Subanen territories includes the entire Zamboanga Peninsula which is divided now into different provinces; the Zamboanga City as the autonomous city in the peninsula mostly occupied by the Zamboangueño ethnic, an offspring of Subanon with inter-mixed with Sama and the Lutao who embraced Christianity and Hispanic Culture, then Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, and Zamboanga Sibugay. Basilan is also part of the Subanen territories which mostly occupied by the kalibugan group or Subanon who embraced Islam Religion. Subanon also found as the aborigine or lumad in the northern provinces of Misamis Occidental and Misamis Oriental with a vibrant culture and usually visited by tourists performing their traditional dances to welcome the visitors. Their center of culture could be found in Malasag Eco Park in Cagayan de Oro City.
The Zamboanga Peninsula is a piece of land almost detached from mainland Mindanao like a tail of an unknown headless animal heading for the Pacific. The isthmus between Panguil Bay that separates Lanao del Norte from Misamis Occidental and Illana Bay that separates Lanao del Sur from Zamboanga del Sur is what connects the Zamboanga Peninsula to the rest of Mindanao Island.[8