Jose Rizal was born to the wealthy Mercado-Rizal family in Calamba, Laguna, of the Philippines. The Mercado-Rizals were considered one of the most prestigious Filipino families during their time. Jose Rizal came from the 13-member family consisting of his parents, Francisco Mercado II and Teodora Alonso Realonda, and nine sisters and one brother. His parents were leaseholders of a hacienda and an accompanying rice farm by the Dominicans.[11][12] From an early age, Jose Rizal Mercado showed a precocious intellect. He learned the alphabet from his mother at 3, and could read and write at age 5.[12] Upon enrolling at the Ateneo Municipal de Manila, José dropped the last three names that make up his full name, on the advice of his brother, Paciano Rizal, and the Mercado-Rizal family, thus rendering his name as José Protasio Rizal. Of this, Rizal writes: My family never paid much attention [to our second surname Rizal], but now I had to use it, thus giving me the appearance of an illegitimate child![13] This was to enable him to travel freely and disassociate him from his brother, who had gained notoriety with his earlier links to Gomburza. From early childhood, José and Paciano were already advancing unheard-of political ideas of freedom and individual rights which infuriated the authorities.[note 1][note 2] Despite the name change, José, as Rizal soon distinguished himself in poetry writing contests, impressing his professors with his facility with Castilian and other foreign languages, and later, in writing essays that were critical of the Spanish historical accounts of the pre-colonial Philippine societies. Indeed, by 1891, the year he finished his El filibusterismo, this second surname had become so well known that, as he writes to another friend, All my family now carry the name Rizal instead of Mercado because the name Rizal means persecution! Good! I too want to join them and be worthy of this family name....[13] Education Rizal, 11 years old, a student at the Ateneo Municipal de Manila Rizal first studied under Justiniano Aquino Cruz in Biñan, Laguna, before he was sent to Manila. As to his fathers request, he took the entrance examination in Colegio de San Juan de Letran and studied there for almost three months. He then enrolled at the Ateneo Municipal de Manila and graduated as one of the nine students in his class declared sobresaliente or outstanding. He continued his education at the Ateneo Municipal de Manila to obtain a land surveyor and assessors degree, and at the same time at the University of Santo Tomas where he did take up a preparatory course in law.[15] Upon learning that his mother was going blind, he decided to switch to medicine at the medical school of Santo Tomas specializing later in ophthalmology. Rizal as a student at the University of Santo Tomas Without his parents knowledge and consent, but secretly supported by his brother Paciano, he traveled alone to Madrid, Spain in May 1882 and studied medicine at the Universidad Central de Madrid where he earned the degree, Licentiate in Medicine. Also, he also
Posted on: Tue, 30 Dec 2014 14:53:06 +0000
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