General Santos in the context of "Philippine Statistics Authority"

Mindanao (/ˌmɪndəˈnaʊ/ MIN-də-NOW) is the second-largest island in the Philippines, after Luzon, and seventh-most populous island in the world. Located in the southern region of the archipelago, the island is part of an island group of the same name that also includes its adjacent islands, notably the Sulu Archipelago. According to the 2020 census, Mindanao had a population of 26,252,442, while the entire island group had an estimated population of 27,384,138 as of 2024.

Mindanao is divided into six administrative regions: the Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, the Caraga region, the Davao region, Soccsksargen, and the autonomous region of Bangsamoro. According to the 2020 census, Davao City is the most populous city on the island, with 1,776,949 people, followed by Zamboanga City (pop. 977,234), General Santos (pop. 722,059), Butuan (pop. 372,910), and Cotabato City (pop. 325,079). About 70% of residents identify as Christian and 24% as Muslim. Mindanao is considered the major Bread Basket of the Philippines.

Soccsksargen (officially stylized in all caps; [sokˈsardʒɛn]), designated as Region XII, is an administrative region of the Philippines. Formerly known as Central Mindanao, it is located in south-central Mindanao and comprises four provinces: Cotabato, Sarangani, South Cotabato, and Sultan Kudarat, and one highly urbanized city, General Santos. The regional center is Koronadal in South Cotabato, while the center of commerce and industry is General Santos, the most populous city in the region.

Maguindanaon (Basa Magindanawn, Jawi: باس مڬندنون‎), or Magindanawn is an Austronesian language spoken by Maguindanaon people who form majority of the population of eponymous provinces of Maguindanao del Norte and Maguindanao del Sur in the Philippines. It is also spoken by sizable minorities in different parts of Mindanao such as the cities of Zamboanga, Davao, General Santos, and Cagayan de Oro, and the provinces of Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, South Cotabato, Sarangani, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, Davao del Sur, Davao Occidental, Bukidnon as well as Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Rizal and Laguna. As of 2020, the language is ranked to be the ninth leading language spoken at home in the Philippines with only 365,032 households still speaking the language.