author
Valentín Lamas Carvajal
1849–1906
A sharp, witty voice of the Galician cultural revival, he used poetry and journalism to bring everyday rural life into print. His work helped make Galician a living language of modern public debate, not just private speech.
1 Audiobook
Catecismo d'a Doutrina Labrega
by Valentín Lamas Carvajal
About the author
Born in Ourense on November 1, 1849, Valentín Lamas Carvajal became one of the key writers of the Galician Rexurdimento, the 19th-century revival of Galician language and literature. He studied in Ourense and later moved to Santiago de Compostela to study medicine, but an eye disease forced him to leave his studies and eventually left him blind.
He is remembered both as a poet and as a pioneer of journalism in Galician. He founded the weekly O Tío Marcos d'a Portela and was also linked to El Heraldo Gallego, using humor, satire, and a close feel for everyday speech to write about rural life and social realities. Among his best-known works is Catecismo do labrego, a classic of Galician literature.
Lamas Carvajal was a founding member of the Real Academia Galega and is widely regarded as one of the most significant Galician authors of his time. He died in Ourense on September 4, 1906, leaving behind a body of work that helped secure a public place for Galician writing.