author
Ferdinand Blumentritt
1853–1913
A Prague-born educator and ethnographer, he became one of the most important European scholars of the Philippines and a trusted friend of José Rizal. His writings on Philippine history, geography, and peoples helped shape how the country was studied and understood abroad.
1 Audiobook
Versuch einer Ethnographie der Philippinen
by Ferdinand Blumentritt
About the author
Born in Prague on September 10, 1853, Ferdinand Blumentritt was an Austrian-Bohemian teacher, school principal, lecturer, and writer. Although he lived in Central Europe, he devoted much of his scholarly work to the Philippines, publishing studies on its ethnography, history, and geography.
He is especially remembered for his close friendship with José Rizal. Their long correspondence became an important record of the intellectual and political world surrounding Rizal and the reform movement, and Blumentritt remained one of Rizal's most loyal supporters.
Blumentritt died in Litoměřice on September 20, 1913. In the Philippines, his name has endured not only because of his friendship with Rizal, but also because he was one of the earliest European scholars to take the country and its cultures seriously on their own terms.