ADAROSE G.

ROMARES 3rd Year-BSA

WORKSHEET NO. 1
Compiled by Mr. Sergio E. Repaso, MARE

The Rizal's ancestors and family background

1. Describe the following names:
a. Domingo Lameo (Lamco)
Domingo Lameo (Lamco)- (1662-1752) He is Rizal’s great-great grandfather.
Also, a Chinese immigrant from the Fukien city of Changchow, (China’s City
of Spring) who arrived in Manila about 1660. His father was Siang-co (wife,
Zun-nio) who lived in Amoy. .. He used Mercado, which means “market” as
his surname because he was a merchant. He became a Christian, married a
well-to-do Chinese Christian girl of Manila named Ines de la Rosa (Oct. 16,
1729), and assumed in 1731 the surname Mercado which was appropriate for
him because he was a merchant. The spanish term mercado means “market”
in english. Lam-co (also called Cua Lam, Cua Yi Lam in Hokkien or Ke Yi-nan
in Mandarin) was a native of Sionque, in the Chinchew district of the province
of Fookien. He moved to the Philippines due the growing political unrest in
China. It is said that Lam-co converted to the Catholic Church because of his
sincere desire to be a Catholic. Before he came to the Philippines, he was
already acquainted with Catholicism because his community was a
missionary field of Jesuits and later of the Dominicans. At the age of 35, Lam-
co was baptized on Sunday (Domingo), June 9, 1697, in the Parian Church of
San Gabriel. In his baptismal records, his parents were simply listed as
Siong-co and Jun-nio. It is believed that his parents belonged to the upper
bracket socially as indicated by the particled -co and -nio at the end of their
names. These two particles correspond to the Spanish Don and Dona which
is indicative of social position. Domingo Lam-co settled in Binan, Laguna on
the Dominican estate called San Isidro Labrador. He became a leader among
the Chinese community and was a frequent godfather in baptisms and
weddings. He helped in the founding of Tubigan Barrio, the richest part of the
estate. Domingo married Inez de la Rosa, the daughter of his friend, and was
 much younger than he. They married in the Parian Church where he was
baptized. Their union was blessed with two children Francisco and Josefa,
who died five days after her birth. Francisco was only two when he lost his
sibling.

b. Siang-co and Zun-nio- they are among Rizal’s earliest identifiable

ancestors and parents of Lam-co, who lived back to the village of Sionque in
Chin-Chew (or Chang-chow) district in Fujian, southern China, near the
prosperous and ancient trading port of Zaiton. It is believed that his parents
belonged to the upper bracket socially as indicated by the particled -co and
-nio at the end of their names. These two particles correspond to the Spanish
Don and Dona which is indicative of social position.
c. Ines dela Rosa- a well-to-do Chinese Christian girl of Manila (Oct. 16, 1729)
and was married to Domingo lameo. The parents of ines de la Rosa were
Agustin Chin-co (baptized 1692) and jacinta Rafaela, a chinese mestiza. Ines
had three brothers (Francisco, Juan, Cristobal) and two sisters (Magdalena
and Josepha). Chinese mestiza said to be half his age named Ines de la
Rosa, who belonged to an entrepreneurial family in Binondo. Ines was the
daughter of Agustin Chin-co and Jacinta Rafaela, a Chinese mestiza resident
of the Parian.

2. Enumerate the five children of Franciso and Cirila Bernacha, namely;

1. Clemente 3. Tomas 5. Juan Mercado

2. Benito 4. Evarista

3. Where did the Rizal’s family get the surname “Mercado”?

Domingo Lamco used Mercado, which means “market” as his surname because he
was a merchant.
4. List the thirteen children of Juan Mercado (Jose Rizal’s grandfather), and Cirila
Alejandro, a Chinese-Filipino mestiza (Jose Rizal’s grandmother).
1. Petrona
2. Cornelia
3. Gabriel
4. Leoncio
5. Casimiro
6. JulianS
7. Basilisa
8. Poteniaciana
9. Gabino
10. Tomas
11. Gregorio
12. Fausta
13. Francisco Mercado Rizal

5. How did Jose Rizal get his Japanese blood or ancestry?

He got it from his maternal ancestors more specifically from Eugenio Ursua, who was a
Japanese descent or ancestry). Eugenio was Rizal’s maternal great-great grandfather.

6. How did Dr. Jose Rizal get his Spanish blood or ancestry?

He got it from hid maternal ancestors more specifically from Brigida de Quintos (1856)
who was married Engr. Lorenzo Alberto Alonzo, a prominent Spanish-filipino mestizo of
Binan, who later beame the municipal captain of Biñan in 1824 and was awarded by
Spain the “Knight of the Grand Order of Isabela, the Catholic.”

7. Five children of Brigida de Quintos and Engr. Lorenzo Alberto Alonzo.

Narisa (husband-Santiago d. Manuel

a. Meyer),

Gregorio e. Teodora Alonzo Realonda (1826-

b. 1911).

Jose
c.

8. Where did Dr. Jose Rizal get his family name Realonda from maternal side?

The children of Brigida de Quintos and Alberto Alonzo adopted the family name
“Realonda” family from a list of Spanish surnames provided by Governor narciso
Claveria in 1849.
9. Describe the house of the Rizal family in Calamba, Laguna

The house of the Rizal family, where the hero was born, was one of the distinguished
stone houses in Calamba during Spanish times. It was a two-storey building,
rectangular in shape, built of adobe stones and hard-woods, and roofed with red tiles. It
is described by Dr. Rafael Palma, one of Rizal’s prestigious biographers, as follows:
The house was high and even sumptuous, a solid and massive earthquake-roof
structure with sliding shell windows. Thick walls of lime and stone bounded the
first floor; the second floor was made entirely of wood except for the roof, whih
was of red tile, in the style of the buildings in Manila at that time . . . At the bak
there was an azotea and a wide, deep cistern to hold rain water for home use.

Behind the house were the poultry yard full of turkeys and chickens and a big garden of
tropial fruit trees- atis, balimbing, chico, macopa, papaya, santol, etc. it was a happy
home where parental affection and children’s laughter reigned.

10. How do you describe the family background of the Rizal’s family?

As a typical Filipino, Rizal was a product of the mixture of races. In his veins flowed the
blood of both East and West. He is “Negrito, Indonesian, Malay, Chinese, Japanese,
and Spanish”. Predominantly, he was a Malayan and was a magnificent specimen of
Asian manhood. As Principales, Rizal’s family was a mixture of different races. Jose’s
father’s side had Chinese descent and a Japanese lineage from his mother. A recent
study revealed that his mother’s origin was from Rajah Lakandula. In short, his ancestry
can also be traced from Malayan and Indonesian genes, truly a splendid blend of
bloods.

11. Based on the family background of the Rizal’s family how they treasure the
importance of education inside their home?

Rizal’s family treasure the importance of education inside their home by teaching their
children the first-based and life lessons having their parents as their first teachers. As a
matter of fact, Rizal was first schooled in their home by his mother, a remarkably good
and educated woman herself. She was Rizal’s first teacher. He devotedly taught him the
alphabet and the prayers and even taught Pepe to read the Holy Bible. It was a happy
home where parental affection and children’s laughter reigned. By day, it hummed with
the noises of children at play and the songs of the birds in the garden. By night, it
echoed with the dulet notes of family prayers. Such a wholesome home, naturally, bred
a wholesome family. And such a family was the Rizal family.
12. How did the parents of the Rizal family rear their children in terms of family
discipline and religiosity?

The Rizal family had a simple, contented, and happy life. In consonance with Filipino
custom, family ties among the Rizals were intimately close. Don Francisco and Doña
Teodora love their children, but they never spoiled them. They were strict parents and
they trained their children to love God, to behave well, to be obedient, and to respect
people, especially the old folks. Whenever the children, including Jose Rizal, got into
mischief, they were given a sound spanking. Evidently, they believed in the maxim:
“Spare the rod and spoil child.” Combining affluence and culture, hospitality and
courtesy, they participated prominently in all social and religious affairs in the
community.

Every day the Rizal’s (parents and children) heard Mass in the town church, particularly
during Sundays and Christian holidays. They prayed together daily at home- the
Angelus at sunset and the Rosary before retiring to bed at night. After the family
prayers, all the children kissed the hands of their parents.

Life was not, however, all prayers and church services for the Rizal children. They were
given ample time and freedom to play by their strict and religious parents. They played
merrily in the asotea or in the garden by themselves. The older ones were allowed with
the children of other families.

13. How do you describe the Rizal’s family as a middle class family?

The Rizal family belonged to the Principalia, a town aristocracy in Spanish Philippines. It
was one of the distinguished families in Calamba. By dint of honest and hard work and
frugal living, Rizal’s parents were able to live well. From the farms, which were rented
from the Dominian Order, they harvested rice, corn, and sugarcane. They raised pigs,
chickens, and turkeys in their backyard. In addition to farming and stock raising, Dona
Teodora managed a general goods store and operated a small flour-mill and a home-
made ham press. As evidence of their affluence, Rizal’s parents were able to build a
large stone house which was situated near the town church and to buy another one.
They owned a carriage, which was a status symbol of the ilustrados in Spanish
Philippines and a private library (the largest in Calamba) which consisted of more than
1,000 volumes. They sent their children to the colleges in manila. Combining affluence
and culture, hospitality and courtesy, they participated prominently in all social and
religious affairs in the community. They were gracious hosts to all visitors and guests-
friars, Spanish officials, and Filipino friends- during the town fiestas and other holidays.
Beneath their roof, all guests irrespective of their color, rank, social position, and
economic status, were welcome.