UP Visayas launches first Padya Leoncio P. Deriada award

By Mariela Angella P. Oladive

The University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV), through the Division of Humanities, formally launched the first Padya Leoncio P. Deriada Para sa Panulatan (Open Category) on Nov. 21 at the Performing Arts Hall of the UPV Museum of Art and Cultural Heritage.

The newly named literary contest honors Dr. Leoncio P. Deriada, celebrated as the “Father of Contemporary West Visayan Literature.”

Dr. Deriada was a Palanca Hall of Famer, Taboan Lifetime Awardee, and prolific fictionist, poet, and playwright whose work elevated the prominence of West Visayan writing.

He championed the use of Western Visayan mother languages such as Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a, and Akeanon, enabling younger writers to flourish in their native tongues.

Although this year marks the first formal launch of the Padya Deriada, the Open Category was introduced in 2024 under the former Leoncio P. Deriada Literary Prize with short story and creative nonfiction as its initial genres.

With increased funding and institutional support from the UPV Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Extension (OVCRE) led by VCRE Prof. Encarnacion Emilia S. Yap, the contest returns with a new name and higher cash prizes.

In her message, Prof. Dulce Maria Deriada, daughter of Dr. Deriada, traced the contest’s evolution since its inception in 2021 when it was conceptualized by the literature cluster during the pandemic to recognize the achievements of Bachelor of Arts in Literature students.

She recalled calls to open the competition to the public, which materialized last year through OVCRE’s special project funding, drawing an overwhelming number of entries nationwide and prompting the postponement of winners’ announcements.

She said judges described the contest as “refreshing and exciting,” even considering it a Visayas counterpart to national competitions such as the Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards and the National Committee on Literary Arts (NCLA) Gawad Bienvenido Lumbera.

The award’s strong reception prompted efforts to institutionalize it under its new name to give it a distinct regional identity.

“The institutionalization of the Padya Deriada ensures its funding and continuity,” she said. “The contest will not only be a venue for writers in the country to showcase their creative writing skills in Filipino and English; it will also be an opportunity for writers in the region to join a writing competition that caters to the languages of West Visayas.”

The contest is envisioned to become UPV’s signature literary distinction, similar to UP Diliman’s Gawad Plaridel and UP Los Baños’ Gandingan Awards.

VCRE Yap reaffirmed OVCRE’s backing and stressed the need to recognize creative outputs alongside scientific research.

She also announced plans to introduce a citation in the university’s service and chancellor’s awards to honor faculty members from the Division of Humanities who have won a Palanca.

In her closing remarks, Prof. Mary Oveta Villareal underscored the importance of the humanities amid moral, political, and environmental crises.

“We need to nurture sensitivity,” she said. “Literature provides us the room for rumination with our inner selves. Literary writing should be promoted for us to recover our lost humanity. The university, as a bastion of civilization, has to be at the forefront of championing the significant role of the humanities in society.”

She thanked the OVCRE for its support and encouraged writers to submit their entries.

The Padya Leoncio P. Deriada Para sa Panulatan (Open Category) is open to all Filipino writers, except UPV students who may instead join the Student Category of the Leoncio P. Deriada Literary Prize.

This year’s genres are poetry and one-act play, with divisions in regional languages—Hiligaynon, Kinaray-a, Akeanon—and other languages, including Filipino and English.

Prizes for both genres are as follows:

• First Prize: PHP 15,000
• Second Prize: PHP 10,000
• Third Prize: PHP 7,000

Submissions are open until Nov. 30, 2025.