Christian Matras: Faroese Poet

While still little known to English language appreciators of Faroese literature, Christian Matras may be our most accessible Faroese poet, thanks to the efforts of Canadian poet and translator, George Johnston. English translations of Faroese poetry remain few, so discovering, say, one forty-five page work by a writer who has published extensively in the Faroese language is kind of like striking a gold mine.

Christian Matras's poetry was influenced, much like other Faroese writers, by J.H.O. "Janus" Djurhuus, the poet often credited with modernizing and breaking Faroese poetry away from the strictly traditional folk legends and songs. Matras, like Djurhuus, became increasingly influenced by continental philosophy and poetry after studying in Copenhagen. Universal themes would increasingly be explored, but the pastoral island life, the folk legends and the land and sea would never be forgotten. Bridging traditional forms, such as the influential Thomas Kingo's hymns turned twentieth century Faroese folk melodies, with moderns themes, Matras's poetry was somewhat lighter than the 'troll-darkness' that underscored so much of Djurhuus's work. In Djurhuus, darkness often overpowered light, but in the next generation of authors and poets, such as Matras and Heinesen, an earnest appreciation for the landscape and Faroese life, despite the long, dark winters, were guiding themes. In one poem about the island of Matras's birthplace, ''Viðoy'' leaves port in the fog, with the tall cliff, Enniberg, breaking waves at the bow, the island's mountains as its sails and masts, and the sheep and islanders as its cargo.

Unlike a few of his contemporaries, Matras chose to write in the Faroese language, promoting the language even if it meant obscurity on the international scene. But his obscurity did not last long, well, maybe not entirely. By the seventies, the poet and translator George Johnston, well known for his translations of the Icelandic Sagas and other Nordic literature, began collaborating with Matras on English translations of his poetry. By the early eighties, Johnston translated a collection of Faroese poetry, called 'Rocky Shores', that included writers such as Matras, Heinesen, and Karsten Hoydal. Seven years later, Johnston translated a collection of Matras's short poetry; the only such publication of Faroese poetry available to English-language readers today.

Matras's contributions to Faroese culture and arts go beyond his poetry. In the early twenties, Matras published the first modern Faroese-Danish dictionary in collaboration with M.A. Jacobsen. Matras was also a highly regarded translator, and helped repatriate Danish language works by Faroese authors, such as William Heinesen and Jørgen Frantz Jacobsen, to the Faroese language. Translations of Voltaire and Jonathan Swift, among others, helped expand the accessibility of continental works for Faroese readers, just as Djurhuus did for Dante and Homer in the decades before.

• 'So Deep, So Deep' and 'The Company of the Blind', were published in an August 1970 issue of Poetry Magazine, and are available online at the poetryfoundation.org. 
• A selection of Matras's poems, such as 'So, Deep, So Deep', 'Viðoy', and 'the Milkmaids' were included in a collection of Faroese poetry, 'Rocky Shores', collected and translated in 1981 by George Johnston. This collection is not in publication any more, so check the stacks at your public and university libraries.
• 'Seeing and Remembering: Strophes', translated by George Johnston, is published by Penumbra Press in 1988 and is still available on their website.
• Matras's poems have also been put to music by Agnar Ellebye on the album ''Páll fangi og bygd og hav''. The song ''Ein løta við brian og agnar'' is available for download on amazon and musicme. The complete album is available from tutl, the Faroese music store.