Trefossa

Who is Trefossa?

Henri Frans de Ziel, who wrote under the pen name Trefossa, was born in Paramaribo in 1916 and trained as a teacher before becoming one of the most influential literary figures in Surinamese history. Writing in both Dutch and Sranan Tongo, the Afro-Surinamese Creole language spoken widely across the country, he helped establish Sranan Tongo as a serious literary language at a time when it was still dismissed by much of the colonial elite. His 1957 poetry collection "Trotji" was the first published book of Sranan-language poetry and is often described as the starting point of modern Surinamese literature, influencing a generation of writers who followed him. In 1959, as Suriname moved toward self-government, the Surinamese government commissioned Trefossa to write the Sranan Tongo verses of the national anthem, "God zij met ons Suriname," which were formally adopted that December and are still sung today alongside the original Dutch verses. He also edited the literary magazines Tongoni and Soela and briefly directed Suriname's Cultural Centre library. He died in 1975, and a monument in Paramaribo commemorates his legacy.

Sources: Wikipedia, "Henri Frans de Ziel" · nationalanthems.info, "Suriname" · Paramaribo SPAN blog, "Seen: Trefossa" (Ida Does, 2009)