Tchicaya U Tam'si Prize for African Poetry
1 appearances
-
Edition 4 (1993) Winner
Mazisi Kunene
マジシ・クネネ
Mazisi Kunene
Aliases:
Mazisi Raymond Kunene / Mazisi kaMdabuli Kunene
Pen Names:
Raymond Kunene（Alternate name used in English-language contexts）
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1930-05-12 （Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa）
- Died
- 2006-08-11 （Durban, South Africa） age 76
- Nationality
- South African
- Languages
- Zulu, English
- Residence History
- Durban (birthplace) → London (exile/sojourn) → Los Angeles (UCLA faculty) → KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (returned later life)
Career
- Occupations
- poet, university professor, translator, cultural advisor
- Active Years
- 1950-2006
- Affiliations
- African National Congress (ANC), African United Front (leadership role), UNESCO (cultural advisor), University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), University of Natal (post-return affiliation)
- Memberships
- African National Congress (ANC)
- Influenced By
- Zulu oral tradition and folklore, Traditional Zulu poets and epic traditions
- Influenced
- Contemporary South African poets, Scholars and translators in African studies and comparative literature
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Natal | — | Zulu and History | Bachelor of Arts / Master of Arts (Zulu poetry) | 1950s（在籍・卒業年は不明） | South Africa |
| School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (SOAS) | — | — | — | 1959（留学） | United Kingdom |
University of Natal
Zulu and History
Degree:
Bachelor of Arts / Master of Arts (Zulu poetry)
Period:
1950s（在籍・卒業年は不明）
Country:
South Africa
Studied Zulu and history. MA thesis titled "An Analytical Survey of Zulu Poetry, Both Traditional and Modern".
School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (SOAS)
Period:
1959（留学）
Year of Graduation:
1959
Country:
United Kingdom
Studied at SOAS in 1959; exact degree details uncertain.
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Bantu Literary Competition | — | — | Organizing body unknown | 受賞 |
| 1993 | Africa's Poet Laureate (UNESCO) | — | — | UNESCO | 授与 |
| 2005 | South Africa's Poet Laureate | — | — | Government of South Africa (honorary) | 授与 |
Bantu Literary Competition
1956
Organization:
Organizing body unknown
Result:
受賞
Africa's Poet Laureate (UNESCO)
1993
Organization:
UNESCO
Result:
授与
South Africa's Poet Laureate
2005
Organization:
Government of South Africa (honorary)
Result:
授与
Awards & Nominations
M-Net Literary Awards
1 appearances
-
Edition 15 (2005) Special Award
South African Literary Awards (SALA)
1 appearances
-
Edition 1 (2005) Winner
Works
Major Works
Zulu Poems
1970 PoetryAn anthology of poems ranging from moral reflection to political commentary, originally written in Zulu.
social justiceculture and traditionanti-apartheid
Emperor Shaka the Great: A Zulu Epic
1979 Epic poetryTells the rise of the Zulu people under Shaka in epic form; a major work transcribing and translating traditional Zulu epic into English.
historykingship and heroic sagaethnic origins
Translations
- English edition (transcription/translation published by Kunene)
Anthem of the Decades: A Zulu Epic Dedicated to the Women of Africa
1981 Epic poetryA Zulu epic telling the legend of how death came to humankind, dedicated to the women of Africa.
death and mortalityrole of womenmyth
The Ancestors and the Sacred Mountain: Poems
1982 PoetryCollection of 100 poems with a particular emphasis on socio-political topics.
ancestor reverencesocial critiqueland and belonging
Bibliography
- Zulu Poems, 1970
- Emperor Shaka the Great: A Zulu Epic, 1979
- Anthem of the Decades: A Zulu Epic Dedicated to the Women of Africa, 1981
- The Ancestors and the Sacred Mountain: Poems, 1982
- Isibusiso Sikamhawu, 1994
- Indida Yamancasakazi, 1995
- Amalokotho Kanomkhubulwane, 1996
- Umzwilili wama-Afrika, 1996
- Igudu lika Somcabeko, 1997
- Echoes from the Mountain: New and Selected Poems by Mazisi Kunene, 2007
- Unodumehlezi Kamenzi (isiZulu edition), 2017
Translations of Works
- English edition of Emperor Shaka the Great (transcription/translation by Kunene)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- rooted in Zulu oral-epic traditionceremonial and ritualized languagesymbolic and lyrical imagery
- Recurring Motifs
- ancestors and traditionorigins and heroic sagaland and belongingresistance and liberation
Health
-
cancer晩年にわたる長期の闘病（詳細期日は不明）Long illness leading to death in 2006; affected late-life activities.
Legacy
Mazisi Kunene established Zulu oral epic traditions within modern literature and was a prominent supporter of the anti-apartheid movement. Recognized by UNESCO and appointed South Africa's first poet laureate, he made significant contributions to the preservation and dissemination of African literature and oral traditions.
In Popular Culture
- Commemorated with a Google Doodle in 2022
Quotes
-
"a monumental undertaking and achievement by any standards"
Source: World Literature Today (commentary by Christopher Larson) (1983)
Trivia
- His works were banned by the apartheid government in 1966.
- In 2005 he was named South Africa's first poet laureate.
- He was honored with a Google Doodle on May 12, 2022.