José María Peralta Lagos (25 July 1873 – 22 July 1944), was a

Salvadoran Salvadorans (Spanish: ''Salvadoreños''), also known as Salvadorians (alternate spelling: Salvadoreans), are citizens of El Salvador, a country in Central America. Most Salvadorans live in El Salvador, although there is also a significant Salvado ...

writer, military engineer, and politician. He wrote under the pseudonym T.P. Mechín.

Biography

Peralta Lagos was born on 25 July 1873 in

Santa Tecla, El Salvador Santa Tecla () is a municipality in the La Libertad department of El Salvador. It is the capital of the department of La Libertad. The city was named after Saint Thecla who was a saint of the early Christian Church, and a reported follower of P ...

. He studied at the '' Academia de Ingenieros de Guadalajara'', a military academy, in

Guadalajara, Spain Guadalajara (, ) is a city and municipality in Spain, located in the autonomous community of Castilla–La Mancha. It is the capital of the Province of Guadalajara. Lying on the central part of the Iberian Peninsula at roughly metres above sea ...

. He spearheaded the construction of the ''

Teatro Nacional de El Salvador Teatro Nacional de El Salvador, or National Theatre of El Salvador, is the oldest theatre in Central America. It began construction on November 3, 1911, by the French architect Daniel Beylard; and inaugurated March 1, 1917. It is of French Renai ...

'' in the early 20th century, along with the engineer José Emilio Alcaine. He was a diplomatic representative of El Salvador in Spain and

Minister of National Defense A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

and Navy under president

Manuel Enrique Araujo Doctor Manuel Enrique Araujo (12 October 1865 – 9 February 1913) was a Salvadoran doctor and politician who served as the President of El Salvador from 1 March 1911 until his assassination on 9 February 1913. He was the first civilian pres ...

(1911–1913). He also served as a member of the

Academia Salvadoreña de la Lengua The Academia Salvadoreña de la Lengua (Spanish for ''Salvadoran Academy of Language'') is an association of academics and experts on the use of the Spanish language in El Salvador. It was founded in San Salvador on October 19, 1876. It is a membe ...

. Peralta Lagos's writing is

costumbrista ''Costumbrismo'' (sometimes anglicized as costumbrism, with the adjectival form costumbrist) is the literary or pictorial interpretation of local everyday life, mannerisms, and customs, primarily in the Hispanic scene, and particularly in the 19t ...

, is humorous, and is sometimes ironic.Escritores de El Salvador
/ref> Peralta Lagos had eight children including Jose Maria Peralta Salazar, who served as president of the parliament of El Salvador in the 1950's.

Works

His published works are: * Burla Burlando (collection of articles, 1923) * La Muerte de la Tórtola o Malandanzas de Un Corresponsal (novel, 1932) * Brochazos (short stories, 1925) * Dr. Gonorreitigorrea (novel, 1926) * Candidato (comedy in three acts, 1931) * Masferrer Humorista (essay, 1933) * Algunas Ideas Sobre la Futura Organización de la Enseñanza Superior de CA. (essay, 1936)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peralta Lagos, José María 1873 births 1944 deaths Salvadoran male writers Salvadoran engineers Salvadoran military personnel 19th-century Salvadoran people 20th-century Salvadoran politicians Defence ministers of El Salvador