David "Dato" Magradze ( ka, დავით "დათო" მაღრაძე; born 28 June 1962) is a
Georgian poet and politician. He is the author of the lyrics of the current
national anthem of Georgia, in use since 2004.
Born to the family of the writer and literary scholar Elguja Magradze in
Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...
, Magradze is a philologist by education trained at the
Tbilisi State University
Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University ( ka, ივანე ჯავახიშვილის სახელობის თბილისის სახელმწიფო უნივერსიტეტი, tr; often shorten ...
. He first became prominent in the 1980s and edited the leading Georgian literary journal ''Tsiskari'' for several years. Under
Eduard Shevardnadze
Eduard Ambrosis dze Shevardnadze ( ka, ედუარდ ამბროსის ძე შევარდნაძე; 25 January 1928 – 7 July 2014) was a Soviet and Georgian politician and diplomat who governed Georgia (country), Georgi ...
, he served as Minister of Culture of Georgia from 1992 to 1995 and was elected to the
Parliament of Georgia
The Parliament of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პარლამენტი, tr) is the supreme national legislature of Georgia. It is a unicameral parliament, currently consisting of 150 members elected through fully pr ...
from 1999 until he resigned his position in the legislature in 2001. Magradze withdrew into opposition to Shevardnadze and supported the 2003
Rose Revolution
The Rose Revolution or Revolution of Roses ( ka, ვარდების რევოლუცია, tr) was a nonviolent change of power that occurred in Georgia in November 2003. The event was brought about by widespread protests over the ...
which forced him to resign. By 2009, he had joined the opposition to
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
Mikheil Saakashvili
Mikheil "Misha" Saakashvili (born 21 December 1967) is a Georgian and Ukrainian politician and jurist. He was the third president of Georgia for two consecutive terms from 25 January 2004 to 17 November 2013. He is the founder and former chair ...
and featured prominently in
April 2009 rallies demanding Saakashvili's resignation.
Opposition demonstration in Georgia requires President to retire within 24 hours
''Trend News''. April 9, 2009
Since 1997 to 2010, Magradze is the President of the Georgian PEN club
PEN International (known as International PEN until 2010) is a worldwide association of writers, founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere. The association has autonomous Internati ...
. He has been awarded several Georgian and international literary prizes and the Georgian Order of Honor. His poems have been translated into English by the Poetry Translation Centre
The Poetry Translation Centre (PTC) is an organization dedicated to translating poetry from Africa, Asia and Latin America. It is a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity. It was founded by the British poet Sarah Maguire in 2004. I ...
, German, Italian, Russian, and Armenian languages.
in April 2019 he founded the political movement "Defend Georgia" along with Vato Shakarishvili and Gia Gachechiladze
References
External links
David Maghradze
Parliament of Georgia (1999).
*http://www.poetrytranslation.org/poets/dato-magradze
1962 births
Living people
21st-century poets from Georgia (country)
Members of the Parliament of Georgia
Politicians from Tbilisi
National anthem writers
Recipients of the Order of Honor (Georgia)
Government ministers of Georgia (country)
Male poets from Georgia (country)
21st-century male writers
Writers from Tbilisi
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