''Savacou: A Journal of the Caribbean Artists Movement'' was a journal of literature, new writing and ideas founded in 1970 as a small co-operative venture, led by

Edward Kamau Brathwaite Edward Kamau Brathwaite, CHB (; 11 May 1930 – 4 February 2020), was a Barbadian poet and academic, widely considered one of the major voices in the Caribbean literary canon.Staff (2011)"Kamau Brathwaite." New York University, Department of Co ...

, on the Mona campus of the

University of the West Indies The University of the West Indies (UWI), originally University College of the West Indies, is a public university system established to serve the higher education needs of the residents of 18 English-speaking countries and territories in t ...

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

History

Characterised as "groundbreaking" by

Alison Donnell Alison Donnell is an academic, originally from the United Kingdom. She is currently Professor of Modern Literatures in English and Head of School of Humanities at the University of Bristol. Donnell was previously Professor of Modern Literatures ...

, ''Savacou'' grew out of The Caribbean Artists Movement (CAM) of the 1960s, which was mostly concerned with Caribbean artistic production and with consolidating a broad artistic alliance between all "Third World" peoples. The journal took its name from the bird-god in Carib mythology who controlled thunder and strong winds. Issue 1 of ''Savacou'' was published in June 1970, edited by Brathwaite,

Kenneth Ramchand Kenneth Ramchand (born 1939) is a Trinidad and Tobago people, Trinidad and Tobago academic and writer, who is widely respected as "arguably the most prominent living critic of Caribbean fiction". He has written extensively on many West Indian au ...

and

Andrew Salkey Andrew Salkey (30 January 1928 – 28 April 1995) was a Jamaican novelist, poet, children's books writer and journalist of Jamaican and Panamanian origin. He was born in Panama but was raised in Jamaica, moving to Britain in the 1952 to pursu ...

. Its advisory committee included

John La Rose John La Rose (27 December 1927 – 28 February 2006) was a political and cultural activist, poet, writer, publisher, founder in 1966 of New Beacon Books, the first specialist Caribbean publishing company in Britain, and subsequently Chairman of ...

, Lloyd King,

Gordon Rohlehr Gordon Rohlehr (20 February 1942 – 29 January 2023) was a Guyana-born scholar and critic of West Indian literature, noted for his study of popular culture in the Caribbean, including oral poetry, calypso and cricket. He pioneered the academic ...

Orlando Patterson Horace Orlando Patterson (born 5 June 1940) is a Jamaican-American historian and sociologist known for his work on the history of race and slavery in the United States and Jamaica, as well as the sociology of development. He is currently the Jo ...

, Sylvia Wynter,

Paule Marshall Paule Marshall (April 9, 1929 – August 12, 2019) was an American writer, best known for her 1959 debut novel '' Brown Girl, Brownstones''. In 1992, at the age of 63, Marshall was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship grant. Life and career Marshall wa ...

and Wilfred Cartey, and among its early contributors were C. L. R. James, Michael Anthony,

Derek Walcott Sir Derek Alton Walcott OM (23 January 1930 – 17 March 2017) was a Saint Lucian poet and playwright. He received the 1992 Nobel Prize in Literature. His works include the Homeric epic poem '' Omeros'' (1990), which many critics view "as ...

George Lamming George William Lamming OCC (8 June 19274 June 2022) was a Barbadian novelist, essayist, and poet. He first won critical acclaim for '' In the Castle of My Skin'', his 1953 debut novel. He also held academic posts, including as a distinguished ...

Martin Carter Martin Wylde Carter (7 June 1927 – 13 December 1997) was a Guyanese poet and political activist. Widely regarded as the greatest Guyanese poet, and one of the most important poets of the Caribbean region, Carter is best known for his p ...

and

John Figueroa John Joseph Maria Figueroa (4 August 1920 – 5 March 1999) was a Jamaican poet and educator.Pamela Beshoff"Obituary: John Figueroa" ''The Independent'', 11 March 1999. He played a significant role in the development of Anglophone Caribbean lit ...

. The journal was the subject of regional controversy in 1970, with the double issue 3/4, "New Writing 1970: An anthology of poetry and verse". Featuring oral-based poetics, performance poetry and Creole verse, the issue questioned traditional divisions between words and music, literature and street culture, textuality and orality, antagonizing standard literary formats and in turn provoking major debates and discussions in Caribbean literary circles. Between 1970 and 1979, fifteen issues of ''Savacou'' were published. The journal ceased publication in 1980 with issue 15. The name Savacou also appears as a publishing imprint. ''This article uses text from th
Chimurengal Library
under the

GFDL The GNU Free Documentation License (GNU FDL or GFDL) is a copyleft license for free documentation, designed by the Free Software Foundation (FSF) for the GNU Project. It is similar to the GNU General Public License, giving readers the rights ...

References

External links

Savacou Publications website.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Savacou 1970 establishments in Jamaica 1980 disestablishments in Jamaica Caribbean Artists Movement Cultural magazines Defunct political magazines English-language magazines Irregularly published magazines Jamaican literature Magazines established in 1970 Magazines disestablished in 1980 Magazines published in Jamaica

History

See also

References

External links