Sama people
Encyclopedia
The Sama are an indigenous
ethnic group
of the Philippines
and Malaysia. They are native to the Sulu Archipelago and can be found in large numbers throughout the Zamboanga Peninsula, Davao del Sur, and Sabah Malaysia. Sama migration outside of their native Sulu Archipelago
can be attributed to escalated conflict on their native islands as well as the traditionally nomadic nature of the Sama.
s who inhabit Mindanao in the Philippines and Sabah in Malaysia. Both they and their language are closely related to the West Coast Bajau of Malaysia and the Bajau of Indonesia. The Sama tribes belong to the Muslim and/or Lumad groups with varying degrees of commitment to Islamic or Animistic belief often dependent on what degree they have adapted to settling on land from living and working on boats.
, forms of folk Islam, to animistic beliefs in spirits and ancestor worship. There are a small minority of Christians.
Indigenous peoples
Indigenous peoples are ethnic groups that are defined as indigenous according to one of the various definitions of the term, there is no universally accepted definition but most of which carry connotations of being the "original inhabitants" of a territory....
ethnic group
Ethnic group
An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...
of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and Malaysia. They are native to the Sulu Archipelago and can be found in large numbers throughout the Zamboanga Peninsula, Davao del Sur, and Sabah Malaysia. Sama migration outside of their native Sulu Archipelago
Sulu Archipelago
The Sulu Archipelago is a chain of islands in the southwestern Philippines. This archipelago is considered to be part of the Moroland by the local rebel independence movement. This island group forms the northern limit of the Celebes Sea....
can be attributed to escalated conflict on their native islands as well as the traditionally nomadic nature of the Sama.
History
Sama are AustronesianAustronesian people
The Austronesian-speaking peoples are various populations in Oceania and Southeast Asia that speak languages of the Austronesian family. They include Taiwanese aborigines; the majority ethnic groups of East Timor, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei, Madagascar, Micronesia, and Polynesia,...
s who inhabit Mindanao in the Philippines and Sabah in Malaysia. Both they and their language are closely related to the West Coast Bajau of Malaysia and the Bajau of Indonesia. The Sama tribes belong to the Muslim and/or Lumad groups with varying degrees of commitment to Islamic or Animistic belief often dependent on what degree they have adapted to settling on land from living and working on boats.
Demographics and religion
The various Sama sub-groups vary culturally, linguistically, and religiously. Religion can vary from a strict adherence to Sunni IslamSunni Islam
Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam. Sunni Muslims are referred to in Arabic as ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah wa āl-Ǧamāʿah or ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah for short; in English, they are known as Sunni Muslims, Sunnis or Sunnites....
, forms of folk Islam, to animistic beliefs in spirits and ancestor worship. There are a small minority of Christians.