View source for Binondo

{{Short description|District of Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines}}
{{more citations needed|date=December 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Use Philippine English|date=December 2022}}
{{Infobox settlement
<!-- See Template:Infobox settlement for additional fields and descriptions -->| name               = Binondo
| translit_lang1     = Other
| translit_lang1_type2 = [[Traditional Chinese character|Chinese]]
| translit_lang1_info2 = 岷倫洛
| translit_lang1_info3 = Bîn-lûn-lo̍h
| nickname           = [[Chinatown]]
| image_skyline      = Binondo, Manila San Nicolas Heritage Centre 47.jpg
| image_caption      = Binondo Church
| map_caption        = Location within [[Manila]]
| image_map          = {{maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|type=shape|stroke-width=2|stroke-color=#000000|zoom=14}}
| pushpin_map        = City of Manila
| pushpin_label_position = left
| subdivision_type   = Country
| subdivision_name   = [[Philippines]]
| subdivision_type1  = Region
| subdivision_name1  = [[Metro Manila|National Capital Region]]
| subdivision_type2  = City
| subdivision_name2  = [[Manila]]
| subdivision_type3  = Congressional District
| subdivision_name3  = Part of [[Legislative districts of Manila|3rd District of Manila]]
| subdivision_type4  = [[Barangays]]
| subdivision_name4  = [[#Barangays|10]]
| area_total_km2     = 0.66
| area_total_sq_mi   = 0.26
| population_as_of   = {{PH wikidata|population_as_of}}
| population_total   = {{PH wikidata|population_total}}
| population_footnotes = {{PH wikidata|population_reference}}{{PH census|current|NCR}}
| population_density_km2 = auto
| official_name      = 
| established_title  = Founded
| established_date   = 1594
| founder            = [[Luis Pérez Dasmariñas]]
| timezone1          = [[Philippine Standard Time]]
| utc_offset1        = +08:00
| timezone1_DST      = 
| utc_offset1_DST    = 
| postal_code_type   = [[List of ZIP codes in the Philippines|Zip codes]]
| postal_code        = 1006
| area_code_type     = [[Telephone numbers in the Philippines|Area codes]]
| area_code          = 2
| settlement_type    = Constituent and [[Central business district|Central Business]] District of [[Manila]]
| blank1_name_sec1   = [[Languages of the Philippines|Languages]]
| blank1_info_sec1   = Hokkien<br />Tagalog<br /> Mandarin
<!-- images and maps -->}}
{{Infobox Chinese
| t = {{linktext|岷|倫|洛|區}}
| s = {{linktext|岷|伦|洛|区}}
| p = Mínlúnluò Qū
| w = {{tone superscript|Min2-lun2-lo4 Ch'ü1}}
| mi = {{IPAc-cmn|m|in|2|.|l|un|2|.|l|uo|4|-|qu|1}}
| bpmf = ㄇㄧㄣˊ ㄌㄨㄣˊ ㄌㄨㄛˋ ㄑㄩ
| poj = Bîn-lûn-lo̍h-khu
| j = Man4 leon4 lok3 keoi1 au1
| y = Màhn lèuhn lok kēui āu
| ci = {{IPAc-yue|m|an|4|-|l|eon|4|-|l|ok|3|-|k|eoi|1|-|au|1}}
| altname = 
}}
'''Binondo''' ({{lang-zh|c=岷倫洛|p=Mínlúnluò||poj=Bîn-lûn-lo̍h|s=|t=}}; {{langx|tl|Distrito ng Binondo}}) is a district in [[Manila]] and is referred to as the city's [[Chinatown]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/food/388446/binondo-new-discoveries-in-the-world-s-oldest-chinatown/story/ |title=New discoveries in the world's oldest Chinatown |first=STANLEY BALDWIN O. |last=SEE |work=GMA News Online
|date=November 17, 2014 |access-date=March 21, 2025}}</ref> Its influence extends beyond to the places of [[Quiapo, Manila|Quiapo]], [[Santa Cruz, Manila|Santa Cruz]], [[San Nicolas, Manila|San Nicolas]] and [[Tondo, Manila|Tondo]]. It is the oldest [[Chinatown]] in the world, established in 1594<ref>{{cite web|url=http://radio86.com/travel/destinations/chinatown-manila-oldest-world |title=Chinatown Manila: Oldest in the world |author=Geni Raitisoja |date=July 8, 2006 |access-date=January 12, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120327040651/http://radio86.com/travel/destinations/chinatown-manila-oldest-world |archive-date=March 27, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ByWDCwAAQBAJ&q=binondo+oldest+chinatown|title=The SAGE Encyclopedia of Economics and Society|isbn=9781452226439|last=Wherry|first=Frederick F.|publisher=SAGE Publications, Inc.|date=2015-09-01|page=355|access-date=2020-08-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.esquiremag.ph/long-reads/features/binondo-history-oldest-chinatown-a2212-20190204-lfrm|title=How Binondo Became the World's Oldest Chinatown|last=Umali|first=Justin|date=2019-02-04|work=[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]|publisher=[[Summit Media]]|access-date=2020-08-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WUOzAQAAQBAJ&q=binondo+oldest+chinatown|title=Chinatowns around the World: Gilded Ghetto, Ethnopolis, and Cultural Diaspora|author1=Bernard P. Wong|author2=Chee-Beng Tan|isbn=9789004255906|publisher=[[Brill Publishers]]|date=2013-03-21|page=272|access-date=2020-08-04}}</ref> by the Spaniards as a settlement near [[Intramuros]] but across the [[Pasig River]] for Catholic Chinese; it was positioned so that the colonial administration could keep a close eye on their migrant subjects.<ref>{{cite web |author=Simon Ostheimer |date=September 12, 2012 |title=World's best Chinatowns |url=http://travel.cnn.com/explorations/escape/worlds-best-chinatowns-324704 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121204072906/http://travel.cnn.com/explorations/escape/worlds-best-chinatowns-324704 |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 4, 2012 |access-date=January 12, 2015}}</ref> It was already a hub of Chinese commerce even before the Spanish colonial period. Binondo is the center of commerce and trade of [[Manila]], where all types of business run by [[Chinese Filipinos]] thrive.

Noted residents include [[Saint Lorenzo Ruiz]], the Filipino [[protomartyr]], and [[Venerable]] [[Mother Ignacia del Espiritu Santo]], founder of the Congregation of the [[Religious of the Virgin Mary]].

== Etymology ==
Numerous theories on the origin of the name "Binondo", and that of "Tondo", its neighboring district, have been put forward. Philippine National Artist [[Nick Joaquin]] suggested that the names might have been derived from the archaic spelling of the [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]] term "''binondoc''" (modern orthography: ''binundók''), or mountainous, referring to Binondo's originally hilly terrain.<ref>{{cite book  | last = Joaqiun  | first = Nick  | author-link = Nick Joaqiun  | title =Manila, My Manila: A History for the Young  | publisher = Anvil Publishing, Inc. | date = 1990  | location = City of Manila  | isbn = 978-9715693134 }}</ref><ref name="Ocampo">{{cite book |last1=Ocampo |first1=Ambeth |title=Looking Back: Volume 1 |date=2012 |publisher=Anvil Publishing, Inc. |isbn=9789712736087}}</ref> French linguist Jean-Paul Potet, however, has suggested that the river mangrove (''[[Aegiceras corniculatum]]''), which at the time was called "tundok" ("tinduk-tindukan" today), is the most likely origin of the term, with the 'Bi-" prefix in "Binondo" indicating Binondo's location relative to Tondo.<ref>{{cite book|last=Potet|first=Jean-Paul G.|title=Arabic and Persian Loanwords in Tagalog|date=2013|pages=444|publisher=Lulu.com|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1i-bBQAAQBAJ|isbn=9781291457261}}</ref>

== History ==
[[Image:Bridge of Binondoc in Manila, early 1800s.jpg|thumb|left|Bridge of Binondoc in Manila, early 19th century. Original caption: ''Pont de Binondoc à Manille''. From ''Aventures d'un Gentilhomme Breton aux iles Philippines'' (1855) by [[Paul de la Gironière]].|313x313px]]Founded in 1594, Binondo was created by Spanish Governor [[Luis Pérez Dasmariñas]] as a permanent settlement for Chinese immigrants (the Spanish called the Chinese ''[[sangley]]s'') who [[religious conversion|convert]]ed to [[Catholicism]]. It was across the river from the walled city of [[Intramuros]], where the Spaniards resided.

Originally it was intended to replace the [[Parian (Manila)|Parian]] near Intramuros, where [[Sangley]] [[Chinese Filipinos|Chinese]] merchants and artisans were first confined. The Spanish gave a land grant for Binondo to a group of Chinese merchants and artisans in perpetuity, tax-free and with limited self-governing privileges. The area also served as a midpoint in between [[Parián (Manila)|Parián]] (modern-day [[Arroceros Urban Forest Park]]) and [[San Nicolas, Manila|San Nicolas]], since way before <span data-darkreader-inline-color="" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor="">the Spanish conquest of Manila in the </span>[[Battle of Manila (1570)]], a Sangley Chinese community had already settled in Baybay (former name of [[San Nicolas, Manila]]) <span data-darkreader-inline-color="" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor="">near </span>[[Tondo, Manila|Tondo]] <span data-darkreader-inline-color="" data-darkreader-inline-bgcolor="">on the north bank of the </span>[[Pasig River|Pasig river]] directly on Binondo's west.<ref name="Van der Loon 1966">{{harvp|Van der Loon|1966}}</ref>

The Spanish [[Dominican Order|Dominican]] fathers made Binondo their parish and succeeded in converting many of the residents to Catholicism. Binondo soon became the place where Chinese immigrants converted to Catholicism, intermarried with [[indigenous peoples|indigenous]] Filipino women and had children, who became the Chinese ''[[mestizo]]'' community. Over the years, the Chinese mestizo population of Binondo grew rapidly. This was caused mainly because the lack of Chinese immigrant females and the Spanish officials' policy of expelling Chinese immigrants who refused to convert and casualties during Chinese revolts against the Spanish.[[File:Binondo, Manila, Philippines 1890's-1900's.jpg|left|thumb|371x371px|[[Plaza San Lorenzo Ruiz|Plaza Calderón de la Barca]] in Binondo with the view of [[Binondo Church]]]]In 1603, a Chinese revolt took place led by Juan Suntay, a wealthy Chinese Catholic. The Chinese were at first successful and slaughtered the Spanish governor general [[Luis Pérez Dasmariñas]] and his Spanish forces. The revolt took place right after a visit to Manila by three official Chinese representatives who disclosed they were searching for "a mountain of gold". This strange claim prompted the Spanish to conclude that there was an imminent invasion from China in the making and Luis tried attacking the Chinese first. At the time the local Chinese outnumbered the Spaniards by twenty to one, and Spanish authorities feared that they would join the invading forces. However, Filipinos loyal to the Spanish outnumbered the Chinese and the Filipinos saved the surviving Spanish and put down the revolt. In the aftermath most of the 20,000 Chinese that composed the colony were killed.<ref>{{cite book | title=Hua-ch'iao tui-yu Fei-lu-pin (The Overseas Chinese in the Philippines) | author=Chi Tien, Liu | year=1955 | location=Manila | pages=37–41}}</ref> In 1605, a Fukien official issued a letter claiming that the Chinese who had participated in the revolt were unworthy of China's protection, describing them as "deserters of the tombs of their ancestors".<ref>{{cite book | title=The Relation of China to her Nationals Abroad | author=MacNair, H.F. | year=1923 | pages=30}}</ref> New Chinese migrants repopulated Binondo.  [[File:Calle Rosario, Manila, Philippines, 1915.png|thumb|Calle Rosario (modern-day Quintin Paredes Street), 1915|178x178px]]During the brief [[British occupation of Manila]], between 1762 and 1764, Binondo was damaged during the [[Battle of Manila (1762)|capture of the city]]. The new governor of Manila, [[Dawsonne Drake]], formed a war council which he termed the "[[Choultry|Chottry]] Court". Drake imprisoned several Manilans on charges known "only known to himself", according Captain Thomas Backhouse, who denounced Drake's court [[Kangaroo court|as a sham]].<ref name="Backhouse">{{cite book | title=The Secretary at War to Mr. Secretary Conway | author=Backhouse, Thomas | author-link=Calendar of Home Office Papers, War Office | year=1765 | publisher=British Library | location=London | pages=v. 40}}</ref>
Binondo became the main center for business and finance in Manila for the ethnic Chinese, Chinese mestizos and Spanish Filipinos. During the Spanish colonial period, many ''esteros'' (canals) were constructed in the Binondo area, from where they entered the [[Pasig River]]. Among the many who married at the historic Binondo Church was [[Andres Bonifacio]] in 1895, who became a hero of the [[Philippine Revolution]].

Before [[World War II]], Binondo was the center of a banking and financial community which included insurance companies, commercial banks and other financial institutions from Britain and the United States. These banks were located mostly along ''[[Escólta]]'', which used to be called the "Wall Street of the Philippines".

After the war and new development, most businesses began to relocate to the newer [[Zobel de Ayala family]][[Ayala Corporation|-led]] [[Makati Central Business District|area]] of [[Makati]]. During the financial crisis of the early 1980s under the [[presidency of Ferdinand Marcos]], it had the moniker "[[Binondo Central Bank]]",<ref name="bcb">{{cite web | title=Bankrupt | website=[[The Philippine STAR]] | url=https://www.philstar.com/business/2022/02/16/2161033/bankrupt }}</ref> as the local Chinese businessmen engaged in massive [[black market]] trading of US dollars, which often determined the national peso-dollar exchange rate. Given its rich historical and financial significance, Binondo is said to have one of the highest land values nationwide.

The Binondo was plot setting for the episode "Mata" and "Mukha" of the 2010 horror film ''[[Cinco (film)|Cinco]]''.
<gallery mode="packed" style="text-align: center;" heights="125" perrow="3" caption="''Historical images of Binondo''">
File:View of Manila Philippines 1800's.jpg|View of [[Puente de España]], the bridge that once connected Binondo from [[Ermita]]. (1800s)
File:Pasig River Manila Philippines 1800's.jpg|View of the Binondo Side of [[Pasig River]] with its ''[[Bahay na bato]]'' structure's lined beside the river. circa 19th century
File:La Escolta c. 1910.jpg|[[Escolta Street|''Escolta'' street]] (1910)
File:La Insular Cigar Factory Manila.jpg|''La Insular'' Cigar Factory
File:El Hogar building Manila.jpg|[[El Hogar Filipino Building]], built in 1914, example of [[Beaux-Arts style]] architecture
File:Hotel de Oriente Binondo 1890.jpg|''Hotel De Oriente''
File:Plaza Moraga Manila.jpg|''[[Plaza Moraga]]'' in the 1930s.</gallery>

==Barangays==
The most populated [[barangay]] in Binondo is Barangay 293.<br>
'''Zone 27''': 287, 288, 289, 290, 291<br>
'''Zone 28''': 292, 293, 294, 295, 296
{| class="wikitable"
! Barangay
! Land area (km<sup>2</sup>)
! Population (2024 census)
|-
! colspan=3 | Zone 27
|-
|Barangay 287
|0.1277&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|3,117
|-
|Barangay 288
|0.03718&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|2,800
|-
|Barangay 289
|0.04449&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|1,352
|-
|Barangay 290
|0.05753&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|1,713
|-
|Barangay 291
|0.1064&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|2,537
|-
! colspan=3 | Zone 28
|-
|Barangay 292
|0.05359&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|3,113
|-
|Barangay 293
|0.1273&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|3,708
|-
|Barangay 294
|0.05067&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|1,905
|-
|Barangay 295
|0.02587&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|1,417
|-
|Barangay 296
|0.03502&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|2,273
|}

== Places of interest and events ==
[[File:Binondo Chinese New Year Ongpin Street 2024-02-10.jpg|thumb|Celebration of Chinese New Year in Binondo, Manila (2024)]]
*[[Plaza San Lorenzo Ruiz]]
*Panciteria Macanista de Buen Gusto - A building notable due to being mentioned in [[José Rizal]]'s novel ''[[Noli Me Tángere (novel)|Noli me Tangere.]]'' 
*[[Plaza Moraga]]
*[[Plaza Cervantes]]
*[[Binondo Church]]
*[[Escolta Street]]
*Ongpin Street - Various Chinese vendor establishments and Chinese commercial space/building on the area. Several tea houses, restaurants, and hawker-style stalls that serve authentic [[Dim sum|dimsum]] and Chinese cuisine can be found along Ongpin Street. As such, this area has become popular as a gastronomic and cultural hotspot. Locals and tourists are known to embark on a what is called as a ''Binondo Food Crawl''<ref>{{Cite web |title=Binondo Food Trip: 12 Must-Try Binondo Restaurants & Dish... |url=https://guidetothephilippines.ph/articles/what-to-experience/best-binondo-restaurants |access-date=2022-03-11 |website=Guide to the Philippines |language=en}}</ref> to sample the cuisine along Ongpin Street.
*[[Chinese New Year]]
*[[Lucky Chinatown|Lucky Chinatown Mall]]
*Chinatown Arch
*[[Jones Bridge]]
*[[List of tallest buildings in Metro Manila|One Financial Center]] Manila Chinatown by Anchor Land is a 45-story Grade-A [[office]] at 531 Quintin Paredes Street, Binondo, the tallest in [[Manila]]. It features sleek, low-[[Glass fiber|e-glass curtain wall]] façade, with lobby drop-off and 9 [[multistorey car park]] with 5 high-speed [[elevators]].<ref>{{cite news |last1= |first1= |title=One Financial Center to rise as Manila Chinatown's first and only grade-a office tower|url=https://business.inquirer.net/473639/one-financial-center-to-rise-as-manila-chinatowns-first-and-only-grade-a-office-tower |accessdate=August 10, 2024 |publisher=[[Philippine Daily Inquirer]] |date=August 10, 2024}}</ref>

==In literature==
Binondo was mentioned several times in the novels of Dr. [[José Rizal]], for example, in ''[[Noli Me Tangere (novel)|Noli Me Tangere]]'' and ''[[El Filibusterismo]]''.

==Gallery==
<gallery mode="packed">
File:Manila Philippines Shop-sign-in-Chinatown-01.jpg|alt=A red street sign that says "Q. PAREDES" The street sign is topped with a dragon.|A street sign in Chinatown
File:Taft Avenue - City Hall, UN with Binondo (aerial shot) (Ermita, Manila)(2018-02-20).jpg|Binondo, with the [[Manila City Hall]] and the [[United Nations station (Line 1)|United Nations station]]
File:Manila downtown - Binondo, Quiapo, Quezon Bridge, Pasig River, Arroceros (close-up) (Manila)(2018-02-07).jpg|Binondo, with [[Quiapo, Manila|Quiapo]], [[Santa Cruz, Manila|Santa Cruz]], the [[Pasig River]], and the [[Arroceros Forest Park]]
File:Pasig River, Juan Luna Binondo (Manila; 01-01-2025).jpg|Buildings along the Pasig River in Escolta
File:Chinese New Year in Binondo, Manila (2020).jpg|Manila Chinatown Welcome Arch during the Chinese New Year (2020)
File:Binondo Church Interior, Manila, May 2025 (2).jpg|Interior of the [[Binondo Church]] 
File:Filipino-Chinese Friendship Arch at Binondo.jpg|Filipino-Chinese Friendship Arch
</gallery>

==See also==
*[[El Hogar Filipino Building]]
*[[Juan Luna Building]] (next to El Hogar Building)
*[[Davao Chinatown]]
*[[Philippine Hokkien]]
*[[Hokaglish]]
*[[List of ethnic enclaves in Philippine cities]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{Cite journal |last=Van der Loon |first=Piet |year=1966 |title=The Manila Incunabula and Early Hokkien Studies, Part 1 |url=http://www2.ihp.sinica.edu.tw/file/1716usrgSxY.pdf |journal=Asia Major |series=New Series |volume=12 |pages=1–43 |language=en}}

==External links==
*{{Commons-inline|Category:Binondo, Manila|Binondo}}
* {{Wikivoyage inline|Manila/Binondo|Binondo}}

{{Binondo|state=expanded}}
{{Manila}}
{{Asia Chinatown}}
{{Metro Manila populated places}}
{{Authority control}}
{{Coord|14.600|N|120.967|E|type:city_region:PH_source:GNS-enwiki|display=title}}

[[Category:Binondo| ]]
[[Category:Chinese-Filipino culture]]
[[Category:Districts of Manila]]
[[Category:Chinatowns in Asia]]
[[Category:Central business districts in the Philippines]]