Martí de Riquer i Morera facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
The Most Excellent
Martí de Riquer i Morera
8th Count of Casa Dávalos
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| Born | 3 May 1914 Barcelona, Spain
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| Died | 17 September 2013 (aged 99) Barcelona, Spain
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| Awards | Creu de Sant Jordi |
| Seat H of the Real Academia Española | |
| In office 16 May 1965 – 17 September 2013 |
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| Preceded by | Federico García Sanchiz |
| Succeeded by | Félix de Azúa |
Martí de Riquer i Morera (born May 3, 1914 – died September 17, 2013) was a famous Spanish expert in literature and languages. He was known around the world for his knowledge of Romance languages and their literature. These are languages like Spanish, French, and Italian, which come from Latin.
Martí de Riquer was also a nobleman. He held the title of the 8th Count of Casa Dávalos. His career as a writer and scholar lasted for 70 years, from 1934 to 2004.
Contents
Early Life and Public Service
Martí de Riquer was born in Barcelona, Spain, in 1914. His grandfather was Alexandre de Riquer i Ynglada. In 1956, Martí brought back his family's noble title, Count of Casa Dávalos.
He served in the Spanish Civil War on the Nationalist side. Later, he worked in the propaganda service. In 1977, King Juan Carlos I of Spain chose him to be a senator. A senator is a member of a country's parliament.
He also became the head of the Romance literature section at the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC). This is a very important scientific research council in Spain.
His Work as a Scholar
Martí de Riquer was a very respected scholar. He was a member of the Real Academia Española starting in 1965. This is the official group that looks after the Spanish language. He also led the Real Academia de Buenas Letras de Barcelona.
He was a professor of Romance Literature at the University of Barcelona from 1950 to 1984. He was even a leader at the university, serving as a "viceroy" (like a vice-chancellor) at the University of Barcelona and the Autonomous University of Barcelona.
He also helped start the Sociedad Roncesvals. This group studies old heroic poems called chanson de geste and cantar de gesta.
What He Studied
Martí de Riquer studied many Romance languages. These included Occitan, French, Spanish, and Catalan. He wrote important books about many topics.
He was an expert on famous works like Don Quixote. He also studied medieval novels, such as Amadis de Gaula. He wrote a lot about troubadours, who were medieval poets and musicians.
He was also very knowledgeable about courtly love. This was a special way of showing love in medieval times. He studied the history of Catalan literature and the idea of the knight-errant. A knight-errant was a knight who traveled around looking for adventures.
He and his student, Albert Hauf, were the top experts on courtly love in Spain for many years.
Awards and Honors
Martí de Riquer received many awards for his work. In 1990, he won the Menéndez Pelayo International Prize. In 1997, he received the Premio Príncipe de Asturias de Ciencias Sociales. This is one of Spain's most important awards.
In 2000, he won the Premio Nacional de las Letras Españolas. This award recognizes a lifetime of work in Spanish literature. He was also made a Grandee of Spain by King Juan Carlos I in 2005. This is a very high honor for a Spanish nobleman.
He also received honorary doctorates from universities in Rome and Liège.
Images for kids
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Martí de Riquer (right) at an event in the Parliament of Catalonia.
See also
In Spanish: Martín de Riquer para niños
