Catálogo alfabético de apellidos
Encyclopedia
The Alphabetical Catalog of Surnames is a book of surname
s published in the Philippines
and other islands of Spanish East Indies
in the mid-19th century. This was in response to a Spanish colonial decree establishing the systematic distribution of family names and the imposition of the Spanish naming system on the inhabitants of the Philippines.
The book was created after Spanish
Captain
and Governor General Narciso Clavería y Zaldúa
issued a decree on November 21, 1849. Following the Christian
isation of the Philippines, many Filipinos chose surnames such as de los Santos, de la Cruz, del Rosario, and Bautista for their religious significance; even today these surnames are perhaps the most common. Many other Filipinos also chose surnames of well-known chieftains such as Lacandola
. Furthermore, many people within the same family had different surnames. This created difficulties for the Spanish
colonial authorities, who found that it hindered their ability to perform a census
of the archipelago
's inhabitants, as well as complicating the collection of tax
es.
All of the letters of the Spanish alphabet
are represented except for the letters "I
" (in the Spanish orthography of the time "Y
" was used instead of an initial "I"), "K
" and "W
" (there are no Spanish surnames starting with these letters) and "X
" (due to a consonant shift, earlier surnames like Ximénez
were spelled Jiménez, with a J
, by that time.)
, including Tagalog
, Ilokano
, Cebuano
, Hiligaynon
, and others. Spanish
, however, provided the bulk of the surnames.
Many of the words from Philippine languages come from a wide variety of themes such as nature, vegetation, geography, and others.
Examples of surnames include Daquila (modern form/orthography:dakila; noble), Magsaysay (to tell), Balani (magnetism), Malaqui (malaki; big/from prophet Malachi
), Dimatulac (di matulak; can't be pushed), "Bathala" ([Visayan-Sanskrit]: God), Panganiban (Tagalog
: "an Instrument of, be possessed by [ex. God]") Lagip (Ilokano
: memory), Puti (white), Talong (eggplant), Maliuanag (maliwanag; bright), Mabanglo (Ilokano: fragrant), Tumacder (tumakder, Ilokano: to stand up), and Ycasiam (ikasiyam/ika-9; ninth).
Curiously, potentially offensive words were also included as surnames, including Gajasa (gahasa; rape, originally means "someone who rushed"), Bayot (Cebuano
: effeminate, an adjective used by Spanish priests against native male religious leader Babaylan
), Bacla (bakla; effeminate; male crossdresser), Otot (utot; flatulence), Tanga (stupid; daydreamer "anga-anga", Chinese ti-ang/ti-ng/to-ng), Limotin (limutin; forgetful/ to forget), Lubut (Cebuano: buttocks; Tagalog:Kulubut [wrinkles]), Tae (excrement), Ongoy (unggoy; monkey), Aso (dog, Chinese: A-So), Jalimao (halimaw; monster)and Yyac (iiyak; will cry).
Words and surnames derived from Spanish include De Guzman, Santos, Villafuerte, Lectura, Orlanda, Escondo, Escribano, Escritor, Evangelista, Villaroman, Javier
, Loco, Bajo, Maestro, Buey, Orante, Rivera, Yncredulidad, Jurisprudencia and Hidalgo
. Some surnames came from Spanish given names like Alonso
, Fernando
, Ignacio
, Pascual, Salvador
, Santiago
. Surnames from Christianization include Cruz, de Dios, de Jesús, de los Santos, de los Reyes, Garcia, Isidro, Jose, Miguel, Resurreccion, Reyes, San Agustin, San Antonio, San Francisco, San Gabriel, Santa Barbara, Santo Domingo, and Santo Rosario. Place names may be in Spain or outside this. Those from Spain include Ávila
, Arévalo
, Alcántara
, Alferez
, Alcuizar, Bustamante, Cáceres
, Carrillo
, Galicia, Foz
, Madrid
, Santander
, Tolosa
, and España itself; from other countries or regions include Africa
, America
, Austria
, Alemania (Germany
), Belgica (Belgium
), Benin
, Brasil/Brazil
, Olandes (modern orthography: holandés) (Netherlander) and Ysrael (modern orthography: Israel
). Surnames from Philippine place names were also given by Spaniards and these include Bacolod
, Basilan
, and Davao
.
Surnames from two different languages that are combined into one: Pe-Benito (Chinese+Spanish), Tactacan-tumpalan (Spanish+Tagalog), Zobel-Roxas (Spanish-Mexican).
Names from other languages include Chinese
(Chua, Tan, Lim, Fang, Quinzon, Yi, Jonson, Hizon), Malay
(Gadya, Janjalani), Indian(Laksamana, Gallora, Rama, Guro), Arabic
(Sulayman[ Solomon
] , Muhamed), Persian
(Khan
), Japanese
(Sato, Bon, Arai, Iwamoto), Cambodian/Vietnamese/Siamese (Ampil, Lomtong, Setakorn), Catalan
(Ortells, Llop, Puig, Lletget) and Basque
(Echevarria, Legazpi, Labadia, Peñarredondo.) There are even surnames from Latin (Rex, Veritas, Ambrosio), German
(Ymbrecht, Otto, Rumpf), Italian
(Aquino, Buffardessi, Calda, Conti, Parco, Castiglione, Tolentino), French
(Lourdes, Nantes, Grenoble, Troyes) and English
(James
, Nelson
, Doughman, Burton
, Gray).
's parish
priest
. The head of each barangay
, along with another town official or two, was present when the father or the oldest person in each family chose a surname for his or her family.
Several groups were exempt from having to choose new surnames:
Because of the mass implementation of Spanish surnames in the Philippines, a Spanish surname does not indicate Spanish ancestry and can make it difficult for Filipinos to accurately trace their lineage. For the Spanish surnames, there are surnames of Basque, Castilian, and Catalan origin. Basque surnames are mostly used by Filipinos of Spanish descent, while Castilian and Catalan surnames are mostly used by indigenous Filipinos and Chinese Filipinos. A number of mestizo Filipinos with Spanish birth surnames surprisingly have no Spanish blood and have other European ancestry, including those of American blood
through intermarriage with indigenous Filipino ancestors with Spanish surnames.
and Camarines Sur
) and Tayabas (now Quezon Province) were known to enforce this rule strictly, while parts of Laguna
simply ignored the decree.
In the town of Oas, Albay
, for instance, many surnames there begin with the letter R such as Roa, Reburiano, Rabajante, and Relleve. On the island of Banton, Romblon
, surnames that begin with the letter F are prevalent such as Festin, Fadrilan, Famatigan, Fabicon, Faigao, etc.
Also, in the town of Sta. Cruz, Zambales, many surnames begin with the letter M such as Morados, Mayo, Movilla, Mose, etc.
Surnames starting with Villa and Al are abundant in the town of Argao, Cebu
. Some surnames are: Villaluz, Villaflor, Villamor, Villanueva, Villacruel, Villacruz, Albo, Alcain, Alcarez, Algones, Ableos, etc.
In Iloilo, surnames that start with the letter "T" are common in Tigbauan and Tubungan town; those that start with the letter "G" are common in Guimbal town; those that start with the letter "E" are common in Igbaras town; those that start with the letter "F", "M", and "N" are common in Miag-ao town; those that start with the letter "D" are common in Dumangas town; those that start with the letter "P" are common in Passi town; those that start with the letter "B" are common in Roxas City; those that start with the letter "C" are common in Calinog town, and so on and so forth.
Since there are potentially at most 61,000 surnames in the book, not all of the surnames were used.
Surname
A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name"...
s published in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and other islands of Spanish East Indies
Spanish East Indies
Spanish East Indies was a term used to describe Spanish territories in Asia-Pacific which lasted for three centuries . With the seat of government in Manila, the territory encompassed the Philippine Islands, Guam and the Mariana Islands, the Caroline Islands, and for a period of time, parts of...
in the mid-19th century. This was in response to a Spanish colonial decree establishing the systematic distribution of family names and the imposition of the Spanish naming system on the inhabitants of the Philippines.
The book was created after Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
Captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
and Governor General Narciso Clavería y Zaldúa
Narciso Clavería y Zaldúa
Narciso Clavería y Zaldúa , a native of Gerona, Spain , was the Governor-General of the Philippines from July 16, 1844 to December 26, 1849. Clavería was a man of culture, probity, and industry. He traveled through many provinces trying to learn the needs of the Filipinos...
issued a decree on November 21, 1849. Following the Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
isation of the Philippines, many Filipinos chose surnames such as de los Santos, de la Cruz, del Rosario, and Bautista for their religious significance; even today these surnames are perhaps the most common. Many other Filipinos also chose surnames of well-known chieftains such as Lacandola
Rajah Lakandula
Lakan Banaw Dula or Gat Banaw Dula , often referred to simply by his title Lakan Dula, and later baptised Lakan Carlos Dula, was the Lakan of the pre-colonial Philippine Kingdom of Tondo when the Spaniards first conquered the lands of the Pasig River delta in the 1570s...
. Furthermore, many people within the same family had different surnames. This created difficulties for the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
colonial authorities, who found that it hindered their ability to perform a census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of the archipelago
Archipelago
An archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
's inhabitants, as well as complicating the collection of tax
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
es.
Organization
The book itself consists of 141 pages. The surnames are arranged in 6 columns with at most 72 surnames per column. Despite the title, the surnames are not strictly listed alphabetically (after Gandain is Ganavacas then Gandoy, and Balledor is listed under "V").All of the letters of the Spanish alphabet
Alphabet
An alphabet is a standard set of letters—basic written symbols or graphemes—each of which represents a phoneme in a spoken language, either as it exists now or as it was in the past. There are other systems, such as logographies, in which each character represents a word, morpheme, or semantic...
are represented except for the letters "I
I
I is the ninth letter and a vowel in the basic modern Latin alphabet.-History:In Semitic, the letter may have originated in a hieroglyph for an arm that represented a voiced pharyngeal fricative in Egyptian, but was reassigned to by Semites, because their word for "arm" began with that sound...
" (in the Spanish orthography of the time "Y
Y
Y is the twenty-fifth letter in the basic modern Latin alphabet and represents either a vowel or a consonant in English.-Name:In Latin, Y was named Y Graeca "Greek Y". This was pronounced as I Graeca "Greek I", since Latin speakers had trouble pronouncing , which was not a native sound...
" was used instead of an initial "I"), "K
K
K is the eleventh letter of the English and basic modern Latin alphabet.-History and usage:In English, the letter K usually represents the voiceless velar plosive; this sound is also transcribed by in the International Phonetic Alphabet and X-SAMPA....
" and "W
W
W is the 23rd letter in the basic modern Latin alphabet.In other Germanic languages, including German, its pronunciation is similar or identical to that of English V...
" (there are no Spanish surnames starting with these letters) and "X
X
X is the twenty-fourth letter in the basic modern Latin alphabet.-Uses:In mathematics, x is commonly used as the name for an independent variable or unknown value. The usage of x to represent an independent or unknown variable can be traced back to the Arabic word šay شيء = “thing,” used in Arabic...
" (due to a consonant shift, earlier surnames like Ximénez
Ximénez (disambiguation)
Ximénez or Ximenez may refer to:People:*Francisco Jiménez, a colonial governor of Tenochtitlan in the 1560s.*Francisco Jiménez Tejada , a Spanish soccer player....
were spelled Jiménez, with a J
J
Ĵ or ĵ is a letter in Esperanto orthography representing the sound .While Esperanto orthography uses a diacritic for its four postalveolar consonants, as do the Latin-based Slavic alphabets, the base letters are Romano-Germanic...
, by that time.)
Source of surnames
The surnames were culled from many Philippine languagesLanguages of the Philippines
In the Philippines, there are between 120 and 175 languages, depending on the method of classification. Four languages no longer have any known speakers. Almost all the Philippine languages belong to the Austronesian language family...
, including Tagalog
Tagalog language
Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV and of Metro Manila...
, Ilokano
Ilokano language
Ilokano or Ilocano is the third most-spoken language of the Republic of the Philippines....
, Cebuano
Cebuano language
Cebuano, referred to by most of its speakers as Bisaya , is an Austronesian language spoken in the Philippines by about 20 million people mostly in the Central Visayas. It is the most widely spoken of the languages within the so-named Bisayan subgroup and is closely related to other Filipino...
, Hiligaynon
Hiligaynon language
Hiligaynon, often referred to as Ilonggo, is an Austronesian language spoken in the Western Visayas region of the Philippines.Hiligaynon is concentrated in the provinces of Iloilo, Negros Occidental and Capiz but is also spoken in the other provinces of the Panay Island group, including Antique,...
, and others. Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, however, provided the bulk of the surnames.
Many of the words from Philippine languages come from a wide variety of themes such as nature, vegetation, geography, and others.
Examples of surnames include Daquila (modern form/orthography:dakila; noble), Magsaysay (to tell), Balani (magnetism), Malaqui (malaki; big/from prophet Malachi
Malachi
Malachi, Malachias or Mal'achi was a Jewish prophet in the Hebrew Bible. He had two brothers, Nathaniel and Josiah. Malachi was the writer of the Book of Malachi, the last book of the Neviim section in the Jewish Tanakh...
), Dimatulac (di matulak; can't be pushed), "Bathala" ([Visayan-Sanskrit]: God), Panganiban (Tagalog
Tagalog language
Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV and of Metro Manila...
: "an Instrument of, be possessed by [ex. God]") Lagip (Ilokano
Ilokano language
Ilokano or Ilocano is the third most-spoken language of the Republic of the Philippines....
: memory), Puti (white), Talong (eggplant), Maliuanag (maliwanag; bright), Mabanglo (Ilokano: fragrant), Tumacder (tumakder, Ilokano: to stand up), and Ycasiam (ikasiyam/ika-9; ninth).
Curiously, potentially offensive words were also included as surnames, including Gajasa (gahasa; rape, originally means "someone who rushed"), Bayot (Cebuano
Cebuano language
Cebuano, referred to by most of its speakers as Bisaya , is an Austronesian language spoken in the Philippines by about 20 million people mostly in the Central Visayas. It is the most widely spoken of the languages within the so-named Bisayan subgroup and is closely related to other Filipino...
: effeminate, an adjective used by Spanish priests against native male religious leader Babaylan
Babaylan
Babaylan is a Visayan term identifying an indigenous Filipino religious leader, who functions as a healer, a shaman, a seer and a community "miracle-worker"...
), Bacla (bakla; effeminate; male crossdresser), Otot (utot; flatulence), Tanga (stupid; daydreamer "anga-anga", Chinese ti-ang/ti-ng/to-ng), Limotin (limutin; forgetful/ to forget), Lubut (Cebuano: buttocks; Tagalog:Kulubut [wrinkles]), Tae (excrement), Ongoy (unggoy; monkey), Aso (dog, Chinese: A-So), Jalimao (halimaw; monster)and Yyac (iiyak; will cry).
Words and surnames derived from Spanish include De Guzman, Santos, Villafuerte, Lectura, Orlanda, Escondo, Escribano, Escritor, Evangelista, Villaroman, Javier
Javier (name)
Javier is the Spanish spelling of the masculine name Xabier.The name derives from the Catholic Saint called Francis de Xavier, where Xavier refers to the saint's birth place. This birth place name, in turn, has Basque roots, etymologically originating in the word etxaberri...
, Loco, Bajo, Maestro, Buey, Orante, Rivera, Yncredulidad, Jurisprudencia and Hidalgo
Hidalgo (disambiguation)
Hidalgo was a traditional title of persons of the Spanish nobility or gentry.Hidalgo may also refer to:-Mexico:* Hidalgo , a state in central Mexico* Hidalgo, Coahuila, a town in Coahuila...
. Some surnames came from Spanish given names like Alonso
Alonso
Alonso is the name of:*Alonso Fernández Alvarez, Costa Rican male model*Alonso Fernández de Lugo, Spanish military man*Alonso Ferreira de Matos, Brazilian footballer*Alonso Mudarra, Spanish composer and vihuelist...
, Fernando
Fernando
Fernando may mean:* A Portuguese, Spanish and Italian given name equivalent to the Germanic given name Ferdinand or Vernon, with an original meaning of "adventurous, bold journey".-First name:* Fernando el Católico, king of Aragon...
, Ignacio
Ignacio
Ignacio is a male Spanish name originating either from the Roman family name Egnatius, meaning unknown, of Etruscan origin, or from the Latin name "Ignatius" from the word "Ignis" meaning "fire". This was the name of several saints, including the third bishop of Antioch and Saint Ignatius of Loyola...
, Pascual, Salvador
Salvador
Salvador is normally an indirect way of naming a Messiah. In Spanish, a nickname for Salvador is Chava...
, Santiago
Santiago (surname)
The surname Santiago was first found in Galicia, Spain.Santiago is a habitational name from any of the numerous places named for the dedication of churches to St. James...
. Surnames from Christianization include Cruz, de Dios, de Jesús, de los Santos, de los Reyes, Garcia, Isidro, Jose, Miguel, Resurreccion, Reyes, San Agustin, San Antonio, San Francisco, San Gabriel, Santa Barbara, Santo Domingo, and Santo Rosario. Place names may be in Spain or outside this. Those from Spain include Ávila
Ávila (surname)
Ávila or Avila is a Spanish language surname. Sometimes the variants de Ávila or de Avila, D'Ávila or D'Avila, Dávila or Davila occur.It may refer to:*Adolfo Davila, Mexican filmmaker, born 1965...
, Arévalo
Arévalo
Arévalo is a municipality in Spain, it is situated in the province of Ávila and is part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. The name came from Celtic word arevalon, meaning "place near the wall."-Regional importance:...
, Alcántara
Alcántara
Alcántara is a municipality in the province of Cáceres, Extremadura, Spain, on the Tagus, near Portugal. The toponym is from the Arabic word al-QanTarah meaning "the bridge".-History:...
, Alferez
Alférez
Alférez is a junior officer rank also used in Spain, Argentina, Chile and Uruguay. The variant Alferes is used in Portugal and was formerly also used in Brazil. A naval variant, Frigate Alférez, is used in Spain, Dominican Republic and Peru. "Alférez" is often translated as ensign...
, Alcuizar, Bustamante, Cáceres
Cáceres, Spain
Cáceres is the capital of the same name province, in the autonomous community of Extremadura, Spain. , its population was 91,131 inhabitants. The municipio has a land area of 1,750.33 km², and is the largest in geographical extension in Spain....
, Carrillo
Carrillo
-Locations:* Carrillo Canton is the fifth division of Guanacaste Province* Carrillo , a beach adjacent to Puerto Carrillo, Costa Rica* Puerto Carrillo, a small town in Guanacaste, Costa Rica...
, Galicia, Foz
Foz
Foz is a town and municipality in A Mariña country in the Galician province of Lugo. It has been historically linked to the Ancient Province of Mondonedo and also linked to the arrival of Briton immigrants during the Dark Ages fleeing by sea from the British Isles It has 9800 inhabitants.-Port of...
, Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Santander
Santander, Cantabria
The port city of Santander is the capital of the autonomous community and historical region of Cantabria situated on the north coast of Spain. Located east of Gijón and west of Bilbao, the city has a population of 183,446 .-History:...
, Tolosa
Tolosa, Spain
Tolosa is a town and municipality to the south of Donostia-San Sebastián in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa, Spain. It is located in a valley of the river Oria and overlooked by Uzturre, a white cross-topped mountain.-Famous people from Tolosa:...
, and España itself; from other countries or regions include Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, America
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Alemania (Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
), Belgica (Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
), Benin
Benin
Benin , officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It borders Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east and Burkina Faso and Niger to the north. Its small southern coastline on the Bight of Benin is where a majority of the population is located...
, Brasil/Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, Olandes (modern orthography: holandés) (Netherlander) and Ysrael (modern orthography: Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
). Surnames from Philippine place names were also given by Spaniards and these include Bacolod
Bacolod City
The City of Bacolod , is a highly urbanized midsize Philippine city. It is the capital of the Negros Occidental province. Having a total of 499,497 inhabitants as of August 1, 2007, it is the most populous city in the Western Visayas Region. It is currently ranked as the 17th most populous city in...
, Basilan
Basilan
The Province of Basilan is an island province of the Philippines within the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao . Basilan is the largest and northernmost of the major islands of the Sulu Archipelago and is located just off the southern coast of Zamboanga Peninsula...
, and Davao
Davao
Davao refers to several closely related places in Mindanao in the Philippines. The term is used most often to refer to the city.*Davao Region, an administrative region*Davao del Norte province*Davao del Sur province*Davao Oriental province...
.
Surnames from two different languages that are combined into one: Pe-Benito (Chinese+Spanish), Tactacan-tumpalan (Spanish+Tagalog), Zobel-Roxas (Spanish-Mexican).
Names from other languages include Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
(Chua, Tan, Lim, Fang, Quinzon, Yi, Jonson, Hizon), Malay
Malay language
Malay is a major language of the Austronesian family. It is the official language of Malaysia , Indonesia , Brunei and Singapore...
(Gadya, Janjalani), Indian(Laksamana, Gallora, Rama, Guro), Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
(Sulayman
Solomon
Solomon , according to the Book of Kings and the Book of Chronicles, a King of Israel and according to the Talmud one of the 48 prophets, is identified as the son of David, also called Jedidiah in 2 Samuel 12:25, and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before...
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
(Khan
Khan (name)
Khan is a surname and title of Central Asian origin, primarily found in Afghanistan, Baluchistan, Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan.- Origin :...
), Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
(Sato, Bon, Arai, Iwamoto), Cambodian/Vietnamese/Siamese (Ampil, Lomtong, Setakorn), Catalan
Catalan language
Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
(Ortells, Llop, Puig, Lletget) and Basque
Basque language
Basque is the ancestral language of the Basque people, who inhabit the Basque Country, a region spanning an area in northeastern Spain and southwestern France. It is spoken by 25.7% of Basques in all territories...
(Echevarria, Legazpi, Labadia, Peñarredondo.) There are even surnames from Latin (Rex, Veritas, Ambrosio), German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
(Ymbrecht, Otto, Rumpf), Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
(Aquino, Buffardessi, Calda, Conti, Parco, Castiglione, Tolentino), French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
(Lourdes, Nantes, Grenoble, Troyes) and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
(James
James (surname)
James is a surname, and may refer to:* A. P. T. James , better known as "Fargo" James; Tobagonian politician* Alex James , Scottish soccer player* Alex James , English musician and journalist...
, Nelson
Nelson (surname)
Nelson is a family name. Within the United States, it is ranked as the 39th-most common surname of 88799 listed.It is in origin a patronymic meaning "son of Nels" or "son of Nell"...
, Doughman, Burton
Burton (name)
Burton is a surname that has its origins from a town in Leicestershire, England.-People surnamed Burton:* Baron Burton is a peerage title created in 1886 and 1887 in the Peerage of the United Kingdom...
, Gray).
Dissemination of surnames
According to the decree, a copy of the catalog was to be distributed to the provincial heads of the archipelago. From there, a certain number of surnames, based on population, were sent to each barangayBarangay
A barangay is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district or ward...
's parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
. The head of each barangay
Barangay
A barangay is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district or ward...
, along with another town official or two, was present when the father or the oldest person in each family chose a surname for his or her family.
Several groups were exempt from having to choose new surnames:
- Those possessing a previously adopted surname (whether indigenous or foreign) already on the list; or, if not on the list, not prohibited due to ethnic origin or being too common.
- Families who had already adopted a prohibited surname but could prove their family had used the name for at least four consecutive generations. (These were names prohibited for being too common, like de los Santos, de la Cruz, or for other reasons.)
Because of the mass implementation of Spanish surnames in the Philippines, a Spanish surname does not indicate Spanish ancestry and can make it difficult for Filipinos to accurately trace their lineage. For the Spanish surnames, there are surnames of Basque, Castilian, and Catalan origin. Basque surnames are mostly used by Filipinos of Spanish descent, while Castilian and Catalan surnames are mostly used by indigenous Filipinos and Chinese Filipinos. A number of mestizo Filipinos with Spanish birth surnames surprisingly have no Spanish blood and have other European ancestry, including those of American blood
White American
White Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...
through intermarriage with indigenous Filipino ancestors with Spanish surnames.
Actual application
The actual application of assigning surnames widely varied from town to town and from province to province. The provinces of Camarines (now Camarines NorteCamarines Norte
Camarines Norte is a province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region in Luzon. Its capital is Daet and the province borders Quezon to the west and Camarines Sur to the south.-Demographics:...
and Camarines Sur
Camarines Sur
Camarines Sur is a province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region in Luzon. Its capital is Pili and the province borders Camarines Norte and Quezon to the north, and Albay to the south...
) and Tayabas (now Quezon Province) were known to enforce this rule strictly, while parts of Laguna
Laguna Pueblo
Laguna is a Native American tribe of the Pueblo people in west-central New Mexico, USA. The name, Laguna, is Spanish and derives from the lake located on their reservation. The real Keresan name of the tribe is Kawaik. The population of the tribe exceeds 7,000 , making it the largest Keresan...
simply ignored the decree.
In the town of Oas, Albay
Oas, Albay
Oas is now reclassified as First Class municipality in the province of Albay, Philippines . According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 63,888 people in 11,715 households.-Economy:The town's economy is generally agricultural...
, for instance, many surnames there begin with the letter R such as Roa, Reburiano, Rabajante, and Relleve. On the island of Banton, Romblon
Banton, Romblon
Banton is a 5th class municipality in the province of Romblon, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 6,769 people in 1,478 households...
, surnames that begin with the letter F are prevalent such as Festin, Fadrilan, Famatigan, Fabicon, Faigao, etc.
Also, in the town of Sta. Cruz, Zambales, many surnames begin with the letter M such as Morados, Mayo, Movilla, Mose, etc.
Surnames starting with Villa and Al are abundant in the town of Argao, Cebu
Argao, Cebu
Argao is a 1st class municipality in the province of Cebu, Philippines. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 62,226 people.-Location:...
. Some surnames are: Villaluz, Villaflor, Villamor, Villanueva, Villacruel, Villacruz, Albo, Alcain, Alcarez, Algones, Ableos, etc.
In Iloilo, surnames that start with the letter "T" are common in Tigbauan and Tubungan town; those that start with the letter "G" are common in Guimbal town; those that start with the letter "E" are common in Igbaras town; those that start with the letter "F", "M", and "N" are common in Miag-ao town; those that start with the letter "D" are common in Dumangas town; those that start with the letter "P" are common in Passi town; those that start with the letter "B" are common in Roxas City; those that start with the letter "C" are common in Calinog town, and so on and so forth.
Since there are potentially at most 61,000 surnames in the book, not all of the surnames were used.