50 free Christmas in the Philippines trivia questions with answers — trivia quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
The Philippines celebrates the longest Christmas season in the world: carols in September, nine dawn Masses in December, a midnight nochebuena feast, parols on every window and a season that does not really end until the Santo Niño festivals in January. This quiz covers the history from the first recorded Christmas at Fort San Pedro in 1565, the customs of Simbang Gabi, pagmamano and aguinaldo, the food, the songs, the lanterns of San Fernando and the Metro Manila Film Festival. Perfect for Christmas party games, office Monito-Monita nights and Filipino quiz rounds. Every answer comes with a short explanation.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01What is the September-to-December Christmas stretch in the Philippines popularly called?
The ber months
Carols and decorations appear as early as August, which is why the season is called the world's longest.
Q 02The Filipino word Pasko ultimately derives from a Spanish phrase meaning what?
Easter of the Nativity
"Pascua de navidad" lost its second half; pascua itself traces back through Latin to the Greek word for Passover.
Q 03Where did the first documented Philippine Christmas celebration take place, in 1565?
Fort San Pedro, Cebu
It came shortly after Legazpi founded the first permanent Spanish settlement there.
Q 04A disputed legend says a friar named Odoric held a Christmas Mass in Bolinao in what year?
1324
Historians Ambeth Ocampo and William Henry Scott reject it, though a plaque went up at Bolinao Church in 2007.
Q 05Simbang Gabi is a series of how many dawn Masses leading up to Christmas?
Nine
They run from December 16 to 24, and folk belief says completing all of them grants a wish.
Q 06Why were the dawn Masses shifted from late night to early morning in the 18th century?
So farmers could attend before fieldwork
The timing coincided with crowing roosters, giving rise to the name Misa de Gallo.
Q 07Misa de Gallo translates as whose Mass?
The Rooster's
The name is also used for the midnight Mass on Christmas Eve that closes the novena.
Q 08Which two rice delicacies are the classic post-Simbang Gabi treats sold outside churches?
Bibingka and puto bumbong
They are served with butter, sugar and grated coconut, often with tsokolate or salabat.
Q 09What is the name of the midnight feast after the Christmas Eve Mass?
Nochebuena
The Spanish phrase means "night of goodness"; the New Year's Eve counterpart is called medianoche.
Q 10Queso de bola, the Christmas cheese ball, is what kind of cheese?
Edam
Its red wax coat makes it a Christmas Eve fixture; queso de bola cheesecake is a modern spin.
Q 11What is the gesture of pressing an elder's hand to your forehead called?
Pagmamano
You say "mano po" and the elder usually answers with a blessing and often a cash gift.
Q 12The cash gift a godparent gives a godchild at Christmas is called what?
Aguinaldo
Godparents, ninong and ninang, customarily give more than other relatives do.
Q 13The parol lantern represents what?
The Star of Bethlehem
The word comes from Spanish farol, "lantern"; early ones were bamboo and Japanese paper lit by candles or coconut oil.
Q 21Who composed "Payapang Daigdig" in 1946, in the aftermath of World War II?
Felipe Padilla de León
The same composer wrote "Noche Buena" and "Pasko Na Naman" with lyricist Levi Celerio.
Q 22Who sang the popular "Pasko Na, Sinta Ko", composed by Francis Dandan?
Gary Valenciano
"Sana Ngayong Pasko", by Jimmy Borja, was popularised by Ariel Rivera.
Q 23Which band recorded "Tuloy Na Tuloy Pa Rin ang Pasko"?
Apo Hiking Society
"Star ng Pasko" came from ABS-CBN's 2009 Christmas station ID, sung by the network's artists.
Q 14Which city hosts the Giant Lantern Festival and is called the country's Christmas Capital?
San Fernando, Pampanga
The Ligligan Parul shows off huge motorised lanterns with synchronised lights and music.
Q 15Which shell is traditionally used to make the more elaborate parols?
Capiz
Designs evolved from crêpe paper and cellophane to capiz, plastic and electric lights.
Q 16The belen, the Filipino nativity scene, takes its name from the Spanish word for what?
Bethlehem
Both the belen and the parol predate the Christmas tree, which arrived in the American period.
Q 17Which city's Belenismo contest has earned it the title "Belen Capital of the Philippines"?
Tarlac
The annual "Belenismo sa Tarlac" pits residents and institutions against each other in nativity-building.
Q 18Which department store's mechanised belen became a famous Manila attraction from 1952?
COD
It moved to Greenhills after the store closed in 2002 and returned to Cubao in 2018.
Q 19Which singer-songwriter owns the season thanks to "Christmas in Our Hearts"?
Jose Mari Chan
His face is a running joke every September as malls start playing the song.
Q 20"Ang Pasko ay Sumapit" was originally composed in 1933 in which language?
Cebuano
It began as "Kasadya ning Táknaa" by Vicente Rubi and Mariano Vestil; Levi Celerio later adapted it.
Q 24What is the Filipino version of Secret Santa called?
Monito-Monita
The names are Spanish for "little brother" and "little sister", though they also literally mean "little monkey".
Q 25The nativity pageant in which Joseph and Mary seek lodging house to house is called what?
Panunuluyan
It is related to the Mexican Las Posadas and ends at the church belen before midnight Mass.
Q 26December 28, Niños Inocentes, is traditionally marked in the Philippines by what?
Playing practical jokes
A classic prank is borrowing money you never mean to repay, then shouting "Na-Niños Inocentes ka!"
Q 27How many round fruits are traditionally set out for the New Year's Eve medianoche?
Twelve
Round shapes mean good fortune; pancit is for long life and sticky biko for family togetherness.
Q 28What is the name of the long-running New Year's firecracker safety campaign?
Iwas Paputok
Authorities push community fireworks displays instead of home firecrackers to cut injuries and smog.
Q 29Three Kings' Day is also known in some areas as Pasko ng Matatanda, meaning what?
Feast of the Elderly
Some children still leave shoes out for the Three Kings, though the custom is fading.
Q 30The Feast of the Black Nazarene on January 9 centres on which Manila district?
Quiapo
The date marks the 1787 Traslacion of the image to Quiapo Church; the CBCP made it a formal feast in 2024.