Napoleon Lapathiotis November 3, 2026 – Posted in: Authors

Napoleon Lapathiotis was born in Athens in 1888. He earned a degree in law but, instead of pursuing a legal career, devoted himself to literature. His poems and short stories appeared in the leading literary journals of the time. He served as a reserve second lieutenant during the Balkan Wars (1912–13), and in 1920 spent a brief period in Egypt, where he met C.P. Cavafy. Reduced to poverty by addiction and substance abuse, he took…

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David Ricks – Posted in: Translators

David Ricks is Professor Emeritus of Modern Greek and Comparative Literature at King’s College London, where he taught from 1989 to 2020. His translations from modern Greek verse and prose, ranging from Dionysios Solomos to Michalis Ganas, have appeared in magazines and anthologies, as also in his poetry collection, With Signs Following (2024).

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Michael Mitsakis – Posted in: Authors

Michael Mitsakis (1868–1916) was one of the most original and unconventional figures of modern Greek literature. He grew up in the southern Peloponnese, and after enrolling at law school in Athens soon abandoned his studies to devote himself to journalism and literature. Closely associated with the literary circles of the 1890s, he wrote fiction, essays and sketches for the periodical press distinguished by their powers of observation, psychological insight and obsessively distinctive style. His restless…

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Alèxandros Rangavìs October 5, 2026 – Posted in: Authors

Alèxandros Rizos Rangavìs nacque a Costantinopoli nel 1809 da una famiglia appartenente al ceto aristocratico dei Fanarioti. Cresciuto a Bucarest e a Odessa, frequentò l’Accademia militare di Monaco. Trasferitosi in Grecia, in qualità di segretario generale del ministero dell’Educazione contribuì a organizzare l’università di Atene, fondata nel 1834, e fu nominato ministro degli Esteri nel 1856. Nel 1877 scrisse la prima storia della letteratura greca moderna. Oltre che autore di opere in versi e in…

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Ilias Vénézis – Posted in: Authors

Ilias Vénézis est né à Ayvali (l’actuelle Ayvalik) en Asie Mineure, en 1904. Après la guerre gréco-turque de 1919-1922 et la défaite de l’armée grecque face aux forces de Mustafa Kemal, le jeune Vénézis, alors âgé de dix-huit ans, est fait prisonnier et déporté pendant quatorze mois dans les bataillons de travail forcé d’Anatolie centrale. Cette expérience marquera pro­fondément son œuvre, notamment son roman Numéro 31328. Auteur prolifique, il devint l’une des figures majeures de…

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Filippo Maria Pontani April 30, 2026 – Posted in: Translators

Filippo Maria Pontani (1913-1983) è stato un filologo classico, bizantinista e neoellenista attivo prima a Roma e poi, dal 1966, presso l’Università di Padova. Primo traduttore di Costantino Kavafis e di Giorgio Seferis (cui lo legò una vera amicizia), editore critico di Kalvos, ha fatto conoscere in Italia anche Ritsos, Elitis e molti altri poeti neogreci. Ha tradotto inoltre i lirici e i tragici antichi, e tutta l’Antologia Palatina.

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Stratìs Tsirkas – Posted in: Authors

Stratìs Tsirkas (al secolo Ghiannis Chatziandreas) nacque al Cairo nel 1911. Debuttò come poeta nel 1937 e in seguito, dal 1944, si dedicò al racconto. Fu anche autore di una importante biografia di Konstantinos Kavafis, da lui frequentato ad Alessandria d’Egitto, che ricevette il premio nazionale greco nel 1959. Nel 1963 si trasferì definitivamente ad Atene. Tra il 1961 e il 1965 pubblicò il suo capolavoro, la trilogia “Città alla deriva”, formata dai romanzi Il…

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Ζακ Μπουσάρ / Jacques Bouchard March 10, 2026 – Posted in: Translators

Ο Ζακ Μπουσάρ γεννήθηκε στο Κεμπέκ το 1940. Σπούδασε στο Université Laval και απέκτησε διδακτορικό στη Νεότερη Ελληνική Λογοτεχνία από το Αριστοτέλειο Πανεπιστήμιο Θεσσαλονίκης (1970). Διετέλεσε καθηγητής στο Université de Montréal επί πενήντα χρόνια, μετέφρασε, μεταξύ άλλων, Έλληνες ποιητές όπως ο Καβάφης, ο Εμπειρίκος, ο Εγγονόπουλος, ο Σαχτούρης, ο Κωνσταντινίδης, αλλά και συγγραφείς όπως ο Μαυροκορδάτος, ο Μάτεσις, η Καραπάνου, η Ζατέλη, ο Καχτίτσης. Είναι μέλος της Société royale du Canada και έχει τιμηθεί με…

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Jacques Bouchard – Posted in: Translators

Jacques Bouchard est né au Québec en 1940. Il détient une licence ès lettres classiques de l’Université Laval et un doctorat en littérature néo-hellénique de l’Université Aristote de Thessalonique (1970). Professeur à l’Université de Montréal pendant cinquante ans, il a traduit entre autres les poètes Cavafy, Embiricos, Engonopoulos, Sachtouris, Constantinides, et les prosateurs Mavrocordatos, Matessis, Karapanou, Zateli, Kachtitsis. Il est membre de la Société royale du Canada et titulaire de la Croix d’or de la…

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Irène Papas – Posted in: Authors

Irène Papas (1929–2022) fut une actrice grecque d’envergure internationale, admirée pour son charisme singulier et sa présence austère, aussi bien à l’écran que sur scène. Son œuvre poétique demeure peu connue du grand public ; elle se distingue pourtant par une puissante originalité, nourrie à la fois de l’hellénisme classique et d’une expressivité résolument moderne, tour à tour feutrée et exacerbée.

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