Hee Yong Ko Please help, wanted to know my Chinese Ancestor

[jrjiongco]

My family name is Jiongco, when I was a kid, I'm curious about my family name, it's a bit unique from typical to both Filipino and Filipino-Chinese surnames. I know that I have a Chinese ancestry as the shape of our eyes would tell. I did not have the opportunity to asked my grandparents as they passed-away when I was 6 years old and my father is not that curious as far as our lineage is concern. I tried many times to look at several Philippine family name (Filipino-Chinese) registry and look over the net for possible information, however, there seems to be very few.  I discovered the name "Hee Yong Ko" from one the entry of this website:  zamboanga.com/z/index.php?title=Julian_Ba%C3%B1os

I'm looking forward for any help regarding my family name. Thanks

[wang]

what is your grandparents surname?

[jrjiongco]

My grandparents name are Arcadio and Matea Jiongco

[Doug 周]

All genealogists recommend you begin your family history search with what you know best: your family. If your father has no information, then you interview your aunts and uncles, your mother, and anyone else with possible knowledge of your ancestors heritage.Only you have access to these resources.
You also will need any Chinese characters of your family’s surnames, given names, and ancestral villages. Consider imaging your ancestor’s tombstone engravings for Chinese characters and post images here for translation help. Start your archaeological research looking for family heirlooms or documents which might have Chinese characters.
Consider this resource: journals.ateneo.edu/ojs/index.php/kk/article/view/KK2013.02106/1660
Good luck.

[jrjiongco]

Actually, I did some interviews with my aunts, unfortunately, I got very little information. Thank you

[wang]

I can only say that according to the information you provided, there is no connection with Chinese surnames.
You still need to get more information from your elders.

[gckimm]

Hi:

Many surnames of Filipino Chinese families are derived from the name of some Chinese ancestor with the addition of the word "co" on the end. "Co" means "elder brother." The Chinese character is 哥 and it is pronounced ge in Mandarin and goh in Cantonese. Apparently, it was the custom for Chinese men in the Philippines to call each other "elder brother" and that is how so many surnames came to end in this particular word. In some cases, the Filipino Chinese surname contains both the Chinese surname and a personal name of an ancestor (Uytingco, surname Uy) and in other cases just the Chinese surname (Limco, surname Lim). It is also important to remember that Chinese Filipino surnames reflect the place of origin of the ancestor from whose name the surname is derived. Filipino Chinese surnames often reflect an origin in Fujian province, which has its own dialect, known as Hokkien. A good example is the surname of President Corazon Aquino, who was a member of the Cojuangco family. Her ancestor was a man whose Chinese name was Co Hwan 許寰. Again, remember that this is the Hokkien dialect; it would be different in Mandarin or Cantonese. The "Co" at the beginning is the surname (often spelled Kho) and the "co" on the end is "elder brother." So "Elder brother Co Hwan" became Co-juang-co.

There is a lot of good information about Chinese Filipino surnames here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Filipino

It's great that you found that reference to Hee Yong Ko. It is possible that he could be your ancestor. But without seeing the Chinese characters, it is difficult to determine the surname. If Jiongco follows the pattern I explained above, the surname would be something like Hee, but I can't be sure.

Chinese Filipino genealogy is very challenging because in many cases, Filipino families with Chinese roots no longer have any memory of the origin of their families. Keep searching for anything with Chinese characters. One place that could help you is the cemetery. Look for any family graves that might have Chinese characters on them. Those characters will open up your family history.

Greg

[akujijiongco]

Same phase. I am also curious about my surname but the only information that I got from my grandfather was that his grandfather is a Chinese man. My grandfather died when I was 9 years old. I didn't have the chance to ask him for more information. 

[Henry]

akujijiongco,


Are there Chinese characters on your grandfather's gravestone? If there are, they would provide a lot of information - please post a photo.

Henry