Stijn Streuvels

Stijn Streuvels was born on October 2, 1871 in Heule, Flanders, Belgium as Frank Lateur.

A master baker for 15 years, he learned German, English, Danish, and some Russian, and he began writing after 1892.

Although he defined his chosen locality by precise reference to dialect and folklore, he was no mere chronicler. His keen powers of observation were enhanced by a rich imagination, a feeling for atmosphere, and a broad command of language. At his best he was a master of characterization, especially in his presentation of farmers and farm workers who obstinately struggle against the land and against destiny, as in Langs de wegen (1902; The Long Road) and his masterpiece, De vlaschaard (1907; The Flaxfield).

In 1905 he married Alida Staelens. They had 4 children: Paula (1906), Paul (1909), Dina (1916) and Isa (1922). In 1980 their house became a museum dedicated to Streuvels.

Even in the 21st century the reader cannot help but be moved by the compelling power of Streuvels's descriptions of nature. It is not necessary to know that the author was a baker who spent his whole life in direct contact with traditionally closed country folk. His work shows clearly that he knew their language and character inside out and was deeply inspired by nature. The changing seasons and the power of the elements are convincingly evoked. Lovingly and yet dramatically, the author depicts the conversations and summer festivals of the peasants who, within their limited human possibilities, are integrated within nature as a whole.

In 1937 and 1938 Streuvels garnered the majority of the Nobel Committee votes for his receiving the literature Nobel Prize, but each time the Academy awarded the prize to someone else: in 1937 he had to give way to Roger Martin du Gard and in 1938 to a new discovery, Pearl Buck.

In 1962, Stijn Streuvels received the Dutch Literature Prize ( de Prijs der Nederlandse Letteren) in The Hague, the highest award for a writer in Dutch language area. "The magic does its work: the reader is trapped in the magic circle of Streuvel's magic world," wrote the jury.

He was a writer and actor, known for Leven en dood op het land (1963), Mira (1971) and De vlaschaard (1983).

The funeral of Stijn Streuvels on August 21, 1969, attended by some 7,000 people in Ingooigem, was reported on Belgian national television. There was far too little room for the people of the village itself. It was their turn on 31 August at a second funeral ceremony.