First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 25, no. 7 (September 11-24, 2012): 16, 15. It was 1986 and the People Power Revolution had just ended the 20-year rule of Ferdinand E. Marcos. People were euphoric, looking forward to a new re-established democratic order. One of the first moves the new President Corazon Cojuangco Aquino […]
First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 24, nos. 15-16 (January 17-February 6, 2012): 5. The surname 高 (Ko in Hokkien, Gao in Mandarin) ranks 19th among Chinese surnames in China, and 24th among Chinese in the Philippines. Gao was first used as surname in China by Lü Fu (呂服), the son of the sixth […]
First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 28, no. 13 (December 8-21, 2015): 14. Hokkien, on the tongues of Tsinoys, has grown and evolved, taking on a life of its own. Sometimes words simply fail us. With some creativity, Tsinoys have strung together words to form colorful phrases that simply hit the bull’s eye. Here […]
First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 25, no. 7 (September 11-24, 2012): 8-11. A district near the Kremlin is called kitai gorod: Chinese district. Yet, the Kitaiski are almost invisible in the city. Chinese presence in Russia assumes some importance given the border the two countries share, and increasing number of agreements on trade […]
First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 24, no. 13 (December 6-19, 2011): 5. The Chinese surname 謝 (Xie in Mandarin, Sia in Hokkien), literally means thanks or salamat in Filipino. It ranks 23rd among Chinese surname in the Philippines, and 24th in China. It is said that 謝 was among the four big famous […]
First published in Tulay Monthly, Chinese-Filipino Digest 1, no. 6 (November 13, 1988), p. 10. November 1, All Saints’ Day, the day when we revisit the dead. The endless miles of people trekking to the cemeteries and parks is an all-too familiar scene. The Chinese cemetery situated in La Loma is no exception. On this […]
First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 24, no. 11 (November 1-14, 2011): 5-6. The Chinese surname 呂, pronounced as Li in Hokkien or Lü in Mandarin, ranks 22nd among Chinese surnames in the Philippines and 43rd in China. 呂 is a very ancient surname in China. It is said that the Lü ancestor was […]
First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 24, no. 9 (October 4-17, 2011): 5. 戴 (Dai in Mandarin, Te in Hokkien) is the 21st most popular Chinese surname in the Philippines. It ranks 57th in China. The surname Te originates from the imperial clan of the Zhou (周) Dynasty (1066-256 BC). When the first emperor […]
First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 24, no. 7 (September 6-19, 2011): 5-6. Although it ranks only 28th among Chinese surnames in the Philippines, the surname 柯 (Ke in Mandarin, Cua in Hokkien) is of special significance in the Philippines because it is the Chinese surname of Domingo Lamco, the great-great-grandfather of our national […]
First published in Tulay, Monthly Chinese-Filipino Digest 2, no. 5 (October 22, 1989): 7. When is China’s National Day, Oct. l or Double Ten, many of our Filipino friends have been asking. Even the young Chinese Filipinos who do not know the difference between the two dates are confused. China’s vastness, in size and population, […]