10 Pieces of Trivia About the City of Manila

1. TEN
Things You May Not Know
About Manila
© airforcefe / Wikimedia Commons

2. 1 The district of Intramuros was the original Manila during
the Spanish occupation. The districts beyond its walls
were known as the extramuros of Manila, or “outside the
walls.”
It was only in 1901, upon the arrival of the American
forces, that Intramuros and all of its outskirts were
collectively recognized as the City of Manila.
© Ferlinasino / Wikimedia Commons

3. 2 Intramuros was occupied by British forces between 1762-
1764.
This occurred during the Seven Years War, a conflict
between Britain and France. Britain declared war on
Spain, and by default the Spanish-Philippines, after Spain
became concerned that the losses suffered of France to
the British were threatening Spanish interests.
The British occupation ended upon the signing and
enactment of the Treaty of Paris in February 1763.
© Laica_ac / Wikimedia Commons

4. 3 June 24, otherwise known as Manila Day or Araw ng
Maynila, is a day commemorating the foundation of
Intramuros.
So while this date is observed all throughout the City of
Manila now, Araw ng Maynila actually celebrates the
foundation of Spanish Manila, and not the Manila that
includes the then-suburbs situated outside the walled
city.
© Ramon FVelasquez / Wikimedia Commons

5. 4 Quiapo, the primary district square of Manila, is widely
known as the “old downtown of Manila”. It is the home
of the Quiapo Church, which is the home of the Black
Nazarene.
While most people could easily assume that the iconic
statue of Jesus Christ originated from Spain due to the
country colonizing the Philippines for three centuries,
the Black Nazarene was actually crafted and transported
from Mexico.
© Jsinglador / Wikimedia Commons

6. 5
Binondo, recognized by all as the city’s Chinatown, also
happens to be the oldest one in the world.
It was officially established by the Spaniards in 1594 to
serve as a settlement for the Catholic-Chinese in the
country, but the area already served as a trading location
for Filipinos and Chinese even before the colonial era.
© Ramon FVelasquez / Wikimedia Commons

7. 6
The City of Manila is currently comprised of a total of six
(6) districts.
With the exception of the 4th district which is the
location of the city’s Port Area, all of the districts have
their own public market, otherwise known as pamilihang
bayan or palengke.
© Shoestring at wts.wikivoyage / Wikimedia Commons

8. 7 The aforementioned Port Area is the location of the south
terminals of the Port of Manila.
The largest port in the Philippines, the Port of Manila is
located in the city’s Port Area and Tondo area and faces
Manila Bay.
It spans a total land area of 137.5 hectares.
© Theurbanhistorian / Wikimedia Commons

9. 8 With a population of over 12 million as per the latest census,
the city of Manila is officially the second most populated city
in the Philippines.
Its total inhabited land area on the other hand officially
measures 2,498 hectares.
This puts the city’s population density at 43,079 inhabitants
per square meter, making it the most densely populated city
in the world.
© maoefe / Wikimedia Commons

10. 9 Manila is home to the University of Santo Tomas, the
oldest extant university charter in both the Philippines
and the whole of Asia.
Founded by then-Archbishop of Manila Msgr. Miguel de
Benavides, the university’s existence pre-dates even that
of calculus. The mathematical study was first introduced
in 1684 via Gottfried Leibniz’s “Nova Methodus” and
later in Isaac Newton’s “Principia” in 1687.
UST on the other hand, was established on April 26,
1611.
© MayZamora / Wikimedia Commons

11. 10 Many are of the opinion that, when seen from the top,
the Manila City Hall resembles the form of a casket.
While it can’t be argued that it indeed has the shape of
a casket from an aerial standpoint, the neo-classical
structure’s hexagonal layout was actually intended to
resemble the shield of the Knights Templar.
The resemblance was intended to symbolize the
influence and protection the Roman Catholic Church
gives to the Philippines.
© skyscarperthercity.com © lhbeau / deviantart.net