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ETYMOLOGY AND POSSIBLE ORIGIN

In the Philippines, where the Tangonan surname originated, it is pronounced as ta'-ngo-nan.

• t - as in stone, with less air than English tone.
• a - similar vowel sound in father
• ng - this sound occurs twice in the English singing
• o - similar to the vowel sound fort
• n - as in not.
• a - similar vowel sound in father
• n - as in not.

In other countries, particularly the English speaking ones, it is pronounced as "tang-go-nan" or "tan-go-nan". For some who were born in the Philippines and migrated in another country, they have resignedly accepted this mispronunciation, as it has become too tiresome to correct.

Unlike most Filipino surnames, Tangonan is not a Spanish sounding surname. It also does not have an equivalent meaning with any dialect in the Philippines. It may not seem like a Filipino Chinese surname as Chua, Tydingco, Gotengco, etc., but Tangonan could well be of Chinese origin.

During the Spanish colonial period, Chinese immigrants sometimes adopt a local or Christianized name. While some changed their names completely, some chose to keep their Chinese surname. Still with others, instead of dropping their given names, they opted to keep their original full name. In this case, Tangonan could be derived from the actual chinese surname Tan (Chen, Chan)陳, then the 2 given names Go and Nan. For the meaning of Go and Nan it is hard to guess without the original chinese characters. Go maybe "5" and Nan maybe "south". So the pronunciation "tan-go-nan" may be right after all. Existing records show that individuals carrying the surname who lived in the 19th century, were mostly concentrated in Bacarra, Ilocos Norte, Philippines. It could be surmised that this Chinese ancestor must have first settled in that region.

As of this time, we have yet to find that ancestor who originated the surname.

THE CLAVERIA EDICT

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rior to 1849, Filipinos do not take on surnames like their western counterparts do.

In general, they do use a surname but it was not a proper family name that parents and children share. The paternal surname was not transmitted to the children or the wife. Moreover, siblings take on different surnames.

This problem was compounded by the Christianized Filipinos practice of naming themselves after their favorite saints. Names like delos Santos, de la Cruz, del Rosario were so commonly used, it resulted in numerous individuals having the same surname.

This naming practice impeded the Spanish government in properly carrying out their administrative functions. The church was also faced with the daunting task of determining the degrees of consanguinity of marrying couples.

In November of 1849, Governor General Narcisso Claveria y Zaldua issued a directive for the formation of civil register, now known as The Claveria Edict. El Catalogo Alfabetico de Apellidos, which listed 70,000 names, were distributed throughout the archipelago. The fathers or the elders of the family were required to choose a surname from the list that he and his direct descendants are to be identified.

The actual implementation of the decree widely varied from province to province and from town to town. It was said that in the confusion of the day, some cabeza de baranggays (head of the baranggays) simply tore out the pages from the list and systematically assigned the surnames to the families. This is the reason why in some towns, the families bear surnames starting with the same letter. This was not so apparent in most recent times when the people's mobility have increased and they were able to find mates from another town.

It appears that Sinait was assigned the surnames starting with letter "Y". The surnames of ancestors gathered to date are Ibe, Igarta, Ilar, Impat, Impe and Impelido. The letter "I" was not represented in the El Catalogo Alfabetico de Apellidos. In the Spanish orthography of the time, "Y" was used instead of the initial "I". These surnames could have been Ybe, Ygarta, Ylar, Ympat, Ympe, and Ympelido

THE NAME CHANGE FROM YGARTA TO TANGONAN

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ccording to a story, that have been handed down from generation to generation, the original surname of Macario Tangonan's ancestor was Ygarta (pronounced Ee-gar-ta) and not the surname Tangonan that his descendants currently use.

During the Spanish times, several generations past, the Ygarta family were known to be well-mannered and respected members of the community. However, they were equally known to exact retribution once they were wronged or maltreated in any way.

One day, an incident occurred that involved an ancestor of this clan who was then the "hepe" (chief of police) in Sinait, Ilocos Sur.

A rich man by the name of Don Manuel met up with the said Ygarta gentleman in a local cantina (canteen). Don Manuel started berating and belittling him. The Ygarta gentleman remained unperturbed and did not rise to the bait, but Don Manuel kept on with his tirade.

Finally, when the Ygarta gentleman could not take it any longer, he stood up, aimed his gun at Don Manuel and ordered him to kneel down and pray. With that, he shot Don Manuel in the head killing him instantly.

What happened to the Ygarta gentleman was not said but since then, the Ygarta family decided to adopt a different surname. They believed that the Ygarta surname was cursed and that changing the name would somehow change the way how the family members would handle an unpleasant situation in the future.

The name change probably occurred after the Claveria Edict, since the family was clearly identified as the Ygartas. It also took place before the birth of Macario Tangonan, the earliest known patriarch of the clan, whose date of birth was estimated to be in the mid 1860's.

It is possible that the name change only affected a certain branch of the family, given the fact that the surname Ygarta or Igarta (the modern spelling of Ygarta) still exists particularly in Sinait, Ilocos Sur, Philippines, the ancestral home town of Macario Tangonan.

If this story is true, why did the family choose the surname Tangonan? Was it from an oldest female member of the family? Or was it adopted from a generous benefactor?

Some may regard this story as mere folklore. But sometimes, folklores have a basis in fact. Although there is no proof or written document to support this story, it should not be dismiss in it's entirety and must be handed down to the succeeding generation.