You probably sang ‘almasen’ as a child without knowing what it meant

A piece of Spanish history has been hiding inside a childhood game.

“Pen pen de sarapen, de kutsilyo, de almasen…”

Generations of Filipino children have chanted the words while playing, often assuming they were simply catchy nonsense.

But “almasen” actually means something.

So what is ‘almasen’?

“Almasen,” sometimes written as “almacen” or “almazen,” comes from the Spanish almacén, meaning a warehouse, store or depot.

That means the familiar line “de kutsilyo, de almasen” can roughly be understood as referring to a knife from a store or warehouse. Some translations render it more freely as a knife from a department store or bazaar.

The Eraserheads also famously incorporated the childhood rhyme into their hit “Toyang,” giving it another life in Filipino pop culture. Just before the famous “Pengeng singko pambili ng puto / Sa mga tindera ng bitso-bitso,” Ely Buendia breaks into “Pen-pen-pen de sarapen, de kutsilyo de almasen, haw-haw-haw de karabaw, de karabaw de batuten.”

Why does the song sound Spanish?

“Pen Pen de Sarapen” mixes recognizable words with playful syllables that imitate Spanish sounds and constructions.

It reflects a much larger Filipino linguistic legacy. More than three centuries of Spanish colonial rule introduced thousands of words that eventually became embedded in Philippine languages.

Some theories even suggest that the rhyme contained subtle mockery of Spanish colonial society, although these interpretations remain difficult to prove and should not be treated as established history.

What is certain is that “almasen” is more than childhood gibberish.

Few Filipino children today would use almacén to mean a warehouse or store. Yet generations continue singing the word without realizing it.

A little piece of the country’s Spanish past has been hiding inside a playground rhyme all along.