Lope K. Santos (born Lope Santos y Canseco, September 25, 1879 – May 1, 1963) was a

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

Tagalog-language Tagalog (, ; ; ''Baybayin'': ) is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by the ethnic Tagalog people, who make up a quarter of the population of the Philippines, and as a second language by the majority. Its standardized form, o ...

writer and former

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

of the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. He is best known for his 1906

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

novel, '' Banaag at Sikat'' and to his contributions for the development of

grammar In linguistics, the grammar of a natural language is its set of structure, structural constraints on speakers' or writers' composition of clause (linguistics), clauses, phrases, and words. The term can also refer to the study of such constraint ...

and

Tagalog orthography Tagalog (, ; ; '' Baybayin'': ) is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by the ethnic Tagalog people, who make up a quarter of the population of the Philippines, and as a second language by the majority. Its standardized form, ...

. Lope K. Santos was born in

Pasig Pasig, officially the City of Pasig ( fil, Lungsod ng Pasig), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 803,159 people. It is located along the ...

, Province of Manila (now a part of

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region, seat of government and one of three List of metrop ...

) as ''Lope Santos y Canseco'' to Ladislao Santos, a native of Pasig, and Victorina Canseco, a native of San Mateo, on September 25, 1879. He was raised in Pandacan. His father was imprisoned during Philippine Revolution because Spanish authorities found copies of

José Rizal José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda (, ; June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896) was a Filipino nationalist, writer and polymath active at the end of the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. He is considered the national he ...

's '' Noli Me Tangere'' and '' Ang Kalayaan'' in his possession. Santos was sent to ''Escuela Normal Superior de Maestros'' (Higher Normal School for Teachers) for education and later finished schooling at ''Colegio Filipino''. During Philippine Revolution of 1896, Santos joined revolutionaries. By the time of the death of his mother, she requested Lope to marry Simeona Salazar. Marriage happened on February 10, 1900 and they were blessed with three children namely Lakambini, Luwalhati and Makaaraw. He pursued law at the ''Academia de la Jurisprudencia'' then at ''Escuela de Derecho de Manila'' (now Manila Law College Foundation) where he received Bachelor of Arts degree in 1912. In late 1900, Santos started writing his own newspaper ''Ang Kaliwanagan''. This was also the time when

socialism Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

becomes an emerging idea in world ideology. When José Ma. Dominador Goméz was charged and sentenced by the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

of sedition and illegal association against the government in 1903, Goméz's labor group '' Union Obrera Democratica Filipina'' (Philippine Democratic Labor Union) was absorbed by Santos. The group was renamed as '' Union del Trabajo de Filipinas'', but was later dissolved in 1907. In 1903, Santos started publishing fragments of his first novel, '' Banaag at Sikat'' (From Early Dawn to Full Light) on his weekly labor magazine ''Muling Pagsilang'' (The Rebirth) and was completed in 1906. When published in book form, Santos' ''Banaag at Sikat'' was then considered the first socialist-oriented book in the Philippines that expounded principles of socialism and sought labor reforms from the government. The book later became an inspiration for the assembly of the 1932 Socialist Party of the Philippines and then the 1946 group

Hukbalahap The Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon (), better known by the acronym Hukbalahap, was a Communism, communist Guerrilla warfare, guerrilla movement formed by the farmers of Central Luzon. They were originally formed to Philippine resistance against Ja ...

. Santos became expert in ''dupluhan'', a form of poetical debate during that time. ''Dupluhan'' can be compared to balagtasan, which became popular half a century before Santos' time. He also founded ''Sampaguita'', a weekly lifestyle magazine. In early 1910s, he started a campaign to promote a '"national language for the Philippines", where he organized various symposia and lectures and headed numerous departments for national language in leading Philippine universities. In 1910, he was elected governor of the province of

Rizal Rizal, officially the Province of Rizal ( fil, Lalawigan ng Rizal), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region in Luzon. Its capital is the city of Antipolo. It is about east of Manila. The p ...

under the

Nacionalista Party The Nacionalista Party (Filipino and Spanish: ''Partido Nacionalista''; ) is the oldest political party in both the Philippines and in Southeast Asia in general. It is responsible for leading the country throughout the majority of the 20th ce ...

. In 1918, he was appointed as the first Filipino governor of the newly resurveyed Nueva Vizcaya until 1920. Consequently, he was appointed to the

5th Philippine Legislature The Fifth Philippine Legislature was the meeting of the legislature of the Philippines under the sovereign control of the United States from 1919 to 1922. Members Senate Notes House of Representatives Notes See also *Congress of the Phili ...

from the twelfth senatorial district representing provinces having a majority of non-Christian population. He was the primary author of Philippine Legislature Act No. 2946 which enacted November 30 every year as

Bonifacio Day Bonifacio Day is a national holiday in the Philippines, commemorating Andrés Bonifacio, one of the country's national heroes. He was the founder and eventual ''Supremo'' of the Katipunan, a secret society that triggered the Philippine Revolut ...

, honoring

Andrés Bonifacio Andrés Bonifacio y de Castro (, ; November 30, 1863May 10, 1897) was a Filipino Freemason and revolutionary leader. He is often called "The Father of the Philippine Revolution", and considered one of the national heroes of the Philippines ...

. He resigned from the Senate in 1921. In 1940, Santos published the first grammar book of the "national language", ''Balarila ng Wikang Pambansa'' (Grammar of the National Language) which was commissioned by the Surian ng Wikang Pambansa (SWF). The next year, he was appointed by President

Manuel L. Quezon Manuel Luis Quezon y Molina, (; 19 August 1878 – 1 August 1944), also known by his initials MLQ, was a Filipino lawyer, statesman, soldier and politician who served as president of the Commonwealth of the Philippines from 1935 until his dea ...

as director of SWF until 1946. When the Philippines became a member of the United Nations he was selected to translate the 1935 Constitution for

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

. He was also appointed to assist for the translation of inaugural addresses of presidents

Jose P. Laurel José Paciano Laurel y García (; March 9, 1891 – November 6, 1959) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, and judge, who served as the president of the Japanese-occupied Second Philippine Republic, a puppet state during World War II, from 1943 ...

and

Manuel A. Roxas Manuel Acuña Roxas (born Manuel Roxas y Acuña; ; January 1, 1892 – April 15, 1948) was a Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the fifth president of the Philippines, who served from 1946 until his death due to heart attacks in 194 ...

. In early 1960s, he underwent liver operations due to complication. Santos died on May 1, 1963.

Works

The works of Santos include the following: * '' Banaag at Sikat'' (From Early Dawn to Full Light), 1903–06, first literary novel in Tagalog that incorporates socialist ideas and the works of the united associations of laborers.Quindoza-Santiago, Lilia (Dr.) Philippine Culture during the American Period''), Publications about Culture and Arts, About Culture and Arts, ncca.gov.ph, 2002
/ref> * ''Ag̃ "Pag̃gig̃gera" (Tulag̃ Handog sa Kababaiga'g̃ Tagalog)'' (The "Paḡgiḡgera" (A Poem for Tagalog Women)), 1912, paḡgiḡgera is a form of early 20th century gambling. * ''Kundanḡan...!: Nobelang Tagalog Katha'' (Deference...!: A Tagalog Novel), 1927, Santos' second literary novel. * ''Tinḡíng Pahapáw sa Kasaysayan ñg Pámitikang Tagalog'' (Few Points in the History of Tagalog Literature), 1938 * ''Puso't Diwa'' (Heart and Spirit), three volume book collection of chosen poems of Santos during American period. * ''Sino Ka? Ako'y Si... 60 Sagot na mga Tulá'' (Who Are You? I am... 60 Answering Poems), 1946, collection of philosophical poems. * ''Mga Hamak na Dakilà: 60 Tulâ'' (Mean Magnificent: 60 poems), 1950, humorous collection of war-period poems. * ''"Makábagong" Balarilà?: Mga Puná at Payo sa "Sariling Wikà"'' ("Modern" Grammar?: Views and Advices for "National Language"), 1951, written in cooperation with Surian ng Wikang Pambansa director Cirilo H. Panganiban."Makábagong" Balarilà?: Mga Puná at Payo sa "Sariling Wikà"
/ref>

References

* Herbert, Patricia.
South-East Asia: languages and literatures : a select guide
', 1989 * Panganiban, Jose Villa.
Panitikan ng Pilipinas
', 1982 * San Juan, Epifanio.
Introduction to modern Pilipino literature
', 1974 * Saulo, Alfredo.
Communism in the Philippines: an introduction
', 1990 * Ano ang babae? tula/ Lope K. Santos