Dinagyang Festival - Iloilo City: Respectful Representation or Cultural Appropriation

Dinagyang Festival. Photo by JVTaiza via Flickr (with permission)

Dinagyang Festival 2025 is finally winding down, marking the end of three exhilarating days of celebration in Iloilo City, Philippines. Running from January 24 to 26, 2025, this vibrant festival, held on the fourth weekend of January, showcases the rich cultural heritage of the region. With events like the ILOmination and Parade of Lights, the Kasadyahan Festival, and the energetic Ati Tribe Competition, Dinagyang is a feast for the senses and a heartfelt homage to the island's history.

It is difficult to talk about Dinagyang without also mentioning Kalibo's Ati-Atihan since Dinagyang was first conceptualized as Iloilo's Ati-Atihan and was later renamed to its present moniker by an Ilonggo broadcaster and writer in 1977 to create its own identity.

Although significant and is more based on myth than facts, the roots of the Ati-Atihan Festival and its numerous derivatives date way back to the Barter of Panay wherein it is said that 10 Malay Chieftains settled in the island of Panay in exchange for gifts, including the fabled golden salakot, bequeathed to the Atis that was settling the land during that time. Some time later, a period of failed crops and famine forced the Atis down from the mountains and sought help from the Malay settlers and they performed their traditional dances as a sign of gratitude. The religious significance of the festival came much later when the Malay settlers and other locals were converted to Christianity by Spanish missionaries and took on the Sto. Niño as the symbol for this event. The whole account is more apocryphal than actual historical events passed on from an oral historical tradition.

Dinagyang Festival 2009. Photo by JVTaiza via Flickr (with permission)

Iloilo's Dinagyang Festival started as a purely religious festival devoted to the veneration of the Sto. Nino and was patterned after the Ati-Atihan Festival to commemorate the arrival of a replica of the Santo Nino de Cebu to Iloilo In the late 1960's. What started as a religious festival slowly transformed into a more secular celebration which became part of Iloilo's cultural identity. Religious iconography still abounds with the inclusion of the Sto. Niño in the tribal dances and is also a historical nod to the conversion of the Malay settlers in Panay Island. It's a mixed bag of religion with the veneration of the Sto. Nino, tribal ritualistic music and dances with the Tribal Dance competitions, as well as the quasi-historical re-enactment of the Barter of Panay and the introduction of Christianity to the 10 apocryphal Datus all rolled into one. There are accounts of the organizers in the late 1970s actually inviting an Ati tribe from the mountains of Barotac Viejo to showcase their ritualistic tribal dances during the festival. Now it has evolved (dare I say devolved?) into a competition of pseudo-tribal dances vying for monetary reward.

I know it's a controversial take on a beloved entrenched local tradition, but it begs the question: is it basically Iloilo's version of blackface?

Except for the aforementioned invitation by the Dinagyang organizers extended to an Ati tribe in the 70's, no actual Atis were involved in the festivities. The so-called tribal dances are done with the participants rubbing black soot on their bodies and faces to approximate the looks of the dark-skinned indigenous Atis who are believed to be the first settlers of the Philippines. The costumes and dances themselves cannot be ascertained to be anything traditional to the Ati culture.

The obvious problematic blackface thing aside, the common defense that these festivals are not exploiting the Ati culture is that these festivals honor the Ati people and celebrate their part in the local culture. That would be acceptable I suppose if it weren't for the dearth of government programs in place to help the actual Atis that the festival is supposed to depict. It is quite ironic that if you visit Iloilo around this time of the year (around Christmas time going into Dinagyang at the start of the year) you will witness a lot of Ati families begging in the streets. The festival has faced scrutiny over the years for its portrayal of local indigenous cultures. Some critics argue that the performances and costumes can sometimes border on cultural appropriation rather than respectful representation. But then again, with the cultural dances and costumes' authenticity not that firmly based on traditional Ati culture, what more is there to represent respectfully but the color of their skin?

I understand the importance of these celebrations not only for the faithful and for domestic and international tourism but also for celebrating what can only be called as our quintessential Ilonggo identity. One can even argue that given that the festivals have been celebrated for such a long time, they have indeed been ingrained into our culture. It doesn't matter that much whether the practice can be traced to authentic practices or was contrived later on. The point I was trying to make is that if we are going to go with the narrative that the festival is meant to honor the legacy of the Atis in the Ilonggo collective heritage, might as well make them a part of that conversation and not as a mere observer looking from the wayside.

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Dinagyang Festival - Iloilo City: Respectful Representation or Cultural Appropriation

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