Francisco J. Santamaría
Encyclopedia
Francisco Javier Santamaría (*Cacaos in Jalapa Municipality
, Tabasco
, September 10, 1886 — †Veracruz
, Veracruz, March 1, 1963) was an influential Mexican
writer and politician who is best remembered for his contributions to the study of Mexican literature and lexicography
; he variously worked or published as a bibliographer
, essayist, geographer, journalist, judge, lawyer, lexicographer, linguist, naturalist
, pedagogue, philologist, and poet. He also served as a Senator of the Republic and as Governor of the State of Tabasco
.
of Cacaos, to a criollo
family of modest means. He began his schooling in Macuspana
and completed his studies in Villahermosa
(then called San Juan Bautista) at the Instituto Juárez, where he graduated with a teaching degree. He subsequently moved to Mexico City
to study law, obtaining his license in 1912.
Beginning at a young age Santamaría demonstrated a talent for composition and an appreciation for the belles-lettres
which would eventually evolve into a prolific career as a writer, lexicographer and linguist; his two most often cited works are the Diccionario General de Americanismos and the Diccionario de Mejicanismos, the second of which is a continuation and completion of Joaquín García Icazbalceta's
original project.
At the start of his political career Santamaría was an outspoken critic of Plutarco Elías Calles
and the Partido Labortista
over which he presided. He was also a close friend and political associate of General Francisco R. Serrano (an inveterate enemy of Calles's), and supported the latter's presidential campaign for the 1925-1928 term, an enterprise which would ultimately end in the murderous defeat of Serrano and his closest associates. Santamaría would be the only one on Elías Calles's hit list
to not fall the night of October 2, 1927, an event known as the "Huitzilac
Massacre," which resulted in the summary execution
s of Serrano and twenty six other generals, and which President Álvaro Obregón
ordered out of fear of military rebellion. His escape and survival would, however, result in years of exile and poverty in the U.S., an account of which he gives in Crónicas del destierro: Desde la ciudad de hierro (Chronicles of Exile: From the Iron City).
After returning to Mexico Santamaría re-entered politics by joining the Institutional Revolutionary Party
(PRI); eventually going on to serve as a Senator of the Republic for Tabasco
from 1940 to 1946. Immediately after the conclusion of his term he was selected by the party as its candidate for the governorship of Tabasco, competed against three opponents and won handedly, reportedly receiving 95% of the votes. As governor he worked to improve his state's educational system and general level of cultural and technological development, while continuing to write books and essays on a variety of subjects.
Francisco Javier Santamaría was a numerary
member of the Academia Mexicana de la Lengua
and held seat
23.
Jalapa, Tabasco
Jalapa is a small city in the Mexican state of Tabasco. It is located at .Jalapa also serves as the administrative centre for the surrounding municipality of the same name, which covers a total surface area of 642.91 km² and, in the year 2000 census, reported a population of 32,773.-External...
, Tabasco
Tabasco
Tabasco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tabasco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 17 municipalities and its capital city is Villahermosa....
, September 10, 1886 — †Veracruz
Veracruz, Veracruz
Veracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
, Veracruz, March 1, 1963) was an influential Mexican
Mexican people
Mexican people refers to all persons from Mexico, a multiethnic country in North America, and/or who identify with the Mexican cultural and/or national identity....
writer and politician who is best remembered for his contributions to the study of Mexican literature and lexicography
Lexicography
Lexicography is divided into two related disciplines:*Practical lexicography is the art or craft of compiling, writing and editing dictionaries....
; he variously worked or published as a bibliographer
Bibliographer
"A bibliographer is a person who describes and lists books and other publications, with particular attention to such characteristics as authorship, publication date, edition, typography, etc. The result of this endeavor is a bibliography...
, essayist, geographer, journalist, judge, lawyer, lexicographer, linguist, naturalist
Naturalist
Naturalist may refer to:* Practitioner of natural history* Conservationist* Advocate of naturalism * Naturalist , autobiography-See also:* The American Naturalist, periodical* Naturalism...
, pedagogue, philologist, and poet. He also served as a Senator of the Republic and as Governor of the State of Tabasco
Governor of Tabasco
List of governors of the Mexican state of Tabasco* Víctor Manuel Barceló served as a governor temporarily when Roberto Madrazo requested license-Source:*...
.
Life and work
Francisco Javier Santamaría was born in 1886 in the rancheríaRanchería
The Spanish word ranchería, or rancherío, refers to a small, rural settlement. In the Americas the term was applied to native villages and to the workers' quarters of a ranch. English adopted the term with both these meanings, usually to designate the residential area of a rancho in the American...
of Cacaos, to a criollo
Criollo (people)
The Criollo class ranked below that of the Iberian Peninsulares, the high-born permanent residence colonists born in Spain. But Criollos were higher status/rank than all other castes—people of mixed descent, Amerindians, and enslaved Africans...
family of modest means. He began his schooling in Macuspana
Macuspana
Macuspana is a city in Macuspana Municipality in the south-central part of the state of Tabasco in southeastern Mexico. The city of Macuspana had a 2005 census population of 30,661 and is the fifth-largest city in the state...
and completed his studies in Villahermosa
Villahermosa
Like most of the Tabasco, Villahermosa has a tropical climate. The city specifically features a tropical monsoon climate. Temperatures during spring and summer seasons reach upwards of 40°C , with humidity levels hovering around 30% during the same period...
(then called San Juan Bautista) at the Instituto Juárez, where he graduated with a teaching degree. He subsequently moved to Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
to study law, obtaining his license in 1912.
Beginning at a young age Santamaría demonstrated a talent for composition and an appreciation for the belles-lettres
Belles-lettres
Belles-lettres or belles lettres is a term that is used to describe a category of writing. A writer of belles-lettres is a belletrist. However, the boundaries of that category vary in different usages....
which would eventually evolve into a prolific career as a writer, lexicographer and linguist; his two most often cited works are the Diccionario General de Americanismos and the Diccionario de Mejicanismos, the second of which is a continuation and completion of Joaquín García Icazbalceta's
Joaquín García Icazbalceta
Joaquín García Icazbalceta was a Mexican philologist and historian. He edited writings by Mexican writers who preceded him, wrote a biography of Juan de Zumárraga, and translated William H. Prescott's Conquest of Mexico...
original project.
At the start of his political career Santamaría was an outspoken critic of Plutarco Elías Calles
Plutarco Elías Calles
Plutarco Elías Calles was a Mexican general and politician. He was president of Mexico from 1924 to 1928, but he continued to be the de facto ruler from 1928–1935, a period known as the maximato...
and the Partido Labortista
Laborist Party
The Mexican Laborist Party was a social democratic political party in Mexico that existed from 1919 to 1940.The PLM was founded by Luis Napoleón Morones, one of Mexico's main union leaders. The PLM functioned as the political branch of the Regional Confederation of Mexican Workers , the country's...
over which he presided. He was also a close friend and political associate of General Francisco R. Serrano (an inveterate enemy of Calles's), and supported the latter's presidential campaign for the 1925-1928 term, an enterprise which would ultimately end in the murderous defeat of Serrano and his closest associates. Santamaría would be the only one on Elías Calles's hit list
Hit list
Hit list or The Hit List may refer to:*Hit List , starring Jan-Michael Vincent*Hit List , a Canadian television series*The Hit List , featuring Cuba Gooding, Jr.*The Hit List...
to not fall the night of October 2, 1927, an event known as the "Huitzilac
Huitzilac
Huitzilac is a city in the Mexican state of Morelos. It stands at and at an altitude of 2,561 m. above sea level.The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name...
Massacre," which resulted in the summary execution
Summary execution
A summary execution is a variety of execution in which a person is killed on the spot without trial or after a show trial. Summary executions have been practiced by the police, military, and paramilitary organizations and are associated with guerrilla warfare, counter-insurgency, terrorism, and...
s of Serrano and twenty six other generals, and which President Álvaro Obregón
Álvaro Obregón
General Álvaro Obregón Salido was the President of Mexico from 1920 to 1924. He was assassinated in 1928, shortly after winning election to another presidential term....
ordered out of fear of military rebellion. His escape and survival would, however, result in years of exile and poverty in the U.S., an account of which he gives in Crónicas del destierro: Desde la ciudad de hierro (Chronicles of Exile: From the Iron City).
After returning to Mexico Santamaría re-entered politics by joining the Institutional Revolutionary Party
Institutional Revolutionary Party
The Institutional Revolutionary Party is a Mexican political party that held power in the country—under a succession of names—for more than 70 years. The PRI is a member of the Socialist International, as is the rival Party of the Democratic Revolution , making Mexico one of the few...
(PRI); eventually going on to serve as a Senator of the Republic for Tabasco
Tabasco
Tabasco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tabasco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 17 municipalities and its capital city is Villahermosa....
from 1940 to 1946. Immediately after the conclusion of his term he was selected by the party as its candidate for the governorship of Tabasco, competed against three opponents and won handedly, reportedly receiving 95% of the votes. As governor he worked to improve his state's educational system and general level of cultural and technological development, while continuing to write books and essays on a variety of subjects.
Francisco Javier Santamaría was a numerary
Numerary
Numerary is a civil designation for persons who are incorporated in a fixed or permanent way to a society or group: regular member of the working staff, permanent staff, or member, distinguished from a supernumerary....
member of the Academia Mexicana de la Lengua
Academia Mexicana de la Lengua
The Academia Mexicana de la Lengua is the correspondent academy in Mexico of the Royal Spanish Academy...
and held seat
Chair (official)
The chairman is the highest officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office is typically elected or appointed by the members of the group. The chairman presides over meetings of the assembled group and conducts its business in an...
23.
Published works
(list not comprehensive)- El artículo 91. 1912
- El periodismo tabasqueño. 1920
- Americanismos y barbarismos. 1921
- Ley orgánica de los tribunales del fuero común en el Distrito y territorios federales, con un apéndice que contiene la Ley de jurados, la Ley de licencias a funcionarios públicos y otras disposiciones. 1923
- Un valioso hallazgo bibliográfico cervantino: la segunda parte de la edición más discutible de "El quijote". 1926
- Glosa lexicográfica. 1926
- Bibliografia general de Tabasco: Tomo I. 1930
- Crónicas del destierro: Desde la ciudad de hierro. Diario de un desterrado mejicano en Nueva York. Recordaciones del destierro. 1933
- Nuevo codigo civil para el distrito y territorios federales. 1933
- Las ruinas occidentales del viejo imperio Maya: en la Sierra del Tortuguero en Macuspana, Tabasco: notas de una excursión. 1933
- Código de procedimientos civiles para el Distrito Federal y territorios: expedido el 30 de agosto de 1932. 1934
- Código civil para el Distrito y territorios federales (vigente desde el 1. de octubre de 1932). 1935
- Diccionario del Código civil para el Distrito y territorios federales. 1935
- Código civil para el Distrito y territorios federales: expedido en 30 de agosto de 1928 ; exposición de motivos, de la Comisión autora del Proyecto. 1935
- Ley orgánica del poder judicial de la federación. 1936
- Datos, materiales i apuntes para la historia del periodismo en Tabasco (1825-1935). 1936
- Ensayo de crítica del lenguaje. 1941
- Diccionario General de Americanismos1942
- El movimiento cultural en Tabasco. 1946
- El verdadero Grijalva : identificación i rectificación históricas-jeográficas, Centla, Potonchán, Santa María de la Victoria 1949
- La poesía tabasqueña : antología, semblanzas literarias 1950
- Documentos históricos de Tabasco. 1950-1951
- Antología folklórica y musical de Tabasco 1952
- Diccionario de mejicanismos: razonado; comprobado con citas de autoridades; comparado con el de americanismos y con los vocabularios provinciales de los más distinguidos diccionaristas hispanamericanos. 1959
- Domingos académicos. 1959
Francisco Javier Santamaría
Governor of TabascoGovernor of TabascoList of governors of the Mexican state of Tabasco* Víctor Manuel Barceló served as a governor temporarily when Roberto Madrazo requested license-Source:*...In office January 1, 1947 - December 31, 1952 Preceded by Noé de la Flor Casanova Noé de la Flor CasanovaNoé de la Flor Casanova was a Mexican lawyer, cantautor, writer, poet and politician who served for four years as Governor of Tabasco, before being removed from office following a scandal....Succeeded by Manuel Bartlett Bautista Manuel Bartlett BautistaManuel Bartlett Bautista was a Mexican journalist, lawyer, judge, and politician who served as Governor of the State of Tabasco for two years, before being pressured to resign....Born September 10, 1886 Birth Place Formerly Cacaos (person now its eponym EponymAn eponym is the name of a person or thing, whether real or fictitious, after which a particular place, tribe, era, discovery, or other item is named or thought to be named...
), Municipality of JalapaJalapa, TabascoJalapa is a small city in the Mexican state of Tabasco. It is located at .Jalapa also serves as the administrative centre for the surrounding municipality of the same name, which covers a total surface area of 642.91 km² and, in the year 2000 census, reported a population of 32,773.-External...
TabascoTabascoTabasco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tabasco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 17 municipalities and its capital city is Villahermosa....Died March 1, 1963 Place of Death Veracruz Veracruz, VeracruzVeracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
, Veracruz de Ignacio de la LlaveSpouse Mercedes Ortiz de Santamaría Profession Educator, lawyer LawyerA lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, and lexicographerPolitical Party Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI)
See also
- Diccionario de la lengua española de la Real Academia EspañolaDiccionario de la lengua española de la Real Academia EspañolaThe Diccionario de la lengua española de la Real Academia Española or DRAE is the most authoritative dictionary of the Spanish language. It is produced, edited, and published by the Real Academia Española ; the first edition was published in 1780...
- Joaquín AmaroJoaquín AmaroJoaquín Amaro Domínguez was a Mexican revolutionary general and military reformer. He served as Secretary of War in the cabinets of Presidents Plutarco Elías Calles, Emilio Portes Gil, and Pascual Ortiz Rubio, making him one of the longest-serving cabinet-level officials in Mexican history...
- Marcos E. BecerraMarcos E. BecerraMarcos E. Becerra was a prolific Mexican writer, poet, and politician. He produced pioneering historical, linguistic, philological, and ethnographic studies relating to his country's pre-Columbian and early colonial past. He held important posts in the Mexican Federal Government as well as in the...
- Andrés BelloAndrés BelloAndrés de Jesús María y José Bello López was a Venezuelan humanist, poet, lawmaker, philosopher, educator and philologist, whose political and literary works constitute an important part of Spanish American culture...
- Miguel Antonio CaroMiguel Antonio CaroMiguel Antonio Caro Tobar was a Colombian scholar, poet, journalist, philosopher, orator, philologist, lawyer and politician.- Biographic data :Miguel Antonio Caro was born in Bogotá on November 10, 1845, and he died in the same city on August 5, 1909....
- Rufino José CuervoRufino José CuervoRufino José Cuervo Urisarri , was a Colombian writer, linguist and philologist.He studied Latin and Greek, but the main part of his work was dedicated to the study of the dialectal variations of Spanish spoken in Colombia...
- Rosario María Gutiérrez EskildsenRosario María Gutiérrez EskildsenMaría del Rosario Gutiérrez Eskildsen was a Mexican lexicographer, linguist, educator, and poet who is remembered for her studies on the regional peculiarities of speech in her home state of Tabasco as well as for her pioneering work as a teacher and pedagogue in Tabasco and Mexico in general...
- María MolinerMaría MolinerMaría Moliner was a Spanish librarian and lexicographer. She is perhaps best-known for her Diccionario de uso del español, first published in 1966-1967, when she completed the work started in 1952.-Biography:María Juana Moliner Ruiz was the eldest daughter of Enrique Moliner, a doctor and son of...
- Ramón Menéndez PidalRamón Menéndez PidalRamón Menéndez Pidal was a Spanish philologist and historian. He worked extensively on the history of the Spanish language and Spanish folklore and folk poetry. One of his main topics was the history and legend of The Cid....
- MeshicoMeshicoMeshico is a term which began to be employed in the middle of the 20th century by a group of Mexican intellectuals connected to the influential magazine Meshico Grande in order to define a philosophical and sociological stance based on an authentic ontology of the Mexican person, one that would...
External links
- Diccionario de la lengua española de la Real Academia Española