National Artist for Literature Resil Mojares dies at 83

National Artist for Literature Resil Mojares has died. He was 83.

In a statement, the Ateneo de Manila University Press on Saturday announced the passing of one of its “most treasured authors” on Saturday.

“The Press will remember him not only for his works, but also his generosity, warmth, and endless curiosity. May his soul rest in peace,” it said.

Mojares was conferred the title of National Artist for Literature in 2018 in recognition of his contributions to Philippine literature and scholarship.

In a social media post, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) paid tribute to Mojares, recognizing him as a leading figure in the promotion of regional literature and history.

As the founding director of the Cebuano Studies Center, an institution that helped put Cebu on the map for research and documentation, Mojares also played a pioneering role in shaping Cebuano and national identity.

For more than five decades, Mojares contributed to cultural and literary history through various forms of writing, including fiction, essays, journalism, scholarly articles, and books, while actively engaging with numerous organizations.

Among his notable works published by the Ateneo de Manila University Press were “Theater in Society,” “Society in Theater: Social History of a Cebuano Village, 1840–1940 (1985),” “The War against the Americans: Resistance and Collaboration in Cebu, 1899–1906 (1999),” and “Waiting for Mariang Makiling: Essays in Philippine Cultural History (2002).”

He also authored “Brains of the Nation: Pedro Paterno, T.H. Pardo de Tavera, Isabelo de los Reyes, and the Production of Modern Knowledge (2008),” edited the two-volume “Sugilanong Sugboanon (2009),” and wrote Interrogations in “Philippine Cultural History: The Ateneo de Manila Lectures (2017)” and “Enigmatic Objects: Notes towards a History of the Museum in the Philippines (2023).”

—Jade Veronique Yap/JCB, GMA News