Team DailyPedia
Urban legend, urban tale, or urban myth, whatever you may call it, is a type of contemporary tradition that is made up of stories-from amusing to horrific accounts-that has circulated as though true. These stories oftentimes occur in recent news stories via social media with claims that it has happened from a friend of a friend or someone they know.
Here in the Philippines, we have a long list of urban legends that has been passed around from generation to generation, in different forms, but the essence, still the same. We’ve managed to collate a list of Famous Pinoy Urban Legends that kept people wondering, “Is this really true?”. Here’s our Top 10.
1. Adolf Hitler’s Father is Jose Rizal
Legend
Theories emerged that Adolf Hitler was conceived either in 1887 when Rizal traveled through towns near the Austrian border or 1888 when he was in London. During such time, he was assumed to have an affair with a German lady who was the mother of the ruthless dictator.
Another reason for people to immediately believe the theories is the strange physical likeness between Hitler and Rizal
Story Check
Glen Garfield Ang, a history teacher from Ateneo de Manila University, detailed Rizal’s time in Europe. He said, “Rizal was in London from June 1888 to September 1888, after which he went to France and spent some time there..Hitler’s birthday is April 20, 1889. Giving an allowance of nine months from conception to birth, Rizal should have been in Austria in July 1888, if he were indeed Hitler’s natural father. But this is contradicted by the fact that Rizal was in London in July 1888 and remained there until September 1888. Therefore, it is completely IMPOSSIBLE for Rizal to have been the natural father of Hitler.” (reference CD-ROM accessible at the school’s history department)
