Nicolaas (Cola) Debrot (4 May 1902 – 3 December 1981) was a writer, lawyer,

medical doctor A physician (American English), medical practitioner (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, mai ...

and politician.

Biography

Debrot was born in Kralendijk, the son of a plantation owner. In 1904 he moved from

Bonaire Bonaire (; , ; pap, Boneiru, , almost pronounced ) is a Dutch island in the Leeward Antilles in the Caribbean Sea. Its capital is the port of Kralendijk, on the west ( leeward) coast of the island. Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao form the ABC ...

to Curaçao, and then when he was 14 he moved to the Netherlands to attend school. He went to secondary school, and later to

Utrecht University Utrecht University (UU; nl, Universiteit Utrecht, formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2018, it had an enrollme ...

in the Netherlands, studying law and later medicine, where he also started his literary career. His debut, ''Mijn zuster de negerin'' (1935) is his best known. In the late 1940s, he returned to the Antilles and lived on

Curaçao Curaçao ( ; ; pap, Kòrsou, ), officially the Country of Curaçao ( nl, Land Curaçao; pap, Pais Kòrsou), is a Lesser Antilles island country in the southern Caribbean Sea and the Dutch Caribbean region, about north of the Venezuela coa ...

, where he established the foundations of Dutch-Antillian literature. Debrot was also active as a politician. In 1952, Debrot became the Minister Plenipotentiary of the Netherlands Antilles and played a major role in reshaping the relationship between the Netherlands, the Antilles and Suriname. From 1962 to 1970, Debrot served as

Governor of the Netherlands Antilles The governor of the Netherlands Antilles was the representative of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Netherlands Antilles and the head of the government of the Netherlands Antilles. Duties With the introduction of the Charter for the Kingdom ...

, the first to be born on one of the islands. In 1970, he retired to the Netherlands to dedicate his time to writing. He died in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

Cola Debrot Prize

In 1968, the Government of Curaçao, decided to institute yearly cultural award. The award was named after Cola Debrot. The annual prize can be awarded for either music, literature or science.

Cola Debrot Lectures

In 2008, the Werkgroep Caraïbische Letteren, an independent group within the

Maatschappij der Nederlandse Letterkunde The Maatschappij der Nederlandse Letterkunde (English "Society of Dutch Literature", often abbreviated ''MNL'') is a prestigious and exclusive literary society. The MNL was established in Leiden in 1766 and is still located there. At the moment, ...

, which aims to promote and assist

Caribbean literature Caribbean literature is the literature of the various territories of the Caribbean region. Literature in English from the former British West Indies may be referred to as Anglo-Caribbean or, in historical contexts, as West Indian literature. Most o ...

, initiated the annual Cola Debrot lectures in

. The first lecture was given by the

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

winning author

Derek Walcott Sir Derek Alton Walcott (23 January 1930 – 17 March 2017) was a Saint Lucian poet and playwright. He received the 1992 Nobel Prize in Literature. His works include the Homeric epic poem '' Omeros'' (1990), which many critics view "as Walcot ...

References

External links

Cola Debrot at Digital Library for Dutch Literature
(in Dutch)
Cola Debrot Lectures at Werkgroep Caraïbische Letteren
(in Dutch) {{DEFAULTSORT:Debrot, Cola 1902 births 1981 deaths Bonaire politicians Curaçao lawyers Curaçao writers Dutch Antillean physicians Dutch male writers Governors of the Netherlands Antilles Ministers plenipotentiary (Netherlands Antilles) Utrecht University alumni 20th-century Dutch lawyers