Odysseus Elytis

Odysseas Elytis (pen name of Odysseas Alepoudelis) was a Greek poet, essayist, and translator, born on November 2, 1911, in Heraklion, Crete, and regarded as a leading figure of romantic modernism influenced by French Surrealism. He gained prominence with works like 'To Axion Esti,' set to music by Mikis Theodorakis, and received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1979 for his poetry celebrating Greek light, freedom, and the Aegean islands. Elytis died on March 18, 1996, in Athens, leaving a legacy of lyrical and revolutionary verse.