lawyer

#trivia question #

C ontrary to popular notion, the symbolic name "Juan de la Cruz " is not a Filipino invention. R. McCulloch-Dick, a Scottish born journalist, coined the generic tag while working for the Manila Times in the early 1900's after discovering it was the most common name in police blotters and court dockets in and around Manila.

Maria Mania

W hy do so many Filipino women (and men) carry "Maria" in their names? A major cause dates back to spanish times when parishes would refuse to baptize a child unless the parents chosen name included the allusion to the Virgin Mary. The practice resists to this day, but on a far less pervasive scale.

"Pilipinas"

T he term Pilipinas. as distinguished from Filipinas. made its first public appearance in a stamp issued during the Japanese Occupation of Manila in World War II. Not until 1962 did the Philippine government make a similar change from Filipinas to Pilipinas in officially describing the nation.

Months Days

H undreds of Spanish words have Tagalog roots. Examples: acharra (atsara ); banguerra (banggera ); barrumbado (barumbado ); bucayo (bukayo ); caua (kawa ); cascasero (kaskasero ); panciteria (pansiteria ); quizame (kisame ); salacot (salakot ); tampipi (tampipi ); tinapa (tinapa ); tulisan (tulisan ).

Q. Are there more Filipino males than females?

A. Just slightly. The latest count put the ratio at 100.9 males for every 100 females. In Metro Manila, however, the Filipino male is outnumbered: 92.6 to 100.

Q. Where did the terms kuya and ate come from?

A. Most experts point to Chinese origins. Kuya is said to be a combination of two Chinese words: ko (elder brother) and a (a term of kinship); ate from the same a plus chi (elder sister).

Q. How many Philippine presidents were bar topnotchers?

A. Three: Manuel A. Roxas, Diosdado Macapagal, and Ferdinand Marcos.

Q. All Filipino names for the days are from Spanish, with the sole exception of Linggo (Sunday). why not Domingo .

A. Linggo comes from the Malay Mingu . which is a corruption of the Portuguese Domingo (Sunday). But on its way to the Philippines, Mingu became Linggo .

Q. The Pasyon . subject of the pabasa during Lent, holds what distinction in Philippine publishing history?

A. It's the No. 1 all-time bestseller in the Philippines.

Q. Ramon Magsaysay named his presidential plane Mt. Pinatubo. Why?

A. Mount Pinatubo in Zambales was Magsaysay's area of operation as a guerilla leader in World War II. He went on to become military governor of the province at war's end.

Q. What's special about the 1926 film Tatlong Hambog .

A. It featured a kissing scene between Elizabeth "Dimples" Cooper and Luis Tuazon -- the first in Philippine cinema