Literature & Ideas
Landmark
Louise Bennett-Coverley
1919 – 2006
'Miss Lou', the poet who gave Jamaican Patois its dignity
Landmark is level 2 of 4 in the Jamaica Hall of Fame: a first that opened a door, or the pre-eminent figure of their generation in this country. See how the levels work.
Why they are here
A poet, folklorist and broadcaster who wrote and performed in Jamaican Patois when it was widely dismissed as broken English.
Through her poems, her radio programmes and the television show 'Ring Ding', Miss Lou made the everyday speech of Jamaicans a language of literature and pride. She collected folk songs and stories across the island, and her influence runs through Jamaican poetry, theatre and dub poetry.
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