Manuel Blanco Ramos facts for kids
Manuel María Blanco Ramos, known as Manuel Blanco (1779 – 1845), was a Spanish friar and botanist. A friar is a member of a religious group, and a botanist is a scientist who studies plants. He is famous for writing one of the first complete books about the plants of the Philippines.
Manuel Blanco's Life and Work
Manuel Blanco was born in 1779 in Navianos de Alba, a town in Castilla y León, Spain. He joined the Augustinian order, which is a group of friars. His first job was in Angat, a place in the Philippines. After that, he had many different assignments across the country.
Later in his life, he became a leader for his order in Manila, the capital of the Philippines. This role allowed him to travel all over the islands. During his travels, he studied the many different plants he found.
Manuel Blanco wrote an important book called Flora de Filipinas. Según el sistema de Linneo. This title means "Flora of the Philippines according to the system of Linnaeus." It was one of the first detailed books about all the plants found in the Philippines. The first two versions of his book, published in 1837 and 1845, did not have any pictures.
After Manuel Blanco passed away in 1845, others worked to create a special illustrated version of his book. This beautiful edition, filled with drawings of plants, was published between 1877 and 1883.
To honor his work, another botanist named Carl Ludwig Blume named a group of plants, the Blancoa genus, after him. These plants belong to the palm family.
See also
In Spanish: Manuel Blanco Ramos para niños
