The Philippine Muslim studies

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to selectively review the existing studies of Muslims in the Philippines. Most of these studies were motivated by a concern to understand this religious minority group, which had been left out of the mainstream of Philippine history and culture, and to integrate them into the Philippine nation. In the 1950s and 1960s, studies based on the modernization theory were prevalent, whereas since the 1970s, a number of studies have been published which attempt to analyze and explain the Muslim secessionist movement led by the MNLF. Here I shall focus on two approaches adopted in studies of this subject, one which explains the Mindanao conflict mainly by socio-economic factors, and the other which emphasizes the role of Islam in forming the Moro identity, as opposed to the Filipino national identity. Discussing some of the major works representing both approaches together with their contributions and shortcomings, I conclude that we need to investigate the socio-economic conditions of Mindanao, to examine how Mindanao people perceive these conditions, and to consider how, and to what extent, Islam influences the formation of such perceptions.