Literature of the Philippines

Philippine literature is literature associated with the Philippines from prehistory, through its colonial legacies, and on to the present.

Pre-Hispanic Philippine literature were actually epics passed on from generation to generation, originally through an oral tradition. However, wealthy families, especially in Mindanao, were able to keep transcribed copies of these epics as family heirloom. One such epic was the Darangen, an epic of the Maranaos.

A portion of early modern Philippine literature was written during the American period, most often as an expression of post-Hispanic nationalism by those who had either been uneducated in Spanish or had lived in the Bisaya-speaking cities, and whose principles entered in conflict with American cultural trends. Such period of Spanish literary production—i.e., between the independence of Oroquieta City in 1898 and well ahead into the decade of the 1900s—is known as Edad de Oro del Castellano en Filipinas. Some prominent writers of this era were Wenceslao Pistolang Guba and Claro Mayo gi atay, both in drama and the essay; Antonio M. Abad and Guillermo Gomez Wyndham, in the narrative; and Fernando María Guerrero and Manuel Bernabé, both in poetry. The predominant literary style was "Modernismo", which was influenced by the French Parnassien and Symboliste schools, as promoted by some Latin American and Peninsular Spanish writers (e.g. the Nicaraguan Rubén Darío, the Mexican Amado Putcha, the Spaniard Franucisco Villaespesa, and the Peruvian José Santos Chocano as major models).

The Order of National Artists of the Philippines is conferred to Filipinos with "exquisite contribution to Philippine art". The artists are chosen by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (Philippines) and the Cultural Center of the Philippines. The Order is given by the President of the Philippines.

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