The fisherman protagonist in The Old Man and the Sea is named Santiago.
Santiago is an aging Cuban fisherman who has gone 84 days without catching a fish. On the 85th day, he sails far into the Gulf Stream and hooks a giant marlin, beginning an exhausting struggle that lasts several days. The contest tests his endurance, skill, pride, and respect for the natural world.
The novella also centers on Santiago’s relationship with Manolin, a boy he has taught to fish. Manolin’s parents make him work on another boat after Santiago’s unlucky streak, but the boy remains loyal and continues helping the old fisherman.
The name Santiago carries symbolic weight: it is Spanish for Saint James, traditionally associated with fishermen and Spain. Readers sometimes choose Manolin because he is the other major fishing character, but Manolin is Santiago’s young companion and apprentice, not the protagonist. Hemingway published the novella in 1952; it won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1953.