Paz Soldán Family
Paz Soldán Family
Paz Soldán family, an aristocratic Peruvian family active in government hroughout much of the nineteenth century. With roots in the early colonial period, the family helped shape the national government and intellectual life in Peru through the major heads of its household. One of the more notable descendants of the line was Mariano Felipe Paz Soldán (1821–1886), who wrote one of the earliest and most caustic histories of the struggle for independence in Peru. In the 1860s he also planned a model prison in Lima, where inmates were to be trained in useful trades. José Gregorio Paz Soldán (1808–1875), a leader among liberals before the era of Ramón Castilla, voiced these views as editor of the newspaper El Constitucional, and later he served as rector of the National University of San Marcos. As minister of foreign relations under President Castilla, he organized short courses in international law, protocol, and foreign languages, upgrading Peru's foreign service to one of the most respected in Latin America. Pedro Paz Soldán y Unanue (1839–1895), a poet and essayist, wrote bitterly against obvious signs of ethnic and cultural change, especially the Chinese influence, in an aristocratic Peru he hoped would remain unspoiled. The essay, published under the pseudonym Juan de Arona, appeared as La inmigración en el Perú (1891). Other members of the Paz Soldán family also left their mark in letters and public administration.
Edmundo Paz Soldan is a Latin American Literature professor at Cornell (in 1999) and winner of the 1997 Juan Rulfo Short Story Prize.
Mariano Domingo's brother José Gregorio (1808–1875) was senator and prime minister of Perú. He bought the San Isidro hacienda, later a residential district as well as the financial district of Lima.
Mateo (1812–1857) was a mathematician, geographer, astronomer, and mastered ten languages. He wrote books on astronomy and trigonometry and was friend of French mathematician Cauchy. He authored a geographical atlas of Perú, published posthumously by his brother Mariano Felipe.
The younger child of Manuel, Mariano Felipe (1821–1886), wrote a landmark history book Historia del Perú Independiente and was minister of justice and education of Peru.
Manuel Rouaud y Paz Soldán (1839–1872) explored the Amazon River. In the first trip he lost a leg due to arrow wounds from a skirmish with natives and in a second exploration trip he died from an infectious disease.
Pedro Paz Soldán y Unanue, also known as Juan de Arona, (1839–1895), was a poet, journalist, traveler and keen observer of his times. He wrote the first dictionary of Peruvian slang Diccionario de Peruanismos in 1883.
Francisco Alayza y Paz Soldán (1873–1946) was minister of state for two presidents of Peru.
Luis Alayza y Paz Soldan (b. 1883), was a lawyer, president of the Central Bank of Perú, and minister of justice. He wrote a ten-volume compendium of Peruvian folklore Mi País.
Carlos Enrique Paz Soldán y Paz Soldán (1885–1972) was a doctor and pioneer in social medical policy and research. He participated in the organization of the World Health Organization, was a founder of the Peruvian Medicine History Society, and a national chess champion.
Luiz Ortiz de Zevallos Paz Soldán (b. 1910) was a founder of the Urban Studies Institute.
José Pareja Paz Soldán was a professor and director of the Diplomatic Academy of Perú. He wrote many textbooks on diplomacy. He has published books on history, geography, constitutional law and airspace law.
See alsoEducation: Overview; Literature: Spanish America; Science.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Magnus Mörner, The Andean Past: Land, Societies, and Conflicts (1985), esp. pp. 120-187.
Paul Gootenberg, Imagining Development; Economic Ideas in Peru's "Fictitious Prosperity" of Guano, 1840–1880 (1993).
Additional Bibliography
Quiñonez, Ernesto and Paz Soldán, Edmundo. El vendedor de sueños. Lima: Santillana USA, 2001.
Sánchez-Blake, Elvira E. and Maria Nowakowska Stycos. Voces hispanas, siglo XXI: Entrevistas con autores en DVD. New Haven, CT: Yale University, 2004.
Vincent Peloso