Manila's Paco District is located south of the Pasig River between the districts of Malate and Ermita. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of slightly more than 64,000 people.
The Paco area used to be called Dilao because of the bright yellow plants that grew here - the word "dilao" means "yellow" in Tagalog. However, there is another version of the origin of the name: according to it, the Spaniards called it Dilao or "Yellow Square" because of the Japanese immigrants who lived here. The name Dilao was in use until 1791, when the name San Fernando was added to it and the district became known as San Fernando de Dilao. And in the 19th century, the nickname Paco - short for Francisco - appeared. In those days, the neighbourhood was Manila's second largest urban neighbourhood. For a while it was called Paco de Dilao and then simply Paco.
The Japanese established their commune here before anyone else - as early as 1593 in what is now Paco, they numbered between 300 and 400. By 1606 there were already about 3 thousand. And today you can see an ancient Japanese statue of Takayama here. In 1606-1607, the Japanese population of Paco tried to revolt against the Spanish, but failed. In 1614, the number of Japanese in what is now in what is now Manila increased again because of the persecution of Christians in Japan. Today there are about 200,000 Japanese living in the Philippines.
Among the landmarks of the Paco distict is a Sikh temple, located on UN Avenue. It is also home to the offices of many automobile factories - Toyota, Ford, Nissan, Honda, and others. Plaza Square Dilao with a monument commemorates the Japanese who once lived in these lands. In what is now Paco Park, there was once a municipal cemetery, where, among other things, the remains of Philippine national hero José Rizal. Later they were moved to Fort Bonifacio, and a large park was laid out on the site of the cemetery.
