PEOPLE

The SARANGANS showcase enormous cultural diversity of Blaan, Tboli, Tagakaolo, Kalagan, Manobo, Ubo, Muslim tribes and Christian settlers. Hospitable and fun-loving “Sarangans” (people of Sarangani) adhere to a unified direction for development.

Muslim consists of 7 groups; the Lumads, 17; and the migrant settlers, at least 20. The Blaans characterize the largest minority and are distributed in the municipalities of Malapatan, Glan, Alabel, Maasim, and Malungon. A bulk of this tribe is found in Malapatan constituting 37% of the municipal household population.

The Maguindanaos are settled in the municipalities of Malapatan, Maitum, and Maasim; Tbolis reside mostly in Maitum, Kiamba, and Maasim while Tagakaolos subsist entirely in Malungon.

Cebuano settlers are found in Glan and Alabel; Ilonggos are situated in Malungon while the Ilocanos live mostly in Kiamba and Maitum.

Thus, Sarangani’s mixed population of Cebuano-speaking Blaans and Muslims in the east coast, Ilocano-speaking Tbolis, Manobos and Muslims in the west coast, and Ilonggo-speaking Blaans and Kaolos in the north uplands, is unique and in harmony.

Sarangani’s population in 1995 Census was placed at 367,006. Of the total population, 48 percent were females and 52 percent were males.

The municipality of Malungon has the biggest population with 92,433 at the pace of 9.14%. Although Maasim was accounted to have the smallest number of people with 31,641 at 3.21% growth rate, it was Kiamba to have ascended least with only 2.17 percent.

In terms of population distribution by municipality, Malungon serves 24% of the total population followed by Glan, 20%; Alabel and Malapatan in tow with 13%; Kiamba, 11 %, Maitum, 10%; and Maasim, 9%.

The province’s population density was posted 83 persons per square kilometer of land in 1995 and expected to reach 113 persons per square kilometer by the year 2005 based on the projected population level.

Out of the seven municipalities, the municipality of Malapatan has the highest percentage of urban population at 51.67. Glan represents the least with only 23.20% of its populace living in the urban areas.

Sarangani has 84.9% dependency ratio. This is because the economically productive aged 15-64 consists only 54.1% of the provincial population. For every 100 persons of productive age in the province, there are 85 dependents, 81 of which are children.

There are 79,911 estimated number of households in Sarangani with 70 percent residing in rural areas and 30 percent in urban. The average provincial household size is 5.19.

Being culturally diverse, the province recorded 49 languages and dialects being spoken by its populace. 51.27 percent of the total households speak Cebuano, the widely used in the province except Maitum and Kiamba, where Ilocano is dominantly used as medium of communication.

Blaan dialect is spoken by 12.92 percent; Hiligaynon, 7.55 percent; Ilocano, 5.70 percent; Maguindanaon, 5.51 percent; Tboli, 4.42 percent; Tagacaolo, 2.79 percent; Kalagan, 0.90 percent; Aklanon, 0.82 percent; and Sangil, 0.81 percent.

Foreign languages spoken by immigrants include Indonesians, English, Chinese, Germans, Dutch, etc. Majority of the total household practice Roman Catholicism. The second largest religion is Islam and Protestant.

The province has a total literacy rate of 92% and functional literacy rate of 86.87% based on the latest DECS literacy mapping.

Illiterates usually come from poor families and children who have been out-of-school for a long time.

Majority of the functionally illiterates belong to indigenous constituents and disadvantaged groups, who hardly have access to education.