Oldest traditional costume event takes centerstage in Guling-guling Festival

By Leilanie G. Adriano 

Staff Reporter

PAOAY, Ilocos Norte—The old familiar sight of Ilocano men and women wearing abel-inspired traditional costume took centerstage as they swayed their hips and arms in a street dancing parade around the town plaza, drawing a huge crowd of viewers taking snapshots of them while performing in front of the picturesque St. Augustine Church in time for the town’s celebration of Guling-guling festival.

On March 4 or a day before Ash Wednesday, Paoay residents never fail to celebrate an old tradition that dates back to the 16^th century when people gather and enjoy all forms of merry making such as cooking dudol (native rice cake) and drinking basi (sugarcane wine) before they enter the season of Lent.

Aside from the street dance showdown with at least 10 contingents participating this year, the Guling-guling festival highlighted the wearing of fashionable Abel Iluko or hand-woven textiles famous in this northern part of Luzon.

According to Ianree Raquel, Ilocos Norte provincial tourism officer Norte, he said the search for the traditional and spectacular Guling-Guling costumes aims to promote these cotton-loom woven textiles called inabel with its versatility that is limited only to the imagination as local weavers continue to develop new designs and techniques. The first category encourages the young generation to appreciate the old traditional Ilocano costume while the second category hopes to inspire creativity and fun to local designers and artists. Cash prizes ranging from 5,000 to P1, 000 also await the winners proclaimed after the dance showdown.

History records show that inabel is deeply rooted in the Ilocano traditions since the Spaniards colonized Ilocos Norte in 1572.

Known for its strength and durability, the locals used to trade them for gold, ceramics, jars, iron and beads from China, Japan, and Southeast Asia. The Spaniards likewise endorsed it as excellent sails for galleons in the same way it was utilized locally in boats, barangays and other sea-going vessels.

Because of its astonishing beauty, inabel has caught the attention of international couturiers that started working with Ilocano weavers in innovating new products made of inabel.