Leoncio P. Deriada and the National Language: A Legacy Rooted in Many Tongues

1 of 5

By Noel Galon de Leon

Who was Leoncio P. Deriada, and why does his name continue to echo in discussions of literature and language in the Philippines? In this season of Buwan ng Wikang Pambansa, we are reminded that the celebration of language is also a celebration of lives lived in service of it. Few lived that commitment more fully than Deriada, a prolific writer, a revered mentor, and a tireless cultural worker whose efforts spanned both regional and national spheres.

Born in 1938 in Barotac Viejo, Iloilo and raised in Davao, Leoncio P. Deriada grew up amid linguistic multiplicity. This early exposure to several Philippine languages would not only shape his literary imagination but also his lifelong advocacy. Fluent in English, Filipino, Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a, and Cebuano, he possessed a polyglot mind that allowed him to write compellingly across linguistic boundaries. His facility with language was not merely technical; it was philosophical. He believed that each tongue carried its own unique worldview, and that true Filipino literature must reflect the multiplicity of voices in the archipelago.

Deriada’s distinguished career as a teacher and writer found its home at the University of the Philippines Visayas, where he eventually earned the rank of Professor Emeritus. But his influence reached far beyond the classroom. As director of the Sentro ng Wikang Filipino (SWF) at UP Visayas from the late 1990s into the early 2000s, he steered the institution toward a regionally grounded yet nationally engaged vision. During his tenure, he championed the development of literary works and educational materials in Hiligaynon and Kinaray-a, recognizing that cultural identity is preserved and strengthened through the written word. He also organized writers’ workshops, published anthologies, and collaborated with teachers and local governments to ensure that literature in native languages had a place in both academic and public life.

His vision was not confined to the Western Visayas. As a member of the Executive Council of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) – National Committee on Literary Arts (NCLA), Deriada brought his regional insights to national cultural policymaking. He was instrumental in initiating book projects that showcased literature written in Philippine mother tongues, helping decentralize literary production from the capital and broadening the scope of what was considered “Filipino” literature. He asked difficult but necessary questions: Who defines the national canon? Why are some voices heard more clearly than others? And what happens when literary prestige is limited to works written in only one or two dominant languages?

One of Deriada’s most fascinating contributions to literary theory and practice was what he termed “language engineering.” This involved the creative and intentional blending of local language elements into Filipino prose and poetry, especially the use of Visayan syntax, vocabulary, and idiomatic expressions. The result was what he and others came to describe as “Visayan-laced Filipino,” a vibrant and innovative form of writing that reflected regional color while contributing to the evolution of the national language. This approach inspired a generation of writers not only in the Visayas but across the country, from Bicol and Mindoro to the Cordilleras who began to craft their own regionally inflected versions of Filipino.

Language, for Deriada, was never neutral. It was an active site of identity formation and cultural negotiation. His linguistic choices were deliberate acts of resistance against linguistic centralism and homogeneity. In his eyes, writing in Kinaray-a or Hiligaynon was not a detour from national identity but a deeper engagement with it. His multilingualism was not just a skill but a political stance, one that called for the recognition and inclusion of the diverse linguistic and cultural realities that constitute the Filipino nation.

Throughout his career, Deriada received numerous distinctions for his literary and academic achievements. These included the Gawad CCP Para sa Sining (Literature), the Carlos Palanca Memorial Hall of Fame Award, five Palanca Awards across different categories and languages, the Gawad Pambansang Alagad ni Balagtas from the Unyon ng mga Manunulat sa Pilipinas (UMPIL), a National Book Award from the Manila Critics Circle, the Metrobank Foundation Outstanding Teacher Award, and the Lingkod Bayan Award for Outstanding Government Service from the Civil Service Commission, among others. These recognitions, while prestigious, only tell part of the story. More important than the awards was his enduring commitment to cultivating young voices and building communities.

One such community was Hubon Manunulat, a collective he founded to bring together emerging and established writers from the Western Visayas. The word “hubon” implies a gathering, a union, appropriate for a group that sought not only to write but to work together, to learn from one another, and to foster regional pride through literary production. Hubon became a space for mentorship, for publishing, and for critical dialogue. In many ways, it was Deriada’s response to the loneliness that often accompanies writing in a minor language, a way to say: You are not alone; your voice matters.

Why, then, is it essential to remember Leoncio P. Deriada during Buwan ng Wikang Pambansa? Precisely because his life and work complicate the celebration of a single national language. They remind us that Filipino identity is not singular, but layered and diverse. That “Wika” in this context does not mean just Filipino, but the totality of our linguistic inheritance, Ilokano, Waray, Maranao, Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a, Kapampangan, and many more. Deriada’s legacy urges us to widen the circle of recognition, to include and uplift the languages that have long shaped our people’s lives yet remain on the margins of formal education and cultural policy.

As we mark this annual celebration of the national language, may we remember that to love our language is to love all our languages. May we speak not only in Filipino, but also in Kinaray-a, in Hiligaynon, in Cebuano, in the many mother tongues passed down through generations. May we read and write not just in the center’s voice, but in the voices from the regions. And in doing so, may we continue the work that Leoncio P. Deriada began, not just with words, but with vision, courage, and committed belief in the power of language to tell the nation’s full story.

***

Noel Galon de Leon is a writer and educator at University of the Philippines Visayas, where he teaches in both the Division of Professional Education and U.P. High School in Iloilo. He serves as an Executive Council Member of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts-National Committee on Literary Arts.