Tanauan, Leyte is a local holiday. "Tinikling" is the most popular and best known of Philippine dances and honored as the Philippine national dance. It is one of the oldest Philippine traditional dances and originated in Leyte Province. The people of Leyte describe the tikling bird as one of the most unique in its movements - walking around and between the tree branches and some grass stems. This bird was named "tikling" from which the Tinikling dance got its name. Because of the creativeness of the Leytenos, they imitate this bird by using bamboo poles. In 2006, the attention of the then
National Dance Theatre Company of Jamaica National Dance Theatre Company of Jamaica The National Dance Theatre Company of Jamaica (NDTC) is Jamaica's leading dance theatre company. The company was founded in 1962 by Rex Nettleford and Eddy Thomas with fifteen dancers, with Nettleford acting as its artistic director and principal choreographer, and Martha Graham as patron. Drawing on African Caribbean folk traditions and cultural themes as well as modern dance, the company has promoted Caribbean culture through its performances. On its foundation, the stated aim was "projecting the movement patterns and customs of the island to people locally and abroad", and they stated that they would