Giorgos Geralis

Giorgos Geralis (1917 - 1996). Giorgos Geralis was born in Smyrna. After the catastrophe of 1922, he settled in Athens with his family. He studied at the Law and Philosophy Schools of the University of Athens and worked as a consultant in public law organizations (such as the Railway Organization) and as a publishing manager in publishing houses. He made his literary debut in 1936 with publications in Nea Estia, and in 1939 his poetry collection "Swans at Twilight" was published, receiving favorable reviews. This was followed by the collection "Lyrical Landscapes" (1950), while in the interim, he also engaged in children's literature, lexicography (as a collaborator in the publication of the "Great Dictionary of the Greek Language" by Dimitrakos Publications), and translations from ancient Greek and contemporary European poetry. His most significant contribution to literature is considered to be his third poetry collection, titled "Waiting Room" (1957). He collaborated with publications such as Artistic News, Nea Estia, Piraeus Letters, Circle, New Greek, among others. He was awarded the Prize of the Group of Twelve (1958), the second and first State Poetry Prize (1958 and 1976, respectively), and his works have been translated into German, English, French, and Italian. Starting from traditional poetry with evident influences from symbolism, Geralis gradually adopted elements of the so-called modernist poetic writing, focusing on human suffering and thought drawn from his lived experience. He also worked on translating works of ancient Greek and Latin authors, as well as his contemporary European poets. His collection "New Poems" was honored by the Academy of Athens. In the last years of his life, he lived in seclusion in his final residence in the Gyzi area. For more biographical details on Giorgos Geralis, see Argyriou Alex., "Giorgos Geralis," The Greek Poetry; The First Post-War Generation, pp. 298-299. Athens, Sokolis, 1982, Geranis Stelios, "Geralis Giorgos," Great Encyclopedia of Modern Greek Literature 5. Athens, Hari Patsi, n.d., and Papageorgiou Kostas G., "Geralis Giorgos," World Biographical Dictionary2. Athens, Ekdotiki Athinon, 1984. (Source: Archive of Greek Authors, EKEBI).