Memorizing Really Long Names and Surnames in Asian History Can Be a Challenge

I could recall Asian history to be a fascinating and frustrating subject. Chinese history would have the names be that easy to memorize though I never knew pinyin at that time. What was often taught in Philippine-Chinese schools was still the zhuyin, not the pinyin. It was common to mispronounce names in Chinese. Yet, memorizing the names like Mao Zedong and Chiang Kai Shek would be easier than memorizing certain Asian names and surnames that can be very hard to pronounce.

A good example would be Indian history. Try going to a Buddhist temple and ask if any person there could pronounce the names of their gods or saints in the Indian language. Sure, it would be very easy to pronounce Gayatri and Manjushri but can one pronounce names such as Avalokitesvara, Ksitigharba, and Samantabhadra. If asked for the history of Siddharta Gautama, they might even have a hard time pronouncing the names Mahamaya, Prajapati, and Sudhodhana. I could remember some Indian kings had names like Chandragupta Maurya. These names take extra effort to memorize. The teacher would definitely not accept the Chinese names of the gods and saints of Buddhism. The teacher would require one to write down the Indian names. One would need to write the names Ksitigarbha and Samantabhadra instead of Di Zang Wang Pusa and Pu Xian Pusa.

When it comes to Thai history, it's also a real challenge. There are names like Chulalongkorn, Rajananubhab, Vaijavudh, and Prajadhipok. Then maybe you heard of Thai stars like Thanapob Leeratanakajorn and Pimchanok Luevisadpaibul. Wow, that's a very long surname you have there right? Just when it's hard to memorize the names Avaloktisvara and Chandragupta. Thai history would make you memorize really long surnames.

Japan, the land of the rising sun also presents its challenge. The chief god of Shintoism is referred to as Amaterasu. Calling someone to eat is itadakimasu. Just think that some names and surnames in Japan can be very long like Yamamoto, Akimoto, Chosokabe, and Fukuyama. Though it's not as challenging as memorizing very long surnames from both Thai and Indian history.

I think memorizing these names can prove to be a challenge. It takes time and effort to do so. Sure, not everyone will be a historian. However, it can be used as a mental exercise to keep the minds sharp.

What's the Use of Complaining About Celebrities and Political Dynasties Running for Politics While DEFENDING Presidential and Rejecting Parliamentary?

2025 is just around the corner for the midterm elections . People keep emphasizing the need to "defend the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines" for any amendments whatsoever. If that were true then we really need to remove Article XVII entirely if the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines was meant to be set in stone (read here ). Several camps whether it's PDP-Laban supporters, Liberal Party of the Philippines supporters, Uniteam supporters, etc.--I can expect social media mudslinging at its finest . I keep talking about the need to amend or even replace the 1987 Constitution of the Philippines. However, they keep acting like it's the best constitution in the world, they cite Atty. Hilario G. Davide Jr. (and others like the Monsods) to idolatrous levels , and when I talk about the parliamentary system--I can expect the whole, "Boohoo! It will never work because we already tried it under Marcos! The proof was Cesar Virata!" However, I wrote a refute on that ...

The EDSA Revolution of 1986 Would've Never Happened if People were Stuck in Nostalgia

It's something that I read crybaby comments online where people are saying, "Making EDSA a special working day is making us forget the glory of EDSA." Please, let me remind people that even 10 years later , neither the late Lee Kuan Yew's birthday nor his death anniversary has become a national holiday in Singapore! Singapore simply honored LKY's birthday by working on that day. I was laughing at the toxic Facebook page called We Are Millennials. What truly made me think that these people are stuck in nostalgia is that EDSA 1986 would never have been possible if the Filipinos were stuck in nostalgia . I remember talks about how the first Marcos administration was built on these two pillars. The first pillar was information control . The other pillar was toxic positivity. I remember back in 1995 when the social studies teacher talked about how he thought that Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr. was a "good president" due to the long holidays. However, the holidays ...

30 Years of Flor Contemplacion Crybabies Spreading Fake News

Liza Maza Facebook Page It's 30 years since Flor Contemplacion was executed in Singapore. My memories was how some people felt hatred for Singapore, how we were told that "Filipinos are always oppressed." in both values education and civics classes, and how Flor should be regarded as a heroine. The Buwan Ng Wika program came and Flor's execution was also highlighted in the song "Kuko Ng Agila" (Claws of the Eagle). Flor was always romanticized as innocent, a martyr, and even some decent Filipinos bought it once. However, I soon accepted Flor's execution to be what it is-- Singaporean justice . Some people are still continuing to commemorate Flor--as if she was some kind of Catholic saint or martyr. I could remember rallies year after year, commemorating Flor's "martyrdom". What was also ironic was, at that time, the Vizconde Massacre (read here ) happened and the wrong people were arrested. The public demanded the blood of Hubert Jeffry P....

[OPINION] Why Do Some Filipino Boomers Insist that the Marcos Years Were Under a "Parliamentary System"

This is a screenshot I got on Facebook. The Tweet is courtesy of Raissa Espinosa-Robles, who I hear is a marites or a gossiper. I'm not denying that there are some truths in what she said. It's true that the Marcos Years have their well-documented human rights abuses. However, Mrs. Robles still continues to insist in the myth of a parliamentary system under Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr.'s regime. It's not just Mrs. Robles but also some Filipino boomers who keep saying, "Are you crazy? We had a parliamentary system under Marcos." I could show them some evidence like Marcos' severe lack of legitimacy to disprove the parliamentary systme. I even wrote about the snap elections because Marcos was a president with powers (read here ). Under a parliamentary system, the president is purely ceremonial. The president is just a door opener and credentials receiver! Benigno Simeon A. Aquino Jr. and Salvador "Doy" Laurel both challenged the legitimacy of Marcos...

Hip Old Man Dances to Aborigine Dance "High Green Mountain"

Here's a video of an old man dancing to the Taiwanese folk song "High Green Mountain". This is one of my favorite versions. The song ends with an aboriginal chant--something that sounds like an Ifugao beat from Nueva Ecija.

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