Tchicaya U Tam'si (born Gérald-Félix Tchicaya, 25 August 1931 – 22 April 1988) was a Congolese author; his pen name means "small paper that speaks for its country" in Kikongo.

Life

Born in Mpili, near

Brazzaville Brazzaville () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Republic of the Congo. Administratively, it is a Departments of the Republic of the Congo, department and a Communes of the Republic of the Congo, commune. Constituting t ...

French Equatorial Africa French Equatorial Africa (, or AEF) was a federation of French colonial territories in Equatorial Africa which consisted of Gabon, French Congo, Ubangi-Shari, and Chad. It existed from 1910 to 1958 and its administration was based in Brazzav ...

(now Congo), in 1931, U Tam'si spent his childhood in France, where he worked as a journalist until he returned to his homeland in 1960. Back in Congo, he continued to work as a journalist; during this time he maintained contact to the politician

Patrice Lumumba Patrice Émery Lumumba ( ; born Isaïe Tasumbu Tawosa; 2 July 192517 January 1961) was a Congolese politician and independence leader who served as the first prime minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (then known as the Republic o ...

. In 1961, he started to work for

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

. He received Grand Prix at the 1966 first World Festival of Negro Arts in

Dakar Dakar ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The Departments of Senegal, department of Dakar has a population of 1,278,469, and the population of the Dakar metropolitan area was at 4.0 mill ...

, Senegal.

Death

U Tam'si died in 1988 in Bazancourt, Oise, near

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Since 1989, the Tchicaya U Tam'si Prize for African Poetry is awarded every two years in the Moroccan city of

Asilah Asilah () is a fortified town on the northwest tip of the Atlantic coast of Morocco, about south of Tangier. Its ramparts and gateworks remain fully intact. History The town's history dates back to 1500 B.C., when Phoenicians occupied a site ...

Style

U Tam'si's poetry incorporates elements of

surrealism Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...

; it often has vivid historic images, and comments African life and society, as well as humanity in general.

Tribute

Tchicaya U Tam'si was awarded the Grand Prix de la Mémoire of the GPLA 2014.

Selected works

*''Ces fruits si doux de l'arbre a pain'', 1990 *''Les Cancrelats'', 1980 *''La Veste d'intérieur suivi de Notes de veille'', 1977 *''L'Arc musical'', Paris, 1970 *''Le Ventre'', Paris, 1964 *''Épitomé'', Tunis, 1962 *''À triche-coeur'', Paris, 1958 *''Feu de brousse'', Paris, 1957 *''Le Mauvais Sang'', Paris, 1955

References

External links

Description of the U Tam'si's poetry as well as samples in English translation of his works
1931 births 1988 deaths Republic of the Congo journalists Republic of the Congo poets {{RCongo-writer-stub