János Arany (; archaic English: John Arany; 2 March 1817 – 22 October 1882) was a Hungarian poet, writer, translator and journalist. He is often said to be the "

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or '' ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

s" – he wrote more than 102 ballads that have been translated into over 50 languages, as well as the ''

Toldi trilogy Toldi may refer to: *Toldi (tank), Hungarian light tank * Toldi trilogy, epic poem trilogy written by the Hungarian poet János Arany *Miklós Toldi Miklós Toldi (c. 1320 – November 22, 1390) was a Hungarian nobleman from Bihar County of t ...

.''

Biography

He was born in Nagyszalonta,

Bihar County Bihar was an administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary and a county of the Eastern Hungarian Kingdom and Principality of Transylvania (since the 16th century, when it was under the rule of the Princes of Transylvania). Most of ...

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coronation of the Hungarian monarch, c ...

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire (german: link=no, Kaiserthum Oesterreich, modern spelling , ) was a Central- Eastern European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs. During its existence, ...

. He was the youngest of ten children, but because of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, ...

running in the family, only two of them lived beyond childhood. At the time of his birth, his older sister Sára was already married and his parents, György Arany and Sára Megyeri, were 60 and 44 years old, respectively. János Arany learned to read and write early on, and was reported to read anything he could find in Hungarian and

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

. Since his parents needed support early in Arany's life, he began working at the age of 14 as an associate teacher. From 1833 he attended the Reformed College of

Debrecen Debrecen ( , is Hungary's second-largest city, after Budapest, the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar County. A city with county rights, it was the largest Hungarian city in the 18th century and ...

where he studied

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

and

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

, though he quickly became tired of scholarly life, and temporarily joined an acting troupe. Later on, he worked in Nagyszalonta,

, and

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population o ...

as teacher, newspaper editor, and in various clerk positions. In 1840 he married (1816–1885). They had two children, Julianna, whose early death by pneumonia devastated the poet, and , who also became a poet and a collector of Hungarian folktales. In 1847, he won the competition of the

Kisfaludy Society The Kisfaludy Society (Hungarian: ''Kisfaludy Társaság'') was a literary society in Pest, founded in 1836 and named after Károly Kisfaludy, who had died in 1830. It held monthly meetings and was a major force in Hungarian literary life, givin ...

with his writing, "''Az elveszett alkotmány''" ("''The lost constitution''" in English). After '' Toldi'', one of his most famous works, was published, he and

Sándor Petőfi Sándor Petőfi ( []; né Petrovics; sk, Alexander Petrovič; sr, Александар Петровић; 1 January 1823 – most likely 31 July 1849) was a Hungarian poet of Serbian origin and liberal revolutionary. He is considered Hungary' ...

became close friends (see their letters: To János Arany by Petőfi and Reply to Petőfi by Arany). Petőfi's death in the

Hungarian Revolution of 1848 The Hungarian Revolution of 1848 or fully Hungarian Civic Revolution and War of Independence of 1848–1849 () was one of many European Revolutions of 1848 and was closely linked to other revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas. Although t ...

had a great impact on him. He was employed as a teacher in

Nagykőrös Nagykőrös is a town in Pest County, Hungary. János Arany taught there from about 1851, and a local museum is named for him. Notable people * Szabolcs Czira (b. 1951), politician * Frigyes Hegedűs (1920–2008), pentathlete *István Kecské ...

where the local museum is named after him. Arany was elected a member of the

Hungarian Academy of Sciences The Hungarian Academy of Sciences ( hu, Magyar Tudományos Akadémia, MTA) is the most important and prestigious learned society of Hungary. Its seat is at the bank of the Danube in Budapest, between Széchenyi rakpart and Akadémia utca. Its ma ...

in 1858. He was the secretary-general of the Academy from 1865. Also, he was elected director of the

, the greatest literary association of Hungary. The early death of his daughter, Julianna in 1865 marked the beginning of Arany's hiatus as a poet. He did not write any original pieces until the summer of 1877, when he began working on his poetic cycle entitled ''Őszikék'' which is substantially different from his previous works, concerning themes like elderliness, or the imminence of death. Arany died in

on 22 October 1882.

Works

He translated three dramas of

into Hungarian, ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict a ...

'', ''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

'' and '' King John'', and they are considered to be some of the greatest translations into Hungarian in history; he also helped other Hungarian translators with his comments, and translated works by

Aristophanes Aristophanes (; grc, Ἀριστοφάνης, ; c. 446 – c. 386 BC), son of Philippus, of the deme Kydathenaion ( la, Cydathenaeum), was a comic playwright or comedy-writer of ancient Athens and a poet of Old Attic Comedy. Eleven of his ...

Mikhail Lermontov Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov (; russian: Михаи́л Ю́рьевич Ле́рмонтов, p=mʲɪxɐˈil ˈjurʲjɪvʲɪtɕ ˈlʲɛrməntəf; – ) was a Russian Romantic writer, poet and painter, sometimes called "the poet of the Caucas ...

Aleksandr Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...

, and

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and world ...

. The epic poetry of János Arany presents the legendary and historical past of his nation. ''The Death of King Buda'' (1864), the first part of a projected Hun trilogy is one of the best narrative poems in Hungarian literature. The other parts of the trilogy (''Ildikó'', and ''Prince Csaba'') are unfinished. The proposed trilogy used Arnold Ipolyi's ''Magyar Mythologia'' as a source. Arany's works have shaped the popular impression of Hungarian history (at the expense of the actual historical record). One of his most famous poems is ''A Walesi Bárdok'' ( The Bards of Wales). Arany wrote this poem when

Franz Joseph I of Austria Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until ...

visited Hungary for the first time after defeating the

. Originally Arany was asked to write a poem to praise the Emperor but he wrote a piece concerning the campaigns of

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a va ...

to subjugate the Welsh and trample over their culture. Arany was drawing a parallel here with Austria's treatment of Hungary and the Hungarians. His poem ''Dante'' is one of those few verses in Western literature that can seize concisely the whole meaning and transcendency of human life (

Peter Ustinov Sir Peter Alexander Ustinov (born Peter Alexander Freiherr von Ustinov ; 16 April 192128 March 2004) was a British actor, filmmaker and writer. An internationally known raconteur, he was a fixture on television talk shows and lecture circuits ...

– British actor). Some remarkable pieces of Arany's works have been translated to English by

Watson Kirkconnell Watson Kirkconnell, (16 May 1895 – 26 February 1977) was a Canadian scholar, university administrator and translator. He is well known in Iceland, Eastern and Central Europe and among Canadians of different origins for his translations of ...

and by Edward Dundas Butler. Arany is today considered one of the greatest Hungarian poets beside

Endre Ady Endre Ady (Hungarian: ''diósadi Ady András Endre,'' archaic English: Andrew Ady, 22 November 1877 – 27 January 1919) was a turn-of-the-century Hungarian poet and journalist. Regarded by many as the greatest Hungarian poet of the 20th century ...

Miklós Radnóti Miklós Radnóti (born Miklós Glatter; 5 May 1909 – November 1944) was a Hungarian poet and teacher. He was murdered in the Holocaust. Biography Miklós Glatter was the son of a vendor of the textile business company Brück & Grosz in Bu ...

and

Attila József Attila József (; 11 April 1905 – 3 December 1937) was one of the most famous Hungarian poets of the 20th century. Generally not recognized during his lifetime, József was hailed during the communist era of the 1950s as Hungary's great ...

Legacy

The first scientific monograph on Arany was written by Frigyes Riedl. The '' Arany-album'', a

Folk metal Folk metal is a fusion genre of heavy metal music and traditional folk music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. It is characterised by the widespread use of folk instruments and, to a lesser extent, traditional singing styles (for exam ...

album by Hungarian band Dalriada is based on popular works by Arany. It won the 2009 HangSúly Hungarian Metal Awards out of 70 contestants. * A postage stamp was issued on 1 July 1932 to honor Arany. * On 15 September 1957 another postage stamp was issued. * On 10 July 2017 a souvenir sheet of four stamps was issued.colnect.com/en/stamps/stamp/739922-200th_Anniversary_of_Birth_of_Author_Arany_János-Hungary

Poems in English translation

* ''Dante'' * ''The Legend of the Miraculous Hind'' or ''The Legend of the Wondrous Hunt'' * ''Years, O Years That Are Still to Come'' * ''I Lay Down the Lyre'' * ''In Autumn'' * ''Retrospect'' * ''Memorials'' * '' The Bards of Wales'' * ''On the Slope'' * ''Family Circle'' * ''The Nightingale'' * ''Reply to Petőfi'' * ''The Mother of King Matthias'' * ''The Two Pages of Szondi'' * ''Duel at Midnight'' * ''Bier-right or Ordeal by Blood'' * ''Becky Scarlet'' * ''Corn Husking'' * ''Annie with Golden Hair'' * ''The Seamstress Girls'' * ''Consecration of the Bridge'' * ''Mistress Aggie'' / ''Mistress Agnes'' * ''Imprisoned Souls''

References

External links

* * *
The Bards of Wales – translated by

The Bards of Wales
– translated by Bernard Adams *
Epics of the Hungarian Plain
''Death of Buda, Toldi, Toldi’s Love, Toldi’s Eve'' translated in prose by Anton N. Nyerges
''The Legend of the Wondrous Hunt''
(ballad by János Arany) with miscellaneous pieces by Alexander Petőfi, John Vajda, Gregory Czuczor, Alois Szentmiklóssy, and Caspar Bernát, as well as folk songs, Hungarian poems and fables * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Arany, Janos 1817 births 1882 deaths People from Salonta Epic poets Hungarian male poets Hungarian translators Members of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences People of the Revolutions of 1848 Burials at Kerepesi Cemetery University of Debrecen alumni 19th-century translators 19th-century Hungarian poets 19th-century Hungarian male writers