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Philippines

A large wave crashes in a stormy ocean
Photo by Todd Turner on Unsplash
The Strength of Water
By Gawani Gaongen
“Do not make the water angry,” they say.
Translated from Kankanaey by the author
Multilingual
A portrait of writer Miguel Syjuco
The City and the Writer: In Manila with Miguel Syjuco
By Nathalie Handal
Architectural gems crumble on street corners, shrouded in grit till they’re decreed too ugly to save.
February-2022-Kristian-Sendon-Cordero-Interview-Kristian-Sendon-Cordero-Featured
Kristian Sendon Cordero. Photo copyright © Boyet Abrenica.
“The Varied Temperaments of Languages”
By Soleil Davíd
Not so many people think of the local languages as literary languages.
Various wooden letter blocks
Photo by Amador Loureiro on Unsplash
9 Writers to Read on International Mother Language Day
By Words Without Borders
We highlight 9 writers working in their heritage languages, from Galician and Cebuano to Guaraní and Kaaps.
Multimedia
The Voices of Contact Languages in Asia: An Introduction
By Stefanie Shamila Pillai
For multilingual writers, choosing to write in their heritage languages can be seen as an expression of agency, an active choice to communicate in a nondominant language.
Eyes of the Wave
By Francis C. Macansantos
Eyes of blue-green watch you, / Dimpled smiles hidden in water.
Translated from Zamboangueño Chavacano by the author
MultimediaMultilingual
Mr. Marcos (A Soliloquy)
By Francis C. Macansantos
The moon taunts, smiles, / “Come into my parlor, old man.”
Translated from Zamboangueño Chavacano by the author
MultimediaMultilingual
The Husband and His Brother
By Björn Halldórsson
When Böddi came back to Iceland a month later, he was engaged.
Translated from Icelandic by Larissa Kyzer
MultimediaMultilingual
Birds in Flight, 1965
By Enrique Villasis
Not as a multitude, but as one.
Translated from Filipino by Bernard Capinpin
MultimediaMultilingual
A Note from Contest Judge David Tomas Martinez
It was an Hunahpúan effort to choose only four poems from this extraordinarily strong pool of poems.
The Man with a Thousand Names
By R. Joseph Dazo
Aren’t you the one with the tattoos?
Translated from Cebuano by John Bengan
Multilingual
Framing the Story: Six Graphic Narratives
By Susan Harris
These artists capture both words and images to convey narratives individual and collective.
The View
By Marlon Hacla & Apol Sta. Maria
An escalating inquiry into the passage of time.
Translated by Kristine Ong Muslim
(Re)writing the Philippines: An Introduction
By Kristian Sendon Cordero & Kristine Ong Muslim
The works we have selected challenge a monolithic view of the fragmented histories and interconnected, overlapping cultures in the Philippines.
Translated from Filipino by Kristine Ong Muslim
from “Remains”
By Daryll Delgado
Coconut trees, palm fronds gone. Decapitated.
Water
By Voltaire Oyzon
Three or four days / he hangs out in our house.
Translated from Waray by Merlie M. Alunan
Multilingual
“Languages Constantly Crackling in the Air”
By Words Without Borders
Not enough is known about the Philippines.
Norebang
By Genevieve L. Asenjo
We belt out everything from ABBA to K-pop, to “Ang Pasko ay Sumapit,” grinding and wiggling.
Translated from Filipino by Michelle Tiu Tan
Multilingual
Three spheres floating on a dark grey background.
Photo by Hassaan Here on Unsplash.
Juggler
By Mesándel Virtusio Arguelles
How does one grasp making / sense of timing when to hurl and when to catch?
Translated from Filipino by Kristine Ong Muslim
MultimediaMultilingual
Erlina’s Sugilanon
By Tito Genova Valiente
Actually, the night Erlina first saw an Onglo was the night the creature was regenerating his power.
A Planned Brief Documentary on a Teenage Boy in a Badjao Village
By M. J. Cagumbay Tumamac
Like a fish / in an aquarium, you are a source of distress and distraction.
Translated from Filipino by Kristine Ong Muslim
MultimediaMultilingual
Can’t Go Out
By Elizabeth Joy Serrano-Quijano
I want to cry and look for Papa, but I can’t go out.
Translated from Cebuano by John Bengan
Multilingual
Birds of Paradise, 1965
By Enrique Villasis
In the mind, a flock of birds, feathers from an unshakable, shadowy thing.
Translated from Filipino by Bernard Capinpin
Multilingual
from “Melismas”
By Marlon Hacla
What / are the things we need to prepare?
Translated from Filipino by Kristine Ong Muslim
Multilingual