Prepared by: Social and Behavioral Sciences Department

RIZAL AND THE CHINESE CONNECTION

Overview:
The recorded history of the Philippines would be incomplete as a basis for understanding contemporary
society unless it takes into account the Chinese mestizos' contribution to our development as a nation. The
Chinese mestizos were an important element of Philippine society in the 19th century. They played a
significant role in the formation of Filipino middle class and a good example was the ancestors of the
Mercado-Rizal family. In this lecture, the students will get a hold of important insights about the vital role of
early chinese settlers in the country toward growth as well as development of various aspects of communal
space. Furthermore, this lecture will also look into the connection of the Rizal's family with the Chinese by
focusing on the national hero's ancestry and origin.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Discuss how the Chinese were able to rise as an important element in the Philippine Society
2. Evaluate the role of Chinese mestizos in the context of Philippine history
3. Find out the implication of the ascendancy of Chinese mestizos
4. Outline how Rizal spent his childhood days in Calamba
5. Assess Rizal's academic experiences at the village school in Biñan

The Role of the Chinese in the Philippines

Chinese immigration to the Philippines has been going on since precolonial period. In terms of overseas trade, the
Chinese were predated by Malay seafarers from Champa and the Sri Vijaya Empires. Compared to the Malays the
Chinese were latecomers in terms of trade and migration to the Philippines. Evidence of this fact came from
archaeological sources. An examination of the Pandanan wreck site in southern Palawan showed what initially
appeared as a Chinese vessel considering the cargo of porcelain plates and jars, which remained intact. Chinese trade
conducted by Chinese vessels began much later around 900 AD. By thetime of the Ming period during the time of the
Emperor Yungle (Yung Lo) the gates of China were opened to the world and the Chinese ports of Amoy and Swatow
were the origins of the boats trading in Southeast Asia.

It was during the Ming Dynasty when Chinese went to the Philippines. Following the monsoonwinds they would
arrive in the islands during the northeast monsoon or amihan around November to February and return during the
southwest monsoon during June to September. They traded with the natives and lived among them. The Ming Shih or
Annals of the Ming contain descriptions of about the honesty of the natives despite their barbarian character.

The Chinese left various influences among the precolonial natives such as the use of yellow color to denote
royalty; the use of loose-fitting pants and vests and the manufacture of tools and weapons. The Chinese heavily
influenced Filipino cuisine. Many of the terms of Chinese origin were about family or business such as ate (achi),
kuya (ko a), dikong (dikung), ditse (dixi), lugi, (lui), pancit (fen zi), siyansi (shenshi), etc.

With the start of Spanish rule the Chinese were allowed to live within what is now Intramuros. This was the
original Parian or the Chinese community in Manila. It gave the Spaniards access to the skills of the Chinese who
were skilled bakers, cooks, stonemasons and shoemakers.

Many of the Chinese who migrated to the Philippines were uneducated and were very rude. During the first
Chinese revolt, the Chinese almost routed the Spaniards if not for the help of Japanese mercenaries and native troops.
They were routed and expelled. However, the expulsion had dire economic consequences for the young colony as
there were no more shoemakers, bakers and even laundrymen to cater to the Spanish community. Eventually they
were allowed back in to the Philippines.
 They were allowed to settle outside the city first in what is now the Manila Post Office. Later they were moved
across the Pasig River to the district of Binondo. In all locations the Chinese community was in the range of Spanish
guns at Intramuros. There were other revolts of the Chinese in the Philippines. The last serious one was during the
British invasion of Manila in 1762. In all revolts, the Chinese were ruthlessly routed. After the British invasion, the
Chinese community made a recovery.

As an ethnic group the Chinese who were called sangleyes by the Spaniards were anong the lowest rung of
colonial society just above the Moros or Muslims and the Infleles or what the Spaniards considered as the uncivilized
peoples of the Philippines which included the Tinggutanes, Igorots and Aetas.

In order to be accepted Into the colonial society and to be allowed to stay in the islands first, the Chinese had to be
baptized. The institution of baptism also allowed the pagan Chinese to link up with people with influence. Spanish
officials and the religious stood as godparents to the newly baptized Chinese. The baptized Chinese retained the
surnames of their lather: Thus, we have Filipinos having the surnames as Co, Go Uy. Yap and Ong. Others retained
the full names of their fathers creating surnames such as Teehankee. Other Chinese mestizo may elect to Romanize
their fathers nareating such surnames like Cojuangeo, Yuzon, Dizon, Sison. Some Chinese adopted Spanish and
Tagalog names and totally dropped their Chinese names as means of being integrated into the colonial society.

Becoming Christians not only allowed the Chinese to stay in the islands but also to conduct business with the
Spaniards. The Spaniards depended on the Chinese as they were skilled artisans and workers. The first book printed
in the Philippines, the Doctrina Christiana cannot be possible without the help of Chinese printers. The book was
printed not just in Spanish but also in Chinese and in Tagalog using the Chinese method of wood block printing.
Fortifications like the walls of Intramuros were built with Chinese expertise.

Many religious images especially that of the Nuestra Señora de la Naval was carved by Chinese craftsmen who
left their mark on the statue with the Chinese-looking almond eyes of the Virgin and the three lines around her neck
which was a Chinese symbol of a person of high rank and morality.

As for the Chinese community which displayed hard work and economic savvy, the Chinese were able to gain
economic power. They also intermarried with the local population creating a new social caste, the mestizo sangley or
the Chinese mestizo, which was the counterpart of the mestizo Español or the Spanish mestizo, A new social
classification was created in 1741 for taxation purposes a pure Chinese was taxed 6 pesos; a mestizo Chinese was
taxed at 3 pesos; the Indio paid 1.50 peso. Spaniards and Spanish mestizos were exempted from paying this head tax.

As the local community of Chinese and Chinese mestizos became more affluent, they began to manifest their
wealth in the way they live. Mestizos were responsible for innovating clothes using elaborate designs on piña cloth,
which resulted in the barong Filipino, and adorning their headwear and altars in silver. The homes of the rich
mestizosbecame known as the bahay na bato.Mestizo Chinese also went beyond basic education offered by the friars
and a number of them took up higher education. In other fields Chinese-Filipinos excelled such as Tomas Pinpin who
was hailed as the prince of Filipino printers.
 As a community, the Chinese looked after each other. In Manila, they established a hospital which is now the
Chinese General Hospital. To protect their businesses from fire the Chinese community created various volunteer fire
brigades. These fire units served not only when Chinese establishments were involved but they also put out fires in
other places.The Chinese community became a major economic lifeblood of the Philippines.They owned most of the
shopping malls, banks, all the airlines and the shipping lines of the Philippines. They donated to causes such as giving
patrol cars for the police.

Since they were affluent, they were targets for corrupt politicians who milk them for campaign funds as well as
kidnap for ransom groups. They were also accused of causing or abetting corruption through bribery. There were also
criminals among their ranks.Some were involved in the illegal drugs trade and smuggling.

To think that the Chinese were an affluent group but it should be remembered that manyof them were poor and
almost penniless when they came to the Philippines. Many started out as small businessmen. But because of their
business acumen and discipline they became industry leaders and at least two Mr. Henry Sy and Mr. John Gokongwei
are counted in the Forbes List of Billionaires as the most influential people of the Philippines.

As a people, their interest in the Philippines was mainly economic. However, in therecent years some of the best
doctors, lawyers and educators are Chinese, Aside from having Rizal who had an ethnic Chinese background as a
national hero at least two Presidents, Corazon C. Aquino and his son President Benigno S. Aquino III also have
ethnic Chinese backgrounds.

The Ancestry of Rizal: The Chinese Connection

Like many Filipinos, Rizal's bloodline came from a line of many ethnicities. His great great grandfather was a man
named Lam Co. In 1690, Lam Co migrated to the Philippines and settled in Manila.Lam Co landed at the district of
Binondo and since the district of Binondo was under Dominican supervision, he adopted the name Domingo- the
name of the founder of the Order. He was baptized at the age of 35. There was no doubt Lam Co lived in this district
after arriving in the Philippines. Lam Co married a Chinese mestiza named Ines de la Rosa. Domingo Lamco (his
name is now written in this manner) was friendly with the Dominican friars. Through his association with two
Spanish friars, Fr. Francisco Marquez, authority on Chinese grammar, and Fr. Juan Caballero, he was invited to settle
in the Dominican estate of San Isidro Labrador in Biñan, Laguna.

Domingo and Ines had many children. One of them was a son named Francisco who was named after one of
Domingo's friar-friends. Francisco who was born in 1731, assumed the surname Mercado. Mercado in Spanish means
"market" Francisco was a merchant and later he married Bernarda Monica who lived in the nearby hacienda of San
Pedro, which was also managed by the Dominicans. The marriage of Francisco and Bernarda produced two sons,
Clemente and Juan. Juan Mercado was Jose Rizal's grandfather.In 1783 Francisco Mercado was elected
gobernadorcillo or municipal mayor of Biñan.His son Juan Mercado was elected capitan del pueblo in 1808.

Juan Mercado was married to a Chinese mestiza named Cirila Alejandro. The marriage produced 13 children. One
of these children was Francisco Engracio Mercado who was Rizal's father. Juan died when his son, Francisco
Engracio, was only eight years old. With his sisters and brothers, Francisco Engracio helped his widowed mother in
managing the family’s business. He married Teodora Alonso Realonda de Quintos, a daughter of one of Manila’s
most distinguished families.
 In 1848, Governor General Narciso Claveria issued a decree ordering that all nativesadapt new surnames so that
they can be taxed properly. Under this decree, ordinary indios or natives had to choose a new surname from a
catalogue called the Catalogo Alpabetico de Apellidos. Exempted from this decree were Filipinos from the old
nobility such as the Lakandulas and Makapagals whose ancestors helped in the pacification of the islands. Also
exempted were the pure Chinese who had a separate tax. Since the Mercado family already intermarried with
mestizos and lived in the islands for generations, they were now considered as natives. Rizal's father chose the name
Ricial which meant "green fields." But the name change caused confusion in his business and his clients prompting
him to use a modified surname "Rizal Mercado."

Rizal's father married Teodora Alonso Realonda, a native of Manila. Her lineage begins with Eugenio Ursua, a
man of Japanese ancestry. He was married to a native named Benigna. Their daughter was named Regina who was
Rizal's great grandmother. She was married to Manuel de Quintos, a mestizo from Biñian. The union bore a daughter
named Brigida Quintos who was Teodora's mother.

Learning Materials:
1. PowerPoint Presentation
2. Educational Video Clips

Expected Output:
1. Worksheet from the textbook (Exercise 6.1 found on page 83)
2. Lesson Quiz

Time Allotment:
1.5 Hours (One week)

References:

Online Source: http://nhcp.gov.ph/rizals-paternal-lineage/

Book: De Viana, A. V. (2019). Laon-Laan: A Guide for the Study and Understanding of the Life and Contributions
of Jose Rizal to Philippine Nationhood and Society. Mandaluyong City. Books Atbp. Publishing Corp.