Who Needs a Story?
Contemporary Eritrean Poetry in Tigrinya, Tigre and Arabic
Poetry in Eritrea written in African languages remains virtually un-translated and unknown outside the country in spite of the deep and distinguished roots of the art in Eritrean culture. This book was conceived and designed to provide students and teachers of African literatures, and interested readers everywhere, with a concise anthology of Eritrean poems from the last three decades written in Tigrinya, Tigre and Arabic, transcribed in their original language alongside an English translation. Themes reflected in the poems are the protracted Eritrean struggle for independence, the diaspora, and the struggle of a young nation’s aspiration for progress and development. The publication derives its inspiration from the historic ‘Asmara Declaration on African Languages and Literatures’, and Ngugi wa Thing’o’s call for the creation and publication of African literature in African languages. It is both an effort to reinforce research in Eritrean languages, vital for cultural development; and, through translation, aims to communicate Eritrean culture to a bigger audience.
The 22 poets represented include are Reesom Haile, Eritrea’s best known poet in the West; Solomon Drar, novelist, historian poet and director of Hdri Publishers; and Mohammed Osman Kajera, a leading intellectual figure in Eritrea, Sudan and the Arab world.
Read "Unjust Praise," by San Diego, featured in the Poem-A-Day series from the Academy of American Poets.
ISBN 9789994800087 | 160 pages | 216 x 140 mm | 2006 | Hdri Publishers, Eritrea | Paperback
- Categories:
Reviews
-
'For at least four thousand years into the 21st century, Eritrean poets have never given up writing in their own languages, which is why their poetry thrives. Who Needs a Story? translates this remarkable legacy.'
- Ngugi wa Thiong’o
-
'…these poems testify to the indomitable nature of the human spirit, and the resilience of a culture that has withstood decades of external repression and colonialism. Experience in a single volume the spirit of a nation pulsing through verse!'
- Mbulelo Mzamane, Vice Chancellor, University of Fort Hare
-
"Altogether the poems reflect and document in poetic language the different phases of a nation in the throes of dramatic changes. Informed and shaped by lived reality, the poems reflect pain without being lachrymose."
ali jimale RAL.pdf
—
PDF document,
174Kb
- Research in African Literatures
About the Editors
- Ghirmai Negash
-
Ghirmai Negash is Associate Professor of English & African Literature, and Associate Director of African Studies Program at Ohio University. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Leiden, the Netherlands. He was the founder and former chair of the Department of Eritrean Languages and Literature at the University of Asmara (2001-2005). His research interests include African literatures from the Horn of Africa and South Africa, critical theory, translation, and orality studies. His publications include A History of Tigrinya Literature in Eritrea (University of Leiden-CNWS, 1999); Who Needs a Story? (Hidri., 2006), co-edited and translated with Charles Cantalupo; The Freedom of the Writer & Other Cultural and Literary Essays, in Tigrinya (Trenton, NJ.: Africa World Press, 2006), and several articles and chapters, including in Silence is Not Golden, eds. Adera, T. and A. Ahmed (Lawrenceville, New Jersey, Africa World Press, 1994), Teaching Life Writing Texts, eds. Fuchs, M. and C. Howes (New York: MLA, 2008), Journal of African Literature Association 2.2 (2008), Research in African Literatures 40.3 (2009), and Biography 32.1 (2009).
Dr. Negash’s main pedagogical interests are African literature, critical theory and world literature, and his two fundamental aims are to foster critical thinking and cross-cultural awareness in his students. At a personal and professional level, he has lived and worked on three continents, can speak and write four African (Tigrinya, Amharic, Arabic, Afrikaans) and three European languages (English, Dutch, French). He has also a working knowledge of Giiz.
- Charles Cantalupo
-
Charles Cantalupo is Distinguished Professor of English, Comparative Literature and African Studies at Penn State University. He is the co-editor of Who Needs a Story? Contemporary Eritrean Poetry in Tigrinya, Tigre and Arabic (Hdri Publishers, 2006).
Read an interview with Charles in the online journal Per Contra where he talks about his experiences with translating Eritrean poetry here, and a discussion on "On the Many Beginnings of African Literature" with the Eritrean news source shaebia.com here.
