Birth Name: José Protasio Mercado Rizal y Alonso Realonda
Date of Birth: June 19, 1861
Place of Birth: Calamba, Laguna, Philippines
Date of Birth: December 30, 1896
Place of Death: Bagumbayan (now part of Ermita), Manila, Philippines
Ethnicity: Filipino (including Pangasinan, Tagalog, and possibly Ilocano), Chinese, Japanese, some Spanish
José Rizal was a Filipino nationalist, novelist, poet, ophthalmologist, journalist, and revolutionary. He is widely considered one of the greatest heroes of the Philippines. He was the son of Francisco Engracio Rizal Mercado y Alejandro and Teodora Alonso Realonda y Quintos. He was married to Josephine Bracken.
José’s paternal grandfather was Juan Mercado y Monicha (the son of Francisco Mercado y Chinco and Bernarda Monicha y Vargas). Francisco’s father, Domingo Lam-co, was born Ke Yi-nan (or Cua Yi Lam in Pe̍h-ōe-jī) in Siongque village, Quanzhou, Fujian, to Ke Zhang-li (or Cua Siong-co in Pe̍h-ōe-jī) and Zun-nio (family name unknown). Francisco’s mother, Inés/Inéz de la Rosa, was also of Chinese descent. She was the daughter of Agustín Chinco, also a Chinese immigrant from Quanzhou, and of Jacinta Rafaela, a Chinese mestiza. Bernarda was also a Chinese mestiza, who was the daughter of Antonio Monicha and Ana Beatriz Vargas.
José’s paternal grandmother was Cirila Alejandro (the daughter of Juan Siong-co y Guinio and María Guinio). Cirila was also of Chinese descent. Juan was the son of Manuel Siong-co and María Guinio.
José’s maternal grandfather was Lorenzo Alberto Alonso y Alejandro (the son of Cipriano Alonso and María Florentina). Cipriano’s father, Gregorio Alonso, was a Chinese mestizo. María had no known Chinese roots, and was the daughter of Mariano Alejandro and Faustina Florentina. Faustina was believed to be connected to a family in Vigan, Ilocos Sur. It is unclear if this Ilocano ancestry has been documented/verified.
José’s maternal grandmother was Brígida de Quintos y Ursúa (the daughter of Manuel de Quintos y Callianco and Regina Ursúa y Ochoa). Manuel was of Chinese and Pangasinan descent. He was the son of Manuel de Quintos and Rosa Callianco. Regina was of Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, and Tagalog descent. She was the daughter of Eugenio Ursúa and Benigna Ochoa.
José’s patrilineal ancestry can be traced back to his 19th great-grandfather Ke Shan-weng (or Cua Shan Weng in Pe̍h-ōe-jī).