About the identity of "Pío Quinto", a supposed barojian pseudonym

Abstract

Scholars have used to attribute to Pío Baroja the articles published under the "nom the plume" Pío Quinto. The fact these articles have been included in the latest edition of his Obras completas only add to the academic belief in Pío Quinto as a pseudonym of Baroja. However, the reasons underlying the attribution are not concluding, and the Basque writer never mentioned this "nom de plume". Pío Quinto wrote 24 articles. The articles themselves are mainly of the anti-Catholic genre. This strong stance against clericalism allows us to look for the reply of the conservative press, which was finally to point to the identity hidden beneath the pseudonym: the priest José Ferrándiz, in rebellion against the Church during Pío Quinto's time. The texts themselves seem to be better in line with Ferrándiz's Bildung and circumstances. Also, when Ferrándiz re-enters the Church around 1915, he writes a text showing his repentance, where he quotes his articles as Pío Quinto. Then, all seems to indicate that the pen name Pío Quinto does not belong to Pío Baroja, but to the churchman José Ferrándiz.