Tbolis currently reside on the mountain slopes on either side of the upper Alah Valley and the coastal area of Maitum, Maasim and Kiamba in the province of Sarangani.

Like their immediate neighbouring ethnic groups, the Úbûs, Blàan, Blit, Tàú-Segél, and the Tasaday, they have historically been described as pagans, animists, etc., as opposed to Muslim peoples or Christian settlers.

In ethnographic and linguistic literature on Mindanao, their name is variously spelt Tboli, T'boli, Tböli, Tagabili, Tagabilil, Tagabulul and Tau Bilil.

However, over the decades, Tbolis can speak and understand Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Tagalog and to the some extent, Ilocano, alongside their own native language.

These languages were brought and introduced by these settlers from Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor, Negros, Panay, Tagalog-speaking regions, Central Luzon and Ilocandia, upon their arrival into Tboli homelands during the early 20th century.