VIGAN IN PERSPECTIVE

CHRISTIAN NICO R. PILOTIN, UAP

Course Facilitator
Where is VIGAN?
 located in the province of Ilocos Sur,
northeast of Luzon island, the principal
island of the Philippine archipelago
 along the coastal plain of West Philippine Sea
 near the northwestern tip of the Philippines
 408 km north of Manila, (approx. 8-hr land travel)
 80 km from Laoag in the north
 total land area is 27.4 sqkm.
 9 urban neigborhoods (poblaciones)
 30 rural villages (barangays)
 the political, commercial, religious and VIGAN
education center of the Ilocos province
 seat of the provincial government where
vast majority of national government agencies
maintain provincial offices
 current population of 53,879
HISTORIC DEVELOPMENT:
before the arrival of the
Spaniards -
 already an important
trading post centuries
before the arrival of the
Spaniards

 seafaring Chinese,
Indochinese, Indian,
Indonesian, Thai,
Japanese and Arab
merchants came to Isla
de Bigan

 they bartered their goods with

gold, beeswax, animal skins and
other mountain products from the
Cordilleras
-The SANGLAYS/SANGLEYS
 several Chinese traders later settled in Bigan,
intermarried with the natives and started the multi-cultural
bloodline of the Biguenos.
1572: Villa Fernandina de Vigan
 Spanish conquistador
Juan de Salcedo,
grandson of
conquistador Miguel
Lopez de Legaspi
established Villa
Fernandina de Vigan

 3rd oldest Spanish

settlement in the
Philippines, the capital
of his encomienda.
• The urban plan of Vigan follows the
Renaissance-style grid specified by the Ley de
las Indias for all new towns of the Spanish
Empire in the early 18th century regulating
the layout, street patterns, and open spaces
of all new settlements.
1758: Ciudad Fernandina de Bigan
 Vigan was elevated into a ciudad by virtue of a
Spanish royal decree when the seat of the ancient
Diocese of Nueva Segovia was transferred to Vigan
from Lal-lo, Cagayan
Coudad Fernandina de Vigan became the center
of Hispanic colonial power in Northern Luzon -

 great political, religious, social and cultural influence for

more than three centuries until our American colonization in
1898.

POLITICAL RELIGIOUS

SOCIAL CULTURAL
18th century: economic gains
from the Manila-Acapulco
galleon trade
 Chinese mestizo traders from Vigan
became wealthy

 native carpenters and masons built

bigger, permanent houses for them
using local materials along the
Renaissance-style grid streets specific
to all towns established by the Spanish
empire outlined in the Ley de las Indias
Historical context
 In addition to the Latin and Christian cultural influences,
Chinese traditions, patterns of daily life and uses of space
are strongly reflected in Vigan

 The town was separated into 2 different districts: the

gremio de naturales (native district in the west) and the
gremio de mestizos (Mestizo district in the east)

 Vigan consists of 233 historic buildings tightly strung along

a grid of 25 streets, mostly dating back to the mid 18th to
late 19th centuries

 Facades and ground level frontages of the ancestral houses

highlight Hispanic architectural influences,

 Layout and use of space is reminiscent of Chinese shop

houses where business was conducted on the ground floor,
while the upper floor was used as private residential area
mid-19th century: Vigan reverses into a
municipality-
 Manila-Acapulco galleon trade abolished
 decline of local economy
 led to Vigan’s reversion into a municipality
1950’s through the ‘60’s:
exodus of residents and
businessmen

 lack of peace and order

 migration to other cities
and abroad
 Calle Crisologo, the old
commercial district during
the Spanish and American
colonial periods became an
abandoned street
 ancestral houses were left
to caretakers or to neglect
‘80’s: Peace and order situation
greatly improved-

 still with very few investors

June 1995: Visioning
 local government created a vision towards a Vigan
heritage conservation program

“Vigan, a bustling center for tourism, commerce and

industry will have a community that deeply treasures
our rich cultural and historical heritage and a people
who are God-fearing, self-reliant and empowered, led
by transformed leaders who are credible, sincere, pro-
active and development oriented”.
December 2, 1999: World Heritage Site

 local government worked

for the inscription of Vigan
in the UNESCO World
Heritage List of Sites and
Monuments by eliciting
community involvement and
the issuance and passage of
local protective measures

 one of only five in the

Philippines and the only city
 Two bases for
the city’s
inscription:
criterion (ii): Vigan
represents a unique
fusion of Asian building The World Heritage
design and construction inscription for
with European colonial Vigan:
architecture and “Established in the 16th century,
planning, and Vigan is the best-preserved example
criterion (iv): Vigan is of a planned Spanish colonial town in
an exceptionally intact Asia. Its architecture reflects the
and well preserved coming together of cultural elements
example of a European from elsewhere in the Philippines,
from China and from Europe,
trading town in East and
resulting in a culture and townscape
Southeast Asia. that have no parallel anywhere in
East and South-East Asia”.
1999 to 2001: formulation of the Master
Development Plan for the Rehabilitation of
the Historic Center of Vigan (Vigan Master
Plan)

 A very significant
undertaking in the course
of the city’s conservation
efforts

8-Volume Vigan Master Plan

 a project undertaken jointly by the DOT, Vigan

Heritage Village Commission (defunct), Province of
Ilocos Sur, City of Vigan and the Spanish government
through the Agencia Espanola de Cooperacion
Internacional and Fundacion Santiago.
The Spanish government
and NGOs funded the:

 formulation of the Vigan

Master Plan Potable Water

 the restoration of an Vigan Culture and Trade Center

ancestral building now the
Vigan Culture and Trade
Center, and

 projects on water supply,

health, sanitation, livelihood Solid Waste Mngt. Project
Fisheries Project
and solid waste management

Health & Sanitation Livelihood Trainings Integrated Water System

January 22, 2001: Vigan restored as a city!

 old status of Vigan as a city restored through a

plebiscite in January 22, 2001 ratifying “An Act
Validating and Recognizing the Creation of the City
of Vigan by the Royal Decree of September 7, 1758
issued by King Fernando VI of Spain”.
 One objective of the city gov’t: fortify the sense of
identity and pride of the Biguenos on their historic city

Strategies: http://www.vigancity.gov.ph
 massive information
dissemination campaign
through:

Postal Stamps

Website

Coffee Table Books

Coloring Workbooks

Newsletter
Electronic Book and Video Film
Brochures
Another objective of city gov’t:
make Vigan a tourist
destination
 to sustain livelihood
and employment for Iluko abel industry
Bigueños
 identified and enhanced
its intangible cultural
resources-

traditional industries: Burnay(jar) industry

Empanada and okoy delicacy

Vigan terra-cotta (red clay) industry Empanadaan

Kankanen (Vigan delicacies) Zone
 cultural events:

Vigan City Fiesta and Longganiza Festival in

January

Semana Santa in April

Lantern and Torch

Parade in
December

World Heritage Cities

Solidarity Day featuring
Viva Vigan Binatbatan Raniag Festival of the the Repazzo de Vigan on
Festival of the Arts in May Lights in November September 8
-rehabilitation of Mestizo River

 to re-create Vigan
into original 3
islands

 to address the
problem on
flooding

 led to the creation

of Vigan Heritage
River Cruise that
highlights the
importance of the
Mestizo River in the
history of Vigan.
New 7 Wonder Cities
In May 2015, Vigan City was officially
recognized as one of the New7Wonders
Cities together with Beirut, Doha,
Durban, Havana, Kuala Lumpur and La
Paz
These strategies-

 led to the marked growth in Vigan’s economy

through an increase in hotel occupancy, invigorated
traditional industries and creation of other tourism
and trade-related businesses.

Heritage City of Vigan

Vision:

A habitable heritage city of

choice.
Awards
Among the many awards the city has received,
the World Heritage Committee through the
World Heritage Centre awarded the
Heritage City of Vigan:

 Best Practice in Heritage Management

during the 40th anniversary of the
World Heritage Convention, November
2012, Japan.
CONCLUSION:

A heritage conservation program can demonstrate

that our rich cultural heritage can be an effective
tool for tourism and economic development; and it
is exactly the ability of coping with the needs of
the present amidst the bounds set by a centuries-
old legacy that makes a heritage place a living city.

Rephrased: Mayor Eva Marie S. Medina

Indeed, it is good governance and empowered

stakeholders that continually assure the success of
heritage conservation program.
Acknowledgement:

Slides from

Ar/EnP FATIMA NICETAS A.RABANG-ALONZO, Ph.D., FUAP, PIEP, CHCS

Dean, College of Architecture