Family of Jose P. Rizal

A family of 13, they are paternally of Chinese ancestry and maternally descendants of a maharlika class. Jose Rizal was a mestizo from both East and West with blood from native, Chinese, Japanese and Spanish races.

• Francisco Mercado (b. May 11, 1818 – d. January 5, 1898), the father of Jose Rizal and considered the patriarch of the family, was a native of Biñan, Laguna. He was an educated and industrious farmer who studied Latin and philosophy at Colegio de San Jose in Manila. Of Chinese ancestry, his great grandfather Domingo Lam-Co was a native of Chinchew (now Quanzhou), China who married the Filipina Ines de la Rosa. One of the couples' children was Francisco Mercado, who later married Cerila Bernacha. Bernacha gave birth to Juan Mercado who became Cerila Alejandro's husband and Francisco's father. Both Francisco's father, Juan, and grandfather, Francisco, became Capitanes or town mayors of Biñan. Upon the death of his mother, Francisco moved to Calamba where he became a tenant and farmer of a largeDominican estate. On 28 June 1848, he married Teodora Alonzo Realonda. In 1850 he petitioned the court to change the family name to Rizal, with all their children being surnamed as such.

• Teodora Alonzo Realonda (b. November 8, 1826 – d. August 16, 1911), a Manileña, was a highly educated Filipina who graduated from the Colegio de Santa Rosa. Of Spanish and Japanese ancestry, Teodora was a talented woman whose interests lay in literature, culture, and business, and was well-versed in Spanish. She helped her husband in farming and in their business. She devoted herself to the children's education and growth as morally-upright individuals. Teodora's lineage can be traced to Lakandula, the greatest ruler of Tondo. Her great grandfather, who was of Japanese blood, was Eugenio Ursua (Ochoa). Her maternal grandfather was Manuel de Quintos who was a popular lawyer in his time, while her paternal grandfather was Cipriano Alonso who belonged to Biñan's long list of Capitanes. Teodora was second child of Lorenzo Alberto Alonzo, an engineer and a recipient of the most sought decoration, the Knight of the Grand Order of Isabela the Catholic and Order of Carlos III; and Brigida de Quintos, a fair and well-educated lady. With her vision failing in old age, her son took up medicine, specializing in opthalmologoy, in order to cure her.

• Saturnina Rizal (1850 – 1913), also known as “Neneng,” was the eldest of the Rizal children. She married Manuel Hidalgo, affectionately called "Maneng" by Rizal, who was a native of Tanauan, Batangas.

• Paciano Rizal (b. March 7, 1851 – d. 1930) was the elder and only brother of Jose Rizal. Being a decade older than Rizal, Paciano became a second father to his sibling. He succeeded in sending the young Jose (Pepe) to Europe to study, giving the latter 700 pesos upon departure. During the younger years Paciano would continue supporting his brother financially. After the death of Jose, Paciano joined theRevolution and was later appointed general of the revolutionary forces in Laguna. His common-law wife was Severina Decena. He died in Los Baños, Laguna on April 13, 1930. Their only child Emiliana Rizal married her first cousin Antonio Rizal Lopez Jr., the son of Narcisa Rizal with Antonio Lopez Sr.

• Narcisa Rizal (1852 – 1939) was the third child of Francisco and Teodora. She was a teacher and a musician by profession, and marriedAntonino Lopez who was a school teacher in Morong, Rizal.

• Olympia Rizal (1855 – 1887) was the fourth child of the brood who married Silvestre Ubaldo, a telegraph operator from Manila.

• Lucia Rizal (1857 – 1919) was the fifth child of the Rizal family who was married to Mariano Herbosa of Calamba. She died in 1887.

• Maria Rizal (1859 – 1945) was the sixth of the eleven children who married Daniel Faustino Cruz of Biñan, Laguna.

• Concepcion Rizal (1862 – 1865), also known as “Concha,” was the eight child of the Rizals, who died at the age of three.

• Josefa Rizal (1865 – 1945) was the ninth child and affectionately called Panggoy. She remained a spinster throughout her life.

• Jose Rizal (June 19, 1861- December 30, 1896), later to become the Philippine national hero, was the second son and seventh child.

• Trinidad Rizal (1868 – 1951) was the tenth child who, like Josefa, died without a husband.

• Soledad Rizal (1870 – 1929) was the youngest of the brood who later married Pantaleon Quintero, a native of Calamba.

Reference: http://en.wikipilipinas.org