Emma Guntz
Encyclopedia
Emma Guntz (born August 30, 1937 in Bruchsal
) is a German-French poet, journalist and editor living and working in Strasbourg
, France
.
exam in her home town of Bruchsal, Emma Guntz studied English, Latin
and history at the Ruprecht-Karls-University Heidelberg.
Soon after graduation she married Antoine Guntz, a Strasbourg physician; they have three children. In the 1970s she worked as a radio journalist, communicating German culture and tradition to Alsatians. From 1984 to 1996 she hosted a weekly broadcast on poetry at Radio France 3 Alsace, in which she presented contemporary poetry in French, German and the Alsatian dialect.
The first collection of her own poetry, In Klarschrift (In Plain Writing), was published in 1996, followed by others, the last one (in 2009) being Späte Widmung (Late Dedication).
As a writing journalist she contributed feuilleton articles, e.g. for the German-language edition of
Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace, as well as apostils and short stories.
In 2000 she was awarded the Johann Peter Hebel Award
, of Baden-Württemberg
, and in 2001 she was the first woman to be honored by Deidesheim
in Rhineland-Palatinate
as Turmschreiberin (tower scribe), which meant sporadic sojourns in the medieval castle tower and resulted in the publication of another collection of poems Ein Jahr Leben (One year of Life), partly dedicated to Deidesheim.
Apart from her literary and journalistic work Emma Guntz was instrumental in co-organizing the ten conferences of the literarische Biennale Mitteleuropa (a biannual meeting of central European literature) at Strasbourg-Schiltigheim (1989–2008).
From 1986 to 2001 she was chair person of an organization for the social reintegration of young and permanently unemployed persons.
Poetry Collections:
Bruchsal
Bruchsal is a city at the western edge of the Kraichgau, approximately 20 km northeast of Karlsruhe in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany...
) is a German-French poet, journalist and editor living and working in Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Life
After passing her AbiturAbitur
Abitur is a designation used in Germany, Finland and Estonia for final exams that pupils take at the end of their secondary education, usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling, see also for Germany Abitur after twelve years.The Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, often referred to as...
exam in her home town of Bruchsal, Emma Guntz studied English, Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and history at the Ruprecht-Karls-University Heidelberg.
Soon after graduation she married Antoine Guntz, a Strasbourg physician; they have three children. In the 1970s she worked as a radio journalist, communicating German culture and tradition to Alsatians. From 1984 to 1996 she hosted a weekly broadcast on poetry at Radio France 3 Alsace, in which she presented contemporary poetry in French, German and the Alsatian dialect.
The first collection of her own poetry, In Klarschrift (In Plain Writing), was published in 1996, followed by others, the last one (in 2009) being Späte Widmung (Late Dedication).
As a writing journalist she contributed feuilleton articles, e.g. for the German-language edition of
Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace, as well as apostils and short stories.
In 2000 she was awarded the Johann Peter Hebel Award
Johann Peter Hebel
Johann Peter Hebel was a German short story writer and dialectal poet, most famous for his collection of alemannic tales Schatzkästlein des rheinischen Hausfreundes .-Life:...
, of Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
, and in 2001 she was the first woman to be honored by Deidesheim
Deidesheim
Deidesheim is a town in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany with some 3,700 inhabitants.The town lies in the northwest of the Rhine-Neckar urban agglomeration and since 1973 it has been the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde of Deidesheim. The most important industries are tourism...
in Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
as Turmschreiberin (tower scribe), which meant sporadic sojourns in the medieval castle tower and resulted in the publication of another collection of poems Ein Jahr Leben (One year of Life), partly dedicated to Deidesheim.
Apart from her literary and journalistic work Emma Guntz was instrumental in co-organizing the ten conferences of the literarische Biennale Mitteleuropa (a biannual meeting of central European literature) at Strasbourg-Schiltigheim (1989–2008).
From 1986 to 2001 she was chair person of an organization for the social reintegration of young and permanently unemployed persons.
Publications
- Essays on literature and culture, mainly in the journal ALLMENDE edited by Hermann Bausinger, Adolf MuschgAdolf MuschgAdolf Muschg is a Swiss writer and professor of literature. Muschg was a member of the Gruppe Olten.- His life :...
, Martin WalserMartin WalserAt first the speech did not cause a great stir. Indeed, the audience present in Church of St. Paul received the speech with applause, though Walser's critic Ignatz Bubis did not applaud, as confirmed by television footage of the event...
, André Weckmann, Manfred Bosch - Short stories and poems e.g. in Lesebuch Schreibende Frauen – edited by Anne Birk / Birgit Heiderich / Regine Kress-Fricke, G. Braun Verlag Karlsruhe 1988
- Elsass, ein literarischer Reisebegleiter, co-edited with André Weckmann, Insel-Verlag, Frankfurt a. M. und Leipzig 2001, ISBN 3-458-34446-2
Poetry Collections:
- In Klarschrift, Le Drapier Editeur 1996
- Hasen sterben lautlos - couleur fraise, couleur framboise, Gollenstein Blieskastel 2000 ISBN 3-933389-21-6
- Ein Jahr Leben - Deidesheimer Gedichte, Verlag Pfälzer Kunst, Landau 2002 ISBN 3-922580-92-0
- Späte Widmung, Drey Verlag Gutach 2009 ISBN 978-3-933765-45-1
Honors
- 1987: René Schickele media award (Strasbourg) awarded by an organization supporting bilingual culture in Alsace
- 1997: Hebelplakette (Hebel medal) by Hausen im WiesentalHausen im WiesentalHausen im Wiesental is a commune in the Lörrach district of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The eminent expressionistic painter August Babberger was born in Hausen in 1885 and the dialectal poet Johann Peter Hebel lived in Hausen for many years.-Geography:...
- 2000: Johann-Peter-Hebel-Award by Baden-Württemberg
- 2001: Turmschreiberin (tower scribe) in Deidesheim