Monday, July 24, 2017

The Top 50 Surnames of Balangiga, Eastern Samar

In his second State of the Nation Address, one of the things that President Duterte passionately asked for was the return of the Balangiga Bells: “That’s why I say today – give us back those Balangiga bells. They belong to the Philippines. They are part of our national heritage. Isauli naman ninyo, masakit iyon sa amin (Return them to us, that is painful for us).” 

The Bells of Balangiga as displayed in F.E. Air force Base, Wyoming
In honor of this remarkable show of nationalism, today's discussion of surnames would focus on the top 50 family names of Balangiga, Eastern Samar. To start with, these are the top 5 most populous last names in Balangiga:

1. ELACION. A Spanish word that means "haughtiness, pride, fatuity, pedantry, pompousness. As of 2016 there were 433 people in town carrying the surname.

2. SALAZAR. Salazar, also spelled Salasar, is a Basque family name that means means "old hall", derived from the Castilian Sala, meaning "hall", and the Basque word zahar, which means "old". As a surname it is a toponym which indicates the bearer as one who originates from the town of the same name: Salazar, in northern Burgos, Castile. There are approximately 234 people carrying the surname.

3. CANILLAS. From the Spanish word canilla which refers to the bones "tibia, ulna, and radius". It is derived from the from the Latin cannella, a diminutive of canna, meaning "cane". Around 232 people in Balangiga carry this family name.

4. ALVARINAA variant of the last name Alvarez, in turn a Spanish patronymic surname that denotes “son or descendants of Alvaro or Alvarado”.  Alvarado or Alvaro is a personal name of Germanic origin, which is composed of the elements alla which means “everything” and wari which means “protection”. It may also be of Visigothic orign taken from Alver, which comes from elements alla and wer, meaning “whole truth”. There are about 227 in Balangiga carrying this name.

5. DEMILLO. From the Galician word de millo which signifies as "coming from a place with maize or corn". It is derived from the Latin milium which means “to grind or crush”. With around 199 people carrying this as a surname in town.

The full list of Top 50 surnames in Balangiga are:


I support the call of President Duterte: return to us our bells!

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