Renato Constantino | |
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| Born | Renato Reyes Constantino (1919-03-10)March 10, 1919 |
| Died | September 15, 1999(1999-09-15) (aged 80) Quezon City, Philippines |
| Alma mater | University of the Philippines Manila (BA) New York University (MA) |
| Occupation(s) | Historian, educator |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2, includingKarina |
| Relatives | Randy David (son-in-law) Kara David (granddaughter) Karmina Constantino (granddaughter) |
Renato Reyes Constantino Sr. (March 10, 1919 – September 15, 1999) was aFilipinohistorian known for being part of theleftist tradition of Philippine historiography. Apart from being a historian, Constantino was also engaged in foreign service, working for the Philippine Mission to theUnited Nations and theDepartment of Foreign Affairs.
He is the father of formerCivil Service Commission ChairpersonKarina Constantino-David and father-in-law ofUniversity of the Philippines Diliman sociologyprofessor emeritusRandy David.
Constantino attended theUniversity of the Philippines where he became the youngest editor of the university's student publication,ThePhilippine Collegian. He wrote editorial columns criticizing PresidentManuel Quezon, which earned the attention of the President by responding to the article in one of his speeches. It was also in UP where he co-founded theAlpha Phi Beta fraternity, alongside 17 other students; professor and future SenatorAmbrosio Padilla served as their Charter Adviser.
When theSecond World War erupted, Constantino fought inBataan and was a member of an intelligence team spying on the Japanese. He also worked as a journalist during the war.
At the conclusion of the war, Constantino joined the Philippine Mission to theUnited Nations from 1946 to 1949 as its Executive Secretary. He worked as a counselor for theDepartment of Foreign Affairs from 1949 to 1951. These exposures to foreign service became the foundations of a book he wrote about the United Nations.
Constantino held professorial positions at the University of the Philippines (Diliman andManila),Far Eastern University,Adamson University, andArellano University. He was also a visiting lecturer in universities in London, Sweden, Japan, Germany, Malaysia and Thailand. He served as a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Contemporary Asia, and Trustee of Focus on the Global South in Bangkok.
He wrote around 30 books and numerous pamphlets and monographs. Among Constantino's well-known books areA Past Revisited andThe Continuing Past.He also wroteThe Making of a Filipino (a biography ofClaro M. Recto),The Essential Tañada (On Statesman and SenatorLorenzo M. Tañada),Neo-colonial Identity and Counter-Consciousness, andThe Nationalist Alternative. Several of his books have been translated into Japanese and The Nationalist Alternative has a Malaysian translation.
Constantino earned various distinctions for his historical work. He received nationalism awards from Quezon City in 1987, Manila in 1988, The Civil Liberties Union in 1988, and theUniversity of the Philippines Manila in 1989. Constantino was also the Manila's Diwa ng Lahi awardee in 1989. He was conferred the Doctor of Arts and Letters(honoris causa) from thePolytechnic University of the Philippines in 1989 and aDoctor of Laws(honoris causa) from theUniversity of the Philippines Diliman in 1990.
For his academic contributions to the struggle against theMarcos dictatorship, his name is inscribed on the Wall of Remembrance at the Philippines'Bantayog ng mga Bayani (Monument of Heroes).[1]
Today, Constantino is regarded as one of the leading Filipino nationalist historians of the mid-20th century, who advocated for a Filipino-centric view of the country's history, alongside his contemporariesTeodoro Agoncillo andHoracio de la Costa.
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