Abstract This paper venerates the celebration of the Pintados-Kasadyaan festival, revives the tradition and its original

happenings and presents the pride of the Leyteos in showcasing the folklores of every municipality. A history of this festival from its birth in 1986 to the current annual festivity is described along with its issues from the previous events. The purpose of this report is to continue the heritage of the Leyteos and to make known to the visitors and tourists the origin of the Pintados-Kasadyaan festival. Introduction Philippines is known not only for its natural beauty and foe the hospitability of the Filipinos but also for its cultural richness seen in different festivals from different regions. Folklorists believed that the first festivals arose because of the anxieties of the early people who did not understand the forces of nature and wished to placate them. One of these commemorated festivals in the Philippines is the Pintados-Kasadyaan festival of the provinces of Leyte and Samar which features a colorful unique traditional of the people of the province. The Pintados-Kasadyaan Festival Pintados-Kasadyaan festival is a religious celebration event in Tacloban city, Leyte. These are two festivals held every June 29th which underscores the Leyte kasadyaan festival of festivals, the Pintados Ritual Dance Presentation and the Pagrayhak Grand parade. These festivals started in honor of the feast day of Seor Santo Nio while recalling the life of the old people of Leyte during pre-Spanish period. The Pintados festival exhibits the ornate heritage with its own native music and dances of the people of Leyte and Samar. The Leyte kasadyaan festival which means merriness in Visayan language meanwhile, displays the exceptional history and culture of the province where municipalities of Leyte gathered together, brought their unique mounted storyline all their own to portray with pride their local folklore and legends. Since Visayans are experienced in the art of body tattooing, men and women are fond of tattooing themselves and festive dancers, painted from head to toe with designs that resemble to the armor of the tattooed warriors of the old during the Pintados festival. Dancers dazzled with colorful neon paints block up the streets of Tacloban city while presenting the many traditions that bloomed before the Spaniards came seen in their dance steps like worship of the idols, fishing, farming and harvesting accompanied by hypnotic rhythms of native instruments as the parade goes. The parade begins at the Balyuan Amphitheatre and proceeds throughout

Tacloban city. The spectators get a glance of the history of the people that once lived the islands of Leyte long before. History In 1668, the Spaniards came to the Visayas and found in the islands heavily tattooed men and women, whom they called Pintados. These people had a culture of their own, commemorating victories by holding festivals and honoring their gods after a bountiful harvest. It was in 1888 that missionaries from Spain brought the Child Jesus image known as "El Capitan" to the island. It had a rich and colorful background that draw out the devotion and worship of the Leyte natives to the Santo Nio. Then in 1986, the Pintados Foundation, Inc. was founded by civic-minded businessmen and entrepreneurs based in Tacloban City. They began organizing religious cultural activities for the city fiesta in honor of Seor Santo Nio. This marked the advent of the Pintados Festival, which was first celebrated June 29th of the year 1987. Today, it is called the Leyte PintadosKasadyaan Festival and is called as the "Festival of Festivals." The name Pintados is derived from what the native warriors, whose bodies were adorned with tattoos, were called. In those times, and even in some places today, tattoos were a mark of courage and beauty. Since tattoo-making was not yet as precise as it is today, they were rather painful and one risked the chance of contracting an infection. Therefore, a man who faced the dangers of tattooing and lived was considered to be both strong and brave. But even before the tattoo process itself, one would have to earn them after fighting heroically in wars. Started by former Leyte Governor Remedios Loreto-Petilla, the celebration was first held on May 12, 1996. The festivities weren't always held every June 29th; the first three years saw different dates. It was only in 1999 that it was fixed to June 29, the Feast of the Seor Santo Nio de Leyte. Conclusion There is a vital part that this Pintados-Kasadyaan festival plays, and it is to strengthen the people of Leytes sense of pride with much rejoicing with a signature traditional Filipino fiesta, where everyone is invited to join the fun and celebrate the Pintados festival. It also takes the people to a whole new environment and let the people see the beauty of tradition of the countrys ancestors.

References Gregory, Ruth W. "Festivals and Feasts." Microsoft Student 2009 [DVD]. Redmond, WA: Microsoft Corporation, 2008. Microsoft Encarta 2009. 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. http://www.philippinecountry.com/philippine_festivals/pintados_festival.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/pintados-kasadyaan# http://www.samarnews.com/news.htm (News on Samar and Leyte)