author
Noto Soeroto
1888–1951
A Javanese prince who brought Indonesian voices and imagery into Dutch-language literature, he wrote poetry, essays, and journalism that connected courtly tradition with the modern colonial world.
1 Audiobook
Rabindranath Tagore: Een biografische Schets
by Noto Soeroto
About the author
Born in Yogyakarta on June 5, 1888, Raden Mas Noto Soeroto came from the Pakualaman royal house in Java. He became known as a poet, writer, and journalist from the Dutch East Indies, and he wrote in Dutch at a time when very few Javanese authors were represented in that literary world.
His work is remembered for opening space in Dutch-language literature to Indigenous subjects, perspectives, and cultural life. Sources also describe him as a cultural activist, and the Indonesian cultural encyclopedia notes that he argued for a political and cultural association between East and West.
Noto Soeroto died in Surakarta on November 25, 1951. His legacy has endured through continued scholarly interest, including preserved archival material in Leiden relating to his life and work.