The Dibabawon Manobo of Philippines

The Dibabawon Manobo of Philippines, numbering approximately 13,500 people, are No Longer Unreached. They are described as an ethnolinguistic community of the Philippines They are an Indigenous people, with Manobo as their ethnic/kinship group and are in the Filipino Tribal people cluster of the Malay Peoples. Their primary religion is Animism. They primarily speak Manobo, Dibabawon.

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

Fast Facts*:

Affinity Group: Malay Peoples
Country: Philippines
People Cluster: Filipino Tribal
Primary Language(s): Manobo, Dibabawon (mbd)
Primary Religion(s): Animism
Population: 13,500
Strategic Progress Index (SPI): No Longer Unreached
Global Status of Evangelical Christianity (GSEC): 10% or Greater Evangelical
People Group ID: PG007666
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Pray for the Dibabawon 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.

Dig Deeper (Religion):

Primary Religion: Animism
Religious Affiliation: Ethnoreligion

91%
%
Animism Adherents

Dig Deeper (Language):

Primary Language: Manobo, Dibabawon
Language Family: Austronesian

100%
%
Manobo, Dibabawon Speakers

Media Resources in Manobo, Dibabawon:

Films:

No film resources are listed for this language.

Bible Resources in Manobo, Dibabawon:

No Bible resources are listed for this language.

Or check out the Manobo, Dibabawon bible at Bible.com

Linked from YouVersion

SPI: No longer Unreached

The Dibabawon 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 Dibabawon 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 Dibabawon Manobo of Philippines

For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.
readEphesians 5:8

Pray that those who are lost will turn from the darkness they are walking in and embrace the light, becoming children of light who bear fruit in every good work.

Moses said, "Please show me your glory." And he said, "I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name 'The LORD.' And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy."
readExodus 33:18-19

Pray that many will come to know the glory of God, which is revealed in Jesus Christ, and that they will rejoice in the mercy He offers them.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
read1 Peter 2:24

Pray that as people place their faith in Christ, they will remember every day that Jesus' death on the cross brings real healing and restoration to their souls and joyfully share this good news with others.

Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together!
readPsalm 34:3

Pray that God will raise up believers who will go to those in this people group who do not yet follow Jesus, and that they will invite many to magnify the Lord with them so that His fame will spread to the ends of the earth.

Manobo, Dibabawon Across Countries (ROP3 - 102594) reported in the following countries:

Strategic Progress Index
All

1 people group

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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