Dinagyang

Dinagyang Festival
"An Ati Warrior in Dinagyang Festival"
Official name	Dinagyang Festival
Also called	Dinagyang
Observed by	Iloilo City
Type	Religious / Cultural
Date	Fourth Sunday of January

The Dinagyang Festival is a religious and cultural festival in Iloilo City, Philippines held on the 4th Sunday of January, or right after the Sinulog in Cebu and the Ati-Atihan Festival in Kalibo, Aklan. Dinagyang was also voted as the Best Tourism event three times in a row among any other festivals in the Philippines, it is also the most awarded festival in the country, because of its legacy, popularity and innovation . it receives an honor and regarded as World Class Festival and dubbed as the "Queen of all festivals" in the Philippines.

History

Dinagyang began after Rev. Fr. Ambrosio Galindez, the first Filipino Rector of the Agustinian Community and Parish Priest of the San Jose Parish introduced the devotion to Santo Niño in November 1967 after observing the Ati-Atihan Festival in the province of Aklan. On 1968, a replica of the original image of the Santo Niño de Cebu was brought to Iloilo by Fr. Sulpicio Enderez of Cebu as a gift to the Parish of San Jose. The faithful, led by members of Confradia del Santo Niño de Cebu, Iloilo Chapter, worked to give the image a fitting reception starting at the Iloilo Airport and parading down the streets of Iloilo.

In the beginning, the observance of the feast was confined to the parish. The Confradia patterned the celebration on the Ati-atihan of Ibajay, Aklan, where natives dance in the streets, their bodies covered with soot and ashes, to simulate the Atis dancing to celebrate the sale of Panay. It was these tribal groups who were the prototype of the present festival.

A participant of Dinagyang Festival

In 1977, the Marcos government ordered the various regions of the Philippines to come up with festivals or celebrations that could boost tourism and development. The City of Iloilo readily identified the Iloilo Ati-atihan as its project. At the same time the local parish could no longer handle the growing challenges of the festival.

Dinagyang was voted as the best Tourism Event for 2006, 2007 and 2008 by the Association of Tourism Officers in the Philippines. It is one of few festivals in the world to get the support of the United Nations for the promotion of the Millennium Development Goals, and cited by the Asian Development Bank as Best Practice on government, private sector & NGO cooperatives.

Celebration

The Dinagyang Festival is divided into three major events held annually every fourth weekend of January: Ati Tribe Competition (held on a Sunday), Dagyang sa Calle Real (held on a Saturday prior to the main event the next day, the Ati Tribe competition) and the Miss Iloilo Dinagyang (which is held on the week of the main Dinagyang Festival highlights).

As an added attraction to the Ati Tribe competition, the Kasadyahan Cultural competition was added in the festival in the 1980s to showcase the talents of the students as well as the rich cultural heritage of the province of Iloilo. In the first few years of this event, schools from various towns and cities in the province participates in this competition but in recent times, the cultural competition confined only in the province became a regional scope accepting entries from other provinces of the region showcasing the best of Western Visayas cultural and historical heritage.

The main part of the festival which is the Ati Tribe competition consists of a number of "warrior" dancers (who hold a shield in one hand and a spear in another) in a tribe (locally called "tribu") dancing in a choreographed formation and patterns as well as chanting to the sound of loud drum beats and improvised percussion instruments innovated by the respective tribes. In the early years, a number of tribes where created, founded and organized by some of the barangay or communities around the city but through the years and as the Dinagyang evolves and the competition becomes competitive gaining worldwide fame and attention, schools are starting to create and organize tribes introducing dynamic new dance patterns, formations and choreography soliciting sponsors from private companies for expenses and cost of participating in the competition. No actual Ati are involved nor do they benefit in any way from this event. There are a number of requirements, including that the performers must paint their skin black and indigenous and other kinds of materials can be used for the costumes. All dances are performed to drum music. Many tribes are organized by the local high schools and in recent times some tribes came from as far as Batanes in Luzon and Cotabato in Mindanao. The tribes receive a subsidiary from the Dinagyang Foundation Inc. and the city government of Iloilo and recruit private sponsors, with the best tribes receiving the most. The current Ati population of Iloilo is not involved with any of the tribes nor are they involved in the festival in any other way although recently the original Atis from the hinterlands of Panay specifically from the mountains of Barotac Nuevo and Anilao came to participate non-competitively for recognition and giving them importance as being the characters symbolically portrayed in the festival.

A street in Iloilo City generously decorated with banners (2009)

Dinagyang Legacy

Dinagyang festival has brought a lot of innovations throughout the years. These innovations has influenced the way other festivals in the country is run. Among these are the following:

• Carousel Performance - Dinagyang initiated the simultaneous performance of the competing tribes in different judging areas.
• Mobile Risers - Mobile risers is prominent feature of Dinagyang choreography today. It was introduced by Tribu Bola-bola in 1994. The risers has added depth and has improved the choreography of the dance movements.
• Dinagyang Pipes - First used by Tribu Ilonganon in 2005, the Dinagyang pipes are made of PVC pipes and are hammered by rubber paddles. Each pipe produces a distinct sound depending on the length and diameter of each pipe.
• Dagoy - The first festival mascot in the Philippines.

Meat being sold on one of the many food stalls lined in the streets

Dagoy

Dagoy is the official festival mascot of Dinagyang. He was born from the promotional sketches of Dinagyang in 2002. The caricature was later adopted as the official logo of the festival. He was introduced to the public in December 14, 2004 in The Fort, Taguig and December 18, 2004 in Iloilo City. Depicted as a young Ati warrior, Dagoy symbolizes the jollification and friendship of the Ilonggo and other thousands of tourists flocked to witness the festival.

Dagoy stands six feet and nine inches tall. He has a dark brown skin tone and wears a headdress with an image of Sto. Niño. He is garbed with a camel-colored loincloth which is the typical attire of an Ati. Dagoy is holding a drum made of fiberglass with the logo of the Iloilo City Government printed at the center. His hands and feet are adorned with multi-colored bracelets, similar to these being worn by a Dinagyang warrior.

Dagoy's winsome smile is popular among children as such miniature version of the mascot is marketed as Dagoy Dolls.

Year	Tribe	Barangay / Company / School
1970	Madjapahit Tribe of Compania Maritima	Compania Maritima
1971	Mamau Tribe of Negros Navigation	Negros Navigation
1972	Mamau Tribe	Negros Navigation
1973	Mamau Tribe	Negros Navigation
1974	Last Warriors	Panaderia de Molo
1975	Tribu Hamili	Barangay General Hughes, Iloilo City
1976	Tribu Hamili	Barangay General Hughes, Iloilo City
1977	Contest Not Held
1978	Tribu Atub-atub	Barangay Veteran's Village, Iloilo City
1979	No Specific Winner
1980	Tribu Himaya	?
1981	Tribu Molave	Barangay Rizal-Estanzuela, Iloilo City
1982	Tribu Atub-atub	Barangay Veteran's Village, Iloilo City
1983	Tribu Binirayan	Province of Antique
1984	Tribu Atub-atub	Barangay Veteran's Village, Iloilo City
1985	Tribu Kongo	Barangay Pali, Benedicto, Mandurriao, Iloilo City
1986	Tribu Kongo	Barangay Pali, Benedicto, Mandurriao, Iloilo City
1987	Tribu Guimbal	Municipality of Guimbal, Iloilo
1988	Tribu Kongo	Barangay Pali, Benedicto, Mandurriao, Iloilo City
1989	Tribu Binirayan	Province of Antique
1990	Tribu Sagasa	Sagasa St., Brgy. Sto. Rosario-Duran, Iloilo City
1991	Tribu Sagasa	Sagasa St., Brgy. Sto. Rosario-Duran, Iloilo City
1992	Tribu Sagasa	Sagasa St., Brgy. Sto. Rosario-Duran, Iloilo City
1993	Tribu Panaad	?
1994	Tribu Bola-bola	Iloilo National High School
1995	Tribu Binirayan	Province of Antique
1996	Tribu Bola-bola	Iloilo National High School
1997	Tribu Bola-bola	Iloilo National High School
1998	Tribu Hamili (Barangay Category) Tribu Bola-bola (Open Category)	Barangay General Hughes, Iloilo City Iloilo National High School
1999	Tribu Panaad (Barangay Category) Tribu Bola-bola (Open Category)	? Iloilo National High School
2000	Tribu Atub-atub (Barangay Category) Tribu Bola-bola (Open Category)	Barangay Veteran's Village, Iloilo City Iloilo National High School
2001	Tribu Molave (Barangay Category) Tribu Bola-bola (Open Category)	Barangay Rizal-Estanzuela, Iloilo City Iloilo National High School
2002	Tribu Molave (Barangay Category) Tribu Paghidaet (Open Category)	Barangay Rizal-Estanzuela, Iloilo City Lapaz National High School, Iloilo City
2003	Tribu Atub-atub (Barangay Category) Tribu Paghidaet (Open Category)	Barangay Veteran's Village, Iloilo City Lapaz National High School, Iloilo City
2004	Tribu Atub-atub (Barangay Category) Tribu Bola-bola (Open Category)	Barangay Veteran's Village, Iloilo City Iloilo National High School
2005	Tribu Pag-asa (Barangay Category) Tribu Silak (Open Category)	Barangay Pali, Benedicto, Mandurriao, Iloilo City Iloilo City National High School
2006	Tribu Ilonganon	Jalandoni Memorial National High School, Lapuz, Iloilo City
2007	Tribu Ilonganon	Jalandoni Memorial National High School, Lapuz, Iloilo City
2008	Tribu Paghidaet	Lapaz National High School, Iloilo City
2009	Tribu Paghidaet	Lapaz National High School, Iloilo City
2010	Tribu Paghidaet	Lapaz National High School, Iloilo City
2011	Tribu Pan-ay	Fort San Pedro National High School, Iloilo City
2012	Tribu Pan-ay	Fort San Pedro National High School, Iloilo City
2013	Tribu Panayanon	Iloilo City National High School
2014	Tribu Panayanon	Iloilo City National High School
2015	Tribu Panayanon	Iloilo City National High School
2016	Tribu Salognon	Jaro National High School, Jaro, Iloilo City
2017	Tribu Salognon	Jaro National High School, Jaro, Iloilo City
2018	Tribu Panayanon	Iloilo City National High School
2019	Tribu Ilonganon	Jalandoni Memorial National High School, Lapuz, Iloilo City

See also

• Ati-Atihan Festival
• Ati people
• Negrito

External links

• Iloilo Dinagyang Photos
• Dinagyang Festival in Aliwan Fiesta
• Iloilo Dinagyang Foundation, Inc.
• Philippines Travel Hub
• Iloilo Dinagyang Foundation Incorporated Official Facebook Page
• http://www.rmgorrieza.co.uk/dinagyang-festival-gallery/