Ny Avana Ramanantoanina (1891–1940) is among the most celebrated literary artists of

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

. He is principally renowned for his poetry, but also wrote stories and plays. He wrote during the colonial period and is considered to have been the first Malagasy writer to weave political messages into his work. He wrote primarily in the

Malagasy language Malagasy (; ) is an Austronesian language and the national language of Madagascar. Malagasy is the westernmost Malayo-Polynesian language, brought to Madagascar by the settlement of Austronesian peoples from the Sunda islands around the 5th ce ...

. A contemporary of

Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo (4 March 1901 or 1903 – 22 June 1937), born Joseph-Casimir Rabearivelo, was a Malagasy poet who is widely considered to be Africa's first modern poet and the greatest literary artist of Madagascar. Part of the fi ...

, who is commonly cited as the first African poet to write according to Western conventions, Ramanantoanina was highly critical of the French colonial authority. He was a member of the secret nationalist organization

Vy Vato Sakelika ''Vy Vato Sakelika'' was a nationalist secret society formed in Madagascar in 1913 by '' Hova'' ''Merina'' elites to inspire rebellion against French colonial rule on the island. The colonization of the Kingdom of Madagascar in 1896 prompted a po ...

, and was exiled to Mayotte in the Comoros when the organization was banned by the French colonial authority in 1917. His writings were consequently banned and were not reprinted until the 1980s in Madagascar. As a result, his writings are relatively less well known in international literary circles than those of Rabearivelo. Ramanantoanina was born in 1891 in

Ambatofotsy Ambatofotsy is a town and commune in Madagascar. It belongs to the district of Ikongo, which is a part of Vatovavy-Fitovinany Region. The population of the commune was estimated to be approximately 26,000 in 2001 commune census. Primary and junio ...

, a suburb of

Antananarivo Antananarivo ( French: ''Tananarive'', ), also known by its colonial shorthand form Tana, is the capital and largest city of Madagascar. The administrative area of the city, known as Antananarivo-Renivohitra ("Antananarivo-Mother Hill" or "An ...

in central Madagascar, to a family that belonged to the former

Merina The Merina people (also known as the Imerina, Antimerina, or Hova) are the largest ethnic group in Madagascar.Merina ...

aristocracy Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocracy (class), aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At t ...

that had been dissolved upon French colonization in 1896. After completing his education in a private

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

, Ramanantoanina began writing and publishing his work in several local literary journals at the age of 16 under the pen name ''Ny Avana'' (rainbow). He gained popularity with his early publication ''Chant de fiancailles'' (Wedding Engagement Song) in 1907. Ramanantoanina was among the first generation of Malagasy poets to attempt to develop a structure and theory of Malagasy language poetry, who would be termed ''Ny Mpanoratra zokiny'' (The Elders) by later generations of Malagasy literary artists. His work drew upon the traditional Malagasy poetic form of ''

hainteny Hainteny (pronounced , Malagasy for "knowledge of words") is a traditional form of Malagasy oral literature and poetry, involving heavy use of metaphor. It is associated primarily with the Merina people of Madagascar. In its use of metaphor and ...

'', integrating standard characteristics the form such as ''embona'' (nostalgia) and ''hanina'' (longing) into his poems as a means to promote the unity of the Malagasy people and encourage a return to traditional values. After returning from exile in Comoros in 1922, he was excluded from opportunities for a lucrative career with the colonial government, and instead earned a modest living as a clerk in a book shop in the capital city. His works during this period became increasingly characterized by themes of disillusionment. He founded a literary movement called ''Mitady ny Very'' (Search for Lost Values), and on 5 August 1931 he launched a literary journal called ''Fandrosoam-baovao'' (New Progress) with fellow writers

and Charles Rajoelisolo. He died in 1940 in Antananarivo. After national independence in 1960, his writings were promoted nationally as evidence of the nationalist sentiment of the Malagasy elite in Antananarivo during colonization. There is a street named after him in Antananarivo.

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* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ramanantoanina, Ny Avana Malagasy dramatists and playwrights Malagasy male writers Malagasy male poets People from Antananarivo 1891 births 1940 deaths 20th-century dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Malagasy poets People from Vatovavy-Fitovinany 20th-century male writers Malagasy-language writers

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