Celso Emilio Ferreiro Míguez (1912–1979) was a
Galicianist activist
Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...
,
writer
A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...
,
poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...
, and
political journalist
Political journalism is a broad branch of journalism that includes coverage of all aspects of politics and political science, although the term usually refers specifically to coverage of civil governments and political power.
Political journa ...
.
Early years
Ferreiro was born in
Celanova
Celanova is a town and municipality located in the province of Ourense, Galicia, Northern Spain. Situated near the border with Portugal, the municipality is bordered by Ramirás, Cartelle, A Merca, A Bola, Verea and Quintela de Leirado.
The A ...
, into a well-off Galicianist family. In 1932, at the age of twenty, he created the ''Mocedades Galeguistas de Celanova'' (''Galicianist Youths of Celanova'') with Xosé Velo Mosquera. In 1934 he also participated in the creation of the ''Federación de Mocedades Galeguistas'' (''Federation of Galicianist Youths''). Some time after this Ferreiro got into trouble because of an article published in his magazine ''Guieiro''.
Francoist Spain
Ferreiro was mobilized in the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
by the
Nationalist troops. He studied
law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
, and contributed to many
magazine
A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...
s and
newspaper
A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.
Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports a ...
s over the period of the
Francoist State
Francoist Spain ( es, España franquista), or the Francoist dictatorship (), was the period of Spanish history between 1939 and 1975, when Francisco Franco ruled Spain after the Spanish Civil War with the title . After his death in 1975, Spai ...
.
In 1966 Ferreiro travelled to
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
, where he collaborated with the ''Galician Brotherhood''. He fell out with the Galician nationalists in Venezuela, and in response published the poetry collection ''Viaxe ao pais dos ananos'' (''Journey to the land of the dwarves''). He founded the ''Patronato da Cultura Galega'' (''Patronage of Galician Culture''), and was part of
President Rafael Caldera's cabinet.
Later life
After returning to Spain Ferreiro lived in
Madrid
Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...
, where he worked as a journalist. He wrote in
Galician and in
Castilian, but his most important work was his Galician-language poetry. ''"Longa noite de pedra"'' ("Long night of stone"), a
lament
A lament or lamentation is a passionate expression of grief, often in music, poetry, or song form. The grief is most often born of regret, or mourning. Laments can also be expressed in a verbal manner in which participants lament about somethin ...
at the anti-Galician policies of Francoist Spain, is one of the best-known and most powerful Galician poems of all time.
Death
Ferreiro died in
Vigo
Vigo ( , , , ) is a city and Municipalities in Spain, municipality in the province of Pontevedra, within the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Spain. Located in the northwest of the Iberian Penins ...
,
Galicia, Spain in 1979. The ''
Día das Letras Galegas
Galician Literature Day ( gl, Día das Letras Galegas) is a public holiday observed in Galicia, Spain. It is a celebration of the Galician language and its literature which was inaugurated by the Royal Galician Academy (''Real Academia Galega' ...
'' (Galician Literature Day) was dedicated to Celso Emilio in 1989.
Books
*''Cartafol de poesía'' (''A poetry folder'')
*''O sono sulagado'' (''The drowned dream'')
*''Viaxe ao país dos ananos'' (''Journey to the land of the dwarves'')
*''Terra de ningures'' (''Nowhere's land'')
*''Onde o mundo se chama Celanova'' (''Where the world is called Celanova'')
*''Longa noite de pedra'' (''Long night of stone'')
*''Cimeterio privado'' (''Private cemetery'')
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ferreiro, Celso Emilio
Writers from Galicia (Spain)
1912 births
1979 deaths