The National Artist — Literature

• Excellence of his works, and his commitment to his profession, performing his magical seminal innovations on the Philippine terno
• Jose Garcia Villa


  • Considered as one of the finest contemporary poets
  • Introduced reversed consonance rhyme scheme, including the comma poems that made full use of the punctuation mark in an innovative, poetic way
• Jose Garcia Villa's works


  • Footnote to Youth
  • Many Voices
  • Poems by Doveglion
  • Poems 55
  • Poems in Praise of Love: The Best Love Poems of Jose Garcia Villa as Chosen By Himself
  • Selected Stories
  • The Portable Villa
  • The Essential Villa
  • Mir-i-nisa
  • Storymasters 3: Selected Stories from Footnote to Youth
  • 55 Poems: Selected and Translated into Tagalog by Hilario S. Francia
• Nick Joaquin


  • Considered as the most distinguished Filipino writer in English writing
  • Enriched the English language with critics coining "Joaquinesque" to describe his baroque Spanish-flavored English or his reinventions of English based on Filipinisms
• Nick Joaquin's works


  • The Woman Who Had Two Navels
  • A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino
  • Manila, My Manila: A History for the Young
  • The Ballad of the Five Battles
  • Rizal in Saga
  • Almanac for Manileños
  • Cave and Shadows
• Francisco Arcellana


  • Pioneered the development of the short story as a lyrical prose-poetic form
  • The pride of fiction is "that it is able to render truth that is able to present reality"
• Francisco Arcellana's published works

  • Selected Stories (1962)
  • Poetry and Politics: The State of Original Writing in English in the Philippines Today (1977)
  • The Francisco Arcellana Sampler (1990)
• Francisco Arcellana's short stories

  • Frankie
  • The Man Who Would Be Poe
  • Death in a Factory
  • Lina
  • A Clown Remembers
  • Divided by Two
  • The Mats
• Francisco Arcellana's poems


  • The Other Woman
  • This Being the Third Poem This Poem is for Mathilda
  • To Touch You and I Touched Her
• Levi Celerio


  • National Artist for Literature and Music
  • Born in Tondo, Manila
  • Prolific lyricist and composer for decades
  • Made it to the Guinness Book of World Records as the only person able to make music using just a leaf
  • Effortlessly translated/wrote anew the lyrics to traditional melodies
• Levi Celerio's traditional melodies with new lyrics


  • "O Maliwanag Na Buwan" (Iloko)
  • "Ako ay May Singsing" (Pampango)
  • "Alibangbang" (Visaya)
• Rolando S. Tinio


  • National Artist for Theater and Literature
  • Playwright, thespian, poet, teacher, critic, and translator
  • Marked his career with prolific artistic productions
• Taglish


  Invented by Rolando S. Tinio in Philippine poetry
• Rolando S. Tinio's poetry collections


  • Sitsit sa Kuliglig
  • Dunung - Dunungan
  • Kristal na Uniberso
  • A Trick of Mirrors
• Rolando S. Tinio's other works


  • Film scripts for Now and Forever, Gamitin Mo Ako, Bayad Puri and Milagros
  • Sarswelas Ang Mestisa, Ako, Ang Kiri, Ana Maria
  • The komedya Orosman at Zafira
  • The musical Larawan
• Alejandro Roces


  • Considered as the country's best writer of comic short stories
  • Champion of the Filipino culture
  • Instrumental in popularizing several local fiestas specifically Moriones and Ati-atihan
  • Led the campaign to change the country's Independence Day from July 4 to June 12, and the language used in Philippine passports, currency, and diplomas to Filipino
• Cirilo F. Bautista


  • Multi-awarded poet, fictionist and essayist
  • Founded the Philippine Literary Arts Council in 1981, the Iligan National Writers Workshop in 1993, and the Baguio Writers Group
  • Holding regular funded and unfunded workshops throughout the country
• Cirilo F. Bautista's major works


  • Summer Suns (1963)
  • Words and Battlefields (1998)
  • The Trilogy of Saint Lazarus (2001)
  • Galaw ng Asoge (2003)
• Francisco Sionil Jose


  • One of the most widely-read Filipino writers in the English language
  • His novels and short stories depict the social underpinnings of class struggles and colonialism in our society
• Francisco Sionil Jose's awards and recognitions

  • CCP Centennial Honors for the Arts in 1999
  • Outstanding Fulbrighters Award for Literature in 1988
  • Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts in 1980
• Edith L. Tiempo


  • Poet, fictionist, teacher, and literary critic
  • Founded the Siliman National Writers Workshop
  • Her works are characterized by a remarkable fusion of style and substance and her poems are intricate verbal transfigurations of significant experiences
• Edith L. Tiempo's published works

  • The novel A Blade of Fern (1978), The Native Coast (1979), and The Alien Com (1992)
  • The poetry collections, The Tracks of Babylon and Other Poems (1966), and The Charmer's Box and Other Poems(1993)
  • The short story collection Abide, Joshua, and Other Stories (1964)
• Amado V. Hernandez


  • Poet, playwright, and novelist from Hagonoy, Bulacan
  • Believes that "the function of the writer is to act as the conscience of society and to affirm the greatness of the human spirit in the face of inequity and oppression"
  • Contributed to the development of Tagalog prose through the use of colloquial style
• Amado V. Hernandez's works

  • Mga Ibong Mandaragit (his first socio-political novel, written while in prison)
  • Bayang Malaya
  • Isang Dipang Langit
  • Luha ng Buwaya
  • Amado V. Hernandez: Tudla at Tudling: Katipunan ng mga Nalathalang Tula 1921-1970
  • Langaw sa Isang Basong Gatas at Iba Pang Kuwento ni Amado V. Hernandez
  • Magkabilang Mukha ng Isang Bagol at Iba Pang Akda ni Amado V. Hernandez
• Carlos P. Romulo


  • First Asian president of the United Nations General Assembly
  • Philippine Ambassador to Washington D.C., and minister of foreign affairs
  • Reporter at 16, newspaper editor by 20, and publisher at 32
  • Only Asian to win America's coveted Pulitzer Prize in Journalism for a series of articles predicting the outbreak of World War II
  • Among the most decorated Filipino in history with 82 honorary degrees and 74 decorations from foreign countries
• Virgilio S. Almario


  • Currently serves as the chairman of the Komisyon ng Wikang Filipino
  • His earliest pieces of literary criticism were collected in "Ang Makata sa Panahon ng Makina" now considered as the first book of literary criticism in Filipino
• Lazaro Francisco


  • Earned his reputation as the "Master of the Tagalog Novel"
  • Received numerous awards for his contribution to Philippine literature and culture
  • His novels exposed the evils of the tenancy system, the exploitation of farmers by unscrupulous landlords, and foreign domination
• Lazaro Francisco's masterpiece novels

  • Ama
  • Bayang Napatiwakal
  • Maganda Pa Ang Daigdig
  • Daluyong
• Bienvenido Lumbera


  • Introduced Bagay poetry to Tagalog literature
  • As a librettist for the Tales of the Manuvu and Rama Hari, he pioneered the creative fusion of fine arts and popular imagination
  • As a scholar, his major books include Tagalog Poetry, 1570-1898: Tradition and Influences in its Development; Philippine Literature: A History and Anthology, Revaluation: Essays on Philippine Literature, and Writing the Nation/Pag-akda ng Bansa
• Nestor Vicente Madali Gonzalez

  • Fictionist, essayist, poet, and teacher
  • Earned numerous recognitions including the First Commonwealth Literary Contest in 1940, the Republic Cultural Heritage Award in 1960, and the Gawad CCP Para sa Sining in 1990
• Nestor Vicente Madali Gonzalez's major works

  • The Winds of April
  • Seven Hills Away
  • Children of the Ash-Covered Loam and Other Stories
  • The Bamboo Dancers
  • Look Stranger, on this Island Now
  • Mindoro and Beyond: Twenty-One Stories
  • The Bread of Salt and Other Stories
  • Work on the Mountain
  • The Novel o Justice: Selected Essays 1968-1994
  • A Grammar of Dreams and Other Stories