''Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang'' ( Tagalog, literally "The Stories of Grandmother Basyang") is an

anthology In book publishing, an anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler; it may be a collection of plays, poems, short stories, songs or excerpts by different authors. In genre fiction, the term ''anthology'' typically categ ...

of short stories written by "Lola Basyang," the

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

Severino Reyes Severino Reyes y Rivera (February 11, 1861 – September 15, 1942) was a Filipino writer, playwright, and director of plays. He used the pen name Lola Basyang. He was nicknamed "Don Binoy". Early life and education Severino Reyes was born on F ...

, founder and editor of the Tagalog magazine, '' Liwayway''. The original magazine stories have since been adapted into books, comics, television, and film.

Work

In 1925,

wrote a series of short stories under the series title ''Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang'' for '' Liwayway'', the Tagalog-language magazine. The stories by Reyes were published under the

"Lola Basyang".

Lola Basyang

''Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang'' featured the character Lola Basyang who is characterized as an elderly woman fond of telling stories to her grandchildren. The character is based on Gervacia Guzman de Zamora a neighbor of author Severino Reyes who was a matriarch of the Zamora family of

Quiapo, Manila Quiapo () is a district of the city of Manila, in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. Referred to as the "Old Downtown of Manila", Quiapo is home to the Quiapo Church, where the feast of the Black Nazarene is held with millions of p ...

. According to the

National Historical Commission of the Philippines The National Historical Commission of the Philippines ( fil, Pambansang Komisyong Pangkasaysayan ng Pilipinas, abbreviated NHCP) is a government agency of the Philippines. Its mission is "the promotion of Philippine history and cultural herita ...

, the name Lola Basyang became a "generic" or

placeholder name Placeholder names are words that can refer to things or people whose names do not exist, are tip of the tongue, temporarily forgotten, are not relevant to the salient point at hand, are to avoid stigmatization, are unknowable/unpredictable in ...

for old Filipino grandmothers with the same traits as the fictional character.

Adaptations

Comics

''Lola Basyang'' was featured in illustrated form in ''Tagalog Klasiks''. a ''

komiks Comics in the Philippines ( fil, Komiks}) have been widespread and popular throughout the country from the 1920s to the present. Komiks were partially inspired by American mainstream comic strips and comic books during the early 20th century. ...

'' which had its first issue released in 1949. The story of was rewritten by Severino Reyes' son Pedrito and was llustrated by Jesus Ramos, and later on, Ruben Yandoc.

Feature film

Sampaguita Pictures Sampaguita Pictures was a Philippine film production company. It was named for the Philippine national flower, sampaguita. Though no longer functioning, the company's Sampaguita Compound remains in Quezon City. History Sampaguita Pictures was es ...

produced a film adaptation of ''Lola Basyang'' in 1958. The film is an

adpated from two short stories. Regal Films released their own film in 1985, which featured three stories. ''Mga Kuwento Ni Lola Basyang'' of Unitel Pictures was originally among the official entries of the

2012 Metro Manila Film Festival The 38th Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) is a part of the annual film festival in Metro Manila, Philippines held from December 25, 2012 until January 8, 2013. During the festival, no foreign films are shown in Philippine theaters in order to show ...

. However the film was left unreleased and was replaced by ''

Thy Womb ''Thy Womb'' ( fil, Sinapupunan) is a 2012 Philippines, Filipino drama film starring Nora Aunor, Bembol Roco, Mercedes Cabral, and Lovi Poe. Produced by Center Stage Productions and the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP), Melvin Ma ...

''.

Miniseries

''LolaBasyang.com'' is a modern adaptation of ''Mga Kuwento ni Lola Basyang'' produced by and released in TV5 as a

television miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...

. The miniseries was first released in 2015. The adaptation starred

Boots Anson-Roa Maria Elisa Cristobal Anson-Rodrigo (née Anson; born January 30, 1945), better known as Boots Anson-Roa, is a Filipina actress, columnist, editor, and lecturer. Early life and education Anson-Roa, a Bicolana, is the eldest daughter of post-w ...

as Lola B, an internet blogger who tells stories to her grandchildren via webcam.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mga Kuwento Ni Lola Basyang Philippine short stories 1925 short stories