Dionysios Solomos

Dionysios Solomos was a Greek poet from Zakynthos, who is considered to be Greece's national poet. He is best known for writing the Hymn to Liberty, which was set to music by Nikolaos Mantzaros and became the Greek and Cypriot national anthem in 1865 and 1966 respectively. He was the central figure of the Heptanese School of poetry. He is considered the national poet of Greece, not only because he wrote the national anthem, but also because he contributed to the preservation of earlier poetic tradition and highlighted its usefulness to modern literature. Other notable poems include Ὁ Κρητικός, Ἐλεύθεροι Πολιορκημένοι. A characteristic of his work is that no poem except the Hymn to Liberty was completed, and almost nothing was published during his lifetime.

8 April 1798

Born on the same birth day (8 April): Albert I of Belgium • Barbara Kingsolver • Barbara Young, Baroness Young of Old Scone • Brenda Russell • Edmund Husserl • Edward Mulhare • Erwin Keller • Funda Arar • Jang Yong • John Fante • John Madden (director) • John Scott (sociologist) • Katee Sackhoff • Khaled Badra • Mariko Seyama • Mark Spencer (computer engineer) • Michael Jones (rugby union) • Oscar Zeta Acosta • Pancha Carrasco • Paul Gray (American musician) • Timo Pérez • Tom Petranoff • Toutai Kefu

Born in the same month (April 1798): April 26 • August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben • Charles Wilkes • Macedonio Melloni • Étienne Bobillier