HALADAYA FESTIVAL

“HALADAYA” comes from two words, HALAD meaning offer or offering and DAYA which refers to the name of Datu Daya, who was believed to be the ruler of the first Malayan settlers of the place. HALADAYA FESTIVAL basically means an offering to Datu Daya, a fitting tribute for his courage, valor and heroism in driving away the Moro raiders who constantly ransacked the villagers’ properties and terrorized the residents. Originally, the town was called Kandaya or Kang Datu Daya and as part of his defenses, he erected a watchtower locally termed Bantayan sa Hari that served as a look-out point for the invaders. When a new watch tower was built to strengthen the defenses in the north, the old tower was called Daang Bantayan, where the current name of the town Daanbantayan, was derived from.