First published in Tulay Monthly, Chinese-Filipino Digest 1, no. 7 (December 11, 1988): 5; 15. In the Philippines, the Christmas season is marked by religious solemnity, great festivities and revelry. Part of the merry making is the abundance of food and drinks. For the ordinary citizens, among the favorite beverages are such Filipino-made alcoholic drinks […]
First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 25, no. 7 (September 11-24, 2012): 5. Surname 梁 (Liong in Hokkien, Liang in Mandarin) ranks as the 20th biggest surname in China, but only 31st among Chinese in the Philippines. The origin of the surname Liang is quite simple. It was said that an heir of the […]
First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 25, no. 5 (August 14-27, 2012): 5-6. Surname 邱 (Cu, Koo or Khu in Hokkien, Qiu in Mandarin) ranks 30th among Chinese in the Philippines. In China, it ranks only 65th. 邱 was written as 丘 without the 阝 ear character on the right side. In fact, this […]
First published in Tulay, Fortnightly Chinese-Filipino Digest 28, no. 13 (December 8-21, 2015): 5-6. In the course of researching an article of Salvador P. Escoto (1960-2007) on “Expulsion of the Chinese and Readmission to the Philippines: 1764-1779” in Philippine Studies 47.1 (1999), we found another article Escoto co-authored with John N. Schumacher in Philippine Studies […]
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 […]