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People group profile · PG007659

The Central Subanen of the Philippines

The Central Subanen of the Philippines, numbering about 220,000 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are the indigenous Lumad people of Mindanao's Zamboanga Peninsula in the Philippines, pushed from the coast into the forested interior by Moro expansion and Spanish colonization, known for shifting rice cultivation and the buklog thanksgiving dance.

They are an indigenous people in the Filipino Tribal people cluster of the Malay Peoples. Their primary religion is Ethnoreligion, and they primarily speak Central Subanen.

Pray for the Central SubanenPrint profile

AI-generated illustration representing the Central Subanen people
AI-generated illustration, not a photograph. Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash: Central Subanen

Fast facts

Country
Philippines
Population
220,000
Affinity group
Asian Pacific Rim Peoples
People cluster
Filipino Tribal
Primary language
Central Subanen (syb)
Primary religion
Ethnoreligion
Strategic Progress Index
No Longer Unreached
Evangelical
2% or Greater but Less than 5%
GSEC
2% or Greater but Less than 5% Evangelical
Lostness priority
Minimally Reached People Group
Region
South-Eastern Asia, Asia

Where they live

Gospel status

The Central Subanen are No Longer Unreached, which means 2% or more are evangelical Christians. In GSEC terms, this people group is greater than or equal to 2% evangelical.

  • Congregations exist Yes
  • Church planting in the last two years No Churches Planted

Next steps for the Central Subanen

  • Pray for the churches among this group to grow in faithfulness and maturity
  • Equip believers to reach the unreached peoples around them
  • Send out laborers from this people to the nations

Primary religion

Ethnoreligion

60% adherents

Primary language

Central Subanen · Austronesian family

100% speak Central Subanen

Gospel resources in Central Subanen

  • Bible available, published 1992
  • JESUS Film not available
  • Radio programs not available
  • Gospel recordings available
  • Audio resources available
  • Bible stories not available

Find more at the JESUS Film Project, Bible.com and Faith Comes by Hearing.

Pray for the Central Subanen

  1. Psalm 27:1. Pray that new believers will be strengthened in the face of persecution, with the Lord as their stronghold.
  2. Romans 12:4–5. Pray that believers from many cultures will work together as one body so that the church is built up.
  3. Revelation 7:9. Pray for the day when people from this group stand before the throne with every nation, tribe, people and language.
  4. John 17:3. Pray that many will come to know the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.

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