Author, Social Reformer. He was a Filipino author, propagandist, educator, and reformist. Born the eldest of three sons in the mining town of Mambulao, Camarines Norte, Philippines, he became one of the fiercest proponents of reforms in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial period. In honor of him, his hometown was renamed on December 1, 1934, to Maria Panganiban. After his mother's death, he became the protégé of Holy Rosary Minor Seminary for his education, learning Latin, and was soon recognized for his many abilities by high government officials, earning a chance for further education in Spain. He attended the College of San Juan de Letran, obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1883. After graduation, he studied medicine at the University of Santo Tomas and, at the same time, took vocational courses in agriculture at Letranin in 1885, receiving the title of Agricultural Expert. His writing skills received awards in competitions. Besides Spanish, he learned German, Italian, and French and began to translate books in these languages into Spanish. As an author, he published poems and short stories. Among his poems were "Ang Lupang Tinubuan," "Noches en Mambulao," "Sa Aking buhay," "Bahia de Mambulao," "La Mejerde Oro," and "Amor mio." Published posthumously, his two short stories were "Clarita Pere" and "Kandeng." While in Spain, he met with other Filipino propagandists and joined reformist groups like the Asociacion Hispano-Filipina and "La Solidaridad." Using the pennames of S J.M.P. and Jomapa, Panganiban became one of the main writers of the publications of "La Solidaridad." Politically, he was one of the signatories of the petition addressed to the Spanish minister of Colonies requesting Filipino representation at the Spanish Cortes, and he fought for freedom of the press and criticized the educational system in the Philippines. While in Spain, he lived in near poverty without food for days and battled tuberculosis. His crusade for reforms was cut short when he died on August 19, 1890, in Barcelona. Originally, he was buried in the Southwest Cemetery of Barcelona, which is also known as Cementiri de Montjuic. On February 1, 1985, his remains were repatriated to his hometown, Maria Panganiban, in the Philippines and placed under a monument with a nine-foot-tall bronze statue of him honoring a pen. In 1930, a bust monument considered his oldest existing monument, was erected in front of the high school in his hometown. Upon the school being demolished in 2013, the bust was restored after nearly being lost to time and is an exhibit at the Holy Rosary Minor Seminary museum.