BINATBATAN FESTIVAL

Binatbatan Festival traces its roots from the abel weaving industry of Vigan which has been in existence even before the Spaniards came to colonize the Philippines. It comes from the word batbat, a pair of bamboo stick used to separate cotton pods that come from a tall tree called kapas sanglay.

 

The catholic faithful also remembers on this day St. Joseph, patron saint of workers. The first-day commemoration is followed by the Binatbatan Festival celebrations, which includes a street dancing competition. Binatbatan dancing is connected to Vigan's abel Iloco craft. Binatbatan” is the process of beating cotton pods to remove the seeds for Abel weaving. Which locals interpreted into an occupational dance with the use of two sticks called ”batbat”. Binabatan street dance is one of the main attractions during the week-long celebrations.

 

This festival paid tribute to the old Ilocanos. Binatbatan is an Ilocano dance that illustrates the beginning stages in the weaving process of Abel Iloko. . The pounding procedure is known as binatbatan. That is why, while the rest of the dancers dance, some others beat the pavements with their bamboo sticks to create a pleasant beating sound. The street dancing pays homage to the Abel Iloko, Vigan's traditional woven textile that has sustained the city's economy from pre-Spanish times to the present. Following the street dancing, the various groups competed in a dance battle staged in Plaza Burgos. It was a dance competition between the groups. The winning team received a large sum of money from the organizers.