DERIVED from the words matig (place of origin) and salog (river), the Matigsalug tribe of Davao City are found in Marilog, Paquibato, Tala-ingod, and Calinan. They are also found in Kitaotao and San Fernando in Bukidnon; Arakan, North Cotabato; and Cotabato.
They are the people who reside by the banks and tributaries of the great Davao River (Salug).
According to the tribe's historical profile, the Matigsalug people believed in Manama as the creator of all. For them, Manama enacted the Magbavaye, the commandment the tribe follows for self-governance.
In terms of their traditional wear, the Matigsalugs wear a bandera, sinalapid, tangkulo, benanos, ampitpranela, balaren, sangked, tekos, buloso, bali-eg, babat, sal-ey, and tenuhol.
The Matigsalugs primarily plant a variety of palay (rice), cash crops, vegetables, and fruits. The tribe source their meat from fish, pig, chicken, monkey, deer, and lizard, among others.
Despite the progressiveness of Davao City, the Matigsalug tribe has been able to preserve its rich culture with the help of the local government unit and their very own initiatives.
Datu Carlito Guinto, deputy mayor of the Matigsalug, said they are constantly making efforts to teach the younger generation the tribe's culture and traditions.
"Dunay jud maglisod kung mawala na mi katigulangan, sigurado ko nga kalimtan jud sa mga kabataan (There will be a challenge if we the older generation leave this world. I am sure that without us, the younger generation may soon forget about our traditions)," Guinto said.
He said one of the initiatives they are doing is writing their history, customs, and traditions in a logbook to ensure that these are passed down from one generation to another. They also go through the logbook every now and then to ensure that they did not miss any important details.
Guinto said some of the younger generation of Matigsalug are not able to pick up or learn their dances, customs, or traditions since they are already following Christian customs.
"Pero gipaningkamutan gihapon namo na dili gyud nila nakalimtan...sige ra mi tudlo (We are doing our best for them not to forget our customs...we keep on teaching them)," he said.
Guinto said they would gather their young people and share to them their tradition. He said before, this initiative was not regularly practiced.
"Sa sunod na Kadayawan among paningkamot na tanan namong kalihokan igahin namo sa mga kabataan (In the next Kadayawan we will do our best to pass our initiatives to the younger generation)," he said.
Meanwhile, he said the recent staging of the Kadayawan Vilage has become instrumental in educating the public on who are the Matigsalug.
The Kadayawan Village, which was among the highlights of the just concluded 32nd Kadayawan Festival, has helped the tribe educate the public about their customs and history.
Guinto hopes that the government will continue supporting the Matigsalug and the indigenous people in general through providing them education and support for livelihood. They are also pushing for the inclusion of a subject on the indigenous people in schools.