Sangir people
Sangir, Sangihe, Sangil | |
|---|---|
A fishing family outside at the beach with net in Sangir Island, December 1948. | |
| Total population | |
| approx. 600,000 people | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Indonesia: North Sulawesi: 449,805 Gorontalo: 7,489 North Maluku Philippines (2020): South-Central Mindanao: 10,898 Davao Region: 8,841 | |
| Languages | |
| Sangiric languages (mainly Sangir), Minahasan, Manado Malay, Indonesian • Cebuano, Filipino, English (those resident in the Philippines) | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity (mainly Protestant) 80%, minority Sunni Islam 20% | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
Sangir people, also known as Sangirese, are native people of the Sangir Islands in the northern chain of islands in Sulawesi and the southern part of Mindanao. The Sangirese people are fishermen and nutmeg growers in their home areas and also work as wage labourers in industrial crops enterprises in Bolaang Mongondow Regency and Minahasa Regency.
The Sangirese have traditionally been concentrated in the province of North Sulawesi in Indonesia and the Region of Dávao in the Philippines. Many Sangirese migrants inhabit mainland Sulawesi, as well as North Maluku, including Ternate and Halmahera. The (Muslim) Sangil of the Philippines, who represent an early migrant group, are ethnically distinct from the (predominantly Christian) Sangirese of Indonesia, and are considered part of the Moro.
Genetic studies have shown that the Sangil have partial Papuan descent.