Butuanon people

Butuanon people

Butuanon gathering, circa 1961
Total population
1,420,000 (2000 census)
Regions with significant populations
Philippines: Caraga
Languages
Butuanon, Cebuano, Tagalog, English
Religion
predominantly Roman Catholic, minorities of Animism and Hinduism
Related ethnic groups
other Visayans, other Filipinos, other Austronesian groups (especially Indonesians, Dayak, Malays, Meratus Dayak and other non-Muslim Pribumi)

The Butuanon, also known interchangeably by the endonym Lapaknon, are an ethnolinguistic group who primarily inhabit the region of Caraga, Philippines. ^[1]

They are part of the wider Bisaya peoples.

Area

Butuanons live in the provinces of Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur. Some live in Misamis Oriental or in Surigao del Norte, all of which are in the northeastern corner of Mindanao.

Demographics

Butuanon gathering 1958.

Butuanons number about 1,420,000. They are the descendants of Austronesian-speaking immigrants who came from South China during the Iron Age.

The native language of Butuanons is the Butuanon language, but most younger Butuanon nowadays primarily speak the Cebuano language, because of the mass influx of Cebuano settlers to Mindanao, and Filipino and English as second or third languages. ^[2]

A dance number being presented at the annual Kahimunan Festival at the Libertad Sports Complex in Butuan. The festival is celebrated every January.

They founded the Butuan Kingdom in the 10th century.^{[ citation needed ]}

While historically Hindu, Buddhist and animist, today most are Roman Catholics due to missionary activity under Spanish colonization, and a few are Protestant (including the Philippine Independent Church).^{[ citation needed ]}

See also

• Butuanon language
• Caraga

• Butuan
  • Butuan (historical polity)

• Ethnic groups in the Philippines

References

1. "BUTUANON, AKA: Lapaknon". California State University East Bay Anthropology Museum. Retrieved January 29, 2025.
2. "Butuanon". University of the Philippines Diliman. Retrieved January 29, 2025.

Further reading

• Kobari, Yoshihiro (2009). The Current Status of the Butuanon Language and Its Speakers in Northern Mindanao: Findings on Ethnic Identity, Language Attitudes, Language Ability, Language Use, and Language Change (Ph.D. thesis). De La Salle University.
• Kobari, Yoshihiro (2016). "The Game of Naming: A Case of the Butuanon Language and its Speakers in the Philippines" (PDF). Language and Linguistics in Oceania. 8: 1–21.

• Visayan peoples
  • Surigaonon people
  • Tausūg people