In the Beginning
To date, we have found less than 20 genealogical records for the Baldoquin surname in the Philippines. Based on a handful of births and baptisms found beginning in 1856, our present hypothesis is that the Baldoquin surname, originating from a Maltese native born as Baldacchino who emigrated to Central America, spread to the Philippines from Cuba and Mexico via the centuries-old Manila Galleon trade route (see the Surname Distribution page). The Fleet of the Indies trade route between Spain and Central America was first established with the discovery voyages of Christopher Columbus to the West Indies in 1462, under the sponsorship of the Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella. The Manila Galleon trade route subsequently began operating between Mexico and the Philippines, a Spanish colony from the 16th to the end of the 19th century. To confirm or disconfirm this hypothesis, a male Baldoquin from the Philippines would need to do the Big Y-700 DNA test available from Family Tree DNA. Please contact us if you would be willing to take this test.
Internal Migration
The few records that we currently have indicate the spreading of the surname from Bohol in the Central Visayas region north to Cebu in the Western Visayas region through the latter 19th and early 20th centuries. We would appreciate hearing from anyone who can identify sources for Filipino records beyond findmypast.co.uk, familysearch.org and ancestry.co.uk, as well as any Baldoquins of Filipino ancestry with an interest in family history.
The Surname Today
forebears.io estimates that, in 2025, the Philippines had 106 residents with the surname Baldoquin, the only form of the surname found in the country. Almost half of the Baldoquins now live in Soccskargen, the region farthest south in the country. A significant number of Baldoquins can also be found in the Western Visayas Region, among the central islands.
