Republic of the Philippines

BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY

City of Naga

Module 3: Rizal’s Cultural Roots

This module recalls the life of Jose Rizal through the written works of various historians and
writers. It also presents Rizal’s background, his roots, and the events that were significant in the
formation of his character.

Section1: The Ascendance of the Chinese Mestizo

Introduction

This section presents the significant roles of Chinese mestizos in Philippine history, governance, and
economy. It also shows how the Chinese mestizos influenced the character of Rizal who has Chinese
roots.

Objectives:

At the end of the lesson, the students will be able to:

Explain the role of Chinese mestizos in Philippine society; and

Discuss the relationship of Filipinos and Chinese then and now.

Pre-Learning Activity

Interview an individual with a Chinese decent and find out his or her:

Beliefs and Values

•

Thoughts about being a Tsinoy

•

*You may also search in the web if conducting interview is impossible.

Discussion

Chinese History in the Philippines

As early as the 16th century, the Chinese were already in the Philippine archipelago. However, some
historians asserted that the Chinese first arrived in the country as merchants between Manila and
China's coasts. Still, it was during the Spanish Colonial period that Chinese immigrants became
prominent in Philippine society.

In 1594, the Spanish Governor Luis Perez Dasmariñas created Binondo as a permanent settlement
for Chinese Mestizos who were converted to Catholicism. In this part of Manila, Chinese merchants

1|P age
 Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga

and traders are allowed to do their business. Binondo also became the place of intermarriage
between Chinese immigrants and Filipino natives, thus creating Chinese mestizos.

As the Chinese population increased, the Spaniards saw them as a threat to their own rule.
Spaniards feared that the Chinese would be far less loyal to the Spanish regime than the Indios.
Nevertheless, the Spaniards could not discount since the Chinese became pivotal to their colonial
rule because they provided valuable capital to Manila.

From the beginning of the Spanish colonial period until 1740, the Philippines' inhabitants were
classified into three: Spaniards, Indios, and Chinese. As the Chinese mestizos' population questions
regarding their legal status as inhabitants of the country arouse. It was only in 1741 that their legal
status was officially established when the Philippines' whole population was reclassified into four
according to tax payment or tribute. These are the (1) Spaniards and Spanish mestizos, (2) Indios, (3)
Chinese, and (4) Chinese mestizos. Spaniards and Spanish Mestizos were not required to pay tribute
or tax, whereas the remaining three were required to pay taxes depending on their income. A policy
that limits the number of Chinese individuals who could reside in the Philippines and restricted their
settlement area was implemented. At the end of the 19th century, there were almost 500,000
Chinese mestizos in the Philippines.

A Chinese mestizo THEN was:

Any person born of a Chinese father and Indio mother;

A Spanish mestiza who married a Chinese mestizo; OR

A child of a Spanish mestiza and Chinese mestizo

However, A Chinese mestiza and an Indio were lister as Indios.

Significance of the Chinese Mestizo

The expulsion of Chinese immigrants in the Philippines enabled the Chinese Mestizos to take over
the former previously controlled markets. Chinese Mestizos became a prominent and influential
figure in industry, commerce, and business during the Spanish colonial period. They monopolized
the internal trading in the Philippines while the Spanish mestizos were concerned with foreign trade.

Aside from contributing to economic stability, another significant role that the Chinese mestizos
played in Philippine society was Filipino identity formation. This was evident during the latter part of
the 19th century when they became influential in the Philippine economy as a Spanish colony. This
caused the Spanish to be concerned with the Chinese mestizos' ability to cause discord in society.

By the 1800s, Chinese mestizos in the provinces began to form opinions regarding the Spanish
Colonial rule. It was not easy to separate the Indios from the Chinese mestizos since they identified
themselves as socially and culturally. The Spaniards feared that the independent mindset and
liberalism of the Chinese mestizos might influence the political consciousness of the Indios. This
emergent middle class, the Chinese mestizos, rekindled and intensified the growing national
opposition to colonial abuses and demanded sweeping social reforms.

The significant role of the Chinese mestizos in making the nation was highly evident at the turn of
the century. Their involvement in the armed revolt against the colonizers showed that they

2|P age
 Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga

recognized Spain as the enemy-the oppressor. The Philippine Revolution of 1896 to 1898 was the act
of determination on Filipinos-Indios and Chinese mestizos- to claim for themselves and the future
generations the incomparable birthright of nationhood.

Rizal and the Chinese Mestizos

Rizal is a fifth-generation Chinese mestizo. However, he and his father were considered Indios. Some
documents and scholarly papers noted that Rizal disliked being called Chinese mestizo or Tsinoy (in
the modern sense) and dissociated from any Chinese relations.

Through his novel Noli Me Tangere and El Filibustrismo, Rizal exposed the abuses and corruption of
the Spanish authorities, condemned the oppressors of the people by the colonizers, and ridiculed
the hypocrisy and overbearing attitude of the Spanish friars. He also depicted the bloody revolution
that sparkled people’s fury and eventually led them to revolt. At the same time, as a sign of his
contempt towards Chinese immigrants in the Philippines, his novels brimmed with insult and scorn
for them.

Rizal manifested his anti-Chinese feelings in his writings and his correspondence with family and
friends. By his lineage, Rizal could have had a special connection with the Chinese but such was not
the case.

The concern on whether Rizal’s disdain over his Chinese lineage made him less of a hero is not
something to argue about. Chinese mestizo or not, Rizal is a nationalist and a Filipino.

3|P age
 Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga

Activity 1:

Instructions: Please answer the questions in 5 to 10 sentences only. Each answer may get a
maximum of 10 points each. Citation of references will earn you additional point.

Question 1: What conditions led to the emergence of Chinese mestizos as important members of the
Philippine society?

__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

Question 2: What were the implications of the Chinese mestizos in the Philippine society?

__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

Activity 2:

Instructions: In groups of 5, follow the steps below:

Using both printed and electronic media, research on the current relationship between China and
the Philippines. Consider the economic, political, and social factors.

Discuss the impact of Chinese culture on contemporary Philippine society and compare it with the
impact of Chinese culture on 19th century Philippines.

Report your discussion through a simple audio-visual presentation.

4|P age
 Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga

Only one student should submit the output of the group, the remaining group members may just
turn in with empty attachment in the google classroom. Make sure to put the names of all the
members in the output.

Aside from submitting your outputs to me, you must also share it to the class by posting it in our
google classroom.

Resources:

Espinina-Clemente J. & Cruz G.R.C. (2019). The Life and Works of Rizal: Outcome-based Module.

Philippines: C&E Publishing, Inc.

5|P age