Isabelo de los Reyes Sr. y Florentino, also known as Don Belong (July 7, 1864 – October 10, 1938), was a prominent Filipino patriot, politician, writer, journalist, and labor activist in the 19th and 20th centuries. He was the original founder of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente, a Filipino independent Christian Church in the form of a nationalist church, proclaimed in 1902. He is popularly known today as the "Father of Philippine Folklore", the "Father of the Philippine Labor Movement", and the "Father of Filipino Socialism". As a young man, de los Reyes followed his mother's footsteps by initially turning to writing as a career; his works were part of the 1887 Exposicion General de las Islas Filipinas in Madrid. He later became a journalist, editor, and publisher in Manila, and was imprisoned in 1897 for revolutionary activities. He was deported to the Kingdom of Spain, where he was jailed for his activities until 1898. While living and working in Madrid, he was influenced by the writings of European socialists and Marxists. Returning to the Philippines in 1901, de los Reyes founded the first labor union in the country in 1902. He also was active in seeking independence from the United States. After serving in the Philippine Senate in the 1920s, he settled into private life and religious writing. De los Reyes wrote on diverse topics in history, folklore, language, politics, and religion. He had a total of 27 children with three successive wives from getting widowed each time; he survived all his wives. Early life and education Isabelo de los Reyes was born to Elías de los Reyes and Leona Florentino in Vigan, Ilocos Sur. His mother, of mixed Spanish and Filipino descent, is recognized as the first significant female poet of the Philippines for her works in both Spanish and Ilocano. De los Reyes may have been distantly related to Ventura de los Reyes, a creole merchant who was the first Philippine delegate to the Spanish Cortes through his father's side. He may also have been a "distant cousin" of José Rizal through a Chinese tax collector married to both Rizal's grandmother and de los Reyes' grand-aunt. Due to their troubled marriage, Elías entrusted his six-year-old son Isabelo to the care of Don Marcelino Crisólogo, a wealthy relative who was also a writer in the vernacular. Crisólogo was married to Felipa Florentino, sister to Leona. Beluco, as he was