Age, Biography and Wiki

Matthew Sweeney was born on 6 October, 1952 in Lifford, County Donegal, Ireland, is an Irish poet (1952–2018). Discover Matthew Sweeney's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. Learn How rich is he in this year and how he spends money? Also learn how he earned most of networth at the age of 65 years old?

Popular As N/A
Occupation Poet
Age 65 years old
Zodiac Sign Libra
Born 6 October, 1952
Birthday 6 October
Birthplace Lifford, County Donegal, Ireland
Date of death 5 August, 2018
Died Place Cork University Hospital, Ireland
Nationality Ireland

We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on 6 October. He is a member of famous Poet with the age 65 years old group.

Matthew Sweeney Height, Weight & Measurements

At 65 years old, Matthew Sweeney height not available right now. We will update Matthew Sweeney's Height, weight, Body Measurements, Eye Color, Hair Color, Shoe & Dress size soon as possible.

Physical Status
Height Not Available
Weight Not Available
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Who Is Matthew Sweeney's Wife?

His wife is Rosemary Barber

Family
Parents Not Available
Wife Rosemary Barber
Sibling Not Available
Children Nico (daughter) Malvin (son)

Matthew Sweeney Net Worth

His net worth has been growing significantly in 2023-2024. So, how much is Matthew Sweeney worth at the age of 65 years old? Matthew Sweeney’s income source is mostly from being a successful Poet. He is from Ireland. We have estimated Matthew Sweeney's net worth, money, salary, income, and assets.

Net Worth in 2024 $1 Million - $5 Million
Salary in 2024 Under Review
Net Worth in 2023 Pending
Salary in 2023 Under Review
House Not Available
Cars Not Available
Source of Income Poet

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Timeline

1921

Two offspring – daughter Nico and son Malvin – were produced before the couple went their separate ways in the early 21st century.

1952

Matthew Gerard Sweeney (6 October 1952 – 5 August 2018) was an Irish poet.

His work has been translated into Dutch, Italian, Hebrew, Japanese, Latvian, Mexican Spanish, Romanian, Slovakian and German.

According to the poet Gerard Smyth: "I always sensed that in the first instance [Sweeney] regarded himself as a European rather than an Irish poet – and rightly so: like the German Georg Trakl whom he admired he apprehended the world in a way that challenged our perceptions and commanded our attention."

Sweeney's work has been considered "barely touched by the mainstream of English writing" and more so by the German writers Kleist, Büchner, Kafka, Grass and Böll, as well as the aforementioned Trakl.

According to Poetry International Web, Sweeney would be among the top five most famous Irish poets on the international scene.

Sweeney was born at Lifford, County Donegal, in 1952.

1965

Growing up in Clonmany, he attended Gormanston College (1965–70).

1970

He then read sciences at University College Dublin (1970–72).

1972

He met Rosemary Barber in 1972.

1978

He went on to study German and English at the Polytechnic of North London, spending a year at the University of Freiburg, before graduating with a BA Honours degree in 1978.

1979

They married in 1979.

1980

Bill Swainson, Sweeney's editor at Allison and Busby in the 1980s, recalls: "As well as writing his own poetry, Matthew was a great encourager of poetry in others. The workshops he animated, and later the residencies he undertook, were famous for their geniality and seriousness and fun. Sometime in the late 1980s I attended one of these workshops in an upstairs room of a pub in Lamb's Conduit Street, Bloomsbury, where the poems were circulated anonymously and carefully read and commented on by all. Around the pushed-together tables were Ruth Padel, Eva Salzman, Don Paterson, Maurice Riordan, Jo Shapcott, Lavinia Greenlaw, Michael Donaghy, Maura Dooley and Tim Dooley."

Sweeney later had residencies at the University of East Anglia and London's Southbank Centre, among many others.

1992

His novels for children include The Snow Vulture (1992) and Fox (2002).

1998

He read at three Rotterdam Poetry Festivals, in 1998, 2003 and 2009.

His final year saw the publication of two new collections: My Life As A Painter (Bloodaxe Books) and King of a Rainy Country (Arc Publications), inspired by Baudelaire's posthumously published Petits poèmes en prose.

2001

Having lived in London for many years until 2001, Sweeney separated from Rosemary and went to live in Timișoara (Romania) and Berlin (Germany).

2007

In 2007, he met his partner, Mary Noonan, and in early 2008 he moved to Cork to live with her there.

Sweeney produced numerous collections of poetry for which he won several awards.

2012

He authored a satirical thriller, co-written with John Hartley Williams, and entitled Death Comes for the Poets (2012).

2018

Having been diagnosed with motor neuron disease the previous year (a fate that had earlier befallen a sister of his), Sweeney died aged 65 at Cork University Hospital on 5 August 2018, surrounded by family and friends.

He had continued writing up until three days before he died.

In an interview shortly before his death he was quizzed on his legacy, to which he gave the response: "Mostly what awaits the poet is posthumous oblivion. Maybe there will be a young man in Hamburg, or Munich, or possibly Vienna, for whom my German translations will be for a while important – and might just contribute to him becoming a German language poet with Irish leanings."

Among those attending a special ceremony on 8 August 2018 at the Triskel Arts Centre in Cork city to celebrate Sweeney's life were fellow poets Jo Shapcott, Thomas McCarthy, Gerry Murphy, Maurice Riordan and Padraig Rooney.

On 9 August 2018, Sweeney was buried in Clonmany New Cemetery in County Donegal.