Tribe

**Appearances:** | Every season

The competing teams in *PM Survivor* are known as ***tribes***. Commonly, there are two tribes in a season, but there have been instances where three or four may be active at the same time. A tribe can have anywhere from four to ten contestants at the beginning of the game.

## Dividing Into Tribes

Most commonly, the tribes are divided by the producers before the game begins. However, there have been exceptions.

### The Schoolyard Pick

Some seasons have had the tribes selected by the contestants themselves. This is known as the "Schoolyard Pick".

* In *Tahiti*, the Schoolyard Pick was started by the winners of the first individual Immunity Challenge.
* In *Guatemala*, the oldest male and female contestants were told that elders were given utmost respect in the location, and it was only fitting that they were the ones who will pick their tribe members.

The Schoolyard style selection is not limited to just selecting starting tribes, but can be also used in a tribe switch.

### Tribes Preset by Production

In most early seasons, the castaways are divided into tribes semi-randomly:

* In *Comoros*, *Nepal*, *Palau* and *Vanuatu*, the 18 contestants were divided into two tribes of nine, with five men and four women on one tribe and five women and four men on the other tribe.
* In *All Stars* and *Cape Verde*, the 18 contestants were divided into three tribes of six, with three men and three women on each tribe.
* In *Thailand*, *Philippines* and *Cébaco*, the 20 contestants were divided into two tribes of ten, with five men and five women on each tribe.
* In *San Juan Del Sur*, the 16 new contestants were divided into two tribes of eight, with four men and four women on each tribe. The two tribes were joined by a returning contestant from *Vanuatu* and *Gabon*, whose tribe was chosen based on the winner of the Reward Challenge.
* In *Panama* and *Mauritius*, the 20 contestants were divided into four tribes of five, having either three men and two women or three women and two men.

### Tribes Divided by Theme

More common in recent years is to see tribes divided by a specific theme:

* In *Chile* and *Polynesia*, tribes were separated by gender, known as the Battle of the Sexes twist. The tribes were divided in two tribes of nine.
* In *Gabon*, the tribes were divided into two tribes of ten by age. The tribes were divided into two tribes of nine.
* In *Cuba* & *Survivor 25*, the 20 contestants were divided into two tribes of ten: one tribe containing all-new players (the "Fans"), while the other has players from past seasons (the "Favorites"). Each tribe had five men and five women.
* In *Heroes vs. Villains*, the 20 contestants were divided into two tribes of ten by how they were generally perceived in their previous season(s), placing the contestants on either the Heroes or Villains tribe. Each tribe had five men and five women.
* In *Survivor 21*, the 20 contestants were divided into two tribes of ten, with five men and five women on each tribe. Each pair of loved ones were on opposing tribe.
* In *Survivor 22*, the 18 contestants were divided into three tribes of six, with three pairs of rivals on each tribe.
* In *Survivor 24*, the 20 contestants were divided into four tribes of five by age and gender (Older Men, Older Women, Younger Men, and Younger Women).

### Other

* In *Anarchy*, due to the Anarchy twist, the tribes were formed late during the game with the contestants leaving their tribe status up to random draw.
* In *Survivor 23*, the game started with an imbalance of men and women, 18 contestants on two tribes of nine with five women and four men.

## Names and Identification

Starting tribes are given unique names (usually based on local language, culture, or history) and identifying colors which are used on tribe flags, challenge props, on-screen text, and various other items. Each player is given a buff, an elastic ring of cloth generally adorned with the logo for the current season, that can be worn as an armband, headband, tube top, miniskirt, mask, or a bow tie. Players are required to wear the buff with the color of their tribe in a visible location at all times only being allowed to take their buffs off when they are told, allowing the audience to identify tribal affiliation.

### Tribe Switch

The tribe switch is the very first Survivor twist. The contestants are asked to drop their buffs, signaling there will be a change in the nature and personal makeup of the tribes. In a tribe switch, the contestants will either end up at their original tribe or they will be swapped into another. They must give up their old buff and must don a new one. If there is a switch, it occurs before the merge, commonly catching players off-guard. The logic of the switch is that the relationships from their first tribe will be tested in their new tribe, and will create additional possibilities when the tribes finally merge. Oftentimes, players who were not successful in their original tribe use the switch as an opportunity to create new bonds, and potentially last longer in the competition.

### Mutiny

The mutiny is a variation of the tribe switch. This twist allows players to change tribes at will. Like a traditional swap, the "mutineer" must surrender his/her old buff and will be given the same colored buff as his/her new tribe. The mutiny is a rare twist, as it was unpopular among players (as this is deemed a big, bold move for many, thus doing so will be very risky). Four seasons have offered a chance to mutiny, though from those four times, the offer was accepted only once.

* In *Survivor: Vanuatu*, the first ever mutiny was offered. Naya Emerson and Taron Lowe mutinied from the Manaro tribe while Saxton Turner mutinied from the Lataro tribe.
* In *Survivor: Mauritius*, a mutiny was offered at the final 12. Rachel Barr, Rickey Meza, Tony Canales mutinied from Lapli to Chale, and Shea Forbes mutinied from Chale to Lapli.

### Tribe Dissolves

Another variant of the tribe switch is the "dissolve." Usually happens in a season with more than two tribes at a time, tribe(s) will be permanently disbanded, spreading its old members into the remaining tribes. Like in a traditional swap, members of a dissolved tribe must surrender their old buff and must join their new tribe.

## Tribe Types

### Starting Tribes

Each *Survivor* season starts with 18 to 20 contestants (dubbed as the "castaways") stranded in a remote location and will be left there for the next 39 days. The castaways will be then equally divided into teams "tribes". These tribes then will be sent out to separate camps identified by a colored tribe banner. Both camps are far apart from each other and they have an equal distance from the challenge areas, the production team's encampment and the Tribal Council set (example, if tribe A has a 1-mile distance from Tribal Council, so does tribe B; see the Camp article for more information). The resources of both camps (food and water) can be either equally found or compromising (example, tribe A's camp may have a better water source, but finding food would be difficult, while tribe B will have the opposite). From there on out, the contestants must fend for themselves in all aspects of survival (foraging for food, creating shelter, fishing, etc.). Tribes will also be given meager supplies (with a machete, water canteens, and a pot as staples), depending on the season (there are seasons that that have limited food rations, but there are some seasons that they were given only the staples). Earlier seasons allowed castaways to have a "luxury item" (a piece of home), though some seasons pit the players into the game without preparation (merely making them compete with only the clothes they are currently wearing).

### Merged Tribe

The merged tribe is composed of the remaining members of the two starting tribes. Whereas the starting tribes are named by the producers, the new tribe will be usually named by the castaways themselves.

## Tribe Colors Per Season

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