The Great Novel: Noli Me Tangere, El Filibusterismo & Rizal’s First Homecoming

Vocabulary cards cover major novels, characters, historical figures, projects, organizations, events, places and key concepts from the lecture on José Rizal’s Noli Me Tangere, El Filibusterismo, and related life episodes.

Noli Me Tangere

José Rizal’s first novel (1887, Berlin); a Spanish-language romantic-social satire that awakened Filipino nationalism; title means “Touch Me Not.”

The Social Cancer

Charles Derbyshire’s English translation (alternate title) of Noli Me Tángere.

El Filibusterismo

Rizal’s second novel (1891, Ghent); a political sequel to Noli portraying revenge and revolution; English title “The Reign of Greed.”

Circulo Hispano-Filipino

Madrid-based Filipino club to whom Rizal first proposed a collaborative book project before deciding to write Noli himself.

Maximo Viola

Rizal’s friend who financed the printing of 2,000 Noli copies in Berlin with ₱300.

Governor-General Emilio Terrero

Liberal Spanish governor who summoned Rizal over Noli, assigned him a bodyguard, and later banned the novel under Church pressure.

Commission of Censorship

Colonial body that branded Noli subversive and recommended its prohibition.

Father Vicente Garcia

Filipino priest-scholar who publicly defended Noli under the pen-name Justo Desiderio Magalang (1888).

Ferdinand Blumentritt

Austrian friend and correspondent of Rizal; premier foreign defender of his works.

Crisóstomo Ibarra

Protagonist of Noli; Europe-educated Filipino heir who seeks social reforms through education.

Simoun

Ibarra’s disguised identity in El Fili—a wealthy jeweler plotting violent revolution.

Maria Clara

Ibarra’s sweetheart; reputed daughter of Capitan Tiago but actually fathered by Father Dámaso.

Father Dámaso

Franciscan friar; antagonist in Noli, biological father of Maria Clara and nemesis of the Ibarra family.

Elias

Mysterious boatman in Noli who saves Ibarra and symbolizes the oppressed masses.

Sisa

Tragic mother of Basilio and Crispin in Noli who descends into insanity after losing her sons.

Basilio

Sisa’s elder son; becomes a medical student in El Fili and later joins Simoun.

Crispin

Sisa’s younger son falsely accused of theft and killed by soldiers.

Capitán Tiago

Don Santiago de los Santos; wealthy opium trader, foster father of Maria Clara.

Pilosopong Tasio

Don Anastasio; town eccentric and social critic representing misunderstood intellect.

Doña Victorina

Filipina who pretends to be Spanish; satirizes colonial mentality.

Padre Sibyla

Dominican friar; vice-rector of UST, ally of conservative clergy.

Padre Salvi

Bernardo Salvi; scheming friar in Noli and El Fili, secret admirer of Maria Clara.

Alférez

Chief of the Guardia Civil in Noli; secular rival of the friars for town power.

Don Tiburcio de Espadaña

Doña Victorina’s limp, hen-pecked husband who poses as a doctor.

Quiroga

Chinese merchant in El Fili who stores Simoun’s weapons hoping to be China’s consul.

Isagani

Idealistic poet-student, friend of Basilio; saves wedding guests by hurling Simoun’s lamp into the river.

Kabesang Tales

Telesforo Juan de Dios; dispossessed farmer who becomes bandit Matanglawin in El Fili.

Don Custodio

Journalist-bureaucrat in El Fili who shelves the students’ Spanish academy plan.

Juli

Kabesang Tales’s daughter; Basilio’s fiancée who commits suicide to escape Father Camorra.

Father Florentino

Retired secular priest who hears Simoun’s confession and casts his treasure into the sea.

GOMBURZA

Martyr priests Gómez, Burgos & Zamora—El Fili’s dedication honors their 1872 execution.

Kidlat Club

Paris social group organized by Rizal (1889) for young Filipinos; precursor to Indios Bravos.

Indios Bravos

Patriotic society formed in France aiming to prove Filipino excellence in diverse fields.

Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas

Antonio Morga’s 1609 chronicle annotated by Rizal and published (Paris, 1890).

Hymn to Labor (Himno al Trabajo)

Rizal’s 1888 poem celebrating industrious Lipa, Batangas.

Borneo Colonization Project

Rizal’s 1892 plan to resettle landless Filipinos on 100,000 acres in British North Borneo; rejected by Gov.-Gen. Despujol.

La Liga Filipina

Reformist civic league founded by Rizal in Manila (3 July 1892) promoting unity, mutual aid, and peaceful reforms.

Andrés Bonifacio

Katipunan leader who joined and later revived La Liga after Rizal’s arrest.

Dapitan

Remote Jesuit town in Mindanao where Rizal was exiled (1892-1896) and practiced medicine, education and community projects.

Doctor Uliman

Nickname given to Rizal in Calamba for his German training and medical skill.

Sulpukan

Wooden cigarette lighter invented by Rizal (Calamba, 1887) using compressed air.

Cooperative Association of Dapitan Farmers

Rizal-organized 1895 coop aimed at better market access and fair prices for local produce.

Hymn to Talisay (Himno a Talisay)

Song-poem Rizal wrote for his pupils in Dapitan, named after the talisay tree classroom.

Cry of Balintawak

August 26 1896 revolt launching the Philippine Revolution, discovered by Fr. Mariano Gil.

Fort Santiago

Spanish fortress in Manila where Rizal was imprisoned before trial and execution.

Valentín Ventura

Paris-based friend who subsidized El Fili’s final printing when Rizal’s funds ran short.

F. Meyer-Van Loo Press

Ghent printer that produced El Filibusterismo on 18 September 1891.

Sucesos annotation purpose

Rizal used Morga’s work to show pre-colonial Filipino civilization and refute Spanish claims of cultural inferiority.

Romantic vs. Political Novel

Noli is termed “work of the heart” (romantic/social), while El Fili is “work of the head” (political/vengeful).

Simoun’s Lamp

Kerosene bomb disguised as wedding gift intended to destroy Manila elite in El Fili.

Doctor-Engineer-Teacher

Roles Rizal assumed in Dapitan—built water system, ran a free clinic and informal school.

Lottery Ticket No. 9736

Winning ticket shared by Rizal, Capt. Carnicero & Francisco Equilor; funded land purchase in Talisay.

Cooperativa de Dapitan

Alternative Spanish name for Rizal’s farmers’ cooperative.

Pablo Mercado Incident

1893 attempt by Recollect-hired spy Florencio Namana to infiltrate Rizal’s Dapitan life.

Draco rizali

Flying lizard species named after Rizal for specimens he sent to European museums.

Sainz de Veranda

Former Terrero secretary who shadowed Rizal in Hong Kong (1888) as Spanish spy.

Oceanic

American steamer that carried Rizal from Hong Kong to Japan in 1888.

Belgic

English steamer Rizal boarded from Japan to the United States (April 1888).

Biarritz

French resort where Rizal finished the manuscript of El Filibusterismo (29 March 1891).

La Solidaridad

Propaganda-movement newspaper to which Rizal contributed under the pen-names Laong Laan and Dimas Alang.

Sedition vs. Reform

Spanish authorities equated Noli with sedition, while Rizal insisted it advocated peaceful reform, not rebellion.

Gubernatorial Bodyguard

Lt. José Taviel de Andrade, officer assigned to protect Rizal after Noli controversy.

Hymn to Labor’s Theme

Glorifies industry and cooperative effort as means to community prosperity.

Hemp-Stripping Machine

Device Rizal introduced in Dapitan to improve abacá fiber production efficiency.

La Liga’s Goals

Unity, mutual protection, defense against injustice, promotion of education, agriculture & commerce, and peaceful reform study.

Josephine Bracken

Irish-Filipina who became Rizal’s common-law wife in Dapitan; mother of his short-lived son Francisco.

Katipunan Consultation

July 1896 visit of Dr. Pío Valenzuela to Dapitan seeking Rizal’s approval for planned revolution, which he withheld.