The Honorable Maris Diokno
10th Chairperson of theNational Historical Commission of the Philippines
In office April 15, 2011 – November 29, 2016
President	Benigno Aquino III Rodrigo Duterte
Preceded by	Ambeth Ocampo
Succeeded by	Rene Escalante
Personal details
Born	Maria Serena Encarnacion Icasiano Diokno (1954-08-16)August 16, 1954 (age 71) Manila,Philippines
Education	SOAS University of London University of the Philippines Diliman

Maria Serena Encarnacion "Maris"Icasiano Diokno (born August 16, 1954)^[1] is a Filipino historian, academic, and former government official best known^[2] for having served as chair of theNational Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP)^[3] and as a Vice-President for Academic Affairs at theUniversity of the Philippines (UP) system.

Diokno was born in Manila on August, 16, 1954. She was the fourth of ten children of Filipino nationalist figure and legislatorSen. Jose W. Diokno and Carmen Icasiano. Her father is considered to be the father of human rights. She is also the older sister of human rights advocateAtty. Jose Manuel Tadeo "Chel" Diokno and the aunt of Chel's son, the independent filmmakerPepe Diokno. Like the rest of the daughters of the Diokno clan, she was educated atSt. Scholastica's College, Manila.^[4] Diokno graduated from UP Diliman and earned a PhD in African and Oriental studies at theUniversity of London in 1983.^[5]

She aided her father at theCommission on Human Rights (CHR), where her father was the founder and first chairman, until theMendiola Massacre caused Maris to resign for the first time in 1987. She later returned for her second government stint to join the NHCP.^[4][6]

Diokno succeeded fellow historianAmbeth Ocampo as chairperson of the NHCP on April 7, 2011.^{[7][better source needed]} She resigned from her position on November 29, 2016, in response to the burial of former dictatorFerdinand Marcos at theLibingan ng mga Bayani.^[8]

She is the grandchild ofGen. Ananías Diokno, who was leader of theVisayan Forces in the Philippine–American War. Ananías is the father of Supreme Court Justice and senatorRamón Diokno. Ananías is also the great-great-grandson of the namesake of Marikina, Gen.Felix Berenguer de Marquina y Fitzgerald. Because of the noble Irish roots of Berenguer de Marquina, Maris is descended from Norman French or English as well as European nobles such as the BelgianSaint Begga, who is her ancestor by forty seven degrees. Diokno is also a descendant of St. Begga's father-in-lawSt. Arnulf of Metz, France. St. Begga is the great-great-grandmother of KingCharlemagne. Diokno is also a descendant of William Boleyn, who is grandfather toElizabeth I of England, and Diokno could trace her roots through the Fitzgerald clan all the way back to the first century A.D.^[4][9]

Maris has taught history, focusing on Asian and Southeast Asian history. She is currently a professor emeritus atUP Diliman. Her expertise in national history is primarily centered on the Philippine Revolution and on the Philippine-American War, of which her great-grandfather Ananías took part in as Governor of Capiz and the first general of the navy.^[10] Diokno has written close to a hundred publications that may be found in multiple libraries worldwide.^[11]

• Diokno family
• Chel Diokno
• José W. Diokno
• Ramón Diokno
• Ananias Diokno
• Francis Garchitorena
• Pepe Diokno
• NHCP
• UP
• University of London
• CHR

• Diokno family
• 20th-century Filipino historians
• Filipino women historians
• 21st-century Filipino historians
• Living people
• 1954 births
• Filipino people of Indian descent

• CS1 Tagalog-language sources (tl)
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use Philippine English from March 2023
• All Wikipedia articles written in Philippine English
• Use mdy dates from March 2023
• All articles lacking reliable references
• Articles lacking reliable references from June 2019