RENOWNED ARTLETS alumna and researcher Ma. Cecilia Locsin-Nava has been honored with the Gawad Balagtas, a lifetime achievement award for Filipino writers, for her contribution to the field of literary history and translation.
Nava, a UST English literature alumna, received the accolade on Saturday, April 27, during the 50th National Writers’ Congress at the University of Philippines Diliman.
A Hiligaynon scholar, Nava is acclaimed for her specialization in the literature and culture of Western Visayas.
Among those she penned is her translation of the novel Margosatubig: The Story of Salagunting by Philippine national artist for literature Ramon Muzones, which was conferred with the Juan C. Laya Prize for Best Novel in foreign language in 2012.
In 2016, Nava was recognized as the first recipient of the Researcher’s Prize awarded by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts.
Nava finished her bachelor’s degree at UST and obtained her master’s degree in English literature at Ateneo de Manila. She finished her doctorate in Philippine studies at the University of the Philippines.
She also served as the former dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod City.
Introduced in 1988, the Gawad Pambansang Alagad ni Balagtas is an award conferred to outstanding Filipino authors who contributed to the development of Filipino literature.
Other recipients of the 2024 Gawad Pambansang Alagad ni Balagtas were Antonio Aguilar, Jr. (Hiligaynon poetry and fiction) Gene Alcantara (essay and translation), Maria Felisa Batacan (fiction in English), Jim Chiu Hung (Chinese poetry and essay), Apolonio Chua (criticism in Filipino), Jimmuel Naval (fiction in Filipino), Fatima Lim-Wilson (poetry in English), and Felice Prudente Sta. Maria (essay in English).
This year’s ceremony was held by Unyon ng mga Manunulat sa Pilipinas (UMPIL), the country’s largest organization of Filipino writers. F
