Euros Bowen facts for kids

Euros Bowen (born September 12, 1904 – died April 2, 1988) was a famous Welsh language poet and a priest. He is known for changing and modernizing Welsh poetry.

Early Life and Education

Euros Bowen was born in Treorchy, a town in Wales. His brother, Geraint Bowen, was also a well-known poet. Euros went to many colleges and universities to study. These included the Presbyterian College, Carmarthen, and parts of the University of Wales like University College, Aberystwyth and University College, Swansea. He also studied at Mansfield College, Oxford and St Catherine's College, Oxford.

Becoming a Priest

Euros Bowen first planned to become a Nonconformist minister. However, while he was a student, he decided to join the Anglican Church. After more studies at St David's College Lampeter, he became a priest in the Church in Wales. From 1934 to 1938, he worked as a curate in Wrexham. Later, he became the rector (the main priest) in Llanuwchllyn and Llangywer. These places are located near Lake Bala in Merionethshire. He retired from his church duties in 1973. Euros Bowen spent the rest of his life living in Wrexham.

A Modern Welsh Poet

Euros Bowen started writing poetry seriously in 1947. This was during a very snowy winter when he was stuck at home. He published his first book of poems, Cerddi (which means Poems), when he was in his early 50s. Even though he started later than some, he quickly became famous. He was known for making new and exciting changes to the traditional ways Welsh poetry was written.

Bowen's early poems were full of deep and layered images. He later began writing in free verse, which means poetry without a strict rhythm or rhyme. He also brought new ideas into Welsh poetry from other parts of Europe. Many people compare his influence on Welsh literature to how poets like T. S. Eliot and Ezra Pound changed English poetry. Euros Bowen also worked with prose poems, which are poems written in the style of prose (like a story). His work in this area was ahead of its time.

Euros Bowen saw himself as a Sacramentalist. This means he believed that the images in his poems were like signs that communicated deeper meanings. He is often compared to another priest-poet, R. S. Thomas. However, Bowen's poems often have a more joyful and celebratory tone. He saw changes in nature as communicating personal discoveries and insights.

Awards and Publications

Euros Bowen won the important bardic Crown at the National Eisteddfod of Wales twice. He won in 1948 for his poem O'r Dwyrain and again in 1950 for Difodiant. The National Eisteddfod is a major Welsh festival of literature, music, and performance.

After he retired, Bowen published a collection of his poems. This book included both the original Welsh poems and English versions. Other people, like R. Gerallt Jones and the American poet Joseph P. Clancy, have also translated his poems into English. Euros Bowen also edited a literary magazine called Y Fflam from 1946 to 1952.

Selected Later Works

• Oes y Medwsa (1987)
• Lleidr Tân
• Buarth Bywyd
• Trin Cerddi