Kalalaw

Kalalaw lies in the interior of central Mindanao, among the river valleys of the Cotabato basin. Its name was remembered as a Maguindanaon term for a jar of water, associated in local tradition with a great balete tree whose water did not dry up. The surrounding country joins the lowland river system to the wooded hills of the island’s interior. In the wider basin, Maguindanao rulers built connections through river travel, trade and alliances, while upland communities retained their own traditions.