Sinadya Festival

 Sinadya Festival in the Philippines 

    Every December 8, Roxas City, the capital of the province of Capiz in the Philippines, hosts the Sinadya Festival, a Christmas, cultural, and religious celebration. It honors Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, the city's patroness. In some years, it was known as the Sinadya sa Halaran Festival, in partnership with the provincial administration of Capiz.

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Sinadya sa Halaran is the combination of two Capiznon celebrations. Roxas City, Capiz's capital, used to have its own festival in addition to the mother province's.  However, because it was too expensive to conduct two big festivals in a single year, they chose to combine Roxas City's Sinadaya (Celebration) and Capiz's Halaran (Offering) into one grand celebration.

In 1992, the Roxas city government and the Capiz provincial government decided to hold a two-in-one festival called Sinadya sa Halaran, which translates to "Joy of Sharing". Sinadya, the city festival, merged with Halaran, the provincial festival.

Halaran is derived from the Hiligaynon language and meaning sharing. The Halaran celebration began in 1975 to commemorate the roots of the Panay island and the trade that occurred between Malay settlers and native populations prior to the conquest.

Sinadya and Halaran were formerly conducted independently, but were integrated in 1992. The experiment was short-lived, as the following year, 1993, these were honored separately again.

Location and Origin

The city of Roxas holds the annual Sinadya Festival, which comes from the Hiligaynon term for joy. It is a celebration of the patronal feast of Our Lady of Immaculate Conception.

The church was founded in 1693. It was a visita of Panay. Some accounts placed that it was in 1707 that the Augustinians arrived in Capiz and founded a church placed under the advocation of the Immaculate Conception. The colonial-era stone church was built in 1877.

Capiz became a diocese on January 27, 1951 and then an archdiocese on January 17, 1976. And the church became known as Immaculate Conception Metropolitan Cathedral or Roxas Cathedral after the name of the city.

 

Prosesyon sa Suba

Prosesyon sa Suba translates to fluvial procession. It is the journey of the image of the patroness in the Panay River. It is held in the evening of December 7, the eve of the feast. It is marked with lighted water vessels containing the image as it floats through the river and reaches the cathedral.

Additionally, participants light candles and release floaters in the river. The crowning of the image of the Blessed Mother is usually undertaken by the Musa de la Immaculada Concepcion. There will also be a blessing of the religious icons that attendees bringing during the festivity.

 

Costume Made

Colorful scarves painted in blooming flowers sailed through the scorching air of Capiz Province as contingents of the annual Sinadya sa Halaran showed their flair to the throngs of Capiznons eagerly watching the festivities. Gals dressed in traditional Filipiniana and guys garbed in barongs marched and danced at the avenues of Roxas City, totally unmindful of the sweltering heat of the midmorning sun.