Jolanda Insana (18 May 1937 – 27 October 2016) was an Italian poet and translator. Born in

Messina Messina ( , ; ; ; ) is a harbour city and the capital city, capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of 216,918 inhabitants ...

, in 1968 Insana moved to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

where she graduated in Ancient Literature with a thesis on Erinna's ''The Distaff''. Active as a translator of classical and contemporary authors, she debuted as a poet in 1977, with the collection ''Sciarra amara'' ("Bitter Harvest"). In 2002 she won the

Viareggio Prize The Viareggio Prize ( or ) is an Italian literature, literary prize, first awarded in 1930. Named after the Tuscany, Tuscan city of Viareggio, it was conceived by three friends, , Carlo Salsa and Leonida Repaci, to rival the Milanese Bagutta Priz ...

for poetry for ''La stortura''. Giovanni Raboni described Insana's poetic style as "visionary concreteness". The first full-length collection of Insana’s poetry in English was translated by Catherine Theis and published by the

University of Chicago Press The University of Chicago Press is the university press of the University of Chicago, a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It is the largest and one of the oldest university presses in the United States. It pu ...

in October 2024 as ''Slashing Sounds'' (''Fendenti fonici''; Società di poesia, Milan, 1982).

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Jolanda Insana
at

Treccani Institute Giovanni Treccani for the publication of the Italian Encyclopedia (), also known as Treccani Institute or simply Treccani, is a cultural institution of national interest, active in the publishing field, founded by Giovanni Treccani ...

1937 births 2016 deaths Writers from Messina Italian women poets 20th-century Italian poets 21st-century Italian poets Viareggio Prize winners Sapienza University of Rome alumni 20th-century Italian women writers 20th-century Italian translators 21st-century Italian women writers {{Italy-writer-stub