Iloilo City, the regional center of Western Visayas, is one of the oldest cities in the Philippines and a major economic hub in the Visayas region. The history of Iloilo City traces its beginnings to the 14th century, when records from the Yuan dynasty mention a bustling trade outpost in the area. During the Spanish colonial period, the town developed into a prosperous port and an important administrative center. Iloilo was formally granted city status by Queen Regent Maria Christina through a royal decree in 1889, which also bestowed upon it the honorific title La Muy Leal y Noble Ciudad ("The Most Loyal and Noble City"). By the late 19th century, Iloilo had become the second most important city in the Philippines, next to Manila.
Following the fall of Manila to American forces in 1898, Iloilo briefly served as the seat of the Spanish colonial government in the Philippines, making it the last capital of the Spanish East Indies. Under American rule, the city continued to flourish as a center of commerce, education, and culture in the region. During World War II, Iloilo was occupied by Japanese forces from 1942 until its liberation in 1945. In the immediate postwar period, the city experienced a modest economic slowdown as it rebuilt from wartime destruction.
In the early 21st century, Iloilo City experienced significant economic growth, becoming one of the fastest-growing cities in the Philippines. Today, it is known for its well-preserved heritage structures, vibrant economy, culinary traditions, and cultural events such as the Dinagyang Festival, one of the largest and most popular festivals in the Philippines. In 2023, Iloilo City was designated as a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy.
Legends and oral traditions
According to oral tradition, ten datus left the island of Borneo to escape a tyrant ruler, Datu Makatunao. They arrived in Panay through the Siwaragan River in San Joaquin, Iloilo, where the native Ati people lived under their chieftain, Marikudo, and his wife, Maniwan-tiwan.
Datu Puti, one of the datus, expressed their desire to settle in the lowlands. They offered to barter the lowlands for a golden salakot, a long-brimmed hat, and a long golden necklace. Marikudo agreed to the barter and moved with his people to the mountains. After the transaction, the datus divided the lowlands among themselves. Datu Paiburong was known to have settled in a village called Irong-irong, the old name for Iloilo.Tomas Santaren, Bisayan Accounts of Early Bornean Settlements in the Philippines, trans. by Enriqueta Fox, (Chicago: University of Chicago, Philippine Studies Program, 1954), ii.
Although the story of the ten datus and the so-called "Barter of Panay" has been widely retold in Visayan culture, modern historians and anthropologists generally regard it as a legend rather than a factual account. Scholars note that no contemporary evidence supports the existence of the ten datus or the barter event, and many elements of the story appear to be symbolic explanations for early settlement patterns rather than literal historical events. Because of this, the narrative is now considered part of the region's rich folklore, reflecting cultural memory rather than verifiable history.
Pre-colonial period
Before the arrival of the Spaniards, Panay Island was inhabited by two major ethnic groups: the Negritos or Atis and the Visayans. These groups formed the earliest communities that shaped the cultural landscape of the region. The earliest written reference to Iloilo appears in Yuan dynasty records from the 14th century, identifying the area around modern-day Iloilo as 啞陳 (Pe̍h-ōe-jī: A-tân), a bustling trade outpost in the Visayas.Reading Song and Ming Records on the Precolonial History of the Philippines By Wang Zhenping Page 256.Mamuel Merino, O.S.A., ed., Conquistas de las Islas Filipinas (1565–1615), Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, 1975, pp. 374–376.
The Atis, considered the earliest settlers, lived primarily in the mountainous and forested areas of Panay. They were nomadic hunter-gatherers who moved from place to place in search of food. Their clothing was minimal, often just pieces of bark or woven fibers used to cover themselves, and their lifestyle was closely tied to the natural environment. Their small, mobile communities relied on hunting, foraging, and simple tools.
In contrast, the Visayans lived along the coasts and river systems, forming larger, more settled communities, including those along the waterways of present-day Iloilo City. Early Spanish accounts, such as the Boxer Codex, Antonio de Morga's Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas, and the writings of Miguel de Loarca, describe Visayans as heavily tattooed people, leading to the Spanish nickname Pintados. The tattoos symbolized status, achievements in battle, and social identity.Mamuel Merino, O.S.A., ed., Conquistas de las Islas Filipinas (1565–1615), Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 1975, pp. 374–376.
Visayans wore clothing made of cotton with colored stripes, as well as silk and textiles woven from banana fibers. Gold ornaments were common, especially among the upper classes, who adorned themselves with earrings, bracelets, and intricately worked jewelry that signified wealth and prestige.[https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/228735802.pdf Reading Song and Ming Records on the Precolonial History of the Philippines] By Wang Zhenping, p. 256.
Early scholars such as H. Otley Beyer initially used the term "Visayan" to refer specifically to the inhabitants of Panay. Over time, however, the term expanded to include the peoples of Negros, Cebu, Bohol, Leyte, Samar, and other surrounding islands as culture and languages spread throughout the Visayas region.
Precolonial Visayan society was organized into barangays led by a datu. These communities had established social classes, including nobles (timawa or tumao), freemen (oripun or alipin), and slaves, along with active trade networks reaching China, Southeast Asia, and other Philippine islands. Pottery, beads, metal goods, and textiles formed part of a thriving commercial exchange long before Spanish colonization.
Spanish colonial era (1565–1898)
Early settlement
Under King Philip II, in 1565, Spaniards from New Spain returned to Cebu to avenge Ferdinand Magellan's death. Miguel López de Legazpi led the expedition, which pillaged and burned houses in Cebu; many Cebuanos retreated in the face of the well-armed Spaniards, who fielded reformed infantry units known as tercios composed of alabardero, alférez with a sword, and arcabucero with firearms.Scott, William Henry (1992) p. 48 Legazpi dispatched Felipe de Salcedo, along with Spanish friar Martín de Rada and other Augustinian missionaries, to seek provisions. They landed in Panay, establishing a temporary settlement near the Araut River in Dumangas.
In 1566, a more permanent settlement was founded in the town of Ogtong, present-day Oton, which became the earliest Spanish administrative center on Panay Island. Gonzalo Ronquillo served as the town's first encomendero. Although Ogtong was formally established in 1572 as the second official Spanish colonial outpost after Cebu, the settlement had already been active since 1566 with about eighty Spaniards from Europe. Reinforcements arrived in 1603, 1636, 1670, and 1672, composed of 66, 50, 169, and another 169 Mexican soldiers, respectively.Convicts or Conquistadores? Spanish Soldiers in the Seventeenth-Century Pacific By Stephanie J. Mawson AGI, México, leg. 25, núm. 62; AGI, Filipinas, leg. 8, ramo 3, núm. 50; leg. 10, ramo 1, núm. 6; leg. 22, ramo 1, núm. 1, fos. 408 r –428 v; núm. 21; leg. 32, núm. 30; leg. 285, núm. 1, fos. 30 r –41 v . By 1586, there were about twenty Spanish households and a garrison reinforced by roughly thirty Spanish or Mexican soldiers."Jesuits In The Philippines (1581-1768)" Page 143 By the 1700s, Iloilo had an estimated 166 Spanish Filipino families and 29,723 native families.ESTADISMO DE LAS ISLAS FILIPINAS TOMO SEGUNDO By Joaquín Martínez de Zúñiga (Original Spanish)
Unlike the Indianized Cebuanos, who were relatively neutral toward the Spaniards, or the partially Islamized Tagalogs of Manila, who were often hostile, the people of Panay welcomed the Iberians as allies. At that time, Panay was engaged in conflicts with Muslim polities, particularly the Sultanate of Brunei and its vassal states, the Sultanate of Sulu, and the Kingdom of Maynila, which, according to Spanish Governor-General Francisco de Sande, were related to each other by blood ties. The people of Panay largely accepted Christianity and supplied many of the native mercenaries used in Spanish campaigns, including operations against partly Islamized Manila.
In 1581, Ronquillo, now Governor-General, established a larger settlement in Arevalo, east of Ogtong, naming it La Nueva Villa de Arevalo after his hometown in Spain. The settlement became known for shipbuilding and eventually came to be called La Villa Rica de Arevalo, one of the six Spanish royal cities in the Philippines at the time."A History of the Philippines by David P. Barrows" Page 147. The few years of Ronquillo's reign were in other ways important. A colony of Spaniards was established at Oton, on the island of Panay, which was given the name of Arévalo (Iloilo). In 1600, a large Muslim force of about 70 ships and 4,000 warriors attacked the town. The invasion was repelled by approximately 1,000 Visayan warriors and 70 Mexican arquebusiers under Juan Garcia de Sierra, the Spanish alcalde mayor, who was killed in the battle.Philippines: A Unique Nation By Dr. Sonia M. Zaide (2015) p. 150. [All Nations Publishing Co., Inc.] As Moro incursions increased, Pedro Bravo de Acuña, the new Governor-General, built a small wooden fortress to defend the coast. The fortification was located on an islet in the Batiano Estuary called Catalman, meaning "pointed," and also as Irong-irong or Ilong-ilong, meaning "nose-like." The Spaniards initially called the area La Punta, but the indigenous name persisted and was eventually hispanized into Iloilo. The wooden fort was later developed into the stone-built Fort San Pedro, and the Spanish officials transferred administrative power to the area from Arevalo, in 1700.Planos de las Plazas, Presidios, y Fortificaciones en todo el Distrito de las Provincias, que sugeta al Real Dominio en las Yslas Philipinas: Relación de Artillería, Tren de manejo, Pertrechos de Guerra, Tropas regladas de Dotación: Raciones, y Municiones, con Liquidación, y Separación de su Importación en el Año: Producto de las Rentas y Consignaciones que se reporta segun el estado presente, dated 1738 (Manuscript drawn by Order of the Field Marshall Don Fernando Valdes y Tamon, Governor of the Philippine Islands from 1729 to 1739. The document is currently under the custody of the Archives of the Naval Museum in Madrid, Spain, p. 41.
On September 28, 1616, Dutch forces launched an attack on Iloilo. Spanish defenders led by Diego Quiñones fortified the town with redoubts and trenches covered with sawali. During the battle, according to local tradition, Quiñones stumbled upon a buried wooden box containing an image of the Virgin Mary holding the Child Jesus. The soldiers carried the image in procession to the fort and prayed for protection. On the night of the 30th day, the Dutch unexpectedly withdrew, abandoning their dead and wounded. The victory was regarded as miraculous, and the event began the long-standing Ilonggo devotion to Our Lady of the Holy Rosary.
Textile and sugar industry