Jeanne Leuba


Jeanne Leuba was a French journalist, writer and poet. Having spent many years in Indochina and Cambodia, she is considered one of the most impressive of the women colonial novelists.

Life

Jeanne Leuba was born on 8 November into a Parisian Protestant family. Her father was a well-known anatomical drawing artist A. J. Leuba. In childhood she was trained to become a concert pianist. In 1905 she married Henri Parmentier, a director of EFEO archaeological service, and went with him to Indochina. In the colony Leuba accompanied Parmentier in all his archaeological exploration treks in the local bush. From her diaries we know about the taxing conditions of their traveling. Many remote places that Parmentier wanted to study could be reached only by sampans, canoes, ox-driven carts or on foot. Having diverse responsibilities ranging from technical assistance to mending of clothes and shopping for provisions, Leuba called herself her husband’s multi-task collaborator.
She published several articles on the Angkor monuments and two books on the ethic group of Chams in Southeast Asia: Les Chams d’autrefois et d’aujourd’hui, and Un royaume disparu: les Chams et leur art. In 1920s and 1930s Leuba was actively writing novels on Indochinese themes, including L’Aile du feu published in 1920. Among all her writings best remembered are her collection of poetry La tristesse du soleil, discussed by Patrick Laude, and Le metis ensorcelle, mentioned in general survey works on Francophone Indochinese literature.
After Parmentier’s death in 1949 Leuba decided to remain in the colony. In 1945 she was detained in the Japanese concentration camp and after being released worked for the local French-language newspapers and the radio of Phnom Penh. In 1954 Leuba prepared for publication posthumous work Parmentier L’Art de Laos. In 1966 she left Cambodia, where Cambodian Civil War was about to start, and settled in Austria where she remained until her death on 24 July 1979.

Publications