This is the first essay in a series of six that narrates the life of Filipino pioneer anthropologist Espiridion Arsenio Manuel (1909-2003). The goal is to flesh out as much as is possible the epic scholar’s epic of a life. Covering the years 1909 to 1927, this essay opens by introducing Manuel, reviews biographical and autobiographical literature about him, and lays out the structure for the series. It describes how the legacies of the Spanish colonial era prefigured his scholarship and how the emergent American political, educational, and cultural systems shaped his life before university. It compares Manuel’s life with that of a predecessor, Isabelo de los Reyes. It then discusses the lives of his parents before turning to the anthropologist’s own. Following a discussion of his youth, it concludes as Manuel is set to enter the University of the Philippines in 1927
Keywords: Anthropology, folklore, E. Arsenio Manuel, Isabelo de los Reyes, Nueva Ecija, colonial educationnan