Hala Bira! Dagyang Ta! :)

 

      The first Dinagyang Festival was held in 1968. The word “Dinagyang” was derived from the  Hiligaynon word “dagyang,” which translates to “merrymaking” in English. It’s a broadly               representative word of the festival.

    Iloilo’s Dinagyang Festival celebrates locals’ devotion to the Santo Niño, similar to Cebu’s Sinulog Festival. In addition, it also pays tribute to the arrival of the Malay settlers in the country, including the notable barter of Panay Island from natives called Ati.

    The festival first took shape after Rev. Fr. Ambrosio Galindez, the first Filipino rector and parish priest of the San Jose Parish at the time, introduced devotion to Santo Niño to the Ilonggo community in 1967 after experiencing the Ati-Atihan Festival in Aklan.

        The following year, a replica of the image of the Sto. Niño de Cebu was given to the Parish of San Jose by Fr. Sulpicio Enderez of Cebu.

        The Iloilo chapter of the devotees of the Sto. Niño de Cebu then ensured the image would get an appropriate reception. They paraded the image from the Iloilo Airport down the streets leading to the San Jose Parish.

   What started as a parish-contained event gradually attracted more devotees and attendees. This is no surprise, as the celebrations were patterned after Aklan’s vibrant Ati-atihan, which features street dancing with dancers covered with soot and ashes.

Source: https://www.camella.com.ph/everything-you-should-know-about-dinagyang-festival/