The Sulyog Festival is an annual cultural and religious celebration held every March 19th in Bongabong, a municipality in Oriental Mindoro, Philippines. The festival’s name is a fusion of “suli,” meaning banana in the Mangyan language, and “niyog,” the Tagalog word for coconut. This combination highlights the significance of these two crops in the town’s agricultural landscape.
Historically, Bongabong’s devotion to Saint Joseph dates back to 1638 when Jesuit missionaries established a church near the Bongabong River. Although the Jesuits eventually departed, the Augustinian Recollects continued their mission, leading to the construction of the present-day Saint Joseph Parish Church in 1938.
The Sulyog Festival has evolved over the years to encompass both religious and secular activities. Religious observances commence on March 10th with novena prayers and masses at the Saint Joseph Parish Church, culminating in a grand procession and fluvial parade on March 18th. The fluvial parade is a distinctive Filipino Catholic tradition where an image of the patron saint is carried on decorated boats along the river, with devotees offering prayers from the shore.
Secular festivities, organized by the municipal government, typically begin on March 15th and conclude on March 19th. These events include talent contests, trade fairs, Mardi Gras-style celebrations, band exhibitions, variety shows, and street dancing competitions. A highlight of the festival is the street parade, where participants don vibrant costumes and perform dances that depict the harvesting of bananas and coconuts, the extraction of copra, and the offering of these products to Saint Joseph.
The festival was put on hold from 2020 to 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic but made a triumphant return in 2023. The Sulyog Festival serves as a testament to Bongabong’s rich cultural heritage, agricultural abundance, and deep-rooted religious traditions.
[Photo by Joy Anne Pura]
