Frequently Asked Questions

How old was Rizal when he died?
35 years, 6 months and 11 days old

What is the first novel of Rizal
Noli Me Tangere

What is the title of Rizal's unfinished novel in Tagalog?
Nakamisa

Where and when did he finish his Bachelor of Arts degree?
Areneo Municipal (now Ateneo de Manila) on March 23, 1872

When and where did Rizal start formal schooling?
In Biñan on 1869

What was Rizal's first poem?
"Sa aking mga kababata"

What was Rizal’s first winning literary piece on the competition sponsored by the Artistic-Literary Lyceum?
A La Juventud Filipina

When and where did Rizal finish his medical course?
Central University of Manila, on June 21, 1884, he was awarded the degree of Licentiate in Medicine.

Who was the youngest sister of Rizal?
Soledad

Who was the oldest sister of Rizal?
Saturnina

Where did Rizal obtain his early schooling?
Jose Rizal obtained his early schooling at a private school in Biñan, because Biñan at that time was famous for its private school. Rizal studied under Maestro Justiniano Aquino Cruz – a well-known teacher of young boys. Rizal was nine (9) years old when his parents sent to him to study in Biñan.

Why did Rizal leave Japan when he was happy in that beautiful country and was in loved with a pretty Japanese girl?
There is no doubt that Rizal and O-sei-san were deeply in love. If Rizal were a man without patriotism and without self-control, he would have stayed permanently in Japan. He could have married beautiful O-sei-san and lived happily with her. He could have a good life in Japan, for the Spanish legation offered him a job with a high salary. But he was dedicated to a noble mission - the welfare and freedom of his oppressed people. And nothing, even the love of the pretty girl and a good job could make him forgets his mission in life.

Who became Rizal’s wife? How did they meet?
Rizal has his last romance in Dapitan. He falls in love with a pretty Irish girl from Hongkong name Josephine Bracken. This girl accompanied her blind foster father, George Taufer, to treated by Jose Rizal. Rizal fails to cure Taufer’s blindness, but he won the love of Josephine. Josephine proved to be worthy of Rizal. Together they lived as man and wife in Dapitan. Josephine made Rizal happy. Unfortunately, there only child-a-boy- died three hours after his birth.

To Jose Rizal, what is the most important contribution of every Filipino to his country’s progress?
The main thing is that every Filipino must be a good man, a good citizen so that he can help his country to progress by contributing his heart, and if need, be his arm. (With the head and heart, we ought to work always; with the arm when the time comes when physical strength is needed. The principal tool of the heart and the head is the pen. Other prefer the brush; others the chisel. On my part, I prefer the pen.)

Why did Leonor Rivera break her engagement with Rizal? Who did she marry?
Another sorrow of Rizal in Madrid was the break-up of his engagement with Leonor Rivera. One cold day in December 1890 he received a letter from Leonor announcing her marriage with Henry Kipping, a British Engineer in the Manila, Dagupan Railway. This sorrowful news broke his heart.