TRIVIA ABOUT JOSE RIZAL

1. There are three animals named after Rizal.

These animals were what he collected when he
was exiled in Dapitan: abogonia rizalie, a type of
small beetle; Drago Rizalie, a specie of dragonfly
and Racoforus Rizalie, a specie of toad.
2. When he was studying in Spain, Rizal had to
pawn a ring owned by his sister Saturnina just to
pay for his exams.
3. Rizal was only five feet and three inches tall but
had a waistline of 25-26 inches. He also had a big
head. His hats were 6 1/2 inches across and the
interior measures eight inches from front to
back
4. Rizal stuffed unknown papers in his pockets and
shoes on the eve of his execution. He did this
because he presumed that his corpse would be
turned over to his family after his execution. But
as we all know, his body was dumped by Spanish
officials in an unmarked grave in Paco cemetery.
The papers have since deteriorated and the
contents of which were never identified.
5. Rizal’s favorite fruits were lanzones and mango.
On account of his former cook in Dapitan,
his meals consisted of three viands. His breakfast
comprised of hot chocolate, rice and tuyo.
6. Rizal had his third unfinished work or novel.
Known by historians as “Maka-misa,” this
unfinished work was started by Rizal in 1892 in
Hongkong. Maka-misa is not actually a title of
the novel but only a single chapter of the
unfinished novel. He began writing it in Tagalog
but gave up and continued writing in Spanish
7. Rizal made humorous comics in Germany
entitled “The Baptism of Two Brothers.” He
made the comic strip to entertain the children of
his landlord. He used cuss in that comic strip.
8. While in Dapitan, Rizal wrote an extensive
written discourse on witchcraft with translation
entitled the “Treatment and Cure of the
Bewitched.” A part of it explained that witches
are not always old and ugly.
9. Rizal established a school while in Dapitan with
21 pupils who were never asked to pay but was
required by Rizal to work for the community.
 10. As a polyglot, Rizal had the habit of switching
from one language to another. His biographers
faced difficulty in translating his works because
of his habit of switching languages. He was
conversant in 22 languages.

Bonus Trivia:
Rizal was a video game character. He appeared in
the 1999 video game Medal of Honour as a secret
character in a multi-player mode alongside other
historical figures like William Shakespeare and
Winston Churchill.
Just recently, the popular video game Tekken
(martial arts), one of its fighter character was
inspired by Rizal. Although female, the character was
Josie Rizal whose main armament was arnis and kick
boxing. Her outfit bore the colors of the Philippine
flag and the ornament in her waist is sampaguita.

Interesting facts we should know about Jose Rizal

1.) Jose Rizal could write and read at age two and
grew up to speak 22 languages including Latin,
Spanish, Catalan, German, French, English, Chinese
and Japanese.
2.) Three animal species were named after Rizal;
Draco rizali, a species of flying dragon, Rachophorous
rizali, a species of toad and Apogonia rizali, a beetle
species.
3.) Rizal is one of the few recognized “Renaissance
man” in the world. A Renaissance man is a well-
educated person and one who excels in a wide
variety of subjects or fields.
4.) He mastered various skills and subjects. He was
an ophthalmologist, novelist, educator, farmer,
historian, playwright, sculptor, painter and
journalist.
5.) Jose Rizal was a fine architect, cartographer,
economist, ethnologist, anthropologist, sociologist,
dramatist, martial artist and an expert in fencing and
pistol shooting.
6.) Rizal, a polyglot conversant, was a prolific
essayist, diarist, correspondent, diarist, novelist and
poet.
7.) Jose Rizal graduated in Ateneo Municipal de
Manila as one of the nine students in his class
declared as “sobresaliente” or “outstanding”.
8.) Considering that he lived during the latter part of
the 19th century where the only means of long
distance travel is by ship, he can be considered a very
well traveled man. He traveled extensively and had
been to the United States, Spain, Great Britain,
France, Austria, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland,
Czech Republic, Italy, Singapore, Borneo, Hong Kong,
China and Japan. Not even a millionaire today could
afford the numerous and extensive travels of Jose
Rizal during his time.
9.) Rizal, a man of medium height and small built,
was a great lover. He was romantically involved to
numerous women of different nationalities which
include Gertrude Becket, Nelly Bousted, Usui Seiko,
Segunda Katigbak, Leonora Rivera, Leonor
Valenzuela, Consuelo Ortiga y Rey, Suzanna Jacoby,
and Josephine Bracken.
10.) Jose Rizal wrote his very first poem entitled “Sa
Aking Mga Kababata” (To My Childhood Friends) at
age seven.
11.) Rizal’s most famous quotation: “Ang hindi
magmahal sa sariling wika, daig pa ang hayop at
malansang isda”. (He who does not love his own
language is worse than an animal and smelly fish).
12.) Quite unusual for a man about to be executed,
but his pulse proved to be normal when the Spanish
surgeon general requested to take his pulse
moments before Rizal’s execution.
13.) Bizarre it may seem but there is a religious sect,
the Rizalista – members of Cruzado, claims that Jose
Rizal is the reincarnation of Jesus Christ.
14.) It sounds absurd but there are people who are
spreading statements that Adolf Hitler of Germany
and Mao Zedong of China were sons of Jose Rizal.
This is absolutely a hoax.
15.) Monuments in honor of Jose Rizal were erected
in various parts of the world like Madrid, Spain;
Wilhelmsfeld, Germany; Jinjiang, Fujian, China;
Chicago, Cherry Hill Township, San Diego, Seattle,
U.S.A.; Mexico City, Mexico; Lima, Peru; Litomerice,
Czech Republic; and Toronto, Ontario, Canada.