From Ciudad Real to the Ciudad Reina del Sur: The Family of Don Pablo Garcia

Running together with this article is a tribute to outgoing House Speaker and former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. A descendant of the subject of this piece, Governor Gwendolyn Fiel Garcia, is returning as the governor of one of the most progressive provinces in the country. 

While a certain percentage of the Filipino population have Spanish blood, not all can trace their Spanish line up to the first Hispanic ancestor to set foot in the Philippines. And, even fewer can trace their Spanish ancestry beyond the Philippines and up to the Spanish peninsula.

One of the few families who can prove a Spanish heritage, pinpoint exactly their first Spanish ancestor in the country, and go up the family tree a few generations further in Spain is the Garcia family of Cebu. Or rather, the Garcia family who first settled in Sibonga and then Dumanjug, both in Cebu province. This Garcia family is different from the other Garcias in Cebu or even in the Philippines. Thanks to Claveria's 1849 surname decree, thousands of people all over the Philippines carry similar family names without the slightest bit of blood relation. As of 2015, the surname Garcia was ranked as the second most common last name in the Philippines, just a few hundred thousand carriers below the number 1 surname - DE LA CRUZ. 

The Garcia family in this article descends from one immigrant from Ciudad Real, Spain. He was Pablo Garcia Fernandez and his story has been pretty well researched by American historian Michael Cullinane. Cullinane's research has shown that Pablo Garcia was born in 1839 in Spain to Ramon Garcia, said to have been from Ciudad Real, and Isabel Fernandez. The parents most likely never set foot in the Philippines and it was the son, Pablo, who first came to the country most likely towards the end of the 1860s. He was listed as a resident of Cebu between 1869 to 1870 but by the 1870s he was already living in Sibonga, Cebu and was recorded to have made a living out of metal collection, marble cutting, drilling, and carpentry. By 1885 he was a Juez de Paz of Sibonga and by the late 1800s he was already known as an agricultor and by 1910 was honored as the "oldest Spaniard in Cebu". He married an insulares, Nieves Fortich y Gonzales, who was of the Cebu Fortiches.

Church records in Sibonga, Cebu show that by the time Pablo Garcia settled there, he was already considered a respectable Spanish migrant as proven by the constant use of the ennobling title of "Don" to his name. His eldest son and second child, Antonio Garcia, was born on March 21, 1876 and his baptismal record indicates that Pablo and his wife, Nieves Fortich, were classified as comerciantes, which meant they were involved in business. 

Antonio Garcia's Baptismal Record (Sibonga Parish archives)

Pablo Garcia in his son Antonio's baptismal record is listed as Español Europeo which meant that he was a pure Spaniard born in Spain and not in the Philippines. His hometown is given as Ciudad Real, literally meaning Royal City. One member of the Garcia family asked this author what I thought was the reason why Pablo Garcia left his hometown. By studying the milieu of Don Pablo Garcia, especially at the time of his birth, one can then answer that question.

The Garcias of Ciudad Real

Ciudad Real is actually the name of both a city and the province the city is located in. This city is a part of the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha. From its founding in 1255 up until the 15th century, Ciudad Real experienced a period of growth. The increase in its population and production activities, such as wool, leather and wine, led the Catholic Monarchs to look favourably on the city, choosing it as the home for extremely important government institutions. In 1833, the province of Ciudad Real was finally created, with the city of Ciudad Real as its capital. The Spanish War of Independence reached Ciudad Real with the defeat of Spanish troops by Napoleon’s forces at the Guadiana Bridges, with these forces occupying the city up until 1813. 

Three parishes were established in Ciudad Real: Santiago, San Pedro, and Nuestra Señora del Prado. The oldest of the three, was established in the thirteenth century and located in the northeast portion of the city. San Pedro and the next parish, Santiago, which was located in the southeast of the city, shared parts of the aljama or the old Jewish quarter. The third and last parish, the Nuestra Señora del Prado, was established in 1531 and was located in the western and northwestern part. The church patron was also the city's main patroness and its church was more elegant than San Pedro's. Initially, the leading citizens of the city lived closer to San Pedro but later they moved to the parish of del Prado.

During the first half of the 19th century, Ciudad Real went through a period of stagnation marked by a decrease in population, poor interconnection, low levels of investment, and an excessive dependency on agriculture. This was the condition of the city when Pablo Antonio Garcia was born on January 16, 1839 at around 8 in the morning. He was baptized immediately a day after. His parents were Ramon Garcia Melgar and Ysabel Fernandez. His paternal grandparents were Manuel Garcia and Antonia Donayre (Donaire) while his maternal grandparents were Francisco Fernandez and Juana Arias. His entire family lived in the parish of Nuestra Señora del Prado.

It is unclear what standing Pablo Garcia's family was, socially, in their hometown. There were several Garcia families in Ciudad Real at the time of Pablo's birth and there were certain branches of the Garcia family that were listed with the title of "Don" in official records, clearly an indication of some important social stature in the community. As stated above, most of the city's prominent families lived in the parish of Nuestra Señora del Prado and thus there is a chance that Pablo's family once enjoyed some sort of eminence in their community.

The Nuestra Senora del Prado de Ciudad Real as depicted in one of the parish's books

As already stated earlier, by the time Pablo Garcia was born, Ciudad Real was going through a decline. Almost everyone was engaged in farming and few were in business or working as professionals. 

Pablo's grandfather, Manuel Garcia Melgar, was married twice: first to Maria Corrales, who predeceased Manuel leading him to remarry to Antonia Donayre. This second marriage resulted to Josefa Antonia Jacinta Garcia, born in 1786, Manuel Jacinta Garcia (Antonia's twin), Manuel Benito Josef Antonio Garcia, born in 1788, and Ramon Garcia Melgar, born around 1790.

Meanwhile, Manuel Garcia Melgar was born around the mid-1700s to Sebastian Garcia and Antonia Dominguez while his wife, Antonia Donayre, was the daughter of Antonio Donaire and Antonia Herrera.

There was probably very little opportunity in Ciudad Real for Pablo Garcia as he was growing up. We know for a fact that when his eldest son, Antonio Garcia, was born in 1876 in Sibonga, Cebu, that Pablo's parents were already deceased. If he had arrived sometime in the late 1860s or early 1870s, it is very likely that Ramon Garcia and Ysabel Fernandez were already both dead and their deaths provided Pablo Garcia the impetus to leave for the Philippines.

Pablo Garcia was 71 years of age in 1910 when the city government recognized him as the "oldest Spaniard in Cebu". By then, he was a gentleman of means who owned tracts of land that he cultivated for agricultural purposes. By the time he died on January 15, 1925 - just a day shy of his 86th birthday - he was already residing in Cebu City. His death certificate listed his profession as a merchant, his address as El Filibusterismo Street which is somewhere in downtown Cebu, his cause of death as "senility" which most likely just meant he died of old age, and he was buried at the San Nicolas Catholic cemetery.

Fleeing his homeland to seek for a better life, Pablo Garcia indeed found a much better life in Cebu. He rose in prominence quickly, and within just 3 generations one of his great-grandchildren and a namesake, Pablo Paras Garcia, became a Governor of the province he chose to be his new home. Pablo Garcia would later become Deputy Speaker of the House before retiring from public service. Pablo's daughter, Gwen F. Garcia, served 3 consecutive terms as Cebu governor then went on to serve 2 terms as a member of the house of representatives. In 2019, she ran and won another fresh term as Cebu Governor. Her brother, Pablo John F. Garcia, replaces her as 3rd district representative while another brother, Marlon F. Garcia, serves as mayor of Barili, Cebu. Her own daughter, Christina Codilla -Frasco, serves as mayor of Liloan, Cebu while Christina's husband, Vincent Franco Frasco, is the 5th district representative.

Other descendants, like the first Garcia in the Philippines, are engaged in business. 

Welcome to the World, Rodrigo Duterte III!

The Duterte family recently extended one generation further with the birth of Rodrigo Duterte III, President Duterte's first great-grandchild. The name is clearly an homage to the child's popular great-grandfather. Interestingly, Rodrigo, though a name common in Spain, Portugal, and Italy, is more popular in Portugal. What;s more interesting is that the Veloso family, from where President Duterte is descended on the paternal line, has always claimed to be descendants of a Portuguese. But that is another story to be told at a later date.

Welcome to the world, baby Rodrigo III!

The Race to Halalan 2016: The Genealogy of Rodrigo Duterte

"Rodrigo Duterte (2009)"
by Keith Kristoffer Bacongco

With Mayor Rodrigo "Digong" Roa Duterte finally saying "yes" to a presidential bid and making the upcoming presidential race more interesting, it is high time to begin profiling the presidential candidates through their family histories. In a country where family is extremely important and influential, knowing the family of a candidate will help voters know the candidates better.

Introduction

Like most non-Muslim or non-Lumad families living in Mindanao, the Duterte family traces its roots outside of the land of promise. Though the Duterte name today is almost always synonymous to Davao City, the family of Mayor Rodrigo Duterte only came to Davao in 1951 when his parents, Atty. Vicente "Nene" Duterte and Soledad Roa, transferred to Davao. In a previous article it was already discussed that there were already other pioneering families in Davao City. But due to the Duterte family's years of exemplary public service, first in the now divided Davao province and later in the city of Davao, the Duetertes have become just as much a beloved pioneering family of Davao City.

Had fate dictated otherwise, Mayor Rodrigo Duterte would have been born Rodrigo Veloso on March 28, 1945. A female ancestor of Mayor Digong, a Duterte from Cebu, had a liaison with a member of the prominent Veloso family. Though some records say that this female Duterte eventually married Maximo Veloso, and indeed their son Isabelo invariably used Veloso and Duterte as his last names, the fact that legal records show that Isabelo's sons, Facundo and Severo, carried Duterte all their lives proves that Maximo never married his Duterte partner, thus ensuring the perpetuation of the last name at least through Isabelo's sons.

Surname History

The surname DUTERTE appears to be a Hispanic version of the French term du tertre, which signifies one as coming "from a hillock" or "of rising ground". It is interesting to note that there are many possible metaphors and symbolism one may get from this definition. The surname appears to be most populous in Polanco, Zamboanga del Norte, although older archival records show a huge concentration of Dutertes in Cebu province particularly in Danao City. In Cebu, aside from Danao, it is also found in Carcar City, San Remigio, Carmen, and Ginatilan. It is also found in Sogod, Cabailan, Liloan, and Macrohon, Southern Leyte. Historically it has appeared in Dipolog and Polanco, Zamboanga del Norte, as early as the 1800s.

The surname appears in the Catalogo Alfabetico de Apellidos, found 13th from the top of the 4th column of page 42. 

The History of Veloso to Duterte

If we are to believe in legends, the paternal family of Mayor Duterte has a rather interesting and long history. That is because the Veloso clan of Cebu believes its roots are from a 17th century Portuguese explorer named Diego (Diogo) Veloso.  This Portuguese explorer was active in Laos and Cambodia, and while history records that he went to the Philippines for some time it is not clear how long he stayed there. What is clear is that his feats in Cambodia and Laos are the ones well recorded by history. The Veloso clan believes that Diego, who supposedly established a profitable business in China and the Philippines in the mid 1700's, was the great-great-grandfather of Don Eduardo Veloso of Cebu, the father of Don Mariano, Doña Petrona, Fr. Rafael, Fr. Marcos and Don Dionisio from whom the Velosos of Visayas and Mindanao originate. 

(Michael Cullinane, a renowned historian from the United States who has researched on Cebuano history and genealogy for more than 20 years, has for years stressed on the Veloso family's Chinese mestizo origin and has always questioned the prevailing family belief that the Velosos descend from a Portuguese merchant. Similarly, another legend in the Veloso family states that Doña Petrona Veloso was awarded title of 'Marquesa' by the King of Spain for her valuable donations and services to the Church. The Elenco Nobiliario Español, an alphabetical listing of official patents of nobility in the Spanish kingdom, does not list any title being awarded to a Petrona Veloso, Marquesa or otherwise.)

Despite the lofty ancestry of the Veloso clan, Rodrigo Duterte's family (in fact many Dutertes) have not been well acquainted with their Veloso connection until recent years. Most Dutertes from Cebu and Mindanao know of their origin from Facundo and Isabelo, but not anything farther. 

Click to enlarge family tree

Legends and tall tales aside, Rodrigo Duterte's family started with an Eduardo Veloso, whose son, Mariano, married Carmen Rojas del Rosario. It was their son, Maximo, who founded the current Duterte line. He married Maria Paz Roxas with whom he had two sons. As already indicated above, he had another partner, a nameless Duterte most likely from Parian, Cebu. The Parian Dutertes appear to descend from a Bernardo Duterte and Dominga Guzmán, who both were living in Cebu in the late 1700s. So from this it is clear that the Duterte surname is an old, pre-Claveria decree fanmily name. From this union came Isabelo Duterte y Veloso, who married Concepcion (also Damasa) Buot. Their two sons, Facundo and Severo, are considered the progenitors of Dutertes coming from Danao City. It is believed by the family that the Dutertes lived in Cebu City before transferring to Danao when Severo "Biro" Duterte married a woman from Danao, Felisa Ypil. Facundo himself married another Danao lady by the name of Zoila Gonzales. Facundo and Zoila were the grandparents of Rodrigo Duterte.

Duterte's Pool of Political Relatives

Whatever the truth of the Veloso family's early history, it cannot be denied that it is one of the most politically successful families in the country. Unlike other political clans that have remained within the boundaries of their hometown, the Velosos have spread throughout Cebu province to the rest of Central Visayas down even to Southern Leyte and Mindanao. Although not as prolific as other political families, the Velosos have a tendency to marry into other political clans outside their bailiwick, thus extending their sphere of influence to another town, city, or province. Because of this, Mayor Duterte has something that the rest of his political challengers do not have: political capital based on family ties diversified in many families in many towns. (Watch out for the next article discussing in full Duterte’s family ties to other past and incumbent politicians.)

Despite these connections, Mayor Duterte and his family have never used their connections to elevate themselves. In fact, true to the mark of a true man for himself, Mayor Digong’s father Vicente left Cebu to find his own niche in Davao. Although he practiced law the first year he arrived in Davao, he joined the political arena of Davao the second year he was there, culminating with his election as Governor in 1959. Mayor Digong's mother, Soledad Roa-Duterte, was a public school teacher until 1952 when she retired to assist her husband in his political endeavor. In her Ramon Aboitiz Foundation, Inc. (RAFI) award write-up, she was described as "being familiar with the social and economic problems of the people, especially the out-of-school youth, women, children and the disabled". Even after her husband's death, she continued her involvement in social and civic activities. She faced all the demanding tasks – be it in the community or at home. She proved to all that one can serve the community efficiently and faithfully without necessarily occupying an elective public office.

Soledad Roa-Duterte, Mayor Digong's
mother

Without a doubt, his parents' exemplary lives influenced Mayor Duterte's style of service to the people of Davao City. He most especially was obviously influenced by his mother's concern for the disadvantaged and powerless. And while many outside Davao City finds his style of governance disconcerting to downright repugnant, majority of Dabawenyos go to sleep at night knowing their properties and life are safe and sound. 

This is precisely the interesting thing about Mayor Digong: his political pedigree can boast of generations of wealth and public service but his father looked for another place outside of their comfortable sphere of influence in Cebu to start his own destiny - and that of his own family's. Even Mayor Digong shuns the outwardly flashy lifestyle that his own ancestors and relatives display and instead lives in a simple housing unit. His own former wife, Elizabeth Abellana Zimmerman, has described him as "despite being a womanizer, he also listens to activist women and even set up a program that mainstreams “gender and development” issues which resulted to Davao City winning the Galing Pook award for “gender-responsive” governance in 2004". And whatever his detractors say about him, Mayor Duterte is quick to point out that this is who he is. 

Never before has the Philippines seen a more honest, in-your-face type of presidential candidate.

Top 50 Family Names in Cebu City

Cebu City has always had a very rich amalgamation of culture. Food, dances, folklore, and others. Part of this rich mix includes family names. In a previous article regarding the premier families of the Queen City of the South, 60 family names were enumerated to be the most influential. However, today, a century or more later, though many of the same families can still be considered popular, they are no longer as populous. 

Today, on Cebu City's charter day, I have decided to list down the most numerous surnames in Cebu City. Below are the Top 50 Family Names in Cebu City and their corresponding number of people carrying the name.

The Padrones and the Rama Family

Every year I always seem to forget to celebrate the birth of my beloved city - Cebu City. Although Cebu City has been a bustling metropolitan since the time of the Spaniards it only became a city on February 24, 1937 through the efforts of Don Vicente Rama, who authored Act No. 58, creating Cebu City as a Chartered City and which was approved on October 20, 1936. This contribution to the history of Cebu earned him the title “The Father of Cebu City”.

Don Vicente Rama (from Cebu City website)

The Rama family in Cebu has always been one of the more important families in the city, mainly because the children and grandchildren of Don Vicente Rama have continued to serve the Cebuanos (and branching out in other towns) in various political posts. Vicente Rama was born in Cebu City on June 6, 1887. Like his contemporary President Sergio Osmeña he was a child outside of wedlock. His father was Gabriel Raffiñan, whose belonged to a "highly respected family" from Cebu City. His mother, Engelberta Rama, was from a family in Naga, Cebu. Much of his known genealogy may be read through a 2009 Cebu Daily News article. The news article states that Engelberta's parents were Laurente Rama and Juana Enguio from Naga. Don Vicente married Catalina Genson and they had 13 children. These include former Cebu governor Osmundo Rama, whose own son was former vice governor Enric Rama; former Councilor Fernando Rama whose own son Eduardo was a governor and congressman in Agusan Del Norte (Eduardo's own son, Edu, also served as Cebu City councilor); the late Councilor Clemente Rama; Napoleon Rama, who was a former Manila Bulletin publisher and a delegate to the 1972 Constitutional Convention; Jesus Rama, who died with President Ramon Magsaysay in Mt. Manunggal; and the late Capt. Laurente Rama, father of barangay captain George Rama and Annabelle Rama, who herself is married to actor Eddie Gutierrez and the mother of beauty titlist and actress Ruffa Gutierrez and actors Raymond and Richard Gutierrez. Since Naga, Cebu is one of the few towns in the Philippines with preserved padrones in its church archives I thought that the Rama family would be an interesting family to trace with the use of the padrones.

Until the nineteenth century, there seemed to be no colony wide accounting procedures imposed for maintaining tribute records. Generally, collection came to be based on lists (padrones o padrones tributarios) of eligible tribute payers that were maintained by the cabezas de barangay. Governors-general starting in 1799 formalized through a series of directives the accounting of the inhabitants of the colony. The padrón then was either a membership list of a parish or a register of inhabitants, who pay taxes, in a place.

Thus, for the genealogist, the padron is indeed a very important document to come by. Not only does it contain the general residential area of your ancestor, it lists all the members of a household (head of family and spouse and children and other dependents) and if your ancestors lived in a barangay with a very meticulous cabeza, you also get to see all the birthdays of your relatives.

While all towns in the Philippines had this record at some point in time, it would appear that not all the towns followed the directives of the authorities strictly and even if some did many of the records have been lost throughout the centuries. Based on FamilySearch's catalog of available records only the provinces below, with the corresponding number of towns, have available padrones in their archives:

1. Albay (1)
2. Batangas (3)
3. Bohol (2)
4. Camarines Sur (7)
5. Catánduanes (1)
6. Cavite (2)
7. Cebú City, Cebú (2)
8. Cebú (10)
9. Ilocos Norte (1)
10. Ilocos Sur (1)
11. Laguna (7)
12. Leyte (1)
13. Metro Manila (1)
14. Negros Occidental (1)
15. Pampanga (3)
16. Quezon (1)
17. Sorsogon (4)

Of course, it does not necessarily mean that all the towns with padrones have complete data. Some have intermittent records ranging a few years to a few decades while others have just one or two years' worth of information. Of the 48 towns and cities with available padrones one stands above the rest as having an almost complete and uninterrupted padrones. The Nagcarlan, Laguna parish archive offers of data a set for analysis that is unique the Philippines. An American researcher conducted an inventory of some 600 local church archives of the 1,000 or so that existed in the Philippine colony in 1900 and none of the local archives thus far matches that of Nagcarlan. Indeed, the documentary record for Nagcarlan might have been even more remarkable had the parish church of San Bartolome not been destroyed by fire in 1781. It has an almost complete padron from 1803 to 1815 and then from 1827 to 1890. This means families from Nagcarlan can be guaranteed of at the very least 5 generations' worth of family trees, and even more if they use the other church records that are available that go back to as far as 1792.

A page from a padron in Naga, Cebu showing Rama's ancestors

I tried to reconstruct Vicente Rama's genealogy using the padron de almas of Naga in Cebu but I was unable to find any Rama in the padrones available. The only connection I was able to make was to connect his grandmother, Juana Enguio, to her parents, Roman Enguio and Teodora Mangila. Only this family appears in the padron, which led me to conclude that like the Rama family, the Enguio appears not be of Naga origin but somewhere else. Further research into the Rama family is needed to establish the origins of the family. Juana Enguio, meanwhile, was the youngest sister of Romana, Crispulo, Juan, Vicente, Januaria, Benita, and Narciso. The padron in Naga, Cebu, showed the birth years and the barangay number of the inhabitants. When the family knew it, they also showed the birth month and day of the people listed in the padron.

Comparing the Naga padron with those of Ginatilan, Cebu, we get even more data. The padrones in Ginatilan do not only list the names of the parents and their children as well as their birthdates it also gives the names of the parents of the couple as well as their wedding date. Also given is the name of the cabeza de barangay.

A page in Ginatilan's padron, showing an ancestor of a current political family

Just like all other church records from the Spanish period there are many variations in the contents of the padron. And, just like other records, not all towns have the padrones nor do these towns even have complete padrones. But for those whose ancestors come from any of the 48 towns with available padrones, their search for their ancestors would greatly be helped by these records. Just like in any genealogical endeavor, a certain amount of luck is always involved.

_____________________________________

Sources:

1. Cebu City Website 

2. Ricky Poca, "The Rama legacy", Cebu Daily News, February 24, 2009.

3. Michael Cullinane, "Accounting for Souls: Ecclesiastical Sources for the Study of Philippine Demographic History", Population and History: The Demographic Origins of the Modern Philippines, Manila: Ateneo Press, 1998.

4. Concepcion G. Briones, Life in Old Parian. Cebu City: USC Press, 1983.

5. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Collection: Padrones de Almas of Naga, Cebu.

6. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Collection: Padrones de Almas of Ginatilan, Cebu.

The Davides: A Model Cebuano Family

In an article in a local daily, Cebu Daily News, a day after all government officials took their oath of office:

There were many empty seats in the round “presidential table” in Sunday's oath-taking at the Capitol. Only the Governor-elect, his wife, and the Vice Gov.-elect sat up front. Where were their family members? Who else belonged to the VIP table?
 
Their children and siblings kept their distance, choosing to stay at the sides of the hall. It was only when the newly elected officials were called to the stage along with their families for the oath-taking, that the attention of the audience fell on them. “So typical of them,” said a colleague. “They are low key and don't want to be treated like VIPs.” Even the Vice-Governor's brother, who is a cabinet secretary, blended in the background until he, too, was called on stage.

The inauguration of Governor-Elect Hilario Perez Davide III was an affair that deserved 21 gun salutes, glittering jewels, and fancy clothes.  But there were no 21 gun salutes, no ostentatious jewelry worn, and no over-the-top outfits fit for a coronation.  After all, his election into and assumption of the governor's office of the province of Cebu was the first time in almost 2 decades that someone with a different surname with no blood relation to the previous governor got to serve the Cebuanos. True to his promise of true service and honest governance, Davide guaranteed that the event would be every bit dignified but not over the top as the previous administration was wont to do.

Truly, being the son of a low-profile but brilliant former Philippine Supreme Court Chief Justice and grandson of a former educator whose life served as a shining example for his family and community, Governor Hilario P. Davide III not only carries the name of two brilliant men but also the amazing reputation of a family that has proven to be an inspiration to many people from Cebu.

* * * * * * * *

The Davide family rose from being a poor farming family from one of the mountainous barangays of Argao, Cebu to become one of the most prominent families in the Philippines when one of its members, Hilario G. Davide, Jr., was sworn in as the 14th Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Republic of the Philippines in 1998. Hilario G. Davide, Jr. later became the permanent representative of the Philippines to the United Nations. His son, Hilario “Jun-Jun” Perez Davide III, a former first councilor of the City of Cebu, was the Liberal Party’s candidate for governor of the province of Cebu in the 2010 and 2013 elections, winning the seat in 2013 and wrenching the governor's office from the Garcia dynasty after almost 20 years of being in power.

The Davides of Argao

Like most Filipino family histories, the scarcity of resources on genealogical interest hinders modern researchers from digging deep into the recesses of time in order to discover a clearer picture of a family’s history. But the family is lucky in terms of safe-keeping their family heritage for two reasons: one, the town from which they hail, Argao, is one of the few towns in the Philippines that has meticulously preserved its church records that go as far as 1842, and two, the patriarch of this particular Davide branch of the family, the late Hilario Panerio Davide, Sr., compiled in the early 80s a family history book of his immediate relatives. His reason for making the “Family Record of Hilario Panerio Davide and Josefa Gelbolingo Davide and their Children” was, in his own words, to memorialize the roots of their family and to have something that the future Davides will cherish for all eternity.

The Hilario P. Davide family of Argao traces its roots to Esteban Davide and Nepomucena Ortega, both Argawanon natives who married during the middle of the nineteenth century, in the mountain barangay of Colawin. Esteban, as the records of the elder Davide show, was the son of Miguel Davide and Hilaria Carillo.

After going through the various baptismal, marriage, and death records of the town of Argao, we can further reveal that the Davide family could trace their line to as far as the beginning of the 18th century back to the couple Pablo Alverto and Maria Landayanan. Because the eldest grandson of this couple, Agustin Benito Davide, was born in 1777 it can be estimated that Pablo Alverto and his wife were born sometime in the early 1700s. They only had one traceable child, Ignacio Modesto, born sometime in the 1730s or 1740s. He married Norverta Susana and had seven children, all of which grew to adulthood and have left descendants today.

The aforementioned eldest of this brood, Agustin Benito, married Maria Norverta sometime in 1800. Their marriage produced 3 children: Leon Benito, Miguel, and Feliz. In 1849/1850 in accordance with the Claveria surname decree Agustin Benito chose the surname Davide from the list of surnames distributed in Argao. True to the present family's fighting spirit and ability to overcome any obstacles in life Agustin Benito must have chosen this surname to remind him and his family that no matter how small one feels he is he can always win the day with determination and hardwork, just as David won over the giant Goliath as told in the bible. Davide is a Hispanization of the same Italian last name, in turn derived from the name David, most possibly derived from Hebrew dod, which means “beloved”, perhaps the word dawid, which means “loved”, or “darling or beloved of God”, in turn derived from Dodavehu. Truly, coincidence or not, there must have been something prophetic with him choosing the surname for his family.

Agustin Benito thus became Benito Davide, with his wife's family choosing Cambare as a last name. Norverta Cambare died before Benito, and based on records Benito remarried to Candelaria Neri and they had one child, Donato Davide. Benito himself was blessed with his family's longevity, and he died only in 1864 at the ripe age of 87.

Miguel Davide, son of Benito, was born sometime in the 1820s and he married Hilaria Carillo probably in the 1840s. They had seven children and one of these was Esteban Davide, born in the 1850s. He married Nepomucena Ortega and one of their children was Pablo O. Davide, born on June 26, 1875. This man is considered by the family of Jun-Jun Davide as the founder of the present Davide line in Colawin. He was said to have been a humble but industrious farmer who was well known in their barrio. His humility and good nature earned him the respect of his neighbors, which ultimately led to his being elected as a cabeza de barangay of Colawin in 1877, a position that is roughly equal to that of barangay captain today. He served in this capacity until 1884. In the same year that Pablo Davide served as cabeza, Julian Lopez, another direct ancestor of Jun-Jun Davide who came from Cebu City but later settled in Argao when he married an Argawanon, was also elected to the same position.

Pablo Davide later married another Argwanon by the name of Teodora Panerio. The couple, known as “Tatay Amboy” and “Nanang Doray” by their grandchildren, lived a simple life with strict working codes. Pablo Davide worked on the farm helped by his sons, while his wife and daughters assisted in the preparations for planting and harvesting. Pablo, who many grandchildren remember fondly as being somewhat of a comedian, later on served briefly as municipal councilor of the town of Argao from 1924 to 1928. He died in 1946 in Argao, Cebu.

Pablo Davide and his wife had ten children. One of these is Hilario, the father of the former chief justice. It was Hilario’s sacrifice and exemplary life which prodded his children to succeed in their chosen endeavors. Raised also in the mountain barangay of Colawin, Hilario saw the hardship that one goes through when living in an area as far flung as their hometown. He made a resolve to make his children’s lives better, so early on in life he did well in school in order to chart a better future for himself and his future family. It was also while in school where he strengthened his resolve to improve his family’s lot. During a graduation ball, he was repeatedly turned down by girls when he asked them to dance with him. He overheard one lady telling her friend that the only reason why she didn’t agree to dance with him was because Hilario was “taga-bukid” (from the mountains). This haughty attitude by the “taga-lungsod” (city folks) towards Hilario and his barriomates made him even more determined to succeed.

After graduating from high school he was assigned as a teacher in another barrio in Argao. It was in the barrio of Talaga where Hilario met his future wife Josefa Gelbolingo, who was also a teacher. Both were ambitious and driven to succeed, and soon, in December of 1925, they decided to tie the knot. Their eldest son, Jose, was born in 1926. When their second child, Jorge, was born in 1928, Hilario decided that his wife better stop from teaching so she could take care of the kids. Pretty soon, five more children followed. The former Chief Justice, the sixth in the family, is the youngest son.

Like his father before him, Hilario Davide raised his family strictly. They had a saying that “each member of the family has a job”. And so, early on, the Davide children helped their parents in tending their farm. The sons helped in weeding the fields, in planting, in rearing the chickens and the other livestock, while the daughters helped in housekeeping chores. The sons also helped in gathering tubo (sugarcane), and Jose Davide, the eldest child, fondly recalls that his younger brother Dodong Jun loved to ride on the sledge with the carabao pulling it whenever they gathered tubo. No one was allowed to play until all schoolwork and housework were completed. If one made a mistake, both Hilario and his wife spanked their kids to discipline them.

Hilario Davide was later appointed as District School Supervisor, and one of his first contributions to Colawin was the building of an elementary school in the area. Indeed, before this, his own children had to walk several miles everyday just to get to their school. He never forgot his resolve to improve his children’s future, and so all his kids were able to finish their college education, a very big feat considering that the family was not well off and they came from a very far flung area. Indeed, sending all kids to school is perhaps the greatest legacy that Hilario Davide Sr. has given his family. Hilario Davide, Sr. was also a prominent figure during World War II. He was considered the civilian head of the guerillas in Argao while the Japanese occupied the entire country.

It is interesting to point out here that all the Davide children were able to finish school, and become the best in their chosen field. Thus, many of them worked for the government or government institutions, where their skills were honed and their name established. Aside from Hilario Jr., his older brother, Jose, was a councilor of the municipality of Argao while another brother, Dr. Romulo, initiated the Farmer Scientist Training Program, which allows farmers to make use of science and technology to increase their yields. Since the early part of the twentieth century, the Davide family has not only tried to improve their lot, but also the lives of the people of Colawin. Todate, they have been instrumental in many improvements in the area, including the building of a school, the Colawin Basin Health Service Center, irrigation facilities that other barangays, too, have benefited from, the building ofa chapel and a public library. Through the lands that they donated, the money they solicited from patrons, and their continued support and encouragement to the people of Colawin, the once ridiculed people of Colawin, the “taga-bukids”, can now proudly call their barrio as their own. Because of these, the family was awarded the ABS-CBN Bayaning Pamilyang Pilipino of the Year in 1997, in honor of their exemplary lives and dedication to the community. In that same year, they were also honored by the Province of Cebu as one of the awardees for Outstanding Individuals and Institutions. Argao also named them as one of the Outstanding Argawanon Families in 2009.

The Davide Family Tree

Indeed the Davide family has had a long ride in history. One couldn’t even help but relate the history of the family to the history of their family name. Their namesake, David, came from a poor shepherding family who later on became one of the greatest leaders of the Israelites. The Davides, too, originally from a poor farming family from Colawin, have become one of the prime movers for the advancement and improvement of their town. The family did not just dare to dream; they made sure their dreams came true!

And with Junjun Davide's election as governor, the family continues its service to the people of the Philippines.

*Another Davide descendant, through the female line, is former Cebu Board Member Wilfredo S. Caminero, who now sits as the 2nd District Congressional Representative. His son, Aladin Caminero, sits as the president of the Sangguniang Kabataan Provincial Federation of Cebu.

For their complete family tree click here

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Originally publised in Cebu Daily News and written by this author.