The Ati-Atihan Festival of Kalibo, Aklan, is dubbed by historians as the “Mother of All Festivals” which is celebrated every January and inspired other Visayan Festivals such as the Sinulog of Cebu and Dinagyang of Ilo-ilo.
Ati-Atihan Festival (Photo: kaliboatiatihan.ph)
Ati-Atihan Festival is held annually and concludes on the third Sunday of the month, the 2014 celebration will commence on January 10 and culminates during the highlights of the Festival on January 19, 2014.
According to some historians, the Ati-Atihan Festival is a feast held annually in honor of the Santo Niño (Infant Jesus), in the town and municipality of Kalibo, Aklan. The name “Ati-Atihan” means “to be like Aetas” or “make believe Ati’s.”
The Aetas or Ati’s were the primary settlers in the island of Panay according to history books. The Ati-Atihan Festival started during the 13th century (c.1200 A.D.) when a group of 10 Malay chieftains called Datus, fleeing from the island of Borneo settled in the Philippines, and were granted settlement by the Ati people, the tribes of Panay Island.
The Atis or Aetas decided to settle to the highlands while the new Malay inhabitants settles at the lowland. Some time later, the Ati people were struggling with famine as the result of a bad harvest. They were forced to descend from their mountain village and seek the generosity of the people who lived below. The Datus obliged and gave them food. In return, the Ati danced and sang for them which started the Ati-Atihan fiesta.
The festival was originally a pagan festival as a sign of worship from anito god, during the arrival of the Spanish missionaries gradually added a Christian meaning, today, the Ati-Atihan Festival is celebrated as a religious festival.
I’ve been wanting to go to Ati Atihan for 5 years now.
The first time I went to Boracay, I arrived the day of the festival. Super jetlagged from a 24 hour journey that consisted of 3 flights, 2 layovers, and a boat ride, I was too exhausted to go to Kalibo for the event. The 3rd time I went to Boracay, I left the week before the festivities, and I had to stare at a Facebook feed of photos of my friends partying. So this time around, I made sure to book my ticket before it started. I wanted to go sooo bad. Not even a sinus infection and a round of antibiotics could stop me.
The highlight of Ati Atihan is on the weekend of the 3rd week of January in Kalibo, but its celebrated throughout the Visayas (the central region of the Philippines) a full two weeks before and after. There is a smaller celebration in Boracay the Sunday before and in Ibajay the week after, for example. And Cebu has a similar event called Sinulog.
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThe event dates back to the 13th century, when the region was populated by the Atis, who are the indigenous people of the Philippines and are smaller with darker skin. When boatloads of people from Borneo migrated to the Philippines, bloody encounters ensued. Eventually there was a peace talk, ending with an epic celebration during which the lighter-skinned people from Borneo daubed their faces with charcoal to show their desire to live in harmony with the Atis. When the Spanish came and colonized, they arranged to hold the celebrations during the feast of the Holy Child Jesus.
It’s a bit like Mardi Gras in New Orleans or Carnaval in Rio. The event starts with mass, followed by a contest and parade. There’s beautiful traditional costumes of colored feathers and headdresses, as well some nontraditional ones, such as Avatars and gay men decked out in sequined dresses. Musicians played a variety of drums and a type of chime that I’ve never seen before. The music was wonderful, and everyone was dancing and shouting “Viva Kay Senor Santo Niño!” There were no barricades so revelers could freely mingle with the performers. People carried statues of the Baby Jesus in their arms. Vendors sold freshly roasted peanuts and cans of San Miguel. Everyone was freely drinking in the streets. As one of the few foreigners (I would say it was 90% Filipinos), I was targeted by promo girls who gave me free samples of alcohol and young men who wanted to take their photo with me. I felt quite famous. Later, we ran into some Boracayons, who came prepared with flasks of Tanduay and a shot glass, which they freely passed around.
Charcoal, Ati AtihanI had a wonderful experience, but I couldn’t help but noticed that the majority of the Atis were begging on the streets, with young children in tow. As a celebration that started as a peace treaty between the indigenous peoples and the foreigners, I felt like there should be more of them participating in the parade (I should say there were a couple of Ati groups). And then there’s the tradition of painting yourself black, which reminded me of the controversy over Black Pete in the Netherlands. I couldn’t help but think of how in every country I’ve been to, it’s always the indigenous (who are also often the darkest) peoples who are discriminated against and marginalized in our societies. At what point is something traditional and at what point is it racist? Ati Atihan does literally mean “make believe Atis”, and it did feel like a bonding moment to have people approach you and smear your cheeks with charcoal. But perhaps if the Atis had more agency within the Filipino community, and more participation within the event, it wouldn’t feel off.
I think that it’s important as travelers to observe your surroundings in order to gain an understanding of a different culture. If you don’t understand something, or if the subject is controversial, it is important to bring it up in a sensitive manner. Just as this topic has been a controversy with Black Pete in the Netherlands, I’m sure everyone will have an opinion on this. So I’m curious, what are your thoughts?
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It looks like you are perfectly okay with the explanation for this blackface festival, but somehow you are not able to consider the possibility that Zwarte Piet in the Netherlands may have similar underpinnings, rather than bullshit story of having been adapted from a book written in the 19th century.
After all, don't both of them revolve around the notion of black people being or having been charitable in one some form or the other, and having a prior presence in the locale?
Why foster the notion in white people that dressing up as Black people is the way of showing generosity to their fellow Dutch?
Why award that honour to black people, irregardless of weather they are slaves or not, or have been slaves at one time in the past? Why that association, especially in the minds of children?
Could there be some other thing in the history of Netherlands in which blacks were gift givers in some way, but had to be completely erased to maintain the notion that there were never Black people settled in there at any time in the past?
-------------------- The Habsburg Agenda - Defending Western Christian civilization Posts: 890 | From: London | Registered: Apr 2014
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Subconsciously it's recognition of the Original Beings, the True and Living Black God. As has been explained and taught by the Hon. Elijah Muhammad.
Black God: An Introduction to the World's Religions and Their Black Gods Posts: 22234 | From: האם אינכם כילדי הכרית אלי בני ישראל | Registered: Nov 2010
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