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Metro Manila

Marikina City Day

Marikina City Day takes place every 16th of April in Marikina City, Metro Manila, Philippines. It commemorates the founding of Marikina by the Jesuit missionaries in 1630 and simultaneously held with the Ka-Angkan Festival. The date is a special working holiday by virtue of Republic Act No. 10788 that was signed by President Benigno Aquino III on May 3, 2016.

Marikina City also celebrates Sapatos Festival in November and its cityhood anniversary in Rehiyon-Rehiyon Festival every December.

History of Marikina City

Marikina City is regarded as the Shoe Capital of the Philippines for its billion-peso shoe industry. Its name, according to historian Trinidad Pardo de Tavera, may have been taken after Captain Berenguer de Marquina although there are other toponymic origins suggested.

Its history began with the coming of the Jesuits who built a church (known today as Jesús dela Peña Chapel) on April 16, 1630. This is the date that the city’s founding anniversary celebrates every year.

This old church was transferred to the site where the present-day church, now called Diocesan Shrine and Parish of Our Lady of the Abandoned, stands upon the order of Governor General Gabriel Cruz Elasque on March 10, 1687. Three years after, it became a parish.

Its people lived along the alluvial plains of Marikina River and they were engaged primarily in farming. Out of the fertile lands rose the Hacienda Marikina, one of the biggest in in the 19th century, and the Jesuits installed St. Isidore the Laborer as its patron.

In 1887, Laureano Guevara and his fellows (Tiburcio Eustaqio, Ambrosio Santa Ines, Gervasio Carlos, and others) took an imported pair of shoes apart to see how they were made. They then produced their own using leather produced locally and later from European imports. Soon, shoemakers and cobblers opened shops in what was the beginning of the renowned shoe-making industry. Guevara’s birthplace is called Kapitan Moy Residence and converted into a museum.

On June 11, 1901, Marikina was officially a town of the province of Rizal through Act No. 137. It seceded from Rizal and became a part of Metropolitan Manila when the latter was created through Presidential Decree No. 824 that was approved on November 7, 1975.

The cityhood of Makati was made possible through Republic Act No. 8223, otherwise known as “An Act Converting the Municipality of Marikina into a Highly Urbanized City to be Known as the City of Marikina.” It was approved by President Fidel V. Ramos on November 6, 1996 and enacted through a plebiscite on December 8, 1996.

Ka-Angkan Festival

Ka-Angkan Festival, otherwise known as Kapistahan ng mga Angkan, was launched by Mayor Bayani Fernandez in 1999. Its name comes from the word angkan, which means family or clan. It is a gathering of individuals in reunions or who are reconnecting with their families.

A merry-making event, it has a week-long calendar whose activities uphold and honor family (particularly, families whose roots can be traced to the city), family values and lineages, unity, and tradition.

For a clan to qualify, it must have roots that can be traced to the city or prominent individuals who made Marikina their home. Their descendants can participant in parades and activities by bringing or wearing props that represent their clans, an ode to a Filipino habit of identifying a family through an occupation or trade, a unique virtue, or physical characteristic.

Part of its activities in 2018 was to recognize families who have been part of the city’s story and growth for centuries. Additionally, it also acknowledges the excellence and achievements of outstanding citizens.

Makati City Day Activities

Activities in Makati City Day include parade, exhibit, thanksgiving mass, etc.

How to reach Marikina City

Book a flight to Ninoy Aquino International Airport and take a cab or public commute to Marikina City (about an hour or so with a distance of over 20 kilometers).

References

Marikina City Day Summary

NameMarikina City Day
CelebrationFounding Anniversary
Contact8646-2360 / 8646-2363 to 65
CountryPhilippines
DateApril 16
Duration1 week
Emailmarikinacity.pio@gmail.com
Facebookwww.facebook.com
Historical eventFounding of a church by Jesuit missionaries on April 16, 1630 that would eventually become Marikina City
Instagramwww.instagram.com
LocationMarikina City, Metro Manila
OrganizerCity Government of Marikina
Simultaneous eventKa-Angkan Festival
Twittermobile.twitter.com
Websitewww.marikina.gov.ph