04/02/2025
Happy Salakayan Festival, Miagao!
Every February, Miagao celebrates the Salakayan Festival as a way to remember the victory of the Miagaoanons against Moro pirates in the 1750s. The celebration is filled with artistic decorations and performances. That is why the municipality is a living and breathing artwork in southern Iloilo.
Miagao is iconic for its picturesque Baroque Romanesque St. Thomas de Villanova Parish Church, or popularly known as Miagao Church. The church is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (1993), National Cultural Treasure (2014), National Shrine (1973), and Historical Landmark (1963). Visual artist Cristhom βDodoyβ Selibio Setubal created an upcycled artwork of the church, which is now displayed at the National Museum of the Philippines - Iloilo
Another famous tangible heritage in Miagao is Iloiloβs signature weave, hablon. Hablon comes from the Kinaray-a word βhabulβ, meaning βto weaveβ. It is a handwoven textile with bright colors, stripes, and plaids. Farmers in Miagao harvest cotton, which they use as fibers in creating the hablon through a traditional device they call tiral, tidal, or tanhaga.
Visit the National Museum of the Philippines Iloilo to learn more about the artistic heritage of Western Visayas. We are open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm everyday. Entrance is FREE!