Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo (JJR) is generally acknowledged as the greatest twentieth-century poet of Madagascar and the first modern poet of Africa. He was born in 1901 in an impoverished but noble family in the capital city, Antananarivo, to an unwed mother. His birth name was Joseph-Casimir Rabearivelo, which he changed later to Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo. He worked … Continue reading The Immortal Poetry of Madagascar’s Jean-Joseph Rabearivelo
Hainteny: Traditional Poetry of Madagascar
Hainteny is the traditional poetry of Madagascar. Hainteny means ‘knowledge of words’ in Malagasy language. It is part of traditional oral literature of Madagascar, which is mostly in the form of a dialogue between a female and a male, and strongly reminds me of poems of Tamil Sangam literature and Gatha Saptasati of India. Leonard … Continue reading Hainteny: Traditional Poetry of Madagascar
#MadagascarLitMonth: From Sorabe script to Latin script
A Journey of Malagasy Script by Mose Njo First of all, let’s go back to 1817, more than 200 years ago. Something happened on the 26th of March. And that sealed the fate of the Malagasy language, therefore the Madagascan literature, at least for the next two centuries and counting. That year, Radama, the King … Continue reading #MadagascarLitMonth: From Sorabe script to Latin script
Global Literature in Libraries Initiative 