WRITERS from Martinique

Top 5

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Writers of all time. This list of famous Writers is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.

1. Frantz Fanon (1925 - 1961)

With an HPI of 66.21, Frantz Fanon is the most famous Writer.  His biography has been translated into 56 different languages on wikipedia.

Frantz Omar Fanon (, US: ; French: [fʁɑ̃ts fanɔ̃]; 20 July 1925 – 6 December 1961) was a French Afro-Caribbean psychiatrist, political philosopher, and Marxist from the French colony of Martinique (today a French department). His works have become influential in the fields of post-colonial studies, critical theory, and Marxism. As well as being an intellectual, Fanon was a political radical, Pan-Africanist, and Marxist humanist concerned with the psychopathology of colonization and the human, social, and cultural consequences of decolonization. In the course of his work as a physician and psychiatrist, Fanon supported the Algerian War of independence from France and was a member of the Algerian National Liberation Front. Fanon has been described as "the most influential anticolonial thinker of his time". For more than five decades, the life and works of Fanon have inspired national liberation movements and other freedom and political movements in Palestine, Sri Lanka, South Africa, and the United States. He formulated a model for community psychology, believing that many mental health patients would have an improved prognosis if they were integrated into their family and community instead of being treated with institutionalized care. He also helped found the field of institutional psychotherapy while working at Saint-Alban under Francois Tosquelles and Jean Oury.

2. Aimé Césaire (1913 - 2008)

With an HPI of 62.35, Aimé Césaire is the 2nd most famous Writer.  His biography has been translated into 44 different languages.

Aimé Fernand David Césaire (; French: [ɛme fɛʁnɑ̃ david sezɛʁ]; 26 June 1913 – 17 April 2008) was a Francophone Martinican poet, author, and politician. He was "one of the founders of the Négritude movement in Francophone literature" and coined the word négritude in French. He founded the Parti progressiste martiniquais in 1958, and served in the French National Assembly from 1945 to 1993 and as President of the Regional Council of Martinique from 1983 to 1988. He was also the Mayor of Fort-de-France for 56 years, from 1945–2001. His works include the book-length poem Cahier d'un retour au pays natal (1939), Une Tempête, a response to William Shakespeare's play The Tempest, and Discours sur le colonialisme (Discourse on Colonialism), an essay describing the strife between the colonizers and the colonized. Césaire's works have been translated into many languages.

3. Édouard Glissant (1928 - 2011)

With an HPI of 54.17, Édouard Glissant is the 3rd most famous Writer.  His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Édouard Glissant (21 September 1928 – 3 February 2011) was a Martinican writer, poet, philosopher, and literary critic. He is an influential figure in Caribbean thought and cultural commentary and Francophone literature.

4. René Maran (1887 - 1960)

With an HPI of 47.41, René Maran is the 4th most famous Writer.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

René Maran (5 November 1887 – 9 May 1960) was a French poet and novelist, and the first black writer to win the French Prix Goncourt (in 1921).

5. Patrick Chamoiseau (b. 1953)

With an HPI of 46.52, Patrick Chamoiseau is the 5th most famous Writer.  Her biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Patrick Chamoiseau (French pronunciation: [patʁik ʃamwazo]; born 3 December 1953) is a French author from Martinique known for his work in the créolité movement. His work spans a variety of forms and genres, including novels, essays, children's books, screenplays, theatre and comics. His novel Texaco was awarded the Prix Goncourt in 1992.