Macedonian Poetry

Introduction

Like the Slovenes, the Macedonians have had to travel a rocky historical path. After their early state was subjugated in the eleventh century by the Byzantines and, later, by the Turks, they did not enjoy independence until 1945. During those long centuries, however, they maintained their ethnic and cultural identity. When conditions became favorable at the end of World War II, they began to produce their own literature.

Despite this long history of oppression, Macedonian culture can trace its heritage back to the earliest Slavic writings, which appeared in the ninth century in the language of the Macedonian Slavs around Salonika. Centering on the lively activity of Macedonian missionaries, led by Klement Ohridski and Naum Ohridski and their disciples, early Macedonian literature was exclusively related to the Church. Indeed, for many centuries, the only Macedonian literature not directly connected with the Church was oral folk literature, which was as abundant in Macedonia as in other South Slavic lands. Much of this literature was in poetic form, but because of its oral nature, not much has been preserved. Folklorists continue making concerted efforts to record and document what remains of this tradition, some of which has been handed down for generations.

Eighteenth and nineteenth centuries

The first known verses in Macedonian were written by Kiril Pejčinovif́-Tetoec (c. 1770-1845). The beginning of known Macedonian poetry coincided with the revival of national awareness and the struggle against the Turks and the Greek clergy, who had tried strenuously to suppress the Macedonian language and the development of Macedonian literature. The next generation of writers included several poetsJordan Hadži Konstantinov-Džinot (1820-1882), Dimitrije Miladinov (1810-1862), Konstantin Miladinov (1830-1862), Rajko Žinzifov (1839-1877), and Grigor Prličev (1830-1893). The Miladinov brothers were especially active in their efforts to introduce Macedonian in schools and in collecting and publishing folk poetry. For their nationalistic activity, they both died in a prison in Constantinople. Žinzifov, a talented poet and an erudite scholar (he graduated from Moscow University) was also instrumental in collecting and translating folk poetry, and his own poetry is not without merit. The most talented of these writers was Prličev. As a student of Greek, he wrote the epic poems Serdar (1860; The Sirdar, 1973) and Skender beg (1861; Skender Bey) in Greek, which he later translated into Macedonian. He also translated Homer’s Iliad (c. 750 BCE; English translation, 1611) and Odyssey (c. 725 BCE; English translation, 1614) into his native language. The poetry of all of these poets, being so closely connected with the struggle of their people for independence, has more historical than artistic value. By writing in their own language, they helped to preserve it in literature after centuries of suppression. They also drew heavily from folk poetry, bringing that cultural treasure into focus and perhaps saving it from oblivion.

Twentieth century onward

In the creation of Yugoslavia at the end of World War I (the new nation of the Southern Slavs was not known by that name until 1929), the Macedonians were denied their nationality once again. Their writers were again forced to live and write outside their native land, for writing and publishing in Macedonian were not allowed. Among these émigré writers, three stand out: Kosta Racin (1908-1943), Venko Markovski (1915-1988), and Kole Nedelkovski (1912-1943). By far the most important of the three, Racin was the first to publish a collection of poems in Macedonian, Beli mugri (1939; White Dawns). Here, Racin depicts the plight of his countrymen, who were often forced to go for long periods to other countries, especially the United States, to look for work.

The recognition of Macedonian nationality within Yugoslavia at the end of World War II triggered a burst of cultural and literary activity. A single dialect was chosen as the basis for Macedonia’s literary language, and books began to be published in great numbers. More importantly, several writers and poets of unmistakable talent emerged, laying the foundation of contemporary literature and poetry. Among these, three stand out: Slavko Janevski (1920-2000), Blaźe Koneski (1921-1993), and Aco Šopov (1923-1983).

Janevski’s poetry, whether about his war experiences or about his intimate concerns, is characterized by a picturesque quality, originality, boldness, and even a touch of black humor. In form, he is just as bold, imaginative, and innovative. The author of the first Macedonian novel, he is active in other genres, although poetry still seems to be his main interest.

Koneski, an academician who has done pioneering work in the field of the Macedonian language, writes direct, intimate, and meditative poetry. Macedonian motifs—mythical, folkloric, and contemporary—are frequently found in his somewhat traditional and subdued poems. Koneski is a master of controlled pathos and understatement. Šopov published the first Macedonian book of poetry after World War II and thus started, along with Janevski and Koneski, the process of establishing the right of Macedonian poetry to exist.

A subtle lyricist, a sensitive observer, and a poet of intense personal experience, Šopov enriched Macedonian poetry at the beginning of the new period, thus creating models for the younger poets. He was among the first to liberate Macedonian poetry from nonaesthetic criteria in the late 1940s.

After these three poets, the road was opened for many remarkably capable poets. Mateja Matevski (1929-2018) and Gané Todorovski (1929-2010) were the leaders in the second generation of contemporary Macedonian poets. Matevski contributed to transforming declarative, descriptive, and confessional Macedonian poetry into a meditative and abstract approach bordering, at times, on the surreal. Influenced by French poets, he paid great attention to form, attempting to balance an abundance of impressions and an economy of expression. Todorovski’s poetry shows a peculiar sensitivity and strong linguistic ability.

Radovan Pavlovski (1936-2022) and Bogomil Gjuzel (1939-2021) belong to the third wave of modern Macedonian poets. Pavlovski is a poet of extraordinary imagistic invention and an almost animistic approach to the natural world. His images seemingly rise out of the unconscious with echoes of folklore and rural life. The sense of nostalgia, of loss, that one experiences in reading his verse recalls the spirit of anonymous folk poetry, yet Pavlovski gives his expression a thoroughly modern and sophisticated tone. Gjuzel is a more contemplative poet with equally close ties to his native soil. His work shows the beginnings of a conscious effort to organize the Macedonian experience and sensibility. His poems impress the reader with their formal excellence and the evocative and sensuous quality of his language.

The vitality of the poetic tradition in Macedonia is evident in the fact that every August for almost five decades, the southern Macedonian city of Struga has held an international poetry festival that attracts poets from all over the world, as well as scholars, literary critics, and translators. Struga Poetic Evenings (SPE) was launched in 1962 when several Macedonian poets presented readings in honor of Konstantin and Dimitar Miladinov. By 2009, SPE had become a four-day event attended by more than eighty poets from fifty countries. The festival always opens with a reading of Konstantin Miladinov’s poem “T’ga za jug” (“Longing for the South”). Among the activities that follow are poetry readings and performances, multimedia presentations, symposia, concerts, and the presentation of awards for poetic achievement, among them, the naming of an SPE laureate. The festival is followed by a Caravan of Poetry, a series of poetry readings in other Macedonian cities, which ends in Skopje, where the SPE laureate is made an honorary member of the Macedonian Poetry Association.

In the first quarter of the twenty-first century, several Macedonian poets emerged, including Nikola Madžirov (b. 1973), Slavcho Koviloski (b. 1978), Lidija Dimkovska (b. 1971), Andrej Al-Asadi (b. 1997), and Maja Apostoloska (b. 1976). Many publish works in their native Macedonian, which are often translated into English, like Apostoloska's "Именувањето" (2009; "Naming") and Dimkovska's "Гранична состојба" (2021; "Boundary Situation"). Some modern Macedonian poets, such as Stefan Markovski, publish works in English. His poetry, poetry collections, and short stories include "Letters of Heresy" (2018), Faustus Runs the Plebeian Circle (2020), "The Bumblebee Anatomy" (2021), and The Light in Our Veins (2024).

Bibliography

Al-Asadi, Andrej, et al. "Transnational Transmission: A Conversation with North Macedonian Poet Andrej Al-Asadi." World Literature Today, vol. 98 no. 4, 2024, p. 33-35. Project MUSE, doi.org/10.1353/wlt.2024.a931081.

Bakovska, Elizabeta, et al. Six Macedonian Poets. Arc Publications, 2011.

Barac, Antun. A History of Yugoslav Literature. Ann Arbor. Mich.: Joint Committee on Eastern Europe Publication Series, 1973.

Dimkovska, Lidija. Do Not Awaken Them with Hammers. Translated by Ljubica Arsovska and Peggy Reid. Ugly Duckling Press, 2006.

George, Emery, ed. Contemporary East European Poetry: An Anthology. 2d ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993.

Janevski, Slavko. The Bandit Wind: Poems. Translated by Charles Simic. Takoma Park, Md.: Dryad Press, 1991.

Mihailovich, Vasa D. A Comprehensive Bibliography of Yugoslav Literature in English, 1593-1980. Columbus, Ohio: Slavica, 1984.

Nović, Sara. "Interview with Lidija Dimkovska." The White Review, 2017, www.thewhitereview.org/feature/interview-lidija-dimkovska. Accessed 20 Aug. 2024.

Osers, Ewald, ed. Contemporary Macedonian Poetry. Translated by Eward Osers. London: Kultura/Forest Books, 1991.

Šopov, Aco, et al. The Long Coming of the Fire Selected Poems. Deep Vellum Publishing, 2023.