THE SANIATAS OF BURGOS TOWNS: THE PRECIOUS GEMS, THE BEAUTIFUL LADIES, AND THE MIRACLE FRUITS
There is a “Saniata ti Burgos,” a beauty contest held during the Bayog Festival in Burgos, Pangasinan, celebrated annually in honor of the town’s patron saint, San Isidro Labrador, the patron saint of peasants, on May 14, 2023.
The “saniata” word is quite new to some. One cannot easily relate to this Ilocano word the way many can immediately do with much familiar Ilocano words like “gundaway” (opportunity), “sirib” (wisdom), “ragsak” (happiness), “namnama” (hope), “arapaap” (dream), “isem” (smile), “pammati” (faith), “ayat” (love), “biag” (life) and others. Saniata is completely foreign to some.
The Burgos folks said the “Saniata ti Burgos” is like “Ms. Burgos Beauty Pageant.” Still, the word’s relation to beauty is far until one looks it up on the internet and find out that “saniata” is an Ilocano word for jewel, gem or precious stone. In Tagalog, “saniata” is synonymous with “hiyas,” “mutya” or “mamahaling bato.” That’s where the connection can be made. “Hiyas” and “mutya” are Tagalog words also used for beauty pageants, and so “saniata” is their equivalent in Ilocano. The beauty of Filipino women is represented by jewels, gems and precious stones. They are the “hiyas,” the “mutyas,” and the “saniatas.” They sparkle and glitter, and they are indeed precious.
Another discovery that can come across in the search for the meaning of “saniata” is that it is also used in Ilocos Norte in a town, surprisingly, is also called Burgos.
In Burgos in Ilocos Norte, there is a “Saniata Festival” based on the local folklore, a recent one to lend context to the town’s festival as part of Ilocos Norte’s Tan-ok ti Ilocano (Greatness of the Ilocanos) Provincial Festival encompassing all festivals of its towns. According to the tale, the father of the town is sick. All the albularyos tried to cure him, but without success. The most powerful albularyo was sought, and with “talado,” a ritual done with droplets of burning candles on a basin filled with water to identify the cause of sickness or to figure out the cure, he said that only a fruit guarded by a dragon can cure the sick man. He added that only a virtuous woman could procure it. And so a woman named Saniata who was known as simple, good and with a pure heart was summoned. She obediently went to Kapur-purawan, the place where the fruit can be taken but a dragon stood there guarding it. The guarding dragon, sensing her goodness and purity, however, readily gave her the fruit on the condition that she would live in Kapur-purawan after the father of the town is cured. The father was cured, and Saniata went back to Kapur-purawan to fulfill her promise. Saniata soon felt that the dragon had a good heart, and so the two fell in love with one another. They kissed each other, and the dragon turned into a handsome young man. The couple then shared the wonders of the miracle fruit and named it “Saniata.”
Today, the saniata – the dragon fruit – is one of the prides of Burgos, along with the lighthouse, waterfalls and Kapurpurawan. Saniata is now the common Ilocano name for the dragon fruit. It began to be popular more than a decade ago.
The dragon fruit is originally from Mexico and northern South America. Mexicans call it “pitahaya” or “pitaya” to refer to several types of cactus fruit, including the dragon fruit. The word “pitahaya” comes from the Nahuatl language of the Aztecs. It was introduced to the Philippines by the Spanish in the 16th century, but the first planting materials in the country came from Taiwan and Vietnam in 1992, and planted in Cavite. In Taiwan, dragon fruit is called “huǒ lóng guǒ”, which translates to “fire dragon fruit,” while in Vietnam it is known as “thanh long,” which means “green dragon.” Since then, dragon fruit has become a popular crop in the Philippines.
In Burgos, Ilocos Norte, Edita Dacuycuy started growing dragon fruit in her backyard in 2005 to support her daughter with special needs. Her daughter suffers from celebral palsy. A friend told her that dragon fruits can help minimize her daughter’s seizures and bouts of constipation. And indeed, they do. Today, her plantation covers 20 hectares.
Interestingly, Don Islao Farm in the Pangasinan town of the same name Burgos, which uses the word “Saniata” for its beauty pageant, also has a 5-hectare red dragon fruit plantation. There are other smaller dragon fruit farms all over the town, but the dragon fruit plantation developed by the heirs of Don Wenceslao “Islao” Bustamante is the biggest there so far. Recently, the contestants of Saniata ti Burgos visited Don Islao Farm without knowing perhaps that there is a connection between Burgos, Ilocos Norte which has the same name as their own town, and the word Saniata which both refers to dragon fruit and jewels.
It is assumed that the Saniata Ladies already knew that both Burgos towns were named after Padre Jose Burgos, a Filipino priest who was one of the three Filipino priests (together with Padre Mariano Gomez and Padre Jacinto Zamora) who were executed by the Spanish colonial government on charges of sedition in 1872. The execution of the three priests, now collectively known as the “Gomburza,” became a rallying point for Philippine nationalism and was seen as a turning point in the struggle for Philippine independence. Padre Burgos was a native of Vigan, Ilocos Sur. The Ilocano settlers of Burgos, Pangasinan came from Paoay in Ilocos Norte.
Thus, the Ilocano word “saniata” not only means jewel, gemstone or gem, but also stands for the dragon fruit, a precious and miraculous fruit that is becoming increasingly popular in the Philippines.
Dragon fruit is often referred to as the “miracle fruit” and high value fruit because of its numerous health benefits and unique properties. It is rich in fiber, antioxidants and vitamin C, and is low in calories. It also contains various other beneficial compounds such as carotenoids, polyunsaturated fatty acids and flavonoids. Some studies have shown that eating dragon fruit can help reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes, improve digestive health and strengthen the immune system.
In addition, the unique appearance and flavor of dragon fruit make it a popular and exotic ingredient in many culinary dishes and beverages, further increasing its value in the market. Finally, the increasing demand for dragon fruit in recent years, both domestically and internationally, has contributed to its high value in the agricultural industry.
Dragon fruit flowers bloom only once at night, when darkness envelops the day, and they wither away after basking in the warmth of the morning sun. After a month, the saniatas will be ready for harvest. Today, the dragon fruits of Don Islao Farm have started to flower, more than a hundred have already bloomed. Soon there will be thousands.