AI illustration
Biringan City
People in Samar tell of Biringan, an unseen city between Gandara and Pagsanghan. Stories say engkanto live there, with their children by humans. Seven portals are said to lead in. A few people say they have seen the city.
Folklore is retold; versions differ.
Sources: Wikipedia: Biringan (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Wikidata (CC0)
The story
Biringan City is a city in Samar that people say cannot be seen. In the stories, it lies between the towns of Gandara and Pagsanghan. Its people are engkanto, enchanted beings, and their children with humans. The name comes from a Waray phrase that means about the place where the lost are found. Storytellers say engkanto look human, but they have no groove between the nose and the lip.
Folk stories describe seven gateways to the city across Samar. One is said to be at an old tree at a state university in Calbayog. Some seafarers claim they saw a city of light on a dark night that lasted a few minutes. Another tale says a foreign company tried to mine gold nearby, but accidents ended the project. There is no evidence for this.
The tale spread widely from the 1960s. One account says it began with a shipment of costly building materials that was said to be for Biringan. Later it spread by television and online posts. Films such as T2 (2009) and Swipe Right to Disappear (2019) use the legend.