Fikrat Goja (Azerbaijani: Fikrət Qoca, 25 August 1935 – 5 May 2021) was an Azerbaijani poet. He was honored as a People's Poet of Azerbaijan in 1998.

Fikrat Goja
Native name
Fikrət Qoca
BornFikrat Gojayev
(1935-08-25)25 August 1935
Agdash, Azerbaijan SSR, Soviet Union
Died5 May 2021(2021-05-05) (aged 85)
Agdash, Azerbaijan
OccupationPoet
Notable awardsPeople's Poet of Azerbaijan (1998)

Early life and education

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Goja was born in Agdash.[1] He attended Maxim Gorky Literature Institute of Moscow, graduating in 1964.

"The Woman Who Couldn't Find Words" was Goja's first published poem. Goja described it as "about a woman who was surprised about everything all of the time. She couldn't understand the things that were going on in the world around her."[2]

Biography

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Goja was the executive editor of Gobustan since 1978 and he was active in the Writer's Union of Azerbaijan, becoming secretary in 1997.[2] Many of Goja's poems in Azeri have been published. They covered the struggle for freedom.[1]

His books of poetry reflect his love for his homeland, his feelings of patriotism, and his thoughts on man and time. He has toured extensively in many countries and dedicated poems to national liberation movements in those countries, including Cuban freedom fighter Ernesto Che Guevara ("Addressless Letters"), Guinea-Bissau liberation movement activist Amilcar Cabral, Philippine nationalist protagonist Jose Risal, young Vietnamese Lee Vi Tom and by the poems he wrote. He wrote "Passers-by", "Human level", "Ordinary truths" and others in the 1990s about the ongoing struggle for freedom. He also wrote a number of prose works. The events of January 20, 1990, are reflected in the stories "Death is not separation" (1990), "For now, until the Day of Judgment" (2000).

Goja translated works by Mikhail Lermontov, Taras Shevchenko, I. Volker, among others. His works have been translated into a number of foreign languages.

Music was composed for his poems ("Mother, my friend is getting married", "My heart", "Morning", "Come, morning", "I couldn't find a flower", "The night is too long", "Autumn has come", etc.).

His poem “Gel Ey Seher" (Come, Hey Morning) was set to music and became a popular song by Polad Bulbuloglu. In the late 1990s, Bubuloglu recorded a new version of Gel Ey Seher with an arrangement by Paul Buckmaster. While Bulbuloglu was having a huge success with the song and sold-out concerts in Russia, Bulbuloglu became the Minister of Culture of Azerbaijan and later, the Azerbaijani ambassador to Russia.[3]

Recognition

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In 1968, Goja received the Lenin Komsomol Prize for a poem dedicated to youth heroism and valor.[4]

In 2015, Goja was awarded the Sharaf Order of merit for his contributions to Azerbaijani literature. The ceremony took place at the Azerbaijan Writers Union.[5]

On August 25, 2020, Goja was awarded the Istiglal Order by President Ilham Aliyev for his contribution to Azerbaijani culture.[6]

Death

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Fikrat Goja died May 5, 2021, in Azerbaijan.[1]

Awards

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Books

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  • Qağayı (1963)
  • Hamıya borcluyam (1965)
  • Yatmadığım gecələrdə (1970)
  • Günlərin bir günü (1972)
  • Gül ömrü (1975)
  • İnsan xasiyyəti (1980)
  • Ömürdən səhifələr (1984)
  • Mavi dünyanın adamları (1988)
  • Taleyin ağır taleyi (1993)
  • Dənizdə ay çiməndə (1967)
  • Seçilmiş əsərləri (2014)

References

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  1. ^ a b c AzeriTimes.com. "People's poet Fikret Goja passes away". Retrieved 2021-05-10.
  2. ^ a b "7.4 Fikrat Goja Poet". www.azer.com. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
  3. ^ "FAREWELL TO PAUL BUCKMASTER". muzikotek.com.tr. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
  4. ^ "Famed Azerbaijani poet Fikret Goja marks 80th birthday". AzerNews.az. 2015-09-03. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
  5. ^ "Fikret Goja presented "Sharaf" order". AzerNews.az. 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
  6. ^ "Order of the President on Fikret Goja". Qadin.Net ~ First national women's portal. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
  7. ^ "F.G.Qocayevin "İstiqlal" ordeni ilə təltif edilməsi haqqında Azərbaycan Respublikası Prezidentinin Sərəncamı » Azərbaycan Prezidentinin Rəsmi internet səhifəsi". president.az (in Azerbaijani). Retrieved 2022-03-29.
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