GUMIL Filipinas

GUMIL Filipinas (Gunglo dagiti Mannurat nga Ilokano iti Filipinas) or Ilokano Writers Association of the Philippines, is one of the most active group of regional writers in the Philippines. It has hundreds of active writer-members in provincial and municipal chapters as well as in overseas chapters in the mainland U.S. and Hawaii and in Greece.

The first Iloko writers' organizations was organized in 1923 when 37 writers organized the Gimong dagiti Umiiluko (Association of Iloko Writers) in San Fernando, La Union, spearheaded by Cornelio Valdez, a poet and founder of the Northern Luzon College in the capital town. Mena Pecson Crisologo was elected president. When Crisologo died, Ignacio Villamor became president in an election at the Instituto de Mujeres in Manila on October 8, 1927.

Benito S. de Castro, in his feature article in Bannawag magazine on February 29, 1988, said the Gimong dagiti Mannurat nga Ilokano (Ilokano Writers Association) was also organized in 1947 with Benjamin A. Gray elected as president. Its main purpose was to preserve Iloko, to encourage and improve how to write better Iloko, and to publish the members' best Iloko writings.

In the 1960s, Kutibeng (Lyre), an association of Iloko writers in Manila and suburbs, was organized. Pacifico D. Espanto was elected president.

But Kutibeng did not last long. Guillermo R Andaya, then secretary, accepted the literary editorship of Bannawag. Espanto, the president, was appointed to teach in U.P. Los Baños, Laguna. Benjamin L. Viernes, the vice-president, focused on radio broadcasting. Paul B. Zafaralla, a member of the Board of Directors, was also appointed as instructor in U.P. Los Baños where he eventually became chairman of the humanities department. The interest of the remaining board members, including Jose A. Bragado and Leonardo Q. Belen, waned.

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