Montserrat Abelló i Soler facts for kids
Montserrat Abelló i Soler (born February 1, 1918 – died September 9, 2014) was a talented Spanish poet and translator. She was from Catalonia, a region in Spain. Montserrat loved words and spent her life writing poems and changing books from one language to another. She translated books from English into Catalan, her native language. She also translated Catalan books into English.
Contents
A Life of Words
Montserrat Abelló was born in Tarragona, Spain. This was in 1918. When she was a young woman, the Spanish Civil War started. Because of the war, she had to leave Spain. She lived in other countries for a while. She spent time in France, England, and Chile.
What is a Translator?
A translator is someone who changes words from one language into another. Montserrat Abelló was very good at this. She helped people who spoke different languages read the same stories and poems.
Translating from English
Montserrat translated many books and poems from English. She brought the words of famous writers to Catalan readers. Some of these writers included Sylvia Plath, Dylan Thomas, E. M. Forster, Iris Murdoch, and Mohsen Emadi.
Translating to English
She also translated works by Catalan writers into English. This helped people around the world read stories from Catalonia. Some writers she translated were Salvador Espriu, Mercè Rodoreda, Maria Àngels Anglada, Maria Mercè Marçal, and Olga Xirinacs Díaz.
Her Own Poetry
Montserrat Abelló also wrote her own beautiful poems. She published many books of poetry in Catalan.
- 1963 - Vida diària (which means "Daily Life")
- 1981 - Vida diària: Paraules no dites ("Daily Life: Words not said")
- 1986 - El blat del temps ("The Wheat of Time")
- 1990 - Foc a les mans ("Fire in Hand")
- 1995 - L’arrel de l’aigua ("The Root of Water")
- 1995 - Son màscares que m’emprovo ("Masks of Sleep that I Try")
- 1998 - Dins l’esfera del temps ("In the Sphere of Time"). This book won a special award in 1999.
- 2004 - Asseguda escrivint ("Seated Writing")
- 2006 - Memoria de tu i de mi ("Memories of You and Me")
In 2002, many of her poems were collected into one big book. It was called Al cor de les paraules: obra poètica 1963-2002. This means "In the Heart of Words: Poetic Works 1963-2002". This collection won several important literary awards in Catalonia in 2003.
Collections of Poems
Montserrat also contributed her poems to other collections. These books featured works by many different writers.
- 1993 - Cares a la finestra: 20 dones poetes de parla anglesa del segle XX ("Faces in the Window: 20 English Women Poets of the 20th century")
- 1998 - Cartografies del desig: Quinze escriptores i el seu món ("Cartography of Desire: Fifteen writers and their world")
- 1999 - Memoria de l’aigua: Onze escriptores i el seu món ("Memories of Water: Eleven writers and their world")
- 1999 - Paisatge emergent ("Emergent Landscape")
Later Life
Montserrat Abelló i Soler passed away on September 9, 2014. She was 96 years old. She died in Barcelona, Spain. Her work as a poet and translator continues to be celebrated.
See also
In Spanish: Montserrat Abelló para niños
