Michael Hartnett

Michael Hartnett (Mícheál Ó hAirtnéide)
18 September 1941 – 13 October 1999

Michael Harnett (Micheál ÓhAirtnéide) was a bilingual poet who wrote in Irish and English. He was deeply revered and beloved amongst his peers. He passed away 25 years ago.

Born in Newcastle West, County Limerick, in 1941, he grew up in poverty—at times under the care of his Irish-speaking grandmother. He attended University College Dublin for a year on a scholarship and was writing poetry by the early 1960s. In addition to his work, he produced groundbreaking translations of the classical poets of the Irish language. He developed a love of the Irish language from his grandmother, about whom he wrote the beautiful and moving 'Death of an Irish Woman'.

In 1975, he renounced writing in English and declared that henceforth, he would write only in Irish “to court the language of my people” with the publication of 'A Farewell to English'.

Hartnett's Irish poem quoted here is about Eoghan Rua Ó Súilleabháin (meaning Red Owen), the Gaelic poet born in 1748 in Kerry. Eoghan Rua lived during the Penal Laws in Ireland, laws aimed to kill the ancient ways of Gaelic life, including speaking or reading Gaeilge or playing Irish music, which was punishable by fines, imprisonment, and death penalties.

Hartnett explored the tension between languages and won numerous awards for his work. Sadly, he died prematurely in 1999 at the age of 58, leaving behind a legacy of poetry and translations that continues to influence writers today. In his honor, there is an annual festival Éigse Michael Hartnett in his hometown of Newcastle West.

Sources: Wikipedia and his biography -' Rebel Act Michael Hartnett's Farewell To English' by Pat Walsh  (2012) published by Mercier Press. Paula Meehan interviewed in the Irish Independent (Sept 28th 2024).

Scríbhneoirí Gaeilge | Irish Writers

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