José Rizal

José Rizal was a Filipino nationalist, physician, writer, and polymath whose work helped shape the country’s modern national consciousness. His novels *Noli Me Tangere* and *El Filibusterismo* exposed abuses under Spanish colonial rule and became central texts of Filipino reformist and nationalist thought. Educated in Manila and Europe, Rizal also practiced ophthalmology and pursued interests in science, art, and public service before his execution in 1896.