Ulonging

Ulonging is a term used to describe a circumstance when a tribe enters the merge with few members due constantly losing immunity challenges. The term was coined in reference to the infamous Ulong tribe from, who failed to win a single immunity challenge, entering the "merge" with only 1 member.

History
Before Ulong became known for this "achievement", there was Maraamu from. The tribe lost all but one immunity challenge and entered the merge with only three members, with only two making the Jury stage. Despite this, Maraamu produced the winner of that season.

In, the infamous Ulong tribe coined this popular term by losing every single immunity challenge. The tribe was decimated until only one member remained, Stephenie LaGrossa. As a result, there was no official merge that season. Instead, Stephenie simply moved to Koror and the game began the individual phase. She would later be voted out at the Final Seven and became the third juror. Thus, making Ulong the shortest-lived tribe in Survivor history.

featured the infamous Haves vs Have-Nots twist, with one tribe being well-fed and well-rested while the other started with nothing but a pot and a machete. Predictably, this led the Moto annihilating Ravu at every single immunity challenge. The only time Moto had to vote somebody was when they were forced to choose to keep immunity or lose their luxurious camp. Despite these setbacks, four Ravu members reached the merge phase of the game and produced the winner of that season.

saw the Foa Foa tribe lose all but one immunity challenge to their rival Galu tribe. This was likely due to Russell Hantz dumping out the entire tribe's water canteens, leaving the entire tribe dehydrated. It was because of Foa Foa's excessive losses that the "Early Merge" format was introduced to prevent a scenario similar to that of. However, despite these drawbacks, the four Foa Foa's dominated the merge thanks to their use of the Hidden Immunity Idol and their ability to appeal to the weaker members of the tribe. In the end, all four Foa Foas reached the Final Five, made up the entirety of the Final Three and produced the winner of the season.

In, the older Espada tribe dwindled until the merge due to constant immunity losses and conflicts between its members. Like Foa Foa, the tribe entered the merge with only four members compared to the younger La Flor's eight. The last Espada, Holly Hoffman was voted out one day before the finals, leaving only the three La Flor's represented in the Final Three.

saw the Matsing tribe, a tribe that many consider to be the true successor to Ulong. The tribe, plagued by failure and poor leadership, became the first tribe in Survivor history to not have a single challenge win to its name. Having lost four straight immunity challenges before the tribe dwindled to its last two members; Denise Stapley and Malcolm Freberg. Afterward the tribe officially dissolved with Denise and Malcolm joining Kalabaw and Tandang respectively. After Denise joined Kalabaw, they faced a similar problem with Dana Lambert quitting due to concerns about her health as well as losing the next two immunity challenges. This left only three Kalabaw's reaching the merge, all of them being male. Despite all of these drawbacks, Matsing and, by extension, Kalabaw had produced the winner of the season.

In, Gota, the tribe of Fans lost nearly every immunity challenge except the first one and another forfeited by the rival tribe of Favorites, Bikal. Although Gota won every immunity challenge after the Tribe Switch, the numbers still dwindled as Bikal held the majority on both sides. Like Foa Foa and Espada, the tribe of Fans would merge with only four members compared to the eight on the Favorites side. Although one Fan made it to the Final Three, she lost unanimously to a favorite.

Trivia

 * Maraamu, Ravu, Foa Foa, and Matsing all produced the winners of their respective seasons despite their terrible track record.
 * Ulong and Matsing  are the only tribes to be dissolved after being ulonged.
 * The term ulonging is similar to pagonging in that both refer to the consistent losing streaks of their name sake. The difference being that ulonging refers to a tribe's members being decimated before the merge, not after.  Additionally, pagonging is a strategic move, whereas ulonging is solely the result of challenge performace.