Gáspár Nagy (May 4, 1949, Bérbaltavár – January 3, 2007,

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

) was a Hungarian

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wr ...

and

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, pla ...

Life

He graduated from the Benedictine Grammar School of Pannonhalma where he studied Library Science in

Szombathely Szombathely (; german: Steinamanger, ; see also other alternative names) is the 10th largest city in Hungary. It is the administrative centre of Vas county in the west of the country, located near the border with Austria. Szombathely lies by t ...

, then Aesthetics and Sociology in Budapest. He was editor of Móra Ferenc Publishing House (1976–1980), secretary of Hungarian Writer’s Association (1981–85), co-editor, with

Sándor Csoóri Sándor Csoóri (3 February 1930 – 12 September 2016) was a Hungarian poet, essayist, writer, and politician. Biography In 1950, he graduated from the Reformed College in the town of Pápa ( :hu:Pápai Református Kollégium) and then studied ...

, of ''Hitel'' the first legally permitted oppositional periodical (1988–2007) and literary editor of the Hungarian Catholic Radio (2003–2007). In 1974, he married Marta Szabo; they had one son, and two daughters. From the very beginning his poetry was determined by the ideas of the two important facts of the Central-European history: 1956 and 1968. The Budapest Autumn and the

Prague Spring The Prague Spring ( cs, Pražské jaro, sk, Pražská jar) was a period of political liberalization and mass protest in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic. It began on 5 January 1968, when reformist Alexander Dubček was elected First Se ...

motivated him to protest against the Communist dictatorship and his poems stimulated the democratic changes in Hungary in 1989. His legendary “political system changing” poem "Öröknyár, elmúltam kilenc éves", (Eternal Summer: I’m Over Nine) was published in 1984 in the October issue of the Új Forrás periodical. The brave poem was about the unmarked grave of

Imre Nagy Imre Nagy (; 7 June 1896 – 16 June 1958) was a Hungarian communist politician who served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers (''de facto'' Prime Minister) of the Hungarian People's Republic from 1953 to 1955. In 1956 Nagy became leader ...

(he was the executed prime minister in the

1956 revolution The Hungarian Revolution of 1956 (23 October – 10 November 1956; hu, 1956-os forradalom), also known as the Hungarian Uprising, was a countrywide revolution against the government of the Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989) and the Hunga ...

), and about the unnamed murderers. One day he must be buried and we must not forget to appoINt the murderers! The hidden initials of

(NI - in Hungary the given name traditionally comes after the family name) appear in the last two letters of each line. This hidden meaning escaped the notice of the censors and the poem was published. The authorities retaliated, stripping him of his post as Secretary to the Hungarian Writers Union.

Selected bibliography

*1975 Koronatűz (Crown Fire) *1978 Halántékdob (Temple Drum) *1982 Földi pörök (Earthly Trials) *1986 Áron mondja (Áron Says) *1987 Kibiztosított beszéd (Trigger Speech) *1989 Múlik a jövőnk (Our Future is Passing) *1993 Mosolyelágazás (Forking Smiles) *1994 Fölös ébrenlétem (Useless Wake) *1995 Zónaidő (Zone Time) *1995 Augusztusban, Ludvík Jahn nyomában (In August, in the Footsteps of Ludvík Jahn) *1998 Tudom, nagy nyári délután lesz (I know It will be a Big Summer Afternoon) *1999 Szabadrabok (Free Slaves, collected poems, 1968–1998) *2000 Hullámzó vizeken kereszt (A Cross on Wavy Water) *2001 Amíg fölragyog a jászol (Until the Manger Shines)

Award

Balint Balassi Memorial Sword Award The Balint Balassi Memorial Sword Award is a European award for literature presented in Budapest since 1997. The native form of this name is Balassi Bálint-emlékkard ( Balassi Bálint-emlékkard). This award commemorates the 16th century Hung ...

The founder of the award

Pal Molnar Pal Molnar (born October 1952) is a Hungarian journalist and founder of art awards. The native form of his name is Molnár Pál (Molnár Pál Molnár (or Molnar) is a Hungarian surname meaning "miller". The word might be a loanword from Slavic ...

References

External links

"Literature and Revolution in Hungary", ''World Literature Today'', George Gömöri, Vol. 65, 1991
*
Official homepage of Balint Balassi Memorial Sword Award which is founded by Pal Molnar Pal Molnar
''this article includes material from'' ''this article'' ''in Kezdőlap'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Nagy, Gaspar 1949 births 2007 deaths 20th-century Hungarian poets Hungarian male poets People educated at the Benedictine High School of Pannonhalma 20th-century Hungarian male writers