Palamas, Costis

Born Jan. 13, 1859, in Pátrai (Patras); died Feb. 27, 1943, in Athens. Greek poet.

Palamas studied law at the University of Athens. He became a member of the Academy of Sciences of Athens in 1926. For many years he was a newspaper editor and a contributor to journals that published satirical verse and supported the use of the vernacular and national themes in literature.

In 1886, Palamas published his first collection of poems, Songs of My Country. His other works include the verse collections Iambs and Anapests (1897), Satirical Sketches (1912), and Sonnets (1919); the narrative poem Twelve Gypsy Songs (1907); and Short Stories (1920). These works reflect the universal-humanistic and revolutionary-democratic ideals of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Palamas was the founder of the “new school of Athens.”