Mindanao

About

Mindanao ( , MIN-də-NOW) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of the same name that also includes its adjacent islands, notably the Sulu Archipelago. According to the 2020 census, Mindanao had a population of 26,252,442, while the entire island group had an estimated population of 27,384,138 as of 2024.

Mindanao is divided into six administrative regions: the Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, the Caraga region, the Davao region, Soccsksargen, and the autonomous region of Bangsamoro. According to the 2020 census, Davao City is the most populous city on the island, with 1,776,949 people, followed by Zamboanga City (pop. 977,234), Cagayan De Oro (pop. 728,402), General Santos (pop. 722,059), Butuan (pop. 372,910), and Cotabato City (pop. 325,079).

The vast majority of Mindanao's residents declare affiliation to various Christian groups, tantamounting roughly to two thirds of the population, while the Islamic religion sums up the island's (and the country's) largest minority, which has been reported or estimated to represent from 15 to 25%. Ethnic minority groups in Mindanao whose members are predominantly Islamic account for most of Muslims in Philippines. The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) stands out as the most predominantly Islamic region, where, according to the 2020 census, above 89% of the population identified as Muslims. Reports on religious demographics are often considered unreliable or inaccurate, though, as Mindanao is a deeply-divided society. Humanists, atheists, Muslims, and other religious minorities are concerned about discrimination, and human rights abuses have been denounced. Therefore, the appropriate methodology to access its ethno-religious diversity is disputed. The Philippine government's inherent failure to measure religious demographics is also argued by the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF).

Mindanao is considered the major breadbasket of the Philippines.

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.