In 1963Fernández del Riego, one of the presidents of the Royal Galician Academy (RAG) At that time, he proposed May 17 as the day chosen for the ‘celebration of Galician’, following the national example of Book Day (which chose April 23 as the date of celebration in homage to Miguel de Cervantes). Fernández del Riego -honored in 2023- He chose this date in honor of Rosalía de Castro, who was the first to be honored on the first Día das Letras Galegas. Today, after 61 years of celebrations, only five women appear on the list. This year it adds Luisa Villaltabut the total number of women is still far from the number of men who were honored on May 17.

Rosalía de Castro, first honoree

Why did you choose May 17 to celebrate Galician letters? Because it coincides with the publication of ‘Galician Songs’ by Rosalía de Castro back in 1863. This tribute began with this renowned figure of literature. Her fundamental role in Feminist movement seems to have passed overlooked among those who have been deciding who to remember in these 60 years of tributes to Galician writers.

In 2024 the Royal Galician Academy has decided to honor Luisa Villalta when 20 years have passed since his death. Thus, women’s names grow in a list where men obtain greater representation. Although few, there are: let us remember who have been the lucky ones to receive tributes from Galician academics.

Who is Luisa Villalta?

Writer, philosopher and violinist from A Coruña, in her texts she achieved cross poetry and music, as well as delve into topics of various kinds. His analytical ability made it easy for him to write about art, nature, feelings and emotions. Those who enjoyed and continue to enjoy his texts highlight his writing’s ability to reflect deep and universal truths.

Not only has he stood out on the national literary scene, he has also achieved success internationally. His untimely death at age 46 in 2004 brought an end to his work. This May 17 she is honored in Galicia for having contributed to maintaining the essence and identity of the Galician people.

All the women honored on the Galician Letters Day

Although few, Rosalía de Castro and Luísa Villalta They have not been the only ones to receive this tribute in 60 years. Rosalía was followed in 1987 Francisca Herrera Garrido, first woman to be a member of the Royal Galician Academy. The writer wanted to make special mention of Rosalía de Castro and the “racial poets” in her speech, which she was never able to read due to her death in 1950.

It was not until 20 years later when another woman’s name was added to the list: Maria Marinopoet who rose to fame when she was already 40 years old with ‘Word not time’. His poems were suspected of having been written by another person: Uxío Novoneyra. In the words of Xosé Ramón Barreiro, president of the RAG in 2007, Mariño suffered this accusation because of her condition as a woman and “because of her unregulated relationship with Uxío – she was married and he was single – her merit was not recognized,” as he argued. for Europa Press.

Like Villalta, María Mariño reflected in her poems on identity, in her case crossed with time. It is not surprising that this was her theme, since for much of her life she suffered from leukemia, a disease that would lead to her death in 1967.

In 2018 María Victoria Moreno Márquez He received this tribute for his teaching work and his interest in the Galician language. This year the tribute took on a different value: she was from Cáceres by origin, Galician by adoption, this philologist was teacher in Pontevedra since 1963 and settled in Galicia until his death on November 21, 2005. During his time in Pontevedra he actively participated in the cultural and political life of the Galician area. As a writer, she focused her work on children’s and youth literature in the Galician language.

In 2021 the last woman’s name was given on this Day: Xela Arias. The poet from Lugo stood out for her contemporary writings, in which she analyzed and criticized the lack of social balance. Of clear vindictive nature, Arias contributed to the renewal of Galician literature, with a style far from traditional poetry. As part of her fellow listings, Xela also had an untimely death in 2003 at age 41.

#PropónUnhaMuller: the initiative that made the difference

In 2017, a year before the tribute to María Victoria Moreno, the Polo Correo do Vento bus supported by him Council of Pontevedra launched the initiative #PropónUnhaMuller (‘Propose a woman’), which sought to increase the number of female names among the honorees of the Galician Letters Day. Thus, among the most supported proposals was Moreno precisely, but also Xela Arias, Pura Vázquez, Luz Pozo Garza, María Balteira, Luísa Villalta, Isabel de Castro, Filomena Dato, Avelina Valladares…

With this initiative, Polo Correo do Vento managed to make known these women who contributed to the defense of the Galician language in addition to denoting the “historical injustice of the role of women in culture and in other areas of society.”