The Hiligaynon people (), often referred to as Ilonggo people () or Panayan people (), are the second largest subgroup of the larger Visayan ethnic group, whose primary language is Hiligaynon, an Austronesian language of the Visayan branch native to Panay, Guimaras, and Negros. They originated in the province of Iloilo, on the island of Panay, in the region of Western Visayas. Over the years, inter-migrations and intra-migrations have contributed to the diaspora of the Hiligaynon to different parts of the Philippines. Today, the Hiligaynon, apart from the province of Iloilo, also form the majority in the provinces of Guimaras, Negros Occidental, Capiz, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, and Cotabato Province. Hiligaynon is also spoken in some parts of Sarangani Province particularly in the Municipality of Malungon.

Etymology of Hiligaynon, Ilonggo, and Panayan

The demonym "Hiligaynon" is from Spanish Hiligueinos (also spelled Yliguenes, Yligueynes, or Hiligueynos), which is derived from the older demonym "Iligan" or "Iliganon", meaning "people of the coast", from the root word ilig ("to go downstream"), referring to a river in Iloilo, Panay. During the early Spanish colonial period, the conquistador Miguel de Loarca also used the name "Yliguenes" for other coastal-dwelling Visayan peoples in Cebu, Bohol, and Western Negros.

The term "Ilonggo" is derived from "Ilong-ilong", the old name for Iloilo City, Panay. “Ilonggo” is considered to define a specific group of people whose ethnic origins are in the provinces of Iloilo, Guimaras, and Panay, while "Hiligaynon" defines the language and culture of the Ilonggo people. Thus, both terms are interchangeable in referring to the culture of the people or the people themselves.

The term "Panayan" is derived from "Panay," the name of the island, with the addition of the suffix "-an," which typically denotes a group of people associated with a place. It is sometimes used as an umbrella term that encompasses not only the Ilonggo people but also the Karay-a, Capiznon, and Aklanon peoples. The definition can be used interchangeably with "Ilonggo people" to refer to the broader ethnic group of people from Panay.

History

The original inhabitants of Western Visayas were the Negritos, particularly the Ati people in Panay. Malay-speaking peoples settled in the island in the 13th century, but some of the facts of this settlements are clouded by folk mythology among the Hiligaynon. What is known is that in the 13th century, ten datu (chieftains) arrived from Borneo, fleeing the collapse of a central Indonesian empire. The Ati agreed to allow the newcomers to settle, who had purchased the island from them, and the island was named Madya-as. Since then, political organization was introduced to Panay under the Malay newcomers. By the arrival of the Spanish in 1569, the inhabitants of Panay were well-organized, yet became part of Spanish colonial rule.

The 19th century was marked by the migration of the Hiligaynon from Panay to Negros. Their migration was due to the growth of sugarcane production in the later 19th century. This was also caused by the wane of the textile industry, increasing the labor pool for sugarcane in Panay through the industry's losses. Spanish colonials actively sponsored the migration, especially by prominent peninsulares and mestizos. It was such that between 1822 and 1876, the population in Negros increased so that it matched the population of Panay (756,000) from the 1822 count of 49,369. Many revolutionaries in the late 19th century who sought independence from Spain were Hiligaynon. Some of them were part of the educated elite who sought for reforms, such as Graciano López Jaena, who led the reformist newspaper La Solidaridad. Others were military leaders such as Martin Delgado, who became known to the Hiligaynon as "the greatest Visayan general of the Philippine Revolution."

A later migration of Hiligaynon occurred in the 20th century to Mindanao in the 1940s under Manuel Roxas who was also Hiligaynon. Thousands migrated throughout the 1940s and 1950s as part of a resettlement movement sponsored by the government as a way of skirting land reform. This came at the expense of the local Maguindanaon population, who were not helped by the government, and which contributed to later tensions between the mostly Christian Hiligaynon and the Muslim Maguindanaon.

Culture Part of the dominant culture in the Philippines known as the Lowland Christians. Many cultural festivals are organized, serving a purpose of cultural preservation and celebration against the "homogenizing of the Philippine culture.", while also serving well for local and national tourism. The Dinagyang festival is celebrated every fourth Sunday of January in Iloilo City. The festival name is derived from the word dagyang meaning "merry-making". Modeled after Ati-atihan in Kalibo, Aklan, Dinagyang venerates the Santo Niño, and specifically commemorates the purchase of Panay Island from the Indigenous Ati by 10 fleeing Bornean datus (chiefs). Arts festivals, such as the Ilonggo Arts Festival, have used contemporary media such as film and radio, in addition to public performances, and they have also sponsored engagement in dialogue over cultural preservation. The Iloilo Paraw Regatta, held each year in February, also has goals for cultural preservation: the ships used in the regatta, the paraw, are traditional sailboats that have long been used by the Hiligaynon. Competitors in the Paraw Regatta are local fishermen, who compete in a week-long competition at sea, accompanied by a festival on land.

A prominent Hiligaynon profile exists in national and regional sports, notably in football. The popular national football team players Phil and James Younghusband have a mother who is Ilonggo. Football is very popular in Western Visayas, and the Iloilo town of Barotac Nuevo has been known to contribute many football players to the national team. Also of note are Hiligaynon athletes on the national track team.

Hiligaynon settlers in Mindanao may have also assimilated Lumad and Moro traditions to varying degrees, and vice versa (e.g., the use of the Hiligaynon-language Toto as a nickname by non-Hiligaynons).

Demographics

According to a 2010 census, 8.44% of the national population is Hiligaynon/Ilonggo, compared to 24.44% Tagalog (the plurality group). This makes the Hiligaynon the fourth most populous ethnic group in the nation behind the Tagalog (24.44%), the Cebuano (9.91%), the Ilocano (8.77%), Two provinces have populations above one million since a 1990 census: Iloilo (1,608,083) and Negros Occidental (1,821,206), comprising 97.6% and 80.7%, respectively, with urban centers taken into account.

ProvinceHiligaynon PopulationTotal PopulationPercentage of Hiligaynon (%) Abra96184,7430.1 Agusan del Norte3,309642,1960.2 Agusan del Sur26,960656,4186.4 Aklan55,182574,8239.6 Albay2421,233,4320 Antique70,423582,01212.1 Apayao3121,6360 Aurora188201,2330.1 Basilan1,748391,1790.7 Bataan2,959687,4820.7 Batanes216,6040 Batangas2,1442,377,3950.1 Benguet460722,6200.1 Biliran?161,760? Bohol1071,255,1280 Bukidnon181,1481,415,22612.8 Bulacan4,6353,124,4330.3 Cagayan2611,124,7730 Camarines Norte137542,9150 Camarines Sur9091,822,3710.1 Camiguin2083,8070 Capiz575,369719,68579.9 Catanduanes59246,3000 Cavite9,6043,090,6910.8 Cebu6,6694,167,3200.3 Cotabato804,3291,379,74768.8 Davao del Norte53,012945,7649 Davao de Oro4687,1950 Davao del Sur30,0592,024,2062 Davao Occidental30293,7800 Davao Oriental3,410517,6180.9 Dinagat Islands10126,8030 Eastern Samar148428,8770 Guimaras171,041174,94398.9 Ifugao10191,0780 Ilocos Norte159568,0170 Ilocos Sur146658,5870 Iloilo1,968,0832,230,19599.9 Isabela5521,489,6450.1 Kalinga10201,6030 La Union193741,9060 Laguna3,8092,669,8470.3 Lanao del Norte4,214930,7380.7 Lanao del Sur11,057933,2601.8 Leyte2,9511,789,1580.2 Maguindanao41,988944,1385.5 Marinduque53227,8280 Masbate298,951892,39333.7 Misamis Occidental397567,6420.1 Misamis Oriental3,6111,415,9440.4 Mountain Province?154,187? Negros Occidental1,821,2063,059,13698.7 Negros Oriental329,2631,354,99523.4 Northern Samar347589,0130.1 Nueva Ecija3731,955,3730.2 Nueva Vizcaya312421,3550.1 Occidental Mindoro18,248452,9716.5 Oriental Mindoro10,373785,6021.9 Palawan332,3151,104,58519.6 Pampanga2,8262,609,7440.2 Pangasinan8392,956,7260 Quezon1,2621,987,0300.1 Quirino101176,7860.1 Rizal14,8702,484,8401.5 Romblon1,474283,3900.6 Samar293733,3770.1 Sarangani1498,9040 Siquijor7691,0660.1 Sorsogon295740,7430.1 South Cotabato914,0441,365,28672.3 Southern Leyte179399,1370.1 Sultan Kudarat536,298747,08773.4 Sulu11718,2900 Surigao del Norte1,064442,5880.3 Surigao del Sur4,424561,2191 Tarlac6141,273,2400.1 Tawi-Tawi51366,5500 Zambales3,276755,6210.6 Zamboanga del Norte3,501957,9970.5 Zamboanga del Sur7,4091,766,8140.7 Zamboanga Sibugay3,702584,6852 Metro Manila199,29011,855,9752.5

Overseas Like many other Filipino ethnic groups such as the Ilocano, there are organized associations of migrant Hiligaynon that aim to celebrate their culture through their own communities. Several publicly known organizations are concentrated in California and Hawaii, among other locations in the United States.

Religion

Most Hiligaynons are Christians, with a majority of these Christians being Roman Catholics. There are also smaller populations of Hiligaynons who are Aglipayan, Protestants, and Muslims. The Indigenous Hiligaynon faiths were largely eliminated during the Spanish era and survived as Folk Catholicism.

Language