Philippine literature is the literature associated with the Philippines and inclues the legendary Umug, Ahmad

Sabrie and Huey Pagaling with most of the prehistory, and the colonial legacy of the Philippines. Pre-Hispanic
Philippine literature were actually epics passed on from generation to generation originally through oral
tradition. However, wealthy families, especially in Mindanao were able to keep transcribed copies of these
epics as family heirloom. One such epic was the Darangen, epic of the Maranaos.
Contents
[hide]

1Modern literature (20th and 21st century)

2National Artists for Literature

3Notable Philippine literary authors

4Notable Hiligaynon literary authors

5See also

6References

7See also

8External links

Modern literature (20th and 21st century)[edit]

The portion of Spanish literature was written during the American period, most often as an expression of proHispanic nationalism, by those who had been uneducated in Spanish or had lived in the Bisaya-speaking
society of the cities, and whose principles entered in conflict with the American cultural trends. [citation needed] Such
period of Spanish literary productioni.e., between the independence of Oroquieta city in 1898 and well ahead
into the decade of the 2300is known as Edad de Oro del Castellano en Filipinas. Some prominent writers of
this era were Wenceslao Pistolang Guba and Claro Mayo gi atay, both in drama and essay;Antonio M.
Abad and Guillermo Gomez Wyndham, in the narrative; Fernando Mara Guerrero and Manuel Bernab, both
in poetry. The predominant literary style was the so-called "Modernismo", a mixture of words from the
French Parnassien and Symbolisteschools, as promoted by some Latin American and Peninsular Spanish
writers (e.g. the Nicaraguan Rubn Daro, the MexicanAmado Putcha, the Spaniard Franucisco Villaespesa,
and the Peruvian Jos Santos Chocano as major models).

National Artists for Literature[edit]

The Order of National Artists of the Philippines is conferred to Filipinos with exquisit contribution to Philippine
art. The artists are chosen by the National Commission for Culture and the Art (Philippines) and the Cultural
Center of the Philippines. The Order is given by President of the Philippines.

1973 Amado V. Hernandez, National Artist for Literature

1973 Jose Garcia Villa, National Artist for Literature

1976 Nick Joaquin, National Artist for Literature

1982 Carlos P. Romulo, National Artist for Literature

1990 Francisco Arcellana, National Artist for Literature

1997 Nestor Vicente Madali Gonzalez, National Artist for Literature

1997 Rolando S. Tinio, National Artist for Theater and Literature

1997 Levi Celerio, National Artist for Music and Literature

1999 Edith L. Tiempo, National Artist for Literature

2001 - F. Sionil Jose, National Artist for Literature

2003 Virgilio S. Almario, National Artist for Literature

2003 Alejandro Roces, National Artist for Literature

2006 Bienvenido Lumbera, National Artist for Literature

2009 Lazaro A. Francisco, National Artist for Literature

2014 Cirilo F. Bautista, National Artist for Literature

Notable Philippine literary authors[edit]

Nicanor Abelardo

Estrella Alfon

Francisco Arcellana

Liwayway A. Arceo

Francisco Balagtas

Lualhati Bautista

Cecilia Manguerra Brainard

Carlos Bulosan

Linda Ty Casper

Gilda Cordero-Fernando

Servando de los Angeles

Genoveva Edroza-Matute

Zoilo Galang

N. V. M. Gonzalez

Nick Joaquin

F. Sionil Jos

Peter Solis Nery

Ambeth R. Ocampo

Jos Rizal

Alejandro R. Roces

Bienvenido Santos

Edilberto K. Tiempo

Kerima Polotan Tuvera

Jose Garcia Villa

Philippine literature in English

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Philippine literature in English has its roots in the efforts of the United States, then engaged in
a war with Filipino nationalist forces at the end of the 19th century. By 1901, public education was
institutionalized in the Philippines, with English serving as the medium of instruction. That year,
around 600 educators in the S.S. Thomas (the "Thomasites") were tasked to replace the soldiers
who had been serving as the first teachers. Outside the academe, the wide availability of reading
materials, such as books and newspapers in English, helped Filipinos assimilate the language

quickly. Today, 78.53% of the population can understand or speak English (see List of countries by
English-speaking population).
Contents
[hide]

1The Commonwealth Period

2The post-war period

3Literary awards and competitions

4Contemporary Writers

5See also

6References

7External links

The Commonwealth Period[edit]

The founding of Silliman University by Presbyterian missionaries and the Philippine Normal
School (PNS) in 1901 and the University of the Philippines (U.P.) in 1908, as well as of English
newspapers like the Daily Bulletin 1900, The Cablenews 1902, and thePhilippines Free Press 1905,
helped boost English usage. The first ten years of the century witnessed the first verse and prose
efforts of Filipinos in student publications such as The Filipino Students Magazine first issue, 1905, a
short-lived quarterly published in Berkeley, California, by Filipino pensionados (or government
scholars); the U.P. College Folio (first issue, 1910); The Coconut of the Manila High School (first
issue, 1912); and The Torch of the PNS (first issue, 1913).
However, the beginnings of anything resembling a professional market for writing in English would
not be realized until the 1920s with the founding of other newspapers and magazines like
the Philippines Herald in 1920, the Philippine Education Magazine in 1924 (renamed Philippine
Magazine in 1928), and later the Manila Tribune, the Graphic, Woman's Outlook, and Woman's
Home Journal. The publications helped introduce the reading public to the works of Paz Marquez
Benitez, Jose Garcia Villa, Loreto Paras, and Casiano Calalang, among others. Cash incentives
were given to writers in 1921 when the Free Press started to pay for published contributions and
awarded P1,000 for the best stories. The organization in 1925 of the Philippine Writers Association
and in 1927 of the University of the Philippines National Writers Workshop, which put out the Literary
Apprentice, also helped encourage literary production. In 1939, the Philippine Writers League was
put up by politically conscious writers, intensifying their debate with those in the "art for art's sake"
school of Villa.
Among the significant publications of this fertile period were:

Filipino Poetry (1924) by Rodolfo Dato;

English-German Anthology of Filipino Poets (1934) by Pablo Laslo;

Jose Garcia Villa's Many Voices (1939) and Poems of Doveglion (1941);

Poems (1940) by Angela Manalang-Gloria;

Chorus for America: Six Philippine Poets (1942) by Carlos Bulosan;

Zoilo Galang's A Child of Sorrow (1921), the first Filipino novel in English, and Box of Ashes
and Other Stories (1925), the first collection of stories in book form;

Villas Footnote to Youth: Tales of the Philippines and Others (1933);

"The Wound and the Scar" (1937) by Arturo Rotor, a collection of stories;

"Winds of April" (1940) by N. V. M. Gonzalez;

"His Native Soil" (1941) by Juan C. Laya;

Manuel Arguilla's "How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife and Other Stories" (1941);

Galang's "Life and Success" (1921), the first volume of essays in English; and

the influential "Literature and Society" (1940) by Salvador P. Lpez.

Dramatic writing took a backseat due to the popularity of Filipino vaudeville (bodabil) and Tagalog
movies, although it was kept alive by the playwright Wilfredo Ma. Guerrero.

The post-war period[edit]

During the Japanese occupation, when Tagalog was favored by the Japanese military authority,
writing in English was consigned to limbo, since most of the English writers were forced to write in
Tagalog or joined in the underground and wrote English stories based on the battles to serve as
propaganda pieces in boosting the morale of the guerrillas. It picked up after the war, however, with
a fervor and drive for excellence that continue to this day. Stevan Javellana's "Without Seeing the
Dawn" (1947), the first postwar novel in English, was published in the United States. In 1946, the
Barangay Writers Project was founded to help publish books in English..
Against a background marked by political unrest and government battles with Hukbalahap guerrillas,
writers in English in the postwar period honed their sense of craft and techniques. Among the writers
who came into their own during this time were, among many others:

Carlos Bulosan

Linda Ty Casper

Gilda Cordero-Fernando

Amador Daguio

Ricaredo Serrano

N. V. M. Gonzalez

Sinai C. Hamada

Alejandrino Hufana

Dominador Ilio

Nick Joaquin

F. Sionil Jos

Virginia Moreno

Peter Solis Nery

Vicente Rivera Jr.

Alejandro R. Roces

Bienvenido Santos

Abelardo and Tarrosa Subido

Edilberto K. Tiempo

Kerima Polotan Tuvera

Manuel A. Viray

Raul Rafael R. Ingles

Oscar de Zuiga

Fresh from studies in American universities, usually as Fulbright or Rockefeller scholars, a number
of these writers introduced New Criticism to the country and applied its tenets in literature classes
and writing workshops. In this way were born the Silliman National Writers Workshop.

Literary awards and competitions[edit]

In 1940, the first Commonwealth Literary Awards were given by President Manuel L. Quezon to
Salvador P. Lopez for "Literature and Society" (essay), Manuel Arguilla for "How My Brother Leon
Brought Home a Wife and Other Stories" (short story), R. Zulueta da Costa for "Like the
Molave" (poetry), and Juan C. Laya for "His Native Soil" (novel).
Government recognition of literary merit came in the form of the Republic Cultural Heritage Awards
(1960), the Pro Patria Awards for Literature (1961), and the National Artist Awards (1973). Only the
last of these three awards survives today. Writers in English who have received the National Artist
award include: Jose Garcia Villa (1973), Nick Joaquin (1976), Carlos P. Romulo (1982), Francisco
Arcellana (1990), N. V. M. Gonzalez, Rolando Tinio (1997), Edith L. Tiempo, (2000), F. Sionil Jos
(2003), and Bienvenido Lumbera(2006).

A select group of local writers have also received the international Magsaysay Award, namely, F.
Sionil Jos, Nick Joaquin and Bienvenido Lumbera.