Norberto Romualdez


Norberto Romuáldez y López was a Philippine writer, politician, jurist, and statesman. He was the first Lopez-Romuáldez to attain national prominence, and is deemed the "Father of the Law on the National Language". He was the eldest son of Doña Trinidad Lopez-Romualdez, the Romualdez grand matriarch, and uncle of First Lady of the Philippines Imelda Romualdez Marcos, the daughter of his youngest brother Vicente Orestes Lopez Romualdez.

Biography

Born to the prominent Lopez clan of Leyte, he is the grandson of Spanish friar and silversmith Don Francisco Lopez. Romuáldez grew up in Leyte, where the Lopez family owned vast coconut and abaca plantations, and first achieved status as a writer in the Waray-Waray language. His first Waray zarzuela was An Pagtabang ni San Miguel.
In 1908, Romuáldez wrote Bisayan Grammar and Notes on Bisayan Rhetoric and Poetic and Filipino Dialectology, a treatise on the grammar of the Waray-Waray language. The following year he founded the Sanghiran san Binisaya ha Samar ug Leyte for the purpose of promoting and intellectualizing Waray-Waray. Romuáldez was also fluent in other languages like Spanish, English, and Cebuano.
Romuáldez served as an Associate Justice of the Philippine Supreme Court during the American Period. He was also a participant in the 1934-1935 Constitutional Convention which resulted in the 1935 Constitution for the Philippine Commonwealth.
Romuáldez died in 1941 after an undisclosed illness.

Writings

Linguistics