Limerick’s Literary Gift/Slave Trade Rememberance/Kazi Nazrul Islam Anniversary – Poetry News Roundup August 27th

Today, our poetry news round up takes a look at the donation of literary works gifted to the University of Limerick. We also have an article about the memorial of the

and he 43^rd death anniversary of the poet Kazi Nazrul Islam.

Library at University of Limerick Receives Donated Literary Works

A huge collection of literary papers which were collected by private collector John Liddy has been donated to the UCL Special Collection and Archives.

The collection is said to

John Liddy is a renowned figure in Irish Literature, and these are his personal papers. This is a truly extensive collection which fills 17 boxes. The staff in the Special Collections department now have the lengthy task of cataloguing everything.

The paperwork includes correspondence between Liddy and other poets from all over the globe, as well as materials linked to his own poetry – all of which has been collected during his 40-year career.

Liddy refers to the collection as having 2 parts, the Madrid hoard and the hoard from Limerick. He was born in Youghal but later moved to Limerick where he grew up. He now lives in Madrid where he works as a librarian and teacher.

Once it has been catalogued, the collection will be held in the library at UCL alongside those of some of Liddy’s fellow poets

Glasgow Leading the Way on Reparation of Slavery Says National Poet of Scotland

23^rd August marked the day that has been designated by UNESCO as a day of memorial for the transatlantic slave trade. The

and its eventual Abolition is held on the same day every year.

Glasgow memorialised the day this year with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding – a document that was signed between the Universities of the West Indies and Glasgow.

In addition to the signing, a plaque was also unveiled and Jackie Kay, the Scottish Makar (national poet) read a poem that had been commissioned specially for the occasion.

Kazi Nazrul Islam 43^rd Death Anniversary Marked

Monday marked the 43^rd anniversary of the death of Kazi Nazrul Islam, the National poet of Bangladesh. The occasion was marked across the country.

The poet died in 1976, and was buried at the central mosque of Dhaka University with state honours.

The programme of events that took place to mark the anniversary was organised by a number of different bodies including professional bodies and some of the political parties. In addition to the various activities that were planned throughout the day, the occasion was also marked on Bangladesh television, several of the smaller independent television channels and also the local radio station. A number of special programmes were aired, and the national newspapers also published special supplements about the poet.

The university also marked the occasion with a procession which took place on the campus and ended with the offering of fateha – prayers – at the poet’s grave.