Google Doodle Celebrating Luisa de Medrano's 538th Birthday
Today’s Doodle celebrates the 538th birthday of Luisa de Medrano, a poet, and philosopher who is considered Spain’s first female professor.
On this day in 1484, De Medrano was born in Atienza, Spain, which is now Guadalajara. During the Conquest of Granada, a conflict that would unify Spain under Catholic rule, her father, a member of the "Twelve Lineages of Soria" military order, was killed in action.
In recognition of the family's devotion, the Catholic Monarchs adopted Luisa and her brothers and nurtured them as honorable children. De Medrano studied alongside royal children while being instructed in history, culture, and humanist philosophy by Queen Isabella I.
De Medrano made history by becoming the first female professor at the University of Salamanca in the early 16th century, where it is thought that she taught Latin and when the majority of women were unable to pursue an education.
The Luisa de Medrano International Prize is presented to people who advance gender equality by the Spanish organisation Instituto de la Mujer, Castilla-La Mancha as a tribute to her legacy. In addition, she inspired the name of IES Lucia de Medrano, a high school in Salamanca.
Happy birthday, Luisa de Medrano! Your story continues to inspire and empower women to break old molds.