via Sun Star, 08 April 2023: Ferdinand Magellan’s expedition to the Philippines in 1521, as documented by chronicler Antonio Pigafetta, was aided by Enrique de Malacca, a slave-interpreter who was able to communicate with the locals in Cebuano and Malay.
According to Italian linguist Alessandro Bausani: “Probably only a certain amount of words were directly heard from the natives questioned by Pigafetta… through gestures.” He adds that “for the knowledge of the rest of them Pigafetta was indebted” to Enrique. Regarding the place where Pigafetta composed his list, “the most prudent opinion is that he composed it after his return to Europe, utilizing miscellaneous notes taken in different places, and that the majority of his words were collected from the Malay speaking slave Henrique.” He adds that this slave is his “teacher.”
A professional interpreter from New York, Ewandro Magalhães, writes with confidence that Enrique participated in the Pigafetta compilation: “Pigafetta kept a journal of the expedition’s activities. He also compiled the first phrase books in history, with the help of Henry (italics supplied).”
Scholars like Dr. Ben Kadil, history professor from Mindanao State University, and Dr. Raymund Liongson, Philippine Studies expert from UH Leeward Community College, believe that Enrique was the “main source” in the production of Pigafetta’s glossary of the “heathen people.”
