III. KULAMAN. 



Synonyms. 



(a) CULAMANES. 



(b) Manobo. 



According to Governor Bolton this tribe numbers about thirty-five 

 hundred individuals and occupies a considerable portion of the coast, 

 and adjacent mountains, from the Padada river on the north to Saran- 

 gani Bay on the south. On the east side of Davao Gulf its members 

 are found along the beach and in the mountains, from Sigaboy to Cape 

 San Agustin, and also in a few scattered villages on the southeastern 

 Pacific Coast. 



By their neighbors they are known as Kulaman or Manobo. The 

 former designation is translated as "bad man," but it is probable that 

 they received the name from the town of Kulaman, where they formerly 

 resided. They are equally well known as Manobo — a word meaning 

 "man." Earlier writers, misled by these two names, have generally 

 treated this people as forming two distinct groups, but this is quite 

 incorrect, both names being applied to a part or to the whole of the 

 tribe. It has also been customary to describe them as a part of the 

 great Manobo tribe which inhabits a large portion of Central and 

 Northeastern Mindanao. The writer is of the opinion that there is 

 not sufficient evidence to justify such a classification and that for the 

 present we must consider them as distinct from the Manobo of the 

 northern district as are the other tribes of Davao Gulf. 



According to their own tales, the Kulaman once held all the coast 

 from the Padada River to Sarangani Bay, but did not extend far back 

 from the sea, since in the mountains lived the Tagakaolo and Bila-an 

 with whom they were constantly at war. When the Moro appeared 

 on their coasts and offered help against the hill tribes in return for 

 land, they were gladly received and were given several village sites 

 near to the mouths of various rivers. Aside from a few minor quarrels, 

 the Kulaman have always lived on friendly terms with these later 

 comers, and not a few of the tribe have been converted to Moham- 

 medism. 



Influenced by their new allies they organized under several petty 

 rulers who were subservient to the datu at Kulaman, and with this 

 superior organization they were able to carry on such successful warfare 



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