Praying for Indonesia

Join the movement!

  • Pray 4 Ramadan
  • About Indonesia
    • Overview of Indonesia
    • Quick Facts About Indonesia
    • The Islands of Indonesia
    • Indonesia: Think Big!
    • News
  • Religion in Indonesia
    • Overview of Religions
    • Christianity In Indonesia
    • Buddhism in Indonesia
    • Hinduism in Indonesia
    • Islam in Indonesia
    • Folk Islam In Indonesia
  • Ethnic Groups
    • The People of Bali and Nusa Tenggara
    • The People of Java
    • The People of Kalimantan
    • The People of Maluku
    • The People of Sulawesi
    • The People of Sumatra
  • Testimonies
  • Get Involved
    • Prayer Resources
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Privacy Policy
You are here: Home / Ethnic Groups / The People of Sulawesi / Who are the Toli-Toli?

Who are the Toli-Toli?

The Toli-Toli are also known as Tontoli, Totoli, or Gage. They live in the Toli Toli regency of Central Sulawesi province. The Toli-Toli area has steep rolling hills along the coast.

Toli-Toli is derived from the word totolu meaning three. According to folklore, the Toli-Toli derived from three persons who incarnated from heaven to earth through olisan bulan (golden bamboo), bumbung lanjat (peak tree of Langsat) and ue saka (similar to rattan). Olisan bulan incarnated is known as Tau Dei Baolan or Tamadika Baolan. Ue saka incarnated is known as Tau Dei Galang or Tamadika Dei Galang. A princess who incarnated as bumbung lanjat is known as Buki Bulan.

The Toli-Toli language is more closely related to the Boano language. It is related to the Tomini group of languages.

What are their lives like?

Toli-Toli villages are small and comprised of houses on stilts. Toli-Toli living on the coast are often fishermen, while those in the hills typically cultivate rice in unirrigated fields, as well as corn and sago.

The Toli-Toli produce high quality spices such as cloves, as well as copra and cocoa. Because of the many coastal areas, Toli-Toli areas are rich in marine products as fish and seaweed. Currently, the government is in the process of doing international trade with East Kalimantan province, Malaysia and the Philippines that is known as Totata and Tosamin. These are expected to bring many work and business opportunities.

In an earlier era, the Toli-Toli people were governed by a sultan. Each clan was led by a head man who was chosen along ancestral lines. Because of that, social classes developed among the people. The four classes are: royalty, nobility, common people and slaves.

In the Toli-Toli area, the development of transportation tends to be slow. Adequate transportation is needed to support smooth distribution of their abundant crops.

What are their beliefs?

The Toli-Toli people are Sunni Muslam; however many do not strictly follow the teachings of Islam. In the more isolated locations, many of the Toli-Toli still hold to their local ancient religion of animism. They believe that inanimate things are indwelt by spirits. Many Toli-Toli mix worship of nature and their ancestors with Islam.

What are their needs?

Better education in schools and better vocational training would help improve the employment opportunities of the Toli-Toli young people. The people as a whole need improved infrastructure to market their produce and increase trade, in order to fully participate in the national and international economies.

There are several very beautiful sites which still could be developed, especially the beaches of Lalos, Sabang, Tende, Bajungan and Kolondom; along with underwater tourism of pristine coral reefs, as well as various islands that are very suitable for resorts.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Time limit is exhausted. Please reload CAPTCHA.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Get This FREE Prayer Guide!

Download this Free book today and also get prayer updates!

* indicates required

Newest Tweets

Twitter
praying4indonesia
praying4indonesia
@ipray4indonesia

Gita contacted the media ministry requesting help carrying a burden. Her mom wants her to get married instead of being a teacher. The God’s worker shared that the Savior can answer her prayer and offers to carry our burdens. Pray for Gita finds hope through the Savior. pic.twitter.com/wfv3…

reply retweet favorite
10:00 pm · July 1, 2022
Twitter
praying4indonesia
praying4indonesia
@ipray4indonesia

"I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought." 1 Corinthians 1:10 Pray for unity among believers pic.twitter.com/un3t…

reply retweet favorite
10:00 pm · June 30, 2022
Twitter
praying4indonesia
praying4indonesia
@ipray4indonesia

Ali contacted a media ministry in 2020 with questions about the Savior. After speaking with a field worker, he put his faith in Christ. Since then, he has shared his new faith with his family resulting in 15 people coming to the Savior. Pray for blessings to media movements pic.twitter.com/RF2Z…

reply retweet favorite
10:00 pm · June 29, 2022
Twitter
praying4indonesia
praying4indonesia
@ipray4indonesia

In Indonesia less than .4% of people with disabilities are currently employed. Manpower Ministry has recently developed an e-learning program to be used in conjunction with the training centers. Pray that Indonesia people with disabilities will increasingly be equipped. pic.twitter.com/3cA2…

reply retweet favorite
10:00 pm · June 28, 2022
Twitter
praying4indonesia
praying4indonesia
@ipray4indonesia

An Indonesian woman was having dreams inviting her to “come to me”. She attended a study with a field worker where over several months, she heard and understood that the Savior was her sacrifice. After much prayer by others, she made Jesus her Lord. pic.twitter.com/7UDH…

reply retweet favorite
10:00 pm · June 27, 2022
Follow @ipray4indonesia

Praying For Indonesia Facebook

Praying for Indonesia

Copyright © 2010–2022 · Praying For Indonesia · Privacy Policy · About Us