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Lesson 1

WI RIZAL'S FAMILY AND CHILDHOOD LIFE

Dr. Jose Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda was born on June
19, 1861 in Calamba, Laguna. The seventh of eleven childre~ born to a
relatively well-off family in a Dominican-owned tenant land m Calatmba,
Laguna, Jose Rizal lived and died during the Spanish colonial era irn the
Philippines.

In his childhood, Jose had mastered the alphabet and learned to -write
and read. His early readings included the Spanish version of the Vulgate Bible.
At a young age, Jose Rizal manifested an inclination to the arts and amazed
his family by his skills in pencil drawings, sketches, and moldings of clay in
his early childhood. Later in his childhood, he demonstrated special talent in
painting and sculpture, wrote a Tagalog play, which was presented at a town
fiesta (and later penned a short play in Spanish, which was presented in
school).

DON FRANCISCO MERCADO

Francisco Engracia Rizal Mercado, father of Rizal,_ was a productive

farmer from Binan, Laguna. He was an independent-minded, reserved-
reticent, but dynamic gentleman, whom Rizal inherited his "free soul". Don
Francisco became tiniente gobernadorcitlo (lieutenant governor) in Calamba
and was thus nicknamed Tiniente Kiko. (Some students' comical conjecture
l that the fictional character Kikong Matsing of Batibot was named after Don
Francisco is, of course, unfounded.) (Looking back, her business, in a way,

l_ predated the meat-processing commerce of the Pampanguenos today and the

ube jam production of some nuns in Baguio.)

It is believed that Dona Teodora's family descended from Lakandula,

the last native king of Tondo. (For young Filipino generations, Lakandula has
to be distinguished from the unofficial Hari ng Tondo, Asiong Salonga, the
Manila kingpin who was immortalized in the movie incidentally by Laguna's
L own governor E. R. Ejercito.)

l_ . Lolay's great-grandfather was Eugenio Ursua (of Japanese descent)

who married a Filipina named Benigna. Regina, their daughter, married a
Filipino-Chinese lawyer of Pangasinan, Manuel de Quinos. Lorenzo Alberto
L Alonso, a well off Spanish-Filipino mestizo of Binan took as his "significant
ot~~rs" Bri_gida Quintas, daughter of Manuel and Regi~a Quintas. The Lorenzo-
Bng1da union produced five children, the second of them was Jose Rial's
L mother, Teodora Alonso Quintas.

Through the Claveria decree of 1849 which changed the Filipino native
L surnames, the Alonsos adopted the surname Realonda. Rizal's mother thus

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became Teodora Alonso Quintas Realonda. (For a lecture that concerntrates

on Teodora Alonso's life and her love for Jose, read Appendix C: "Teodora
Alonzo: Lola Lolay of Bahay na Bato. ")

JOSE'S SIBLINGS
Saturnina Rizal (1850-1913) is the eldest child of Don Francisco and
Teodora Alonso. She and her mother provided the little Jose with goodl basic
education that by the age of three, Pepe (Jose's nickname) already knew his
alphabet.

Paciano Rizal, Jose's only brother, was born on March_ 7, 1&51 in

Calamba, Laguna. He was fondly addressed by his siblings as Nor Pac:::iano,
short for "Senor Paciano. The 10-year older brother of Jose studied cllt San
Jose College in Manila, became a farmer, and later a general of the Philrppine
Revolution. (A detailed discussion on Paciano's life and his influence on Jose
is available in Appendix E: "Paciano Rizal: Pinoy Hero's Big Brother.")

After Jose's execution in December 1896, Paciano joinecl the

Katipuneros in Cavite under General Emilio Aguinaldo. As Katipunero, Pa ciano
was commissioned as general of the revolutionary forces and elected as
I secretary of finance in the Department Government of Central Luzon_ (For
Jose and Paciano's collaboration and connection to Emilio Aguinaldo, read
the Appendix N: "Jose Rial and Emilio Aguimaldo. ")
!
Narcisa Rizal (1852-1939) or simply "Sisa" was the third child in the
family. Later in history, Narcisa (like Saturnina) would help in financing
I Rizal's studies in Europe, even pawning her jewelry and peddling her clothes
if needed. It was said she could recite from memory almost all of the poems
of our national hero. (Discussions on Jose's known poems of our national hero.
(Discussions on Jose's known poems are available in Appendix: "Jose Rfzal's
Poems").

l. Olympia Rizal (1855-1887) was the fourth child in the Rizal family. Jose
loved to tease her, sometimes good-humoredly describing her as his stout
sister. Jose's first love, Segunda Katigbak, was Olympia's schoolmate at the
La Concordia College. Rizal confined to Olympia (also spelled "Olympia")
about Segunda, and the sister willingly served as the mediator between the
two teenage lovers. (For Jose Rizal-and-Segunda Katigbak's love story, read
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Appendix P: "Jose Rizal's Filipino Girlfriends").

Lucia Rizal (1857-1919) was the fifth child in the family. She married
Mariano Herbosa of Calamba, Laguna. Charged of inciting the Calamba
II townsfolk not to pay land rent and causing unrest, the couple was once
L, ordered to be deported along with some Rizal family members. (Lucia's
husband died during the cholera epidemic in May 1889 and was refused a
I Catholic burial for not going to confession since his marriage to Lucia. In
l - Jose's article in La Solidaridad titled Una profonacion (A Profanation), he
scornfully attacked the friars for declining to bury in "sacred ground" a "good
Christian" simply because he was the "brother-in-law of Rizal").
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Maria Rizal (1859-1945) was the sixth child in the family. It was ·to her
whom Jose talked about wanting to marry Josephine Bracken whe•n the
majority of the Rizal family was apparently not amenable to the idea. In his
letter dated December 12, 1891, Jose had also brought up to Maria hi~ plan
of establishing a Filipino colony in North British Borneo. In his letter dated
December 28, 1891, Jose wrote to Maria, "I'm told that your children arae very
pretty." Today, we have a historical proof that Maria's progenies were irideed
nice-looking (lahing maganda). Maria and Daniel had five children: Mawricio,
Petrona, Prudencio, Paz and Encarnacion. Their son Mauricio married
Conception Arguelles and the couple had a son named Ismael Arguelles Cruz.
Ismael was the father of Gemma Cruz Araneta, the first Filipina to wfin the
Miss International title, also the first Southeast Asian to win an international
beauty-pageant title. (For more interesting discussion about Saturnina,
Narcisa, Olympia, Lucia, and Maria Rizal, read Appendix F: "Jose Rizal's l()lder
Sisters").

Also called "Concha" by her siblings, Concepcion Rizal (1862-1865) was

the eight child of the Rizal family. She died at the age of three. Of his sisters,
it was said that the young Pepe loved most little Concha who was a year
younger that he. Jose played games and shared children stories with her, and
from her he felt the beauty of sisterly love at a young age.

Josefa Rizal's nickname is "Panggoy" (1865-1945). She was the ninth

child in the family. Panggoy died a spinster. Among Jose's letters to Josefa,
the one dated October 26, 1893 was perhaps the most fascinating; Written in
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English, the letter addressed Josefa as "Miss Josephine Rizal". (After Jose's
martyrdom, the epileptic Josefa joined the Katipunan and was even supposed
to have been elected the president of its women section. She was one of the
original 29 women admitted to the Katipunan along with Gregoria de Jesus,
wife of Andres Bonifacio. They safeguarded the secret papers and documents
of the society and danced and sang during sessions so that civil guards would
think that the meetings were just harmless social gatherings.)
l.
· Trinidad Rizal (1868-1951) or "Trining" was the tenth child.
Historically, she became the custodian of Rizal's last and greatest poem.
!- Right before Jose's execution, Trinidad and their mother visited him in the
Fort Santiago prison cell. As they were leaving, Jose handed over to Trining
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an alcohol cooking stove, a gift from the Pardo de Taveras, whispering to her
in a language, which the guards could not understand, "There is something in
it." That "something" was Rizal's elegy now known as "Mi Ultimo Adios." Like
I_ Josefa, Paciano, and two nieces, Trinidad joined the Katipunan after Jose's
death.

l. Also called "Choleng", Soledad Rizal (1870-1929) was the youngest

child of the Rizal family. Being a teacher, she was arguably the best-educated
among Rizal's sisters. In his long and meaty letter to Choleng dated June 6,
l. 1890 ("Jose Rizal in Facebook Courtship," 2013), Jose told her sister that he
was proud of her for becoming a teacher. He thus counseled her to be a model
of virtues and good qualities "for the one who should teach should be better
L than the persons who need her learning". Rizal nonetheless used the topic as

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leverage in somewhat rebuking her sister for getting married to Panttaleon

Quintero of Calamba without their parents' consnet. "Because of you," he
wrote, "the peace of our family has been disturbed."

Choleng's union with Pantaleon, nonetheless, resulted in the Rizal

family's becoming connected by affinity to Miguel Malvar (the hero who could
have been listed as the second Philippine President for taking ov~r the
revolutionary government after Emilio Aguinaldo's arrest in 1901 ). So•ledad
and Pantaleon had five children: Trinitario, Amelia, Luisa, Serafin and .Felix.
Their daughter Amelia married Bernabe Malvar, son of Gen. Miguel Malvar.
(For more fascinating discussions about Concepcion, Josefa, Trinidad and
Soledad Rizal, read Appendix G: "Jose Rizal's Younger Sisters").

THE SURNAME RIZAL

Had their forefather not adopted other names, Jose and Paciano could
have been known as "Lamco" (and not Rizal) brothers.

Their paternal great-great grandfather, Chinese merchant Domingo

Lamco, adopted the name "Mercado", which means "market". But Jose's
father, Francisco, who eventually became primarily a farmer, adopte_sl the
surname "Rizal" (originally "Ricial, which means "the green of young growth"
of "green fields"). The name was suggested by a provincial governor who was
a friend of the family .. The new name, however, caused confusion il'l the
commercial affairs of the family. Don Francisco thus settled on the name
"Rizal Men:ado" as a compromise, and often just used his more known
surname "Mercado".
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When Paciano was a student at the College of San Jose, he used
I "Mercado" as his last name. But because he had gained notoriety with his
links to father Burgos of the "Gomburza," he suggested that Jose use the
l surname "Rizal" for Jose's own safety.

Commenting on using the name "Rizal" at Ateneo, Jose once wrote:

"My family never paid much attention to our second surname Rizal, but now
I had to use it, thus giving me the appearance of an illegitimate child!" (As
cited in Arriza, 2012, para. 8)
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But this very name suggested by Paciano to be used by his brother had
I become so well known by 1891, the year Jose finished his El Filibusterismo.
I. As Jose wrote to a friend, All my family now carry the name Rizal instead of
Mercado because the name Rizal means persecution! Good! I too want to join
them and be worthy of this family name ..." (As cited in Arriza, 2012, para. 8).
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RIZAL'S BIRTH
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Dona Teodora suffered the greatest pain during the delivery CI>f her
seventh child, Jose. Her daughter Narcisa recalled: ''f was nine years CI>f age
when my mother gave birth to Jose. Her pain was attributed to the fac:t that
Jose's head was bigger than normal" (As cited in "Lola Lolay", 2013, para.
8).

Jose Rizal was born in Calamba. In 1848, his parents decided to build
a home in this town in Laguna, southern Luzon. The name Calamba was
derived from kalanbanga, which means "clay stove" (kalan) and "wate _r jar"
(banga).

His adoration of its scenic beauty --- punctuated by the sights of the
Laguna de Bay, Mount Makiling, palm-covered mountains, curvy hills.:, and
green fields --- was recorded in the poem he would later write at Ateneo de
· Manila in 1876, Un RecuerdoA Mi Pueblo (In Memory of My Town). (If Rizal's
poem were written today, he might mention the three-floor SM mall, shopping
centers, and the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) terminus in the place. A city
since 2001, Calamba is said to have earned the nickname "Resort Capital of
the Philippines" for its more than 600 resorts in the place today.)

It's a fact that the first massive stone house (or bahay na bate) in
Calamba was the very birth place of our national hero. It was a rectangular
two-story building, built of adobe stones and solid wood, with sliding capiz
windows. Its ground floor was made of lime and stone, the second floor of
hard wood, except for the roof, which was of red tiles. There was an az-otea
and a water reservoir at the back. Its architectural style and proximity to the
church implied Rizal family's wealth and political influence.

THE CHILDHOOD OF A PHENOM

l. A phenom is someone who is exceptionally talented or admired,

especially an up-and-comer. Jose Rizal, especially during his childhood, was
considered magnanimously as a phenom.

Jose Rizal's first memory, in his infancy, was his happy days in their
family garden when he was three years old. Their courtyard contained tropical
i. fruit trees, poultry yard, a carriage house, and a stable for the ponies.
Because the young Pepe was weak, sickly and undersized, he was given the
; fondest care by his parents, so his father built a nipa cottage for Pepe to play
L in the daytime.

Memory of his infancy included the nocturnal walk in the town,

L. especially when there was a moon. Jose also recalled the "aya" (nursemaid)
relating to the Rizal children some fabulous stories, like those about the
I fairies, tales of buried treasure and trees blooming with diamonds.
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Significant childhood memory was the daily Angelus prayer in their
home. Rizal recorded in his memoir that by nightfall, his mother would gather
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all the children in their home to pray the Angelus. At the early age of tthree,
he started to take a part in the family prayers.

When Concha died of sickness in 1865, Jose mournfully wept at losing

her. He later wrote in his memoir, "When I was four years old, I lost myv little
sister Concha, and then for the first time I shed tears caused by lov, e and
-grief" ("Memoirs of a Student in Manila." n.d.)

The young Pepe, at age five, learned to read the Spanish family 13ible,
which he would refer to later in his writings. Rizal himself remarked::J that
perhaps the education he received since his earliest infancy was wha t had
shaped his habits ("Memoirs of a Student." n.,d para. 3).

Pepe as fondly called loved to go to the chapel, pray, participate in

novenas, and join religious processions as a child. In Calamba, one of the men
he esteemed and respected was the scholarly"Catholic priest Leoncio L~pez,
the town priest. He used to visit him and listen to his inspiring opinio11s on
current events and through life views.

Similarly at age five, Pepe started to make pencil sketches and mold
in clay and wax objects, which attracted his fancy. When he was about six
years old, his sisters once laughed at him for spending much time making clay
and wax images. Initially keeping silent, he then prophetically told them All
right laugh at me now! Someday when I die, people will make monuments of
images of me".

When Jose was seven years old, his father provided him the exciting
experience of riding a "casco" (a flat-bottomed boat with a roof) on their way
to a pilgrimage in Antipolo. The pilgrimage was to fulfill the vow made by
Jose's mother to take him to the Shrine of the Virgin of Antipolo should she
and her life. From Antipolo, Jose and his father proceeded to Manila to visit
l. his sister Saturnina who was at the time studying at the La Concordia College
in Sta. Ana.

As a gift, the child Jose received a pony named "Alipato" from his
father (Bantug & Ventura, 1997, p. 23). As a child, he loved to ride this pony
I
or take long walks in the meadows and lakeshore with his black dog named
"Usman".
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The mother also induced Jose to love the arts, literature and the
l . classics. Before he was eight years old, he had written a drama (some sources
say "a Tagalog comedy"), which was performed at a local festival and for
which the municipal captain rewarded him with two pesos. (Some references
!.. specify that it was staged in a Calamba festival and that it was a
gobernadorcillo from Paete who purchased the manuscript for two pesos.)

Contrary to the "former" common knowledge however, Rizal did not

write the Filipino poem "Sa Aking Mga Kababata!Kabata" (To My Fellow
I Children). The poem was previously believed to be Rizal's first written poem
I_. at the age of eight and was said to have been published posthumously many

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years after Rizal' s death. However, Jose had a preserved correspon, dence
(letters) with his brother Paciano admitting that he (Jose) had 1 only
encountered the word "kalayaan" when he was already 21 years old. The term
("kalayaan") was used not just once in the poem "Sa Aking Mga
Kababatal Kabata". (For more details concerning this matter, reac:x:I the
article, "Did Jose Rizal Write the Poem "Sa Aking Mga Kabata,?" in
.OurHappySchool.com).

The young Rizal was also interested in magic. He read many boo.ks on
magic. He learned different tricks, such as making a coin disappea.- and
making a handkerchief vanish in thin air.

Other influences of Rizal's childhood were his three uncles: Jose

Alberto who inspired him to cultivate his artistic ability; Manuel who
encouraged him to fortify his frail body through physical exercise; and
Gregorio who intensified Rizal's prowess and avidness to read good books.

THE STORY OF THE MOTH

To share essential life's lessons, Lolay conducted regular storytelling

sessions with the young Rizal. Dona Teodora loved to read to Pepe stories
from the book Amigo de Li Ninos (The Children's Friend). One day, she scolded
his son for making drawings on the pages of the story book. To teach the "alue
of obedience to one's parents, she afterward read him a story in it.

His mother, Lolay chose the story about a daughter moth who was
warned by her mother against going too near a lamp flame. Though the young
moth promised to comply, she later succumbed to the pull of the light's
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mysterious charm, believing that nothing bad would happen if she approached
it with caution. The moth then flew close to the flame. Feeling comforting
warmth at first, she drew closer and closer, bit by bit, until she flew too close
enough to the flame and perished.
!.
Incidentally, Pepe was watching a similar incident while he was
listening to the storytelling. Like a live enactment, a moth was fluttering too
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near to the flame of the oil lamp on their table. Not merely acting out, it did
fall dead as a consequence. Both moths in the two tales paid the price of
getting near the fatal light.
l.

Many years later, Rizal himself felt that the moths' tale could serve as
an allegory of his own destiny. (A good summary of Rizal's life is presented in
Appendix B: A Biographical Outline.) About himself, he wrote:

l.. "Years have passed since then. The child has become a man ...
Steamships have taken him across seas and oceans. He has received
I from experience bitter lessons, much more bitter than the sweet
I
L lessons that his mother gave him. Nevertheless, he has preserved the
heart of a child. He still thinks that light is the most beautiful thing
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in creation, and that it is worthwhile for a man to sacrifice his lfife for
it". "My first Reminiscence," n.d. para. 9)

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