teniendo en cuenta las condiciones de fuerza ó de dinero.</ref> The title is still used today, especially in Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan, but it was used much more extensively in early Philippine history, particularly in the regions of central and southern Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao. Other titles still used today are lakan in Luzon, apo in central and northern Luzon, and sultan and rajah, especially in Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan. Depending upon the prestige of the sovereign royal family, the title of datu could be equated to royal princes, European dukes, marquesses and counts. In large ancient barangays, which had contacts with other Southeast Asian cultures through trade, some datus took the title of rajah or sultan. The oldest historical records mentioning the title datu are the 7th century Srivijayan inscriptions such as Telaga Batu to describe lesser kings or vassalized kings. The word datu is a cognate of the Malay terms dato or datuk and to the Fijian chiefly title of ratu. Indigenous concepts, models, and terminology concerning nobility and rulership among the peoples of the Philippine archipelago differed from one culture to the other, but lowland communities typically had a three-tier social structure aristocracy. In many of these societies, the word "datu" meant the ruler of a particular social group, known as a barangay, dulohan, or kedatuan. History In pre-Islamic times, the political leadership office was vested in a rajahship in Manila and a datuship elsewhere in the Philippines. Datu in Moro and Lumad societies in Mindanao In the later part of the 1500s, the Spaniards took possession of most of Luzon and the Visayas, converting the lowland population to Christianity from their local indigenous religion. However, although Spain eventually established footholds in northern and eastern Mindanao and the Zamboanga Peninsula, its armies failed to colonize the rest of Mindanao. This area was populated by Islamized peoples ("Moros" to the Spaniards) and by many non-Muslim indigenous groups now known as Lumad peoples. The Moro societies of Mindanao and Sulu In the traditional structure of Moro societies, the sultans were the highest authority followed by the datus or rajah, with their rule being sanctioned by the Quran. The titles datu and rajah, however, predate the coming of Islam. These titles were assimilated into the new structure under Islam. Datus were supported by their tribes. In return for tribute and labor, the datu provided aid in emergencies and advocacy