Doodlewatch

Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (September 29, 1547 – April 23, 1616) was a Spanish novelist, poet, and playwright. His magnum opus, Don Quixote, considered the first modern novel by many, is a classic of Western literature and is regularly regarded among the best novels ever written. His work is considered among the most important in all of literature. His influence on the Spanish language has been so great, that Spanish is often called la lengua de Cervantes (The language of Cervantes). He has been dubbed el Príncipe de los Ingenios – the Prince of Wits.

Cervantes was born at Alcalá de Henares, the fourth of seven children of Rodrigo de Cervantes, a surgeon born at Alcalá de Henares, and Leonor de Cortinas. Cervantes’ parents were married in 1543. The family’s origins may have been of the minor gentry. Leonor died on October 19, 1593. The family moved from town to town, and little is known of Cervantes’s early years.

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cervantes_Saavedra