Sulu

BRIEF PROFILE

Sulu is a province in the Philippines situated in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) occupying the Sulu Archipelago and the provinces of Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao in central Mindanao. Its capital is the Municipality of Jolo.

The province has a land area of 3,436.99 square kilometers or 1,327.03 square miles. Its population as determined by the 2015 Census was 824,731. This represented 21.81% of the total population of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, 3.42% of the overall population of the Mindanao island group, or 0.82% of the entire population of the Philippines. Based on these figures, the population density is computed at 240 inhabitants per square kilometer or 621 inhabitants per square mile.

HISTORY

The Province of Sulu (Luaph Sug – land of the current) traces its rich histoprical origin to the coming of Islam to the Philippines. 

Sulu’s history is shaped by the arrival of Muslim missionaries, trxders, scholoars, and travellers foremost of which was Karim-ul Makhdum, an Arab missionary and learned A JUDGE WHO ESTABLSIHED A STRONG Islamic foundation for governance and life in whar once the principality of Buansa Sumatra and the reign of Rajah Baguinda.

The marriage of Rajah Baguinda’s daughter Paramisuli to the Arabian scholar Sayid Abubakar saw the birth of the Sultanate of Sulu.  Abubakar, the first Sultan, brought Sulu, the Zambonaga Peninsula, Palawan, and Basilan under the Sultanate.  Sabah followed in 1704 in reconition of the Sultans help in ending the long-running Brunei civil war. 

The coming of Spanish colonization, Christianity, and a neo political sytem sparked fierce tesistance in Sulu and started the Moro wars of 1578-1899.  The ceding of the Philippines to the United States by Spain ended 23 year’s (1876-1899) of Spanish occupation and ushered in the American era.  The Bates agreements signed Sultan Jamalul Kuiram II and Brigadier General John Bates marked the start to the declined of the Sultanate.  In March 1915, the Sultan gave his temporal powers in the Carpenter agreement.  This agreement ended all opposition the American government of Gov. Frank W. Carpenter.

With the enactment by the U.S. Congress of the Jones Law (Philippine Autonomy Law) in 1916, ultimate Philippine independence was guaranteed and the Filipinization of public administration began.  Sulu, however, had an appointed American Governor General in Manila had a say in Sulu affairs.

But one thing was evident; centuries of colonial presence could not erase the legacy of local governance left by Rajah Baguinda, a legacy that shapes Sulu politics to this day.

The word Sulu was derived and written before as Suluk or Soolook.  The Malayos (Malays, Malaysians) have always been using the term “Orang Suluk” to refer to the people of the area, which correspond to the present term Tausug.  Suluk was transformed into Sug.  It is very common among Tausugs to drop the letter “I” in a word or syllable, especially during snappy conversion.  On the other hand, the letters k and g at the end of the word can easily be mistaken for each depending upon the accuracy of the speaker’s tongue, the keenness of the listener’s ears and the distance one is from the other.  Suk could have been interchangeably used with Sug but the latter permanently took an irreversible hold on some people psyche and lingual habit.  By derivation therefore, Suluk and Suk (Sug) should assume the same meaning, and finally landed to the word Sulu.

Sulu became a province on March 10, 1917 through Commonwealth Act No. 27-11.  Sulu celebrates a special day-the foundation of local governance and public administration on every September 18 – per Provincial Ordinance No. 01 series of 1993 proudly signifying that local government in Sulu antedates similar system in the country.

PEOPLE

The dominant ethnic group in the Sulu archipelago because of their political and religious institutions, the Tausug occupy Jolo, Indanan, Siasi, and Patikul in Sulu (BARMM). There are also scattered settlements in Zamboanga del Sur and Cotabato, and all the way to Malaysia, which has an estimated Tausug population of more than 110,000.

Tausug is a combination of tau (person) and suug (the old name of Jolo Island). The present generation of Tausugs are believed to be descended from the different ethnic groups that had migrated to the Sulu archipelago.

The Tausug language is adopted from the vocabulary of Tagimaha, in whose locality the Sultan of Sulu lived and established Buansa, the capital of the Sultunate. They have two dialects: parianum and gimbahanun. Parianum is spoken by the people living along the coasts of Jolo and gimbahanun, by those living in the interior part.

LANDMARKS

FOODS & DELICACIES

Local Artists and Artisans of Sulu

No.	Category	Name	Expertise	Production	Address	Province	FORM OF ART
1	Individual	Puddang Awal Jaman	Cultural Dances		Tulay, Jolo	Sulu	Dance
2	Individual	Wanadzmi Salahuddin	Cultural Dances		Tulay, Jolo	Sulu	Dance
3	Individual	Ingat Kapandayan			Notre Dame of Jolo College	Sulu	N/A
4	Individual	Saira J. Sahidjan	Pis Siyabit Weaver		Kamahardikaan Village PHIC, Indanan	Sulu	Textile
5	Individual	Mrs. Saddala S. Manahan	Pis Siyabit Weaving, Embroidering		Lagasan, Parang	Sulu	Textile
6	Individual	Mrs. Sara A. Jamang	Gabbang Player		Kamahardikaan Village, Kajatian, Indanan	Sulu	Music
7	Individual	Ibnohasan H. Ibno	Cultural musical instruments player (gabbang, agung, kulintang, gandang; Silat and Kuntao)		Makupa, Pasil, Indanan	Sulu	Music
8	Individual	Ambang Awwalun	cultural musical instruments (player)		Paligih, Indanan	Sulu	Music
9	Individual	Hja. Juhara Sarahadil	Native Delicacies (bang-bang Sug)		Kamahardikaan Village, PHIC, Kajatian, Indanan	Sulu	Culinary
10	Individual	Lajid I. Bari	Wood Carving		Samaritan, Indanan	Sulu	Architecture and its allied arts
11	Individual	Karna T. Arajama	Pangalay		313, Bus-Bus, Jolo	Sulu	Dance
12	Individual	Muktar H. Allan	Tausug Tarasul		Sulu High School, Bangkal, Patikul	Sulu	Literary
13	Individual	Ibno Raji B. Lintasan	Sculpture, Fine Arts, Composer/writer Tausug Tarasul		Sulu Provincial Capitol, Captitol Site, Bangkal, Patikul	Sulu	Visual
14	Individual	Prof. Sahi S. Udjah			MSU-Sulu, Bangkal,Patikul	Sulu	Literary
15	Individual	Muldison J. Taung	Tausug Riddle Composer		Indanan Municipal Office, Pasil, Indanan	Sulu	Literary
16	Individual	Mr. Mardy Nawaddi	Sewing/Mat Weaving; Pangalay		Notre Dame of Jolo College, Jolo	Sulu	Textile
17	Individual	Nang J. Jailani	Tausug Luguh		Judge Garcia St., San Raymundo, Jolo	Sulu	Literary
18	Individual	Darwin S. Dolloso	Singing		Anuling, Patikul	Sulu	Music
19	Individual	Farida M. Kiblatain	Pangalay		Notre Dame of Jolo College, Jolo	Sulu	Dance
20	Individual	Kiya Ganih	Mat Weaving, Basket-Making		Parang	Sulu	Textile
21	Individual	Saddam Hajan	Singing		Santanina Sports Complex, Jolo	Sulu	Music
22	Individual	Sabina Jammang	Luguh		Sandah, Patikul	Sulu	Literary
23	Individual	Tuan Kalam Albani	Tarasul/Daman; Tausug discourse		Jolo	Sulu	Literary
24	Individual	Abdulmuin I. Ladjaanan	Folktales		MSU	Sulu	Literary
25	Individual	Hji. Naguib M. Sangkula	Pangalay		Alat, Jolo	Sulu	Dance
26	Individual	Dalmata Ahamad	Pangalay		Siasi	Sulu	Dance
27	Individual	Salahuddin, Wanhozme Bendanio	Scriptwriting, Dance, Theatre and Films, Music, Designing, Culinary		140 Tulay Zone II, Jolo	Sulu	Dramatic, Dance, Music, Culinary
28	Individual	Diyuh, Harija Karik	Pis Siyabit Weaving	Pis Siyabit	Fisheries, Tanjung Road, Indanan	Sulu	Visual/Textile
29	Individual	Dambong, Minda Habibon	Culinary	Native Delicacies	Kasalamatan Village, Jolo	Sulu	Culinary
30	Individual	Hamjarail, Julkabir Jumlail	Computer Graphic Artist		Capitol Site, Jolo	Sulu	Media
31	Individual	Sahidjan, Saira Jahad	Pis Siyabit Weaving	Pis Siyabit	Fisheries Road, Kamahardikaan, Indanan	Sulu	Visual/Textile
32	Individual	Sibulan, Rodemel J.	Drafting		Martirez St. Jolo	Sulu	Visual
33	Individual	Leon, Parsan Usman	Wood and Metal Carving		Bus-Bus Lambayung, Jolo	Sulu	Architecture and allied arts, Visual
34	Individual	Awalan, Nurhina Baduli	Culinary	Native Delicacies	Anoor Village, Indanan	Sulu	Culinary
35	Individual	Ladjahasan, Nurhada Asani	Textiles	Head Covers	KM2, Indanan	Sulu	Dance, Music
36	Individual	Jamang, Nurgaya Alihassan	Traditional Dance and Music		Kamahardikaan, Indanan	Sulu	Dance, Music
37	Individual	Jumadil, Jamil Adjuli	Drawing, Painting		Martires St., Jolo	Sulu	Visual
38	Individual	Alan Muktar Husain	Poetry, Short Stories, Khutba / Speech Writing, Traditional Music, Photography, Media		No.94, Bangsamoro Pabahay Project, Anuling, Patikul	Sulu	Literary, Music, Media
3	Individual	Eldisin, Abduraup Adjuri	Short Stories, Epics, Dance, Theatre and Films, Music, Sculpting		Upper San Raymundo, Jolo	Sulu	Literary, Dance, Dramatic, Music, Visual
40	Individual	Jamang, Nurhasad Imam Ahadani	Poetry, Traditional Music,Drawing, Painting, Gabbang Making		Kamahardikaan, Indanan	Sulu	Literary, Music, Visual
41	Individual	Hja. Juhara Sarahadil	Culinary		Kamahardikaan, Indanan	Sulu	Culinary