Xavier Marques (born Francisco Xavier Ferreira Marques) was a Brazilian journalist, politician, novelist, poet, biographer and essayist. He was born on the island of

Itaparica Itaparica is an island located at the entrance of Todos os Santos Bay on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean in the state of Bahia, Brazil. It is located about from the city of Salvador, Bahia and covers . There are two municipalities on the island: ...

, BA, on December 3, 1861, and died in

Salvador Salvador, meaning "salvation" (or "saviour") in Catalan, Spanish, and Portuguese may refer to: * Salvador (name) Arts, entertainment, and media Music *Salvador (band), a Christian band that plays both English and Spanish music ** ''Salvador'' ( ...

, BA, on October 30, 1942. He began primary education in his hometown but soon moved to the city of

, enrolling in the school of Canon Francisco Bernardino de Sousa. In the Bahian capital, he dedicated himself to journalism, an activity that was only interrupted by his political work. He served two legislative terms: State Representative in Bahia, from 1915 to 1921, and Federal, from 1921 to 1924. His

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to p ...

''Boto and Company'' (1897) was followed by the novel ''Jana e Joel'' (1899), considered his best work. His fiction has been termed regionalist, set as it is in the province of

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (sta ...

. He won several literary awards, including an award from the

Brazilian Academy of Letters The Academia Brasileira de Letras (ABL) ( English: ''Brazilian Academy of Letters'') is a Brazilian literature, literary non-profit society established at the end of the 19th century. The first president, Machado de Assis, declared its found ...

, in 1910, for the novel ''Sargento Pedro''. He was the second occupant of Chair 28 in the

Academia Brasileira The Academia Brasileira de Letras (ABL) ( English: ''Brazilian Academy of Letters'') is a Brazilian literary non-profit society established at the end of the 19th century. The first president, Machado de Assis, declared its foundation on Tue ...

, to which he was elected on July 24, 1919, in succession to

Inglês de Sousa Inglês de Sousa (born Herculano Marcos Inglês de Sousa) was a Brazilian lawyer, professor, journalist, and novelist. He was born in Óbidos, PA, on December 28, 1853, and died in Rio de Janeiro, RJ, on September 6, 1918. He was one of the foun ...

. He was received into the Academy by Goulart de Andrade on September 17, 1920.Bio
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References

{{Authority control Brazilian writers 1861 births 1942 deaths People from Itaparica Island