Humberto Ak'ab'al
Humberto Ak'ab'al also Ak'abal or Akabal (born 1952 Momostenango, Totonicapán department) is a K'iche' Maya poet from Guatemala. His poetry has been published in French, English, Estonian, Scots, German, Arabic and Italian translations, as well as in the original K'iche' and Spanish. His book Guardián de la caída de agua (or "Guardian of the Waterfall" in English) was named book of the year by Association of Guatemalan Journalists and received their Golden Quetzal award in 1993. In 1995 he received an honorary degree from the Department of Humanities of the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala. In 2004 he declined to receive the Guatemala National Prize in Literature because it is named for Miguel Ángel Asturias, whom Ak'ab'al accused of encouraging racism. He said Asturias' 1923 essay The Social Problem of the Indian, "Offends the indigenous peoples of Guatemala, of which I am part."[1]
He was the recipient of a 2006 Guggenheim fellowship.[2]
References
- ↑ "In Brief: Poet Rejects Literary Award". Canadian Broadcasting Centre. 2004-01-23. Retrieved 2008-11-10.
- ↑ "Guggenheim Foundation 2006 Fellows". John Simon Guggenheim Foundation. 2006. Archived from the original on October 27, 2008. Retrieved 2008-11-10.
Sources
- "Humberto Ak´abal" (in Spanish). Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes. 2005-05-31. Archived from the original on February 14, 2006. Retrieved 2007-02-23.
External links
- Humberto Ak'abal official site
- Humberto Ak'abal at Poetry International Web
- Drum of Stone 'Drum of Stone' is a collection of Humberto Ak'abal's poetry with translations into English and Scots, published May 2010
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