Paco, formerly known as Dilao, is a
district
A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...
of
Manila
Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...
,
Philippines
The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
, located south of the
Pasig River
The Pasig River (; ) is a water body in the Philippines that connects Laguna de Bay to Manila Bay. Stretching for , it bisects the Philippine capital of Manila and Metro Manila, its surrounding urban area into northern and southern halves. Its m ...
and
San Miguel, west of
Santa Ana, southwest of
Pandacan, north of
Malate
Malic acid is an organic compound with the molecular formula . It is a dicarboxylic acid that is made by all living organisms, contributes to the sour taste of fruits, and is used as a food additive. Malic acid has two stereoisomeric forms ( ...
, northwest of
San Andres Bukid, and east of
Ermita
Ermita is a district in central Manila, Philippines. It is a significant center of finance, education, culture, and commerce. Ermita serves as the civic center of Manila, bearing the seat of city government and a large portion of the area's e ...
. It had a population of 79,839 people as of the 2020 census.
History
Paco was known as Dilao because of the
Amaryllis plants that were once plentiful in this district.
Dilao or ''dilaw'' is a
Tagalog word for the color
yellow
Yellow is the color between green and orange on the spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a dominant wavelength of roughly 575585 nm. It is a primary color in subtractive color systems, used in painting or color printing. In t ...
. Although, some sources say,
it was named Dilao or "Yellow Plaza" by the
Spanish settlers because of the Japanese migrants who lived there, describing their
physiognomy
Physiognomy () or face reading is the practice of assessing a person's character or personality from their outer appearance—especially the face. The term can also refer to the general appearance of a person, object, or terrain without referenc ...
. Spanish
Franciscan
The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...
missionaries founded the town of Paco as early as 1580.
It was a town part of the province of
Tondo, which was later renamed Manila in 1859, until 1901.
The Japanese established an enclave quite early or
Nihonmachi
is a term used to refer to historical Japanese communities in Southeast and East Asia. The term has come to also be applied to several modern-day communities, though most of these are called simply " Japantown", in imitation of the common term " ...
in Dilao where they numbered between 300 and 400 in 1593. A statue of
Takayama can be found there. In 1603, during the
Sangley rebellion, their numbers reached up to 1,500; and later up to 3,000 in 1606. The Franciscan friar
Luis Sotelo was involved in the support of the Dilao enclave between 1600 and 1608.
The name Dilao was used until 1791. The name San Fernando was added, making it San Fernando de Dilao.
In the 19th century, the town of San Fernando de Dilao was given the nickname of Paco (which means Francisco). Paco, along with
Sampaloc,
Santa Ana,
San Juan del Monte, and
San Pedro de Macati became the second largest district to become part of Manila.
It came to be known as Paco de Dilao and eventually Paco, as it is known today.
The Japanese led an abortive rebellion in Dilao against the Spanish in 1606–1607. Their numbers rose again during the
interdiction of Christianity by
Tokugawa Ieyasu
Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...
in 1614, when 300 Japanese Christian refugees under
Takayama Ukon settled in the Philippines. As population assimilated to native population, numbers dimmed. However, there are today around 200,000 recorded Japanese people in the Philippines, based on modern day immigrants' records distinct from the population of colonial era immigrants which assimilated to the native population.
Paco was incorporated as a district of the newly chartered city of Manila in 1901, thus reducing from its independent municipality status.
From 1907 to 1949, Paco was part of the
2nd congressional district of Manila. Reapportionment of districts made Paco part of the
4th district from 1949 to 1972. In the 1987 Constitution, Paco was split to the 5th and 6th congressional districts, with the former covering the southern half and the latter covering the northern areas.
List of barangays
''Fifth District''
Southern Paco
''Sixth District''
Northern Paco
Landmarks
The
San Fernando de Dilao Church is a
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...
that served as the temporary
pro-cathedral
A pro-cathedral or procathedral is a parish Church (building), church that temporarily serves as the cathedral or co-cathedral of a diocese, or a church that has the same function in a Catholic missionary jurisdiction (such as an apostolic prefect ...
of the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila from 2012 to 2014 during the renovations of
Manila Cathedral
The Minor Basilica and Metropolitan Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, commonly known as the Manila Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic basilica and cathedral church of the Archdiocese of Manila. It is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary of ...
in
Intramuros
Intramuros () is the historic walled area within the city of Manila, the capital of the Philippines. It is administered by the Intramuros Administration with the help of the city government of Manila.
Intramuros comprises a centuries-old hist ...
.
A
Sikh Temple and
Unilever Philippines is located on
United Nations Avenue. Unilever was moved to
Bonifacio Global City
Bonifacio Global City, also known as BGC, Global City, or The Fort, is a 240-hectare mixed-use estate and central business district located in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig, Philippines. It is the home of the Philippine Stock Exchange, the national ...
,
Taguig
Taguig (), officially the City of Taguig (), is the List of cities in the Philippines, fifth-most populous city in the Philippines situated on the eastern shores of Metro Manila, the national capital region. It is a center for culture, finance ...
. There is a ten-minute walk away is a
Hindu
Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
temple at Looban Street. Presently, Dilao is traversed by
Quirino Avenue. A loop road from Quirino Avenue is named
Plaza Dilao
Plaza Dilao is a public square in Paco, Manila, bounded by Quirino Avenue to the south and east and Plaza Dilao Road and Quirino Avenue Extension to the north and west. The former site of a Japanese settlement from the Spanish colonial era, the ...
to commemorate the once flourishing Japanese and the Japanese-Filipino communities and districts there in
Japantown
is a common name for Japanese communities in cities and towns outside Japan. Alternatively, a Japantown may be called J-town, Little Tokyo or , the first two being common names for Japantown, San Francisco, Japantown, San Jose and Little ...
in
Manila
Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...
.
Paco Park, was a former municipal cemetery of the old city of Manila, and once contained the remains of Philippine national hero,
José Rizal
José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda (, ; June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896) was a Filipino nationalist, writer and polymath active at the end of the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. He is popularly considered a na ...
and the
GOMBURZA
Gomburza, alternatively stylized as GOMBURZA or GomBurZa ("Gom" for Gómes, "Bur" for Burgos, and "Za" for Zamora), refers to three Filipino Catholic priests, Mariano Gómes, José Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora, who were executed by a garrot ...
priests.
The
Osmeña Highway starts in this district and it leads to
Calabarzon region via
South Luzon Expressway and
Southern Tagalog Arterial Road that starts in
Magallanes Interchange,
Makati
Makati ( ; ), officially the City of Makati (), is a highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines, known for being one of the leading financial centers in the country. As of 2013, the city has the highest concent ...
and ends in
Batangas City.
Philippine National Railways owns and operates the
Paco railway station.
The Paco Public Market located along the edge of Estero de Paco was designed by William Parsons and built in 1911.
Schools include the
Colegio de la Inmaculada Concepcion de la Concordia, or simple Concordia College, and the
Paco Catholic School.
In January, 2024, Cardinal
Jose Advincula unveiled the
Important Cultural Property (Philippines) marker for
Pope Pius XII Catholic Center along
United Nations Avenue
United Nations Avenue (also known as U.N. Avenue and formerly known as Isaac Peral Street) is a major thoroughfare in Manila, Philippines. A commercial, residential and industrial artery, it runs east–west near the city center, linking Ermita, ...
in Paco, Manila with
Charles John Brown and Jeremy R. Barns,
National Museum of the Philippines
The National Museum of the Philippines () is an umbrella government organization that oversees a number of national museums in the Philippines, including Ethnography, ethnographic, Anthropology, anthropological, Archaeology, archaeological, an ...
Director-General, witnessed by 80 bishops gathered for the
Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines
The Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (abbreviated as CBCP) is the permanent organizational assembly of the Catholic bishops of the Philippines exercising together certain pastoral offices for the Christian faithful of their terr ...
's 127th plenary assembly.
File:San Fernando de Dilao Church, Paco, Manila, April 2023.jpg, San Fernando de Dilao Church
File:WTMP Noel Gonong DSC 0025.JPG, Plaza Dilao marker on the foreground, and Takayama's statue on the background.
File:WTMP A-trio a19 1.JPG, Facade of the Paco railway station.
File:Paco_Citizen_Academy_Foundation_01.jpg, Paco Citizen Academy Foundation
File:0159Pius_XII_Catholic_Center_(United_Nations_Avenue,_Paco,_City_of_Manila)_12.jpg, Pius XII Catholic Center
See also
*
Nihonmachi
is a term used to refer to historical Japanese communities in Southeast and East Asia. The term has come to also be applied to several modern-day communities, though most of these are called simply " Japantown", in imitation of the common term " ...
*
Dom Justo Takayama
References
External links
{{coord, 14.583, N, 120.983, E, type:city_region:PH_source:GNS-enwiki, display=title
Districts of Manila
1580 establishments in the Philippines