Philippines

At the beginning of the twentieth century the Basque colony of the Philippines had its own society and its pelota. Of the society there remain a founding date, some festivals and a printed report; of the pelota, a fronton in Manila that the war destroyed and that was built again.

According to Auñamendi, the Euzkeldun Batzokija was founded on 31 July 1909, the feast of Saint Ignatius, and from then on Saint Ignatius and San Fermín were celebrated every year with Mass in Basque, dances and other Basque events.² The Fundación Sancho el Sabio keeps the report of a Euzkeldun Batzokija of Iloilo, in the Philippine Islands, published in 1914, which records its activity from 21 November 1909 to 4 January 1914.⁶

Pelota had arrived earlier, around 1899, brought by the Elizalde brothers and other enthusiasts, and it took root over several generations of players. There was a fronton at the Casino Español, and on 17 October 1940 the Jai Alai fronton of Manila was opened, which the war destroyed and which was rebuilt in 1948.²