About surnames in Philippines
Filipino naming culture reflects the country's layered colonial history, blending Spanish-style given names from centuries of Spanish rule with American influence from the twentieth-century US administration period, plus names drawn from the many indigenous Filipino languages spoken across the archipelago's thousands of islands. It's also very common for a Filipino child to grow up known primarily by one or more nicknames that are quite different from their official, legally registered given name — a child registered as "Maria Cristina" might be called "Tin-tin" or "Cris" by everyone in daily life, with the formal name reserved almost entirely for official documents. Filipino families also frequently give a child multiple given names strung together, a practice inherited from Spanish naming conventions, though this page focuses on the single name most commonly used in everyday reference.
Surnames from Philippines
Below is a list of common surnames found in Philippines, each with its own dedicated tracing worksheet.
Printing tips
These Philippines surname worksheets print cleanly on standard letter-size paper in black and white, so no color ink is needed.
Using a Philippines surname worksheet
Print the worksheet at full size and have the child say the surname aloud before and after tracing it — pairing the spoken name with the written form helps an unfamiliar spelling pattern stick faster than tracing alone.
Pairing a Philippines surname with a first name
Many families practice a surname from Philippines alongside the matching first names popular in Philippines on this site, building toward a child's complete full name rather than treating first and last names as unrelated exercises.