The Corsarius

Update November 2007: Kimpo.ph, the online portal for the Kimpo family, has been unveiled to the public.

One question that people ask me often is what does my surname “Kimpo” stand for, and where did it come from? There are many “theories”, many of them possibly half-myths. (One thing is for sure, though — my frequent use of the alibata letter K, which looks like the letter I of the Latin alphabet, hails from the first letter of my surname.)

The following piece, written by my father and published in the Kimpo Reunion Book, hopes to shed some light on this ‘mystery’.

Kimpo Family — An Updated Oral History

Atty. Phillip I. Kimpo
(Amado & Blandina Kimpo Family)

It has been popularly and commonly accepted by all members of the KIMPO and QUIMPO clans that they belong to the same branch of the Family, the same lineage whose blood springs but from one common source. Hence, the issue as to whether the original spelling of this one common family is spelt with a ‘K’ (Kimpo) or with a ‘Q’ (Quimpo) only takes secondary importance, for after all they all belong to the same family, sharing the same features and characteristics. But if only to make a determination, for curiosity’s sake, which of the two names (with different spellings) is the original still remains far from settled.

There are two versions.

Version one says that the original name was QUIMPO (spelt with a ‘Q’). Obviously, it is a combination of two Chinese words, namely, ‘Quim’ and ‘Po’, being then carried by a Chinese family or clan (just like ‘Tee-Han-Kee’, ‘Tua-Son’, or ‘Yu-Cheng-Co’). However, because of nationalism (primarily) and the alleged difficulty in pronunciation by the Americans (secondarily), the Quimpo clan from the neighboring town of Numancia, led by the town mayor ‘Kapitan LEONCIO QUIMPO’ (Tan Onsoy), changed the spelling of the name from ‘QUIMPO’ to ‘KIMPO’, after failing to convince their counterparts from the capital town of Kalibo and likewise Altavas. Nationalistic — because it uses the Pilipino letter ‘K’ just like in ‘Katipunan’ (the nationalist organization formed to topple the Spanish regime). Pronunciation wise — the Americans, during their Era, used to pronounce the name as QUIMPO (’Kwim-po’). Thus, to make it easy for the Americans to pronounce the name correctly, the spelling of the name QUIMPO was simplified to KIMPO.

Version two says that the original name was really KIMPO (spelt with a ‘K’). Due probably to a Spanish decree or order, the spelling of the name was altered to QUIMPO (spelt with a ‘Q’) in order to make it Hispanic or Spanish. It must be noted that the KIMPO clan inhabiting the capital town of Kalibo and the neighboring town of Numancia, both separated by the Aklan River, were actually the early Korean Christians who fled their homeland on account of religious persecution and came to the Philippines, the only Christian country in Asia. In their quest for religious freedom, particularly in preserving their newly-found Christian faith, they happened to reach Panay Island in the middle part of the Philippines. Intentionally, they chose to settle near the river bank of the Aklan River since these families of Korean Christians were inhabitants of the KIMPO area (literally translated ‘port of gold’) in Korea. Thus, it is no wonder then that later the Quimpos from Numancia, led by Tan Onsoy, then the town mayor, chose to return back to the original KIMPO. It is theorized that his campaign to return back the QUIMPO to the original KIMPO was brought about by his close contact and association with the Americans, particularly when he was appointed, together with his son FELIX, as Delegate for the town of Numancia to the Taft Commission of April 14, 1901. This version is gaining ground as it has been recently confirmed by a Korean anthropologist who did a study on the issue. No less than former Aklan Representative Allen S. Quimpo agrees with this version; hence, his numerous visits to the capital city of Seoul, South Korea, attempting to make Kalibo the sister city (town) of the former.

Other Takes

It doesn’t come as a surprise that some Kimpo/Quimpo clansmen do not agree to the versions posited above. After all, those versions are the ones believed in by the Kimpo’s (the K side); I’m not too sure as to the versions of the Q branch (although former Aklan Congressman Allen Quimpo supports Version 2, as stated earlier).

For example, a visitor to the first version of this site (http://kimpo.fil.ph), who identified himself as “Quimpo”, stated:

Hi Philip. My Grandfather was from Numancia. I have to differ with you on our family origin. My Grandfather was a Fukianese speaker as his father before him. Quimpo’s are from Fujian, China.

His version gives some credence to Version 1, i.e. the Chinese roots.

The Kimpo Family Crest

For the lack of a better graphic, the image to the right is our little family’s crest, or coat-of-arms, imprinted upon an old family reunion shirt. The seven persons — four male, three female — represent the sons and daughters of Lolo Juan and Lola Ganday, my great-grandparents. From these seven stemmed forth the present, uh, “tribes” of Kimpos, one of which is our branch. (My immediate family, first-degree uncles, aunts, and cousins are called the “Amado Sr.” Kimpos, after my grandfather, Amado Kimpo Sr.)

That bizarre-looking “thing” on the crest’s right is the province of Aklan, home sweet home. The eagle stands for…I effing do not know. They say the crest was made by an Atenista, hence the reflection of the alma mater loyalty on the family standard. While I’m not sure as to the veracity of this story, it does make for good family lore.

Anecdote: When I once wore the Kimpo family crest shirt to college, a friend of mine reacted by saying something along the lines of, “Your family is conceited”. I tried to smile despite his/her raised eyebrows, but deep inside I was offended. Who wouldn’t be? I never knew that something as minor as a family coat-of-arms imprinted on, of all places, a reunion shirt can be construed as conceit. The Kimpo crest was made to foster a sense of unity inside the family, not to show off. (As if our surname is recognizable, heh.)

Your Own Thoughts?

If you’re a Kimpo/Quimpo and have your own takes on the matter, please feel free to contact me or sign the guestbook. After all, more (sound) theories and family histories serve to make the history of both clans richer!