Breyten Breytenbach; SA poet, activist and painter, receives the Hertzog Prize for his poetry

Date: 17 Sep 1999
Updated: 30 Sep 2019

Breyten Breytenbach; SA poet, activist and painter, receives the Hertzog Prize for his poetry

Breyten Breytenbach, South African poet, painter and activist, received the Hertzog Prize for his two Afrikaans poetry volumes, an elegy 'Oorblyfsels: 'n roudig' and 'Papierblom' (Paper flower). The ceremony was held at the University of Pretoria. The Hertzog prize is named in honour of General J.B.M. Hertzog, former premier of the Union of South Africa and a champion of the Afrikaans language. The prize was sponsored by Rapport, an Afrikaans Sunday newspaper. Breytenbach was a committed opponent of apartheid and left South Africa in 1960, settling in Paris in 1962 with his Viëtnamese wife Yolande Ngo Thi Hoang Lien. He returned to South Africa with a false passport in 1975, was arrested, charged under the Terrorism Act and jailed for seven years. After his release he returned to Paris where he obtained French citizenship. He writes his poetry mainly in Afrikaans and his prose works in English. He divides his time currently between Europe, South Africa and the USA.

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01Stellenbosch Writers,'Breyten Breytenbach', from Stellenbosch Writers, [online], available at: www.stellenboschwriters.com [accessed 13 August 2013]

Last updated · 30 Sep 2019

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2011, March 16). Breyten Breytenbach; SA poet, activist and painter, receives the Hertzog Prize for his poetry. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0013455

South African History Online (2011) 'Breyten Breytenbach; SA poet, activist and painter, receives the Hertzog Prize for his poetry', South African History Online, 16 March. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0013455 (Accessed: 23 July 2026).

South African History Online, Breyten Breytenbach; SA poet, activist and painter, receives the Hertzog Prize for his poetry [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0013455, (accessed 23 July 2026).

"Breyten Breytenbach; SA poet, activist and painter, receives the Hertzog Prize for his poetry." South African History Online, 16 Mar. 2011, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0013455. Accessed 23 July 2026.

South African History Online. "Breyten Breytenbach; SA poet, activist and painter, receives the Hertzog Prize for his poetry." South African History Online. March 16, 2011. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0013455.