José Rizal's last name is Rizal because it was his father's surname. In the Philippines, people typically adopt their father's surname. José Rizal's father, Francisco Mercado Rizal, was a successful businessman and farmer. He was also a local government official. Francisco Mercado Rizal chose the surname "Rizal" in honor of the province of Rizal, where he and his wife Teodora Morales Alonso were born.