribe.
As to the Manóbos of Libagánon, it is probable that they have more or
less the same cultural and linguistic characteristics as the Manóbos that
form the subject matter of this paper, but, as I did not visit them nor get
satisfactory information regarding them, I prefer to leave them
untouched until further investigation.
Of the Manóbos of the lower half of the peninsula of San Agustin, I
know absolutely nothing except that they are known as Manóbos. I
noted, however, in perusing the Jesuit letters[14] that there were in the
year 1891 not only Manóbos but Moros, Biláns, and Tagakaólos in that
region.
[14] Cartas de los PP. de la Compañía de Jesús, 9: 335, et seq., 1892.
THE MAMÁNUAS, OR NEGRITOS, AND NEGRITO-MANÓBO
HALF-BREEDS
The Mamánuas, or Negritos, and Negrito-Manóbo half-breeds of

Mindanáo occupy the mountains from Anao-aon near Surigao down to
the break in the eastern Cordillera, northwest of Liañga. They also
inhabit a small range that extends in a northeasterly direction from the
Cordillera to Point Kawit on the east coast.
I heard three trustworthy reports of the existence of Negritos in eastern
Mindanáo. The first report I heard on the Umaíam River (Walo, August,
1909). It was given to me by a Manóbo chief from the River Ihawán.
He assured and reassured me that on the Lañgilañg River, near the
Libagánon River exists a group of what he called Manóbos but who
were very small, black as an earthen pot, kinky-haired, without clothes
except bark-cloth, very peaceable and harmless, but very timid. I
interrogated him over and over as to the bark-cloth that he said these
people wore. He said in answer that it