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Sultanate of Maguindanao

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sultanate_of_Maguindanao

The Sultanate of Maguindanao (Maguindanaon: Kasultanan nu Magindanaw, Jawi: كسولتانن نو مڬیندنو; Filipino: Sultanato ng Maguindanao) was a Sunni Muslim sultanate that ruled parts of the island of Mindanao, in the southern Philippines, especially in modern-day Maguindanao provinces (Maguindanao del Sur and Maguindanao del Norte), Soccsksargen, Zamboanga Peninsula and Davao Region. Its known historical influence stretches from the peninsula of Zamboanga to bay of Sarangani until Davao Gulf. During the era of European colonization, the sultanate maintained friendly relations with British and Dutch traders.[5]

See also: Islam in the Philippines, Religion in pre-colonial Philippines, Indosphere, and Indianisation
According to the Yuan annals of 1304 in the Nanhai Zhi, a polity known as Wenduling (文杜陵) may have been the predecessor state of Maguindanao. Wenduling was invaded by then Hindu-Buddhist Brunei (Pon-i),[6] until it rebelled and successfully broke away after the Majapahit invasion of the latter. Islamization then happened afterwards.

Islamization and founding
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Two brothers named Mamalu and Tabunaway lived peacefully in the Cotabato Valley on Mindanao and then Sharif Kabungsuwan, a member of the Ba 'Alawi sada of Johor in what is now modern day Malaysia, preached Islam in the area in the 16th century, Tabunaway converted, while Mamalu decided to hold fast to their ancestral animist beliefs. The brothers parted ways, with Tabunaway heading to the lowlands and Mamalu to the mountains, but they vowed to honor their kinship, and thus an unwritten pact of peace between Maguindanaons and the indigenous peoples was forged through the two brothers.[7]

As Shariff Kabungsuwan preached Islam in the area, which was earlier Hindu-influenced from Srivijaya times, at the end of the 16th century and established himself as Sultan seated in Malabang. He exiled some of his people who apostatised to Cotabato. He subsequently married into the families of local chieftains and established the Sultanate of Maguindanao, with its seat in Slangan (the western part of present-day Cotabato), making him virtually Sultan of the whole island.[8] The sultanate was largely centered around the Cotabato Valley.

War with Spain
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Sultan Muhammad Kudarat, and whose name as a youth was Ullah Untong, was one of the greatest sultans who controlled Mindanao. In his island sanctuary in Sulu, he was known as Sultan Nasiruddin and after his reign was buried there. His grandson Abd al-Rahman continued increasing the Sultanate's power and influence.

The Maguindanao sultanate also had a close alliance with the Ternate sultanate of the Moluccas region of Indonesia. Ternate regularly sent military reinforcements to Maguindanao during the Spanish-Moro Wars.[9]

Nevertheless, its power was reduced when the Confederate Sultanates of Lanao, declared independence from the Maguindanao Sultanate.

During the Spanish colonial period, the Sultanate of Maguindanao was able to defend its territory, preventing the Spaniards from colonizing the entire coastal Mindanao and ceding the island of Palawan to the Spanish government in 1705. The island priory ceded to him by Sulu Sultan Sahabuddin. This was to have help dissuaded Spanish encroachments into the island of Maguindanao and Sulu itself.

Chinese gongs, yellow as a color of royalty, and idioms of Chinese origin entered Mindanao culture.[10] Royalty was connected to yellow.[11] The color yellow was used by the Sultan in Mindanao.[12] Chinese tableware and gongs were exported to the Moros.[13]

Merchant Chinese were tranquilly residing alongside the Moros in Maguindanao.[14]

Government and politics
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Similar to neighboring sultanates, Maguindanao was decentralized; every town remained autonomous and ruled by their rajas, datus, etc. However, aspects of centralized authority lay in some sectors of governance absolutely controlled by the sultan. (TBE)

Administration
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Diplomacy
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Maguindanao maintained close relations with Ternate, Sulu, and Brunei, but developed a rivalry with Buayan. However, Buayan would become a de facto subject state under Sultan Kudarat of Maguindanao. (TBE)