Studies in Moro History, Law, and Religion

In 1905, Najeeb M. Saleeby secured something extraordinary: exact copies of the tarsila, the sacred genealogies that Moro sultans and datus had guarded for centuries, never permitting non-Muslims to see them. This book publishes those translations for the first time, alongside Saleeby's rigorous analysis of Mindanao's history, law, and religious traditions. The text traces the mythic pre-Islamic period of Raja Indarapatra, then follows the transformation that arrived with Sharif Kabungsuwan and the faith that brought writing, governance, and civilization to the island. Saleeby also develops a transliteration system to render Magindanao names from Arabic script into Roman characters, solving a problem that had baffled Spanish and English scholars for generations. What emerges is not merely a colonial document but a window into a sophisticated Muslim society that resisted Spanish colonization for centuries while maintaining intricate systems of law, lineage, and sacred tradition. The book remains essential reading for anyone serious about understanding the Islamic Philippines, the genealogy of Southeast Asian sultanates, or the complex history of Mindanao beyond the headlines.