Debora Vaarandi


Debora Vaarandi was an Estonian writer, considered to be a leading literary figure in post-World War II Estonia.

Biography

Debora Vaarandi was born in Võru, October 1, 1916. She grew up on the island of Saaremaa. Vaarandi studied language and literature at the University of Tartu.
In 1936, she married ; the couple later divorced. She joined the Communist Party of Estonia in 1940. When the Germans invaded Estonia, she escaped to Russia, returning to Estonia in 1944. Although not trained as a journalist, she worked as editor in chief of the Communistic publication Sirbi ja Vasara. She was forced to resign that post after contracting tuberculosis.
In 1946, her first collection of poetry Põleva laotuse all was published. Her work celebrates values such as the love of nature, the importance of family and the beauty of small things. Many of her poems have been set to music.
In 1952, she married writer Juhan Smuul. After 1977, she focused on translating works by Anna Akhmatova, Georg Trakl and Edith Södergran into Estonian. She was awarded the Order of the White Rose of Finland for her work in translating Finnish poetry into Estonian.

Awards and honors