What does a "Filipino Mestizo" look like?

 

Dayang Marikit

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Philippine History Professor

(Mestizo) means (Mixed) in Spanish, (Half Spanish/Half Something Else)… but in the Philippines any person who has obvious or dominant Spanish/White/European features is automatically considered a “Mestizo” regardless of how much mixed European ancestry they may have.

• Erique Gil - Actor

• Enrique Gil’s (whole brother) ‘left’… looks more native and therefore considered to be (Moreno) rather than (Mestizo) in the Filipino context.

• Kristine Hermosa - Actress

• Kristine Hermosa’s Father (the blad guy)… doesn’t look Mestizo at all.

• Unknown Sisters, 19th century Manila.

• Manuel L. Quezon - late Philippine President

• Ayala Family - Businessmen

• Willie Sotelo - Actor

• Gloria Romero - Actress

• Edna Luna - Actress

• Kobe Paras - Bastekball Player

• Random Filipino women from the early 20th century.

• Richard Gutierrez - Actor

• Lucy Torres - Actress

• Non showbiz

• Darren Criss, Hollywood actor, he’s 1/2 Filipino and white… if we go with the original meaning of the word (Mestizo), he certainly qualifies.

• Darren’s brother and parents

• One of my cousins.

• My classmate (leftmost) and his family… they also have Chinese ancestry, which is much more obvious with his brother in yellow.

• Sam Milby - Actor… like Darren Criss, he’s also 1/2 Filipino and White and if we followed the original definition of the word, (he is technically a Mestizo)… but since he doesn’t display dominant European features, he’s “not considered a Mestizo” in the Filipino context. Filipinos would rather consider him to be a (Moreno).

Mestizos with mixed Native, Chinese & Spanish ancestries were called (Mestizo de Sangley = Chinese Mestizos)… but in modern times most of them are classified as (Chinitos).

• Xian Lim - Actor

• Dennis Trillo - Actor, the guy below is of mixed Chinese, Native and Spanish ancestries. His whole name is (Abelardo Dennis Florencio Ho). During the colonial times he would have been classified as (Mestizo de Sangley = Chinese Mixed)… but in modern times most Filipinos would only consider him to be (Mestizo = Spanish/European looking) due to the fact that his Chinese features are less dominant.

• Heart Evangelista - (Mestizo de Sangley)

• Filipino lady classified as (Mestizo de Sangley), she is also of mixed Chinese, Native and Spanish ancestries.

• One of my friends, based on his ancestry he's also a Mestizo De Sangley.

Genetics is weird… in my family alone, when we have reunions, most of my relatives look (Austronesian/Southeast Asian), while some look (Chinese/East Asian), and others may also look (Spanish/European) at least partially… and there are also others who look like a combination of all 3… it really depends on whose genes are dominant.

• A lot of the (Mestizos) above also have significant Native and Chinese ancestries but it simply didn’t show on their physical appearance.
• Likewise, a lot of Native and Chinese looking Filipinos may also have Spanish/European ancestries but these genetic influences simply didn’t show on them physically.

Why is the Philippines tourism industry lagging behind other Southeast Asian countries?

 

Dayang Marikit

 · 

Philippine History Professor

Like some people here have said… the modern culture of the Philippines is boring and extremely Westernized, when Western tourists visit Asia they expect to be immersed in the rich, colorful and “exotic” cultures of Asia… if they would come all the way here just to see some old churches then it would be better for them to just stay in Europe, USA, Mexico or Latin America instead of paying an expensive plane ticket.

Because we don’t promote our pre-colonial heritage, a lot of foreigners tend to think that we were “uncivilized” before the Spanish colonization, which is why they think of us as “inferior”.

If I had extreme wealth I’d promote our pre-colonial culture even more… (Just to inform everyone, these are some of my fantasies and the stuff of my wildest dreams).

• I’d make a huge replica of the Golden Tara, similar to the Statue of Liberty in New York, and put it in the middle of Manila Bay.

• I’d buy a private island and make it into a pre-colonial themed resort.

• I’d put up pre-colonial themed restaurants all over the city… we have (Dohtonbori) Japanese themed restaurants, so why not pre-colonial themed restaurants?

• I’d have a fashion line focusing on the art of (SONGKET)… gold thread is embroidered into silk to create elaborate brocade patterns which gives the cloth a shiny, glistening effect… imagine these patterns with modern designs.

I personally find these ancient patterns perfect for the modern Kaftan dresses below.

• I’d also have a jewelry shop mainly specializing in ancient inspired jewelry.

I know that these are just silly fantasies but I do hope that one day, they would all become reality, I sure as hell would want to be reincarnated just to see these for myself, I would want to see the day when all Filipinos are no longer mentally marinated with colonial mentality,

• So far, one of my fantasies have already become reality… the government has already declared the ancient (Baybayin script) as the official national writting system of the Philippines.

• Now it’s just going to be a matter of time before labels and signages would look like this.

On a different topic… I don’t think that Filipino food tastes bad and (no), I’m not biased because I know for a fact that foreigners don’t know how to eat Filipino food properly… Filipinos love dipping sauces and condiments, in many cases they are mandatory as they enhance or even completely change the flavor of the dish… so what I’m saying is that you need to know the proper dip that goes with the dish that you’re eating.