The Ati-Atihan Festival is a feast held annually in January in honor of the Santo Niño (Infant Jesus), concluding on the third Sunday, in the town of Kalibo, Aklan in the island of Panay, Philippines.
The name Ati-Atihan means "to be like Atis" or "to make believe Atis", the local name for the Aeta aborigines who first settled in Panay Island and other parts of the archipelago. The Ati, also known as Negritos, are an indigenous people who have distinctively black skin and curly hair.
On account of the historical influence of the Catholic church, the Ati-Atihan festival is said to honor the Santo Niño (Christ Child). In fact, the name of Kalibo means “one thousand,” which is the number of people who were baptized in a single day by early Spanish missionaries.
A shout associated with the Ati-Atihan Festival is Hala Bira! Every Filipino knows this phrase, but not its origin. In the 17th century, Moro raiders from the south were attacking Panay. The defenders of the island used artillery with the battle cry Hala bira (“Hit them!”). The gunpowder blackened their faces and after the fight they looked like the black-skinned Ati. The Santo Nino is credited with saving the locals from the Moros.
