Calle Colon: A Street To Know

Also known as Parian District, Colon Street is considered as the oldest street in Cebu. Also, it is actually the oldest street in the entire Philippines. The street was built during the Spanish regime under the dominion of Miguel Lopez de Legaspi. Being the heart of downtown Cebu, it is named among one of the most significant persons in Spain, the navigator “Cristoforo Colombo” or “Cristobal Colon” in Spanish and “Christopher Columbus” in English.

Formerly, Colon was a residential area with houses built in a row, facing each other on both sides. On ordinary days, the district is much quieter as early as 8 p.m. with only the sound of few tartanillas bringing home latecomers.

Colon was part of the Parian District where Chinese merchants and trades had their base in 1590. Parian derived its name from “paripari” which literally means “to sell or barter”. Basically, Parian is a marketplace.

Parian is also referred to as the “Press Row” at the height of American occupation. It is in Colon where most versatile writers wrote their materials and the most influential magazines and newspapers were being published. It was also termed “Calle Teatro” in early 1800’s because of several theatres operated in the area.

With the arrival of the Jesuits in 1600, a free primary school was opened and which eventually became Colegio de San Ildefonso, now currently named University of San Carlos(right) which is one of the influential colleges in the entire Visayas Region. Among the schools that built their campuses near the Colon Street are the University of Cebu, University of San Jose-Recolletos and the University of the Visayas.(pictures in order of name of schools stated respectively).


Through the years, Colon is the lifeline of trade and commerce in Cebu. It was in Colon where the first business establishments flourished and a site for numerous social and cultural events. Slowly, big establishments dominated the area and public transportations evolved as well. Tartanillas are being replaced by much faster jeepneys, taxis and busses.



In 1990’s, the influence of malling culture of America stirred the peaceful district of Parian. Malls of various sizes sprouted almost concurrently, leaving small businesses behind and some even ended up closing. The sudden decline of the customers and shoppers in Colon was very evident. They prefer to shop in an air-conditioned and more relaxing ambiance of the malls.

Today, Colon Street is home to Cebu’s very first and many cinemas, restaurants, department stores, and other business establishments.