Wenceslao "Wenchesco" Emilio Retana y Gamboa (September 28, 1862 – January 21, 1924), also known as W.E. Retana or Wenceslao E. Retana, was a 19th-century

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

polymath A polymath ( el, πολυμαθής, , "having learned much"; la, homo universalis, "universal human") is an individual whose knowledge spans a substantial number of subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific pro ...

. He was a civil servant, colonial administrator, writer, biographer, political commentator, publisher, bibliophile, bibliographer,

Filipiniana Filipiniana, or originally Filipiñana, based on the definition by Isagani Medina from "Collection Building: Filipiniana", in his ''In Developing Special Library Collections, Filipiniana: Proceedings'' (November 1992), are Philippine-related bo ...

collector, Spanish

filipinologist In general, Filipinology or Philippineology ( es, Filipinología) ( tl, Pilipinolohiya) or more formally known as Philippine studies refers to:

, and

Philippine 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 ...

scholar. Retana was a "onetime adversary" of Philippine national hero

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 ...

who later became an "admirer" who wrote the first biographical account of the life of Rizal entitled '' Vida y Escritos del Dr. José Rizal'' or "Life and Writings of Dr. José Rizal".Roces, Alejandro R
Rizal's Death Anniversary
Roses & Thorns, Opinion, The Philippine Star, December 29, 2009, philstar.comYoder, Robert L

from footnotes of Chapter 18: Rizal the Man, joserizal.info Rosa M. Vallejo described Retana as the "foremost" non-Filipino filipinologist.Vallejo, Rosa M
(...) "Wenceslao Emilio Retana y Gamboa, foremost foreign Filipinologist" (...)
Bibliographical Works, Philippine Bibliographies, ncca.gov.ph

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External links

*Photograph o

at joserizal.info Spanish civil servants Spanish scholars Bibliophiles Spanish biographers Spanish male writers Male biographers Spanish political writers Spanish publishers (people) 19th-century Spanish writers 1862 births 1924 deaths 19th-century male writers {{Publish-bio-stub