SARANGANI

We found more than its origin.

In search for the mystery that beholds a bay, a province, and a municipality bearing the name-Sarangani, we unveiled the mystic beauty of its place and people.

A five-hour boat ride from General Santos City brought us to two land masses of Sarangani Municipality-the Balut and Sarangani Islands. Balut has a land area of 6604 hectares while Sarangani has 4014.

Its ancestry reveals that Balut, a Maguindanaon term which means “an island” became a municipality of Davao del Sur 26 years ago. It is composed of 12 barangays mostly populated by sangils who landed here in the mid 14th century from Sangir Island, North of Indonesia, when the Dutch began to take dominion over the island.

Balut’s Sangil equivalent is wanowa.

Burials of Sangil Sultans, led by Sultan Panurat who were the first settlers of the land, were built by pile of rocks.

“Those kalachuche trees are memorials of Sangil royalty,” Takeda Colano revealed in vernacular when we visited the site of his great grandfather, Judah.

Takeda is heir to the sultanate of Sangil by affinity, according to the Sangil tarsila or genealogy, as recorded by Dr. Domingo M. Non of Mindanao State University and Shinzo Hayase, in 1999.

Takeda, with his two brothers, Abedin and Pacayan, recalled how their great grandfather challenged Ruy Lopez de Villalobos in the historic Balistic Island to a battle-a Muslim Kris against the Spanish’ pistol!

Marorong, fondly called Balistic Island because of its bullet form, is 70 meters across Balut Island. The rock structure built by the Sangils and B’laans as a fortress against Villalobos’ army, visitors and tourists changeably called the islet “Fort Villalobos”.

Fr. Jose Luego, a Jesuit historian, and Gregorio Zaide in his History of the Filipino People noted the landing of Ruy Lopez de Villalobos in Marorong in search for the Moluccas Island in 1543.

“…and in dire need for provisions, he sailed to Sarangani…”, Zaide wrote.

It is remarkable how the old Sangils and the heirs to the sultanate handed down their past for four generations through the word of mouth!

A Sangil darangen or folktale also tells a duel between two big men, Saramangge and Marama, to win the hand of a Sangil princess. Saramangge was treacherously defeated by Marama. His blood flowed over the bay and a rock formed from his corpse which is now called Sarangani Island and Sarangani Bay in honor of the noble warrior.

In Sangil etymology, Sarangani came from the Sangil’s Sarang-ine, “this is our territory” or “we stop here”.

“Balut and Sarangani are brothers,” recounts Professor Virginia Buhisan, an anthropologist. This was recorded by Sarangani Municipality as the legendary origin of the place which was passed by the old folk down to the young generation.

Elias Colano, 105 years old, is the oldest man in Balut and head of elders of the crowned Sultan, Pagal Padasan Colano.

Such stories were derived from these twin islands of a municipality belonging to Davao del Sur in Region XI.

The same Sarangani Bay shares marine abundance to Sarangani Province of Region XII.

These interesting stories of the Muslim’s Sangil tribe and the native B’laans whom they had intermarriages with during the early part of 16th century complete the town’s natural beauty.

Thick mangrove forest lusts the port of Barangay Mabila, the town’s poblacion.

You’ll surely enjoy strolling the grounds of a hot spring in Barangay Lipol, now built with concrete structures for adventures and tourists. Its source flows from Bad-lii in the mountains of Kalisusu and Kagongkong, about 2-hour trek from the hot spring.

An hour of boat ride and you’ll reach Ulaniban, a three-kilometer of white sand encircling the 16-hectare island belonging to barangay Patuco.

An ancient light house was built here by the Americans during the American regime which fronts the bay.

Even the tampat or burial sites of Sultan Panurat in Batuganding Point can attract tourists. They are marked by kalachuche trees and rocks piled by their descendants and B’laan natives who were then Islamized.

“Bato Manamil is the place where the fifth Sultanate of Maguindanao Mohammad Jafar Sitti Manamir was born by his mother Putri Ambas,” revealed Sangil Datu Osmeña Salisipan.

Our expedition recounts the abundance that Sarangani Bay is endowed with, shared and treasured by the sarangans.

In the celebration of our first Sarangani Bay Festival on May 17-20 in Glan, Sarangani Province, tracing down its significant past is a high light.

Beach volleyball, kayaking, skim boarding, an 11-kilometer swim across the bay, and other bay sports will be held in the four-day tilt.

“It’s first time that we celebrate this event,” Nenita Barroso, Sarangani Tourism and Investment Promotion Council (STIPC) Executive Director, disclosed.

“We will revisit the bay’s history which became the highway for the first civilization in this part of mainland Mindanao.” (Sarangani Information Office)