Outstanding Librarian 2011:Cynthia Yap Dagus

Cynthia Yap Dagus
Manager
Academic Libraries Book Systems Acquisition, Inc. (ALBASA)

The Professional Regulation Commission conferred the Outstanding Professional Librarian of the Year Award on Cynthia Yap Dagus on 22 June 2011. The citation reads:

For her exemplary achievements as Professional Librarian; for demonstrating competence and integrity to the highest degree; for being considered as role model to her colleagues and co-workers; for having received the Outstanding Alumni Award, Leadership Award, Certificate of Recognition, and Community Involvement Award; for her worthy contributions to the development of the profession by actively participating in numerous seminars and workshops; for contributing articles related to the profession in some Filipino journals; for her indefatigable effort and dynamic leadership in spearheading seminars and conferences allowing librarians to grow professionally through her capacity as Manager of ALBASA and as President of Cebu Librarians Association Incorporated; and for her genuine display of social responsibility by taking part in the various projects and activities of NGO's in the field of librarianship and community service.

Thanks to Lilia Echiverri for providing the photo and citation.


Category: Librarians—Awardees

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Rizal's Noli, Fili and "Mi Ultimo Adios"

Photos of front and back of what is perhaps the best-known and most-translated document written by a Filipino. Note that it does not have a title. Click photos to enlarge.

Jose Rizal's original, handwritten manuscripts of Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo will be exhibited at the National Library of the Philippines on 17 June 2011 [UPDATE JUN 15: Extended to June 18] as part of its "Exhibit of Original Rizaliana Materials." It is unclear from the announcement whether the "Mi Ultimo Adios" will also be on display, but I certainly hope it will also be shown to visitors. [UPDATE JUN 15: According to its caretaker, the "Mi Ultimo Adios" is "too delicate and too faded to be exhibited."]

I just happened to be around on 12 May 2011, when the Noli, Filiand "Mi Ultimo Adios" were officially turned over to the directors of the National Library and the National Archives by the German conservators who undertook the repair of Rizal's best-known works. It was interesting to learn that Rizal himself had bound the manuscripts of his novels, and that the Noli had been so tightly bound, according to the conservators who reconstructed Rizal's binding, that it is practically impossible to open the manuscript without breaking its spine (see photo below).

The conservator shows just how far the Noli manuscript
can be opened without damaging its spine.

The Fili manuscript, unlike the Noli, can be opened easily,
but it does not have a cover like the one Rizal designed for the Noli.

What struck me most, however, was the the size of the "Mi Ultimo Adios," which was only slightly larger than an iPhone. But even more remarkable is the fact that all these were written in Spanish, and that somehow—despite the reality that very few Filipinos were fluent in Spanish during the late nineteenth century AND even fewer copies were available—Rizal's words and ideas inspired his countrymen to fight both their Spanish and American colonizers in pursuit of the establishment of an independent Philippines.


Thanks to Director Antonio Santos of the National Library, Director Ino Manalo of the National Archives, and Anne Rosette G. Crelencia (head of the Rare Books and Manuscripts section of the National Library) for letting me—perhaps the only last-minute guest at the turnover—join the exclusive event and blog about it, too!

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Antonio M. Santos is the New Director of the National Library

Congratulations to Atty. Antonio M. Santos (right), who has been appointed the new Director of the National Library of the Philippines! His appointment papers were signed by President Benigno Aquino III on 28 February 2011. He took his oath of office before Mayor Ed de Guzman (Marikina) on 3 March 2011. He takes over from former Director Prudenciana C. Cruz, who retired in 2010.

Atty. Santos has been recognized in the past as the Outstanding Professional Librarian of the Year (1999) by the Professional Regulation Commission, as well as Outstanding Librarian (2002) by the Congress of Southeast Asian Librarians. He is also a past president of both the Philippine Librarians Association, Inc., and the Philippine Group of Law Librarians. Prior to his appointment as Director of the National Library, he was the Law Librarian at the College of Law, University of the Philippines.


Thanks to Lily Echiverri for providing the photo.

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Closed... Again

This blog is closed—in case you haven't noticed—indefinitely.

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Librarian Gets "Mommy Makeover"

The latest issue of Good Housekeeping (Jan-Feb 2011) shows Lourdes David, Outstanding Librarian 2008, before and after her makeover. Thank goodness the writeup was matter-of-fact, with no condescending remarks about librarian stereotypes.

Photo from Jo-anne Domingo's Facebook album.

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Librarians' Licensure Examination 2010: Results

Congratulations to the new librarians!

The passing rate for the Librarians' Licensure Examination is 27 percent (191 out of 699), down from 30 percent in 2009.

Below are the list of the Top 10, as well as the list of all successful examinees. Both were taken from ABS-CBNnews.com.

UPDATED 19 November 2010 to include the table detailing the passing rates for all the schools (pdf) represented at the exam. The file is from the official website of the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC). For trends during the past three years, see "The Best and the Worst LIS Schools, 2007-2009."

Top 10

ANGELINE MAY ISLA ODILAO 87.80
ALDIANE JOY BASALE AMBIT 87.05
NICOLO LORENZO TAPANG CERVANTES 86.30
MARY JANE CORTEZ MORANDARTE 86.25
IMELDA ROJAS BRAZAL 85.75
BIANCA REI TAMAYO BAYLAS 85.60
JOHANNA JAYNE SEE TACUS 85.50
IVY HONEYLOU GO CACHO 85.30
KRISTI MA FEVIE VILLAPANDO MACASAET 85.10
KELVIN BERNARDO SAMSON 84.75

Successful Examinees

ABRIGO, RYAN JOSEPH MIRANDA
ABYADO, EMMA TABACLA
AGALDANG, ROMELIN DENNISE BERNARDEZ
ALBANIA, PAMELA SALINAS
ALVARADO, CYRENE DE GUZMAN
AMAN, ERVIN JAYNAR
AMANTE, KRIZ MAE PALENZUELA
AMBIT, ALDIANE JOY BASALE
AMPOLOQUIO, ERNA SANCHEZ
ANIAG, MICHAEL LORENZO
ARANZANSO, BELINDA REPE
ARQUERO, MARICEL BUENO
ASILO, DIANA ABIGAIL ESCOBER
ASUMBRA, JENNIFER TUAZON
ATUEL, ANTHONY NERVES
BACAY, FLORENCE RENEE RUBIO
BACUS, SYLVIAN CRISTOBAL
BAGTAS, RYASMIN GAIL CRUZ
BAGUIOS, JERRY RIVERA
BAHIAN, MAGNOLIA ANGEL SEPADA
BAJO, RODERICK JABAT
BALICO, AISA REDONDIEZ
BALOCO, LORELIE AMIGO
BANAAG, LEA RINIA
BARASI, ANALYN GAMBOA
BARRO, JESSECA BERNAL
BAYLAS, BIANCA REI TAMAYO
BELMONTE, ABEL ANGELES
BERDIN, JANICE FLORES
BERTIZ, REA BASCO
BILUAN, DONNA LYN SAPAL
BOLANTE, LENI ANTUERPIA
BRAZA, HAYDEE BRETAÑA
BRAZAL, IMELDA ROJAS
BUENAVENTURA, GRACE ANN FERNANDO
BUYOCAN, KAREN MALITAH
CABILLON, CHARMANE BLASON
CABUGAO, MICHAEL REY CLEMENTE
CACANANTA, EVELYN ASPURIA
CACHO, IVY HONEYLOU GO
CADIZ, NIÑO MAR ANGELO RIGOR
CANTILERO, JERRY BARAL
CAO, DANILYN BALLESTEROS
CAPELA, MARIEGLO CIUBAL
CATAN, ROSE JASMIN BUMONGCAG
CERVANTES, NICOLO LORENZO TAPANG
CHAVEZ, PEACHIE ROSHELE TABOR
CODAMOS, JOVIE POKKIS
CRISOSTOMO, JOHN LEE GAVINO
CRUZ, HEHERSON CRUZ
CRUZ, JONATHAN ADRIANO
CRUZADO, REDEN MAGRAMO
CUARTEROS, ALMA MELAD
CUIZON, VANIZA CODO
DAGURO, HAIDEE LOU DACANAY
DAVID, MA LARA PATRICIA ARELLANO
DE GUZMAN, MA GRACIA RAE LUBIANO
DE LOS SANTOS, CHERYL SY
DE TORRES, CONNIE BAGSIT
DEL CAMPO, ROY RABINO
DELA VEGA-JUAN, MAGANA ALIX
DIJOS, SHENALY WATIMAR
DIONISIO, MELANIE FERNANDO
DIZON, EDITHA JACOSALEM
DOMINGO, JOSELITO DELA CRUZ
ELNAR, LEOREINA LOU SABATER
ESCOBER, LOVELYN BO
ESPEDIDO, RUBY ANTONNEITTE PAGLINAWAN
ESPINO, ARRIANE CRUZ
ESTRELLA, JENALYN MAGRACIA
EVA, MARK ANTHONY ESTRADA
FELIZARDO, GLENDA FIESTADA
FERNANDEZ, EMMELOU JOY OGATIS
FERNANDEZ, RENALYN SALUSOG
FERNANDO, JOSE TOMASITO NATIVIDAD
FLORO, MARTIN FELARCA
FOMEGAS, IRISH MAY TUMAPANG
FRAGATA, RONNIE BAWAS
FRONDOSO, THERESA MAE LABISTE
FRUEL, GILBERTO EUGENIO
GABO, CHRISTIAN CLARK IAN BLANCO
GAJES, HONEYLYN CALUB
GALANG, APRIL ARCILLA
GANIPES, BRODERICK TAO-EY
GARAIS, ANGELA CARIÑO
GARCIA, JOANNARIE CAPISTRANO
GARCIA, RAFAEL LAYOC
GENON, RONILO JR BESINAN
GEVERO, VENNA JANE DENOY
GLORIANI, JUDY ANN CAYSON
GONZAGA, SHEILA MAE PAGBILAO
GUILLERMO, RYAN GIL EDPALINA
HABAN, KLARIBEL PERALTA
HALCON, ALVIN ESCALDERON
HERNANDEZ, MA CHRISTINE SIDERIA
HERNANDO, RONIE SALMORIN
HERRERA, GEEMEE CAMILLE NUYLAN
IBASCO, MELANIE DIALOGO
IBUYAT, JUVY CALLEJAS
ICO, MILDRED SANTA ANA
IGNACIO, DAPHNE DUTERTE
IMPERIO, FLORIDA MAGANA
JIMENEZ, GISELLE MACAHILIG
JUAYANG, CHING BEE BORRO
JUNSAN, ARIANNE LIGAYA
LAROMBE, MARIA CARINA ALPARITA
LATIYAN, RHODORA BATUNA
LEIDA, LUNA MAY DEFENSOR
LEJANO, VERONICA JANE BALUGO
LEONCIO, JENNIFER RAMOS
LINDAYAO, JENNILYN ESTORQUE
LIWADEN, DELNA CARAMTO
LLAMAS, RECHY SUMALILENG
LOPEZ, ISABEL DINAH GARCIA
LUBATON, SWEET BONNIEBE MACEDA
LUZURIAGA, MA ROSELLE SUPERLATIVO
MABALOT, ADALIA LAGRIMAS
MACARASIG, OPALYN DIMAYUGA
MACASAET, KRISTI MA FEVIE VILLAPANDO
MALANOG, GINA LIMSAN
MAMA, ABUBAKAR SARANGANI
MANALO, CHARMAINE ANCELLA BAJETA
MANTALA, LIZA LORAINE BALANAY
MARIANO, RANDOLF DIONISIO
MATTI, LADY BERNICE GUSTILO
MEDINA, VIRGILIO JR GUINTO
MELGAR, SHERRYL ANNE JIM ARCABAL
MELU, ANGELICA GARAY
MERCURIO, HAZEL CRUZ
MIGUEL, JUNELITA MANGALI
MIJARES, RISA OPERIO
MIRANDA, CAROLYN DACILLO
MORANDARTE, MARY JANE CORTEZ
NARIO, ELVISA ESTRELLADO
NERI, CAROLYN TAMAYO
ODILAO, ANGELINE MAY ISLA
OJALDON, ERWIN ROY TALEON
OLIVERIO, ORLANDO JR LLABAN
OMONES, ANGELICUM REYES
OREGANO, LORELIE AMALLA
ORNILLO, MICHELLE PULA
ORUGA, VENUS BOYER
OSMA, MARIA AIMEE MARIBOJOC
PANOTES, JULIUS EDEJER
PASCO, SHARON GABITAN
PASTRANA, LEILANI PACIS
PEREZ, JENNIFER TOLEDO
PEREZ, KAREN JOAN BOMPAT
PLANAS, FE REMEDIO
POMAY, SARAH JANE BOMBANE
PONCE, VINAMAR AQUE
PROTACIO, EMMANUEL KRISTOFFER ROSIL
QUEROBINES, CATHERINE CALOGCOG
RAMIREZ, CRISELDA ANNE BAUTISTA
RAMOS, EUGENE GUTIERREZ
RAMOS, JEREMY CO
REAS, WITTY MAE DELA CRUZ
REQUINTA, LOURDES REBULANAN
RETAZO, MELODY ANINO
REYES, CECIL TENCHAVEZ
REYES, GAECELLE ESGUERRA
REYES, JULIUS ROMIL ONRADA
RICAFORT, MARISA CASTRO
RICO, MARIE PAZ GANIBAN
RIMANDO, RUVILYN TAMANG
RIVERA, CHRISTIAN JASPER BARROGO
SAMSON, KELVIN BERNARDO
SAMULDE, JOENECIO KALI
SANTILLAN, KAREN YANES
SAQUILABON, MARIA TERESA RUMAGUIRA
SEBIANO, JERLIE BOLISLIS
SEÑA, ROXANNE NICOLE
SIAZON, MELISSA ANNE AQUINO
SIBAYAN, CARL BRYAN WIDWIDAN
SIGOT, SHAILA SIANO
SOMERBANG, HELEN MOG-AW
SUPAN, RAEL BARTOLOME
TACUS, JOHANNA JAYNE SEE
TADINA, MARLINE PEÑAFLORIDA
TAGACAY, MARY JANE RAMIREZ
TAGLE, ALGEAN BAGHARI
TEJANO, ROSEVILLA ALINSUNORIN
TOLENTINO, CHIARA RICA TAYAWA
TUQUIB, RODELIA MERINA
UMADHAY, DARYL JUSTIN PEREZ
UMADHAY, VINCENT BRYAN LAVILLES
VELASCO, FREDERICK GERONA
VERDE, CONCORDIA BAUTISTA
VILLADORES, MC NIÑO RABAGO
VILLAPANDO, LYVIA ALMANZA
ZANORIA, EVELYN BUHAYAN

Performance of Schools in Alphabetical Order

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Outstanding Librarian 2010:Fe E. Abelardo

Fe E. Abelardo
Retired Chief Librarian
National Library of the Philippines

The Professional Regulation Commission conferred the Outstanding Professional Librarian of the Year Award on Fe E. Abelardo on 18 June 2010. The citation reads:

For showing exemplary dedication, competence and integrity in the conduct of her profession having served for thirty four (34) years and having rose from the ranks to Chief Librarian until her retirement from the National Library of the Philippines; for contributing significantly to the advancement of the profession and for her significant involvement in various professional organizations that pioneered the passage of Republic Act Nos. 6966 and 9246 otherwise known as "The Philippine Librarianship Act"; for continuously honing her expertise and professional competence through attendance in seminars, training and conferences here and abroad including services rendered in the National Libraries of Nigeria, Singapore and San Diego, California, USA to benefit the country; and for her meaningful contribution and selfless involvement to the various outreach projects of the Association including bringing books and updating library facilities in Mindanao which earned her the PLAI Cirilo B. Perez Award.

Thanks to Lilia Echiverri for providing the citation. The photo is from Fe Abelardo's Facebook album, and is used with her permission.


Category: Librarians—Awardees

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LOL: Lit Out Loud!

LOL: Lit Out Loud!
The 1st Manila International Literary Festival

In celebration of the 14th Philippine Book Development Month, the National Book Development Board, in partnership with the Filipinas Heritage Library, National Book Store and Philippine Airlines, will present the 1st Manila International Literary Festival.

In a three-day festival, LOL: Literature Out Loud will bring together a large community of writers and readers, students and teachers, as they face traditional and emerging concerns in literature. Together with local and international writers, publishing experts, teachers of literature, as well as followers of various genres of writing, the NBDB hopes to create a continuous dialogue on literature and reading.

Among the foreign writers who will attend the festival are Vikas Swarup, whose novel Q&A has been adapted into the Oscar award-winning movie Slumdog Millionaire; Christopher Cheng, who has published critically acclaimed books of fiction and nonfiction for young adults and children; Andy Mulligan, author of young adult novel Trash; literary agents Mita Kapur (also the author of the F-Word) and Jayapriya Vasudevan; and David Parker, the chair of the Man Asian Literary Prize.

The festival will begin with a keynote speech from Jose Y. Dalisay Jr., award-winning novelist. The many local writers also joing us include National Artists for Literature Virgilio S. Almario and Bienvenido Lumbera, Cristina Pantoja Hidalgo, Gemino H. Abad, Alfred Yuson, Resil Mojares, Marjorie Evasco, Ricky de Ungria, J. Neil Garcia, Isagani Cruz, Merlie Alunan, Criselda Yabes, Susan Lara, Angelo Lacuesta, Jr., Ralph Semino Galan, Tara FT Sering, and many more acclaimed Filipino writers will join the Festival.

Scheduled are several break-out sessions, with topics ranging from literary criticism to publishing will be discussed. The last afternoon of the festival will be dedicated to book and poetry readings, book signings, and book launches. Click on the image below to see the schedule.


LOL: Lit Out Loud! is also done in partnership with the Manila Bulletin, Filipinas Heritage Library, the Ayala Land, Inc., the Book Development Association of the Philippines, Central Books, Man Asian Literary Prize, Vibal Foundation, Random House, Simon and Schuster, and Siyahi Literary Agency.

To register, call 892-1801; for details, call 926-8238.

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FO: Shih-lu, 1593

The Biblioteca Nacional de España has digitized the only known copy of the Shih-lu, and—with a little prodding from this blogger—made it freely available online. The entire book may be downloaded here: Shih-lu (pdf). To see its bibliographic record, click here: Shih-lu.

Note that, like most books in Chinese, the Shih-lu may be described by those not from China as having been printed back-to-front. This means, concretely, that the Shih-lu's first page is not found at the beginning of the file, but toward the end, specifically page 155. A brief history of this book follows below.

On 20 June 1593, the governor of las Islas Filipinas wrote the following to the king of Spain:

Señor:—En nombre de V. Mag, e dado licencia para que por esta vez, por la gran neçesidad que avia, se ymprimiessen las Doctrinas Xpianas que con esta van, la vna en lengua tagala, que es la natural y mejor destas yslas, y la otra en la china...

[Sire, in the name of Your Majesty, I have for this once, because of the existing great need, granted a license for the printing of the Doctrinas Christianas, herewith enclosed—one in the Tagalog language, which is the native and best of these islands, and the other in Chinese…]

Much more has been written since then about the first two books printed in the Philippines in 1593, but most either refer to just one book—usually the Doctrina Christiana in Spanish, romanized Tagalog and baybayin—or, contrary to the evidence in the governor's letter, even three! Many of the authors apparently had not read Piet van der Loon's "The Manila incunabula and early Hokkien studies" (Asia Major [1966] 12, 1-43), which clearly lays out his reasons for concluding that the third "first book" was actually printed later, perhaps in 1605.

But one of the most problematic assumptions of many who write about the first Philippine imprints, at least to me, is that the Shih-lu was merely a translation of the Spanish-Tagalog Doctrina Christiana. Now that the Shih-lu is available online, and its contents can easily be compared and contrasted with the Doctrina Christiana, even someone with no knowledge of Chinese, Spanish or Tagalog will see right away that the two are very different books.

Special thanks to Lourdes Alonso and Cristina Guillen of the Biblioteca Nacional de España for their effort in making the Shih-lu freely available online, and to Francis Navarro for his assistance in Madrid.

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History of the Filipino People and Martial Law

Below are the link to my article, which was published recently in Philippine Studies 58:3 (2010), 313–348, as well as the abstract and acknowledgments.

History of the Filipino People and Martial Law: A Forgotten Chapter in the History of a History Book, 1960–2010
Vernon R. Totanes

Abstract:

In 1960 a mimeographed history textbook, which was considered groundbreaking for looking at Philippine history from a Filipino perspective, was introduced at the University of the Philippines. By 1967, when its second edition entitled History of the Filipino People was published in hardcover and paperback, it had replaced prescribed texts in other universities. Fifty years after the first edition came out, its eighth edition remains required reading for many college students. Using archival documents, this article traces the untold story of a forgotten chapter in this book and argues that the study of a book’s history illumines the influence of political realities and personal relationships on the publication of history books.

Acknowledgments:

I would like to thank Ambeth R. Ocampo, who suggested that I look into the history of History of the Filipino People; Salvacion M. Arlante, who granted access to the Teodoro A. Agoncillo Papers, as well as facilitated introductions to resource persons; Teodoro V. Agoncillo III and Bernardita R. Churchill, who not only answered my questions and welcomed me into their homes, but also generously shared books and documents; Milagros C. Guerrero, Antonio C. Hila, Oscar L. Evangelista, and Caroline Garcia, who provided useful background information; Elvira B. Lapuz, Grace B. Tabiendo, Klit Pabalan, and Janssen Cusi, who facilitated my research; Cynthia Kutka, who just happened to have a hard-to-find copy of the Agoncillo-Guerrero third edition (R. P. Garcia) and gave it to me; and all those who offered suggestions and asked questions that helped improve the manuscript, especially my adviser Patricia L. Fleming, Christine V. Lao, Vyva Victoria M. Aguirre, Tarleton Gillespie, and the two anonymous readers. All errors, however, are mine alone.

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