Instituto Cervantes opens an exhibit on Nebrija, the grammarian who helped to preserve the Filipino vernacular languages

Wazzup Pilipinas!?




Did you know that Tagalog had its first grammar published before English did? The linguistic milestone can be greatly credited to the Spaniard known as Nebrija, who played a pivotal role in that development. On March 12, Instituto Cervantes will unveil at its Intramuros branch the exhibition Nebrija en Filipinas, dedicated to celebrating the cultural contributions of Spanish grammarian Elio Antonio de Nebrija (1444-1522). Nebrija's impactful legacy extends to languages like Tagalog and Cebuano, which possessed grammars ahead of many European languages.

Nebrija en Filipinas, tailored for Filipino audiences, is an adaptation of the Nebrija exhibition organized by the National Library of Spain in 2022, commemorating the 500th anniversary of Nebrija's death. Through informative panels and displays of books, the exhibition will highlight Nebrija’s cultural contributions and seek to contextualize them within the publication of the first grammars of the Philippine vernacular languages. These linguistic endeavours were directly shaped by Nebrija's teachings.

Nebrija was a highly reputed scholar during the Renaissance period in Europe. His book Introductiones Latinae, a groundbreaking manual for teaching Latin, not only earned him recognition in Spain but also garnered international fame. He also wrote bilingual dictionaries in Latin-Spanish and a Gramática de la lengua castellana, published in 1492, which is recognized as the first grammar of modern European languages. It became the model for Spanish friars who attempted analyzing the grammars of the new world, both in America and the Philippines. These missionaries, who had learned Latin from Nebrija’s methods, applied the model, with its theoretical considerations and bilingual translations, in their description of these languages. As a result, Tagalog saw its first grammar book published in 1610 with Francisco Blancas de San José's Arte y reglas de la lengua tagala. It was followed by similar initiatives with other vernacular languages, among them the Arte de la lengua iloca, composed by the Agustinian Francisco López in 1627, and the Arte de la lengua bisaya de la provincia de Leyte, written by the jesuist Domingo Ezguerra in 1663.

Proud, intelligent, and audacious, Nebrija was a stalwart fighter for pure Latin and always wanted to go down in posterity with the nickname grammaticus (grammarian). When he presented a preview of what would later become his Grammar of the Castilian Language to Queen Isabel la Católica, the sovereign was initially surprised, unable to grasp the utility of a treatise teaching the rules of a language acquired naturally. However, Nebrija successfully persuaded her that languages benefit from both descriptive and normative grammars to prevent them from running amok. The paradoxes of fate have made his Castilian grammar his most renowned work today. Nevertheless, Nebrija deserves to be remembered for many other reasons.

For Nebrija, the revival of Latin was an incentive for other scholarly pursuits. The voyages of the discoverers aroused his curiosity, leading to a fascination with cosmography and a desire to learn about developments from across the Atlantic. In these and other scholarly ventures, Nebrija revealed himself as a full-fledged humanist.

Even after his death, Nebrija’s fame did not diminish. His grammars and lexicons were not only published in Spain but also gained recognition in France, Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands. The Latin manual he had written for his students in Salamanca attained exclusive authorization for teaching the discipline, a decree made by King Philip III in 1598. Nebrija's Latin grammar manual continued to be esteemed, annotated, and adapted based on location and circumstances until the 19th century.

The exhibit Nebrija en Filipinas, which will run from 12 March to 12 June, 2024, is organized by Instituto Cervantes in collaboration with Fundación Antonio Nebrija (Madrid), the Embassy of Spain and AECID, Biblioteca Nacional de España, and the University of Sto. Tomas (Manila). Nebrija en Filipinas is an adaptation of the original exhibit Nebrija, curated by Dr. Teresa Jiménez Calvente, with addition of panels focused on the Philippines composed by Marlon James Sales, of UP Diliman. The exhibit will have a second leg from August to October in the Miguel Benavides Library of UST.

For further information about the cultural program of Instituto Cervantes de Manila, please visit their website (https://manila.cervantes.es), or follow Instituto Cervantes on the following social media pages: (Facebook: InstitutoCervantesManila; Instagram: institutocervantesmanila).

PUP RCon reveals roster of speakers, marks a decade themed on A.I.

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

Few days before the 11th edition of PUP Radio Conference, DZMC - Young Communicators' Guild, the host organization, revealed Danilo Arao and DJ Renzmark Ricafrente or “Papa Dudut” as the resource speakers for the forthcoming symposium.

On March 8, Arao, Associate Editor at Bulatlat Multimedia and Associate Professor from the Department of Journalism at the University of the Philippines - Diliman, will tackle the current state of artificial intelligence in the newsroom, followed by Papa Dudut of GMA’s Barangay Love Story 97.1 FM, who will discuss the state of radio amid A.I. applications.

Alongside the roster of speakers, the conference will also feature Denice Dinsay, a news anchor from ABS-CBN as its keynote speaker.

PUP Radio Conference is an annual symposium with this year’s theme, R-BOT: Decoding Media’s Fate in the Age of A.I., which centers on the effects of artificial intelligence on the radio industry. Moreover, this is the 11th edition of the conference in its 10th year since 2014.

Hannah Grace Tamayo, Project Co-Head for Externals, shared that the preparation for RCon started three months ago in early December of last year, “Indeed, the experience comes with great responsibility as every action and decision requires careful analysis because all that we wish and root for is the collective success of this conference,” Tamayo said.

Furthermore, Denisse Ann Orda, Project Co-Head for Internals, stated that the conference serves as an avenue to discuss the challenges in media,

“It is very important for aspiring media practitioners like us to know the right formula of artificial intelligence’s usage in media without replacing human broadcasters with A.I. anchors, hence the goal of this year’s RCon is to decode that formula for the better future of media with A.I.,” she said.

With more than 600 participants nationwide, RCon attendees must arrive at the Tanghalang PUP on or before 11 AM on March 8, and present their identification cards or IDs for verification purposes.

Registrants may contact puprconreg2024@gmail.com for queries or message the event’s Facebook page through this link.

This year’s PUP RCon is co-presented by FranchiseManila.com, Midoko, Hello Quickfx, Red Images Photography, Outside The Box Co-Working and Study Lounge, Motivo, EON Group, and Caronia PH.

#PUPRCon2024 #PUPRFest2024 #PUPRBOT

Article by Piper Legaspi

Daniel Padilla and Dominic Roque tagged as the mysterious "D" behind viral billboard begging not to break up

Wazzup Pilipinas!?

A billboard along C5 Southbound pleading against a breakup has captured the public's attention and sparked widespread speculation on social media.

The billboard, which bears the message "Wag na tayo mag-break, please" alongside a sad emoticon, is signed only with the initial "D."

A video capturing the billboard, posted by Gifer Fernandez, quickly went viral, amassing 17 million views, 382,000 reactions, 10,000 comments, and 41,000 shares on Facebook. The intriguing message led netizens to speculate about the identity of "D," with actors Dominic Roque and Daniel Padilla emerging as the primary suspects.

Both actors have recently experienced public breakups with their famous partners, Bea Alonzo and Kathryn Bernardo, respectively, fueling rumors about their possible connection to the billboard's heartfelt plea.

As the speculation continues to swirl, neither Roque nor Padilla has come forward to confirm or deny their involvement with the viral billboard campaign.

Meanwhile, netizens were quick to tag Darren Espanto, to which the actor reacted, “Ako talaga ‘to. ‘Di ko lang sinasabi kasi private love life ko HAHHAHAHA Kainis.”

The absence of a clear admission keeps the mystery alive, leaving fans and the general public guessing about the story behind the billboard's public appeal not to end a relationship.