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First Previous HISTORICAL BACKGROUND. pg. 1. Bibliographic Info 1 2. INTRODUCTION. 3. I. THE PYGMIES. of 2 Next Last 1. RACIAL AFFINITIES. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND. 2. GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS The great majority of the Mohammedan Filipinos appear to be descended 3. PYGMIES from native pagans who were Mohammedanized subsequent to the fourteenth ELSEWHERE. century, A. D., by a relatively small number of outsiders who came into the 4. II. THE Islands from Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula, via Borneo, and whose INDONESIANS. descendants still constitute the ruling classes and the strongest adherents to the 1. RACIAL Mohammedan faith. The Arabian and Straits Malay culture which AFFINITIES. accompanied the advent of Mohammedanism, however, must not be 2. GENERAL considered as the first civilization to reach these shores. Long before the CHARACTERISTICS coming of the Arabian faith into the Eastern Archipelago, the people of our 3. GEOGRAPHICAL Moro region had been in contact with two still more ancient civilizations DISTRIBUTION. those of China and of India. 4. PHYSICAL DIFFERENTIATION. 5. III. THE MALAYS. 6 1. A. THE PAGAN MALAYS. 2. B. THE MOHAMMEDAN MALAYS. 3. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND. 4. GENERAL CULTURE GROUPS.

5. HISTORICAL NOTES. 6. GENERAL CULTURE. 6. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION.

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The Chinese contact seems to have extended over a period of at least 1,500 years, but in character it appears to have been almost entirely commercialaffecting the economic life of the people extensively, but their social and religious life very little. One evidence of this, out of the many which still exist, is to be found in the language. Practically all of the words in Philippine languages which can be traced to a Chinese source are of a purely economic or commercial character. There appears to have been no organized attempt at political conquest or domination, and there were probably not even colonies of merchants until relatively modern times. It is true that there are Chinese records which would seem to indicate that several former rulers of Sulu had acknowledged fealty to China and even exchanged presents with the Chinese Court, but it is probable that these were nominal acts only arranged by merchants for their own protectionand had little real significance. The earlier intercourse seems to have been carried on wholly from junks trading along the shores while only in later and more cultured times did merchants actually establish themselves upon the land. 6 Not so was the type of contact which brought ancient Indian culture, Brahmanistic beliefs, and elements of Hindu civilization into our southern islands. 6 Just when the first Indian influence began to come is extremely difficult to say. There seems to be considerable evidence that the elementary culture of our Indonesian peoples had its birth place in India, or in southeastern Asia, in a very distant past. This was an entirely pre-historic contact, however, and is outside the scope of our present discussion which will be hereafter confined to that type of Indian civilization which began to spread through the Eastern Archipelago in the early centuries of the Christian era.

6 As is well known, the great stronghold of Hindu influence in this region was the Island of Java. Not only were Hindu-ruled states established there, but the island was covered with great cities and temples of stone, the ruins of which still exist. From Java as a center, this virile culture gradually extended its influence throughout the coast regions of the Eastern Archipelago. Important Javanese colonies were established at Palembang in Sumatra, Banjermasin in southern Borneo, and Makassar in Celebes; and from these latter places the Javan culture came into the southern Philippines. 6 At just how early a date Javan chiefs or adventurers set up local governments in northern Borneo, Sulu, and Mindanao, it is as yet impossible to state. Our first reliable records date from the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, but it would seem that at that time permanent governments and a considerable degree of Javan influence had already been established in these Islands. 6 The early Javan states were numerous, and were of various sizes and degrees of power. They were also more or less constantly at war with one another, and it seems likely that their off-shoots and outlying colonies soon lost their original allegiance and frequently set themselves up as little independent states or petty chiefdoms. It was not until time of Majapahit, the greatest of all the Javan states, that the whole Island of Java and its outlying dependencies were for the first time brought under the sway of a single imperial government. 6 Majapahit was founded in the twelfth or thirteenth century, A. D., and reached the height of its power early in the fourteenth century. At this timeespecially during the reign of the last great Hindu sovereign, Angka Wijaya we have definite records which show that Javanese soldiers conquered northern Borneo, Sulu, Mindanao, and even Luzon and Formosa, and made them tributary to the Majapahit empire. 6 This great state lasted, however, but for a short time. Like other even more powerful nations, that have expanded too rapidly and over too wide an area, Majapahit was overwhelmed and destroyed by a danger near at home. From Malacca as a center, the tide of Mohammedanism had been rising in the East Indies, and about 1478 A. D. the Javan empire was completely overthrown. The tributary states quickly fell away, and soon transferred their allegiance to the new Mohammedan empire of Malacca. This combination in turn, however, was broken up in less than a century by the invading Portuguese and Spaniards from Europe. Later came the Dutch and the English, and the European conquest was checked by mutual rivalries. Because of the conflict and jealousy between the European nationalities, many small Mohammedan states were enabled to survive in a state of practical independence until quite recent times. Among the latter were our sultanates of Sulu and Mindanao,though the weaker states in the Bisayan Islands and Luzon quickly submitted and adopted the Spanish culture and beliefs. 6

Before we turn to a more particular consideration of our Mohammedan groups, it may be wise to say a few words regarding the type of Indian culture introduced into the Islands during the days of Javanese dominance. 6

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