Leo James English

Who was Leo James English?

Father Leo James English, C.Ss.R. was the Australian compiler and editor of two of among the first most widely used bilingual dictionaries in the Philippines. He was the author of the two companion dictionaries namely, the English–Tagalog Dictionary and the Tagalog–English Dictionary. English saw the successful completion of his dictionaries that were carried out in the course of his 51 years of religious service in the Philippines. He was a member of the Redemptorists or the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, a religious order that has been engaged in preaching missions using the vernacular language in the Philippines for more than seventy years. English was instrumental in the introduction and revision of the Novena to Our Mother of Perpetual Help.