Biñan Liberation Day in the Philippines Date in the current year: February 3, 2025

Biñan is a component city in the Philippine province of Laguna. The origin of its name is unclear. According to one of the most popular theories, two Spanish missionaries who arrived in the region with Captain Juan de Salcedo planted a wooden cross and celebrated a thanksgiving mass in what is now Biñan. When natives the gathered around and became interested in what was happening, the missionaries took advantage of the situation and baptized them. From then on, the place was called Binyagan, which means “a place of baptism”. The Spanish, however, found the word difficult to pronounce and called the place Biñan.

Another theory is that the town was named after the banyan tree (Ficus benghalensis), which is unlikely because this tree is rare in the area. One more theory is that the name Biñan is derived from the Hindu word banyan, which means “merchant”, since the area was an important trading center even before the arrival of the Spanish.

Juan de Salcedo first established a settlement in Biñan in 1571. In 1644, Dominican friars established a hacienda in the area and named it Hacienda de San Isidro Labrador de Biñan in honor of Saint Isidor the Laborer. Until the late 18th century, Biñan was part of a large territory called Tabuco, which also included the present-day cities of Cabuyao, San Pedro, Santa Rosa and Calamba.

Biñan was officially established as a pueblo (town) on February 4, 1747. In the second half of the 19th century, Biñan gained recognition as an important town in the life of José Rizal, a Filipino nationalist who was one of the key members of the Philippine Propaganda Movement, which advocated for political reform in the Philippines. Rizal was born in Calamba but spent part of his childhood in his aunt’s home in Biñan.

During World War II, Biñan was occupied by Imperial Japan along with the rest of the Philippines. Its liberation occurred towards the end of the war as part of the Allied campaign to liberate Manila. Biñan was liberated on February 3, 1945 by the 47th Regiment of the Hunters ROTC, a Filipino guerrilla unit that was the main anti-Japanese resistance group active near Manila.

After the war and the independence of the Philippines, Biñan continued to grow and develop, eventually becoming a city on February 2, 2010.

The liberation anniversary of Biñan is celebrated on February 3, but the celebration usually lasts for three days because two other important events in Biñan’s history occurred in early February: February 2 is its cityhood anniversary and February 4 is the anniversary of Biñan’s founding as a pueblo. The celebration of these three milestones is sometimes collectively referred to as Biñan Day (Araw ng Biñan).

Events and activities held on the occasion include a memorial ceremony for the fallen heroes, a grand parade, cultural festivals, free movie screenings, open-air concerts, a job fair, and more.