Pawing, Leyte
Pawing is a barangay of Palo, Leyte, Philippines.
Before the arrival of the Spaniards, a village situated along the northeastern part of Palo was a thriving community. Its tribal chief was Kawaring, who propelled his people to engage in agriculture.
He was likewise respected and loved by his people such that when the Spaniards eventually came to the village and asked for its name, the natives enthusiastically replied, "Kawaring", presuming that the Spaniards were asking for their ruler. Due to miscommunication, the name was distorted and the place became known as Pawing.
Pawing was mainly an agricultural community made possible by fertile lands and sufficient water supply coming from the Pawing creek. World War I broke out and due to in-migration in 1898, mat weaving was introduced. The new settlers occupied the southern portion of the village and they produced an enormous quantity of mats, hence the name Pabrika. The area near the bridge was called May-Tulay, and the northern portion was called Mohon to emphasize the boundary between Pawing and Marasbaras.
The first public building to be constructed was the school which offered two grades in 1914. After a couple of years, the school was closed down to make way for the national highway.
Modernization has affected the once-agricultural village. Pabrika had to be phased out to accommodate the government center. Residents had to be relocated and more families settled in an area along the irrigation canal, hence the name Dike.
Nowadays, Pawing is a semi-urban community with numerous government offices that were built on the property. Nevertheless, the resiliency of the people to cope with change has not marred their cultural heritage that is purely Pawingnon.