PinoyBuilt — Stories of Filipino America

Vallejo, California • August 2026. I Almost Renamed This Site. Then I Traced Where "Pinoy" Actually Came From. pinoy meaning, pinoy vs filipino, pinoy origin 1924, why pinoy not filipino, pinay meaning, noypi meaning, binaliktad slang, filipino vs fil-am, dawn bohulano mabalon, carlos bulosan, abakada letter f, pilipino vs filipino, decolonization, filipino identity, bamboo noypi, expo 2020 dubai. DECOLONIZATION • LANGUAGE • AUGUST 2026 I Almost Renamed This Site. Then I Traced Where "Pinoy" Actually Came From. The Oxford English Dictionary puts the word in print by 1924 — and derives it not from Filipino, but from Pilipino. Four names, each one further from a Spanish king. Here is why the masthead stays. For Dawn Bohulano Mabalon (August 17, 1972 – August 10, 2018), whose scholarship carries most of the evidence in this article. Eight years today. Four names for the same people, arranged in the ...

When I moved to Vallejo, California in 1979, I was just a shy kid trying to fit in.  Posted on: By: J.F.R. Perseveranda Coming from Chicago where my sister and I had first landed after immigrating from the Philippines, Vallejo was a different world. It was a Navy town, and most of our new classmates were kids of retired U.S. Navy men — born in the U.S., fluent only in English. By comparison, my sister and I still spoke Tagalog. We carried our culture with us — in our accents, our lunch boxes, and even in how we addressed each other. My younger sister Joy  used to call me “ kuya ” — until I asked her to stop calling me that at school. That’s when I first started hearing the word: FOB — “Fresh Off the Boat.” It was thrown around like an insult, often directed at Filipino immigrants who didn’t dress "right," didn’t speak "right," or who weren’t up to date on the latest American trends. It stung. Because I knew that if I wasn’t careful, that label wou...

🌈 Kumusta, mga kaibigan! 🇵🇭 This is a heartfelt invitation especially for our LGBTQ+ community — and even more especially for those of you already authorized as authors here on this site. 📝 We want to hear your story. Share with us your journey — your struggles, your triumphs, your celebrations. Whether it's a moment of coming out, a story of family, finding love, fighting for acceptance, or simply living life out loud... your voice matters . But it doesn’t have to be all serious — we’d love to see your world too: 📸 travel memories, 🥘 favorite Filipino dishes, 🎉 joyful moments, 🏳️‍🌈 Pride events, or just you being you. Tell us what it means to be both proudly LGBTQ+ and proudly Filipino. Let’s celebrate both Pride and Pinoy Pride . 🌍 Why It Matters Representation changes lives. Someone out there might see themselves in your story — and find courage, joy, or even a sense of home in your words or photos. ✍️ How to Contribute If you’re already an approve...

Flashback: Dennis Ocampo's 50th Birthday Party - June 27 Ten Years Ago Left to right: Amalio Recio Ocampo, Dennis Ocampo, Vincent Putong, Angeline Putong, Joy Perseveranda Putong, Ethan De Leon (behind Joy), Raul Millena, Joel Zaragoza, Elmer Domingo, J.F. Perseveranda, Tess Garcia Perseveranda, and Russel Ocampo. Wishing you all well. How to Post to Pinoybuilt.com by Email — Add a Filipino Layer to Your Social Media Did you know you can easily create a post on Pinoybuilt.com using just your email? If you're already sharing photos and stories on Facebook, you’re just one step away from cross-posting to a wider Filipino audience — without logging in to Blogger or touching any dashboard. Here’s how to do it: ✉️ Step 1: Get Your Secret Email Address Each Blogspot blog (like Pinoybuilt.com) has a unique "Post by Email" address. If you’re part of the team or admin, make sure to: Go to Blogger Dashboard > Settings > Email . Under Posting using email ...

Thank you for the Facebook Friend Request But let's chat here on Pinoybuilt.com via the Comments section since my site earns money. Facebook already makes billions of dollars in ad revenue. Support Pinoy naman. Plus I really don't do WhatsApp. I just created the account just to have it. Salamat ulit for adding my Pinoy Built account. I look forward to your new photos Karen Tessie Alvarez , but you have an open invite to blog with me here. Join us & help build a Fil-Am online community. Please leave a comment, and  click to follow our website  www.pinoybuilt.com. Join one of our sites in California:  Los Angeles ,  Sacramento ,  San Diego ,  San Francisco ,  San Jose  or  Vallejo . Click on a tag below to browse.

"I'll have what they're having!" Summer Pinay Potluck at Tony P's. Hiddenbrooke, Vallejo, CA. July 29, 2023. Join us & help build an online community. Please leave a comment, and  click to follow our website pinoybuilt.com . Click on a tag below to browse.

Paying our respect to Dinna Santiago-Martinez  I took Auntie Digna, Dinna's mom, to visit her grave on her birthday this past July 6. I don't think I ever posted these photos on Facebook. These were taken on March 6, 2013 at Dinna's wake. Rochelle gave a touching eulogy for Dinna. She would have been proud. Left to right: JF, Missy, Arnel, Renora, Tony, Sheila, Rochelle, David & Rachel.   Looks like I posted about Dinna last year at  In Memoriam: Happy Birthday Dinna Santiago!   Photo below is from our Hogan High School Baccalaureate Mass, days before high school graduation. Quote of the Day: "Cherish your human connections: your relationships with friends and family." - Joseph Brodsky — JF 🌊😷 📷 (@JFPerseveranda) December 26, 2020

My goal is to help make  Filipino food  mainstream.  Growing up half Filipino, half American, I've always put a little twist on my Filipino food.  Sometimes making it more 'Americanized' so my non-Filipino friends would try it!  I've created a series called:   Does It Lumpia?   In this next episode, I take garlic rice, spam & eggs, wrap it up and fry it to find out, Does it Lumpia?  Tell me what you think in the comments!  Would YOU try it? - Mary Grant Los Angeles, CA Find me on social media: YouTube Facebook Instagram Twitter Shop

My goal is to help make  Filipino food  mainstream.  Growing up half Filipino, half American, I've always put a little twist on my Filipino food.  Sometimes making it more 'Americanized' so my non-Filipino friends would try it!  I've created a series called:   Does It Lumpia?   In this next episode, I take mango & chamoy (a savory Mexican sauce made from pickled fruit that's typically salty, sweet & sour), wrap it up and fry it to find out, Does it Lumpia?  Tell me what you think in the comments!  Would YOU try it? - Mary Grant Los Angeles, CA Find me on social media: YouTube Facebook Instagram Twitter Shop

My goal is to help make  Filipino food  mainstream.  Growing up half Filipino, half American, I've always put a little twist on my Filipino food.  Sometimes making it more 'Americanized' so my non-Filipino friends would try it!  I've created a series called:   Does It Lumpia?   In this next episode, I take mozzarella, basil & tomatoes, wrap it up and fry it to find out, Does it Lumpia?  Tell me what you think in the comments!  Would YOU try it? - Mary Grant Los Angeles, CA Find me on social media: YouTube Facebook Instagram Twitter Shop