José Palma y Velásquez (: June 3, 1876 February 12, 1903) was a Filipino poet and soldier. He was on the staff of ''La independencia'' at the time he wrote "Filipinas", a patriotic poem in Spanish. It was published for the first time in the issue of the first anniversary of ''La independencia'' on September 3, 1899. The poem fit the instrumental tune "Marcha Nacional Filipina" by

Julián Felipe Julián Reyes Felipe (; : January 28, 1861 – October 2, 1944) was a Filipino composer of the music of the Philippine national anthem, formerly known as ''"Marcha Nacional Filipina"'', now known as "Lupang Hinirang". Early life Julián Fe ...

, and it has since been the basis for every translation of the Philippine National Anthem.

Early life

Palma was born in Tondo, on June 3, 1876, the youngest child of Don Hermogenes Palma, a clerk at the ''Intendencia'' Office, and Hilaria Velásquez. His older brother was the politician, intellectual and journalist Rafael Palma. After finishing his ''primera enseñanza'' (first studies) in Tondó, Palma continued his studies at the Ateneo Municipal. While there, he gradually honed his skills by composing verses. One of his earliest works was ''La cruz de sampaguitas'' ("The Cross of Jasmines") in 1893. In the same year, he had a brief romantic relationship with a woman named Florentina Arellano, whose parents did not approve of him.

The ''Katipunan''

As underground revolutionary activities intensified, Palma devoted his time to composing more poems. In 1894, he joined the ''

Katipunan The Katipunan (), officially known as the (; ) and abbreviated as the KKK, was a revolutionary organization founded in 1892 by a group of Filipino nationalists Deodato Arellano, Andrés Bonifacio, Valentin Diaz, Ladislao Diwa, José Dizon, an ...

'' but did not enter battle when the

Philippine Revolution The Philippine Revolution ( or ; or ) was a war of independence waged by the revolutionary organization Katipunan against the Spanish Empire from 1896 to 1898. It was the culmination of the 333-year History of the Philippines (1565–1898), ...

of 1896 broke out. He eventually joined the revolutionary forces of Colonel Rosendo Simón in 1899 when the

Philippine–American War The Philippine–American War, known alternatively as the Philippine Insurrection, Filipino–American War, or Tagalog Insurgency, emerged following the conclusion of the Spanish–American War in December 1898 when the United States annexed th ...

erupted and fought under the command of Colonel Servillano Aquino in the encounters in Ángeles and Bambán. Since he could not physically cope with the difficulties of war, he often stayed in camps and entertained the soldiers with '' kundiman'', a traditional Filipino poetic and musical art.

''La independencia''

He eventually joined the staff of the Tagalog-language section of the revolutionary newspaper, ''La independencia'', to fight against the Americans as he could not on the battlefield. Palma and his colleagues in the newspaper often amused themselves with songs and poems while resting in camps or other places during their marches away from the pursuing American forces.

Writing of "Filipinas"

It was during on break of the newspaper staff in Bautista, Pangasinán, when Palma’s poetic spirit produced the Spanish ode "Filipinas". Palma wrote "Filipinas" in the house of ''Doña'' Romana G. vda. de Favis at

Sitio A ''sitio'' ( Spanish for "site") in the Philippines is a territorial enclave that forms part of a barangay. Typically rural, a ''sitios location is usually far from the center of the barangay itself and could be its own barangay if its popu ...

Estación in Barrio Nibaliw, Bayambang (today Barangay Población West, Bautista, Pangasinan). On June 24, 1900, Nibaliw was renamed "Bautista", in honour of Saint

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

, and partitioned as a separate town from Bayambang. The words were fit and eventually set to composer

's instrumental tune, “Marcha nacional filipina”, which was composed as

incidental music Incidental music is music in a play, television program, radio program, video game, or some other presentation form that is not primarily musical. The term is less frequently applied to film music, with such music being referred to instead as th ...

a year earlier for the Declaration of Philippine Independence in

Kawit Kawit, officially the Municipality of Kawit (), is an urban municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 107,535. It is one of ...

Cavite Cavite, officially the Province of Cavite (; Chavacano: ''Provincia de Cavite''), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region. On the southern shores of Manila Bay and southwest of Manila, i ...

. "Filipinas" was published in the first anniversary issue of ''La independencia'' on September 3, 1899.

Complete lyrics

Tierra adorada,
hija del sol de Oriente,
su fuego ardiente
en ti latiendo está. Patria de amores,
del heroísmo cuna,
los invasores
no te hollarán jamás. En tu azul cielo, en tus auras,
en tus montes y en tu mar
esplende y late el poema
de tu amada libertad. Tu pabellón que en las lides
la victoria iluminó,
no verá nunca apagados
sus estrellas ni su sol. Tierra de dichas, de sol y amores
en tu regazo dulce es vivir;
es una gloria para tus hijos,
cuando te ofenden, por ti morir.

Death

José Palma died of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

on February 12, 1903, aged 26. No historical accounts are known to where his resting place is, however, his remains were believed to be interred inside the Maria Clara Parish Church of the ''

Iglesia Filipina Independiente The Philippine Independent Church (; ), officially referred to by its Philippine Spanish name (IFI) and colloquially called the Aglipayan Church, is an Independent Catholic, independent catholic Christian denomination, in the form of a Religi ...

'' in

Santa Cruz, Manila Santa Cruz is a district in the northern part of the Manila, City of Manila, Philippines, located on the right bank of the Pasig River near its mouth. It is bordered by the districts of Tondo, Manila, Tondo, Binondo, Manila, Binondo, Quiapo, Ma ...

Gallery

File:7300Barangays_of_Bautista,_Pangasinan_36.jpg, Pook Kung Saan Isinulat Ang Liriko Ng Pambansang Awit "Filipinas" At Dambana Ni José Palma y Velásquez File:7345Poblacion_East,_Bautista,_Pangasinan_07.jpg, "Filipinas" File:7345Poblacion_East,_Bautista,_Pangasinan_11.jpg, Historical marker File:7345Poblacion_East,_Bautista,_Pangasinan_12.jpg, Historical marker

External links

References

* * (Digital copy found online a
HathiTrust Digital Library
on 2010-03-31) ;Specific {{DEFAULTSORT:Palma, Jose Isaac 1876 births 1903 deaths Kapampangan people National anthem writers People from Tondo, Manila Writers from Manila People of the Philippine Revolution Spanish-language writers of the Philippines Ateneo de Manila University alumni Tuberculosis deaths in the Philippines 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis