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The Cotabato Manobo of Philippines

The Cotabato Manobo of Philippines, numbering approximately 43,500 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are an Indigenous Manobo people of southern Mindanao, centered in parts of Sultan Kudarat and South Cotabato, whose Cotabato Manobo language includes Tasaday and Blit varieties. They mostly adhere to Animism and Cotabato Manobo is their primary language.

Photo by Google. (2026). Image generated by Gemini 3.1 Flash: Cotabato Manobo

Fast Facts:

Affinity Group: Malay Peoples
Country: Philippines
People Cluster: Filipino Tribal
Primary Language(s): Cotabato Manobo (mta)
Primary Religion(s): Animism
Population: 43,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG007663
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Pray for the Cotabato Manobo of Philippines

Join others around the world in praying for the lost to be saved, the gospel to advance, the global Church to grow, and for laborers to be sent out and sustained in the harvest.

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Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Animism
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

98%
%
Animism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Cotabato Manobo
Language Family: Austronesian

100%
%
Manobo, Cotabato Speakers

Media Resources in Cotabato Manobo:

Films:
TitleLink
JESUSView Film

1 film

Provided by the Jesus Film Project

View all resources

Bible Resources in Cotabato Manobo:

Bible Name (Translation)VideoAudioText
Wycliffe Philippines✓
Wycliffe Bible Translators, Inc. and World Home Bible League✓

2 entries

Provided by Faith Comes by Hearing

Or check out the Cotabato Manobo bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

View all resources

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Cotabato Manobo are No Longer Unreached, which means there are more than 2% evangelical Christian populations and there are churches consistent with evangelical faith and practice. There is still more to be done among them.

Next steps for the Cotabato Manobo:
Empower local believers to begin praying for their own people
Continue gospel seed sowing and church planting
Encourage local leaders to being leading church planting strategy and looking for Unreached and Unengaged groups nearby

Pray specifically for the Cotabato Manobo of Philippines

Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.
readLuke 15:7

Pray that God will convict the lost of their sin, give them an urgency to run to Him for forgiveness, and feel His welcoming arms around them when they turn to Him.

For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.
read1 Timothy 2:5-6

Pray for the truth about Jesus Christ to spread among the lost so that many will accept His ransom for their sin and experience freedom in a relationship with Him.

Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.
readHebrews 10:35

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will hold unswervingly to their faith and to their confidence in Christ, which has a great reward.

Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."
readMatthew 6:9b-10

Pray that God will raise up Christians who are driven by a desire to see God's name worshiped, His kingdom come, and His will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Ask Him to send them to the lost in this people group and sustain them.

Manobo, Cotabato Across Countries (ROP3 - 102301) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

PhotoPeople Group IDNameCountryPopulationStrategic Progress IndexLanguage ▲Religion
Cotabato ManoboPG007663Cotabato ManoboPhilippines43,500No Longer UnreachedCotabato ManoboAnimism

To download a comprehensive people group list in spreadsheet form, visit our Research Data page.

Peoplegroups.org relies on updates from the field and other organizations for much of our data, so if you have any updates, please contact us. We use various international naming standards. For a list of these standards and fields, visit our Data Standards section.

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