Numa Pompilio Llona (March 5, 1832 – April 5, 1907) was an Ecuadorian poet, journalist, educator, diplomat, and philosopher. Numa Pompilio Llona was widely read in his time, but today he is mostly forgotten.

Biography

His father was the Ecuadorian lawyer Dr. Manuel Leocadio de Llona y Rivera, and his mother was Mercedes Echeverri Llados from Colombia. Born in

Guayaquil , motto = Por Guayaquil Independiente en, For Independent Guayaquil , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Ecuador#South America , pushpin_re ...

, Numa Pompilio Llona completed primary school in

Cali Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,227,642 residents according to the 2018 census. The city spans with of urban area, making Cali the secon ...

, Colombia, and completed secondary school in

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of the central coastal part of t ...

, Peru. He received a law degree at the Universidad San Marcos in Lima, Peru.

Career

From 1854 to 1859, Numa Pompilo Llona was the literary editor of the Peruvian newspaper '' El Comercio''. In 1882 he was appointed the rector of the

University of Guayaquil The University of Guayaquil ( Spanish: ''Universidad de Guayaquil''), known colloquially as the ''Estatal'' (i.e., "the State niversity), is a public university in Guayaquil, Guayas Province, Ecuador. Estatal was founded in 1883. It is th ...

, where he held the professorship of aesthetics and general literature. He also served as a diplomat in Spain (1860–62), France, Italy (1864), and Colombia (1884), and formed friendships with many famous poets and writers of the time, such as

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George Sand Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin de Francueil (; 1 July 1804 – 8 June 1876), best known by her pen name George Sand (), was a French novelist, memoirist and journalist. One of the most popular writers in Europe in her lifetime, bein ...

Alphonse de Lamartine Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine (; 21 October 179028 February 1869), was a French author, poet, and statesman who was instrumental in the foundation of the Second Republic and the continuation of the Tricolore as the flag of France. ...

, Cienfuegos Manzini, Núñez de Arce, Leopard and others. He was also the director of the Municipal Museum and Library of Guayaquil (1904 to 1907).

Marriage

Numa Pompilio Llona was married to Enriqueta Marchena y Bentín, and after her death, married the Peruvian poet and journalist Lastenia Larriva.

Death

Numa Pompilio Llona died on April 5, 1907. His remains are interred in crypt # 705-C in the Cementerio General of Guayaquil.Numa Pompilio Llona (Spanish article)
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Legacy

One of Guayaquil’s most popular tourist attractions, the neighborhood Las Peñas has a street named after Numa Pompilio Llona. Many of this street’s 400-year-old houses have been converted into art galleries and several notable artists have studios there. There are also schools in Ecuador named after Numa Pompilio Llona.

Literary works

* Cien sonetos (1847) * Cien sonetos nuevos (1880) * Interrogaciones * Amor supremo * Himnos, dianas y elegías patrióticas y religiosas * De la penumbra a la Luz * Cantos americanos (1866) * Nuevas poesías * Artículos en rosa * Noches de dolor en las montañas (1872) * Cantos patrióticos y religiosos (1881) * Canto a la vida * La odisea del alma (1876) * Clamores de Occidente * Poemas amatorios y diversos (1882) * El gran enigma * Noche de dolor en las montañas * Grandeza moral * La bandera del ecuador * La estela de una vida (1893) * Los caballeros del Apocalipsis (1869)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Llona, Numa Pompilio Ecuadorian poets 1832 births 1907 deaths People from Guayaquil National University of San Marcos alumni University of Guayaquil faculty 19th-century poets Ecuadorian diplomats