Panama literature is written primarily in Spanish . Due to historical and political features, the active development of literature in Panama began only in the 19th century [1] [2] .
Content
History
Early History
There is no evidence of pre-colonial literature in Panama. The first written evidence came to our days from the time of the discovery of Panama by Europeans. So, Columbus in 1503 in his letter from the fourth voyage describes the territories that later became Panama. In 1515, Vasco Nunez de Balboa also described the beauty of these places in his letter. Nevertheless, in the colonial period, literature in Panama did not develop much, a lot of this was facilitated by the strict Spanish censorship introduced by Spain for the New World [2] .
Among those who lived or traveled through Panama in the early colonial period and left their descriptions of various aspects of the life of the isthmus , we can name Bernardo de Vargas Machugu (1555-1621), Juan de Miramontes y Zuazola Pablo Crespillo de Ovalle (1595–?), Lucas Fernandez de Piedraita (1624–1688) and Fernando de Ribera (1591–1646) [2] .
The first Panamanian literary work is usually called the play by Victor de la Guardia y Ayala written in 1809 in the Penonome “World politics” ( Spanish: La Política del Mundo ). This is a three-act tragedy written in verse that condemns Napoleon's invasion of Spain [2] .
Of the other writers of the 18th century, it is worth noting Manuel José de Ayyala (1728-1805) and Sebastian Lopez Ruiz (1741-1832) [2] .
XIX century. Romanticism
After the war of independence , in 1821, Great Colombia was formed, which subsequently broke up into several states . The territory of the Isthmus of Panama that was in its composition proclaimed independence only in 1903, therefore, in the first half of the 19th century, Panama literature developed in line with Colombian literature [1] .
The development of the territory of Panama, in particular, the construction of a railway here, raised the national identity of the Panamanians, which, among other things, contributed to the beginning of the development of independent Panamanian literature from the second half of the 19th century. Among the significant writers of this period should be called poets Mariano Arosemena and his son, Justo Arosemena [2] .
Also, romanticism is gaining popularity in the countries of the region at that time, which is also reflected in the literature of Panama, where, due to the mentioned features, it is intertwined with political and historical themes. In 1845, the Society of Enlightenment Lovers was created in Panama, from which many romantic poets emerged [3] . Among the poets of this direction: Khil Kolunhe , Thomas Martin Foyer , Amelia Denis de Icas [2] , Jose Maria Aleman and Manuel Jose Perez [1] .
In 1866, the poet and journalist Manuel Gamboa (1840–1882) began to publish the first literary newspaper, El céfiro in Panama (from the Spanish - Zephyr), and literary criticism also began to be published in the newspaper [2] .
Modernism
In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries modernism gained momentum in Panamanian literature. At the same time, in 1903, Panama gained state independence. Panamanian modernist writers followed the examples of their French colleagues, Parnassians and Symbolists [1] .
Important writers for this period are: Dario Herrera , Guillermo Andreve, Salomon Ponce Aguilera , Leon Antonio Soto, Maria Olympia de Obaldia , Pablo Arosemena , Belisario Porras Barahona , Ricardo Miro Gaspard Octavio Hernandez [1] and others.
Modernity
The Mexican Revolution and the First World War influenced the development of Panamanian literature in the 1920s and 1930s. The writers were divided in different directions: the poets of Ricardo Julio Bermudez were fascinated by surrealism , Roque Javier Laurensa and Tobias Diaz Blytri, vanguard - Rogelio Sinan [1] .
Among other poets of this time, Demetrio Corsi , Demetrio Herrera Sevigliano , Jose Antonio Moncada Luna; among prose writers Ignacio de Jesus Valdes, Jose Huerta, Jose Maria Nunez, Mariela Aro Rodriguez, Hill Blas Teheira [1] and others.
After the Second World War , Carlos Francisco Chang Marine , Enrique Chues, Diana Moran, Renato Osores, Jose Maria Sanchez, Cesar Augusto Candanedo, Jose de Jesus Martinez , Bertalisia Peralta, Benhamin Ramon, Dimas Lidio Pittisk actively working [1] , Ramon Eberto Jurado , Tristan Solarte , Justo Arroyo , Luisit Aguilera Patigno [4] and others.
Since 1942, Panama has been awarded the Ricardo Miro Literary Prize , since 1996 - Central American Literary Prize named after Rogelio Sinan [5] .
Notes
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Panama // Encyclopedic Handbook “Latin America” / V.V. Volsky . - M .: Soviet Encyclopedia , 1982. - T. II. - S. 290-298. - 656 p. - 50,000 copies.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 La Verne M. Seales Soley. Literature // Culture and Customs of Panama . - Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO , 2008 .-- S. 51-57. - 148 p. - ISBN 9780313056369 .
- ↑ Panama // Great Soviet Encyclopedia : [in 30 vol.] / Ch. ed. A.M. Prokhorov . - 3rd ed. - M .: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1969-1978.
- ↑ Berna Burrell. The Panamanian Novel . Revista Magazine. Date of treatment April 23, 2016.
- ↑ Concurso Ricardo Miró (Spanish) . La Biblioteca Nacional de Panamá. Date of treatment April 23, 2016.