Humberto Ak'ab'al

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Humberto Ak'ab'al also Ak'abal or Akabal (born 1952 Momostenango) is a K'iche' Maya poet from Guatemala. His poetry has been published in French, English, German and Italian translations as well as in the original K'iche' and Spanish. His book Guardián de la caída de agua, "Guardian of the Waterfall", was named book of the year by Association of Guatemalan Journalists and received their Golden Quetzal award in 1993. In 1995 he received an honorary degree from the Faculty of Humanities of the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala. In 2004 he declined to receive the Guatemala National Prize in Literature because it is named for Miguel Angel Asturias who Ak'ab'al accused of incouraging racism. He said Asturias' 1923 essay The Social Problem of the Indian, "Offends the indigenous peoples of Guatemala, of which I am part."

[edit] Sources

• Humberto Ak´abal (Spanish). Ministerio de Cultura y Deportes (2005-05-31). Retrieved on 2007-02-23.

• "Poet rejects literature award", CBCNews, 2004-01-23. Retrieved on 2007-02-23.

http://www.cbc.ca/arts/story/2004/01/23/briefs230104.html

[edit] External links

• Official site
• Humberto Ak'abal at Poetry International Web