Nina Cassian - Biography

Nina Cassian (pen name of Renèe Annie Cassian; born 27th November 1924) is a Romanian poet, composer, journalist and film critic. She is noted for her translating abilities, and has rendered into Romanian the works of William Shakespeare, Bertolt Brecht, Christian Morgenstern, Yiannis Ritsos, and Paul Celan. She has published more than fifty books of her own poetry.

Born in Galaţi, she was married with fellow writer Vladimir Colin in 1943 (divorced in 1948), and later with Al. I. Ştefănescu. At the beginning of her career, Cassian was, with Colin, one of the noted contributors to the magazine Orizont.

She had a very close relation with Ion Barbu, one of the most important Romanian poets and mathematicians.

Cassian travelled to the United States as a visiting professor in 1985. During her stay in America, a friend of hers, Gheorghe Ursu, was arrested by the Securitate for possessing a diary. The diary contained several of Cassian's poems which satirized the Communist regime and the authorities thought to be inflammatory. Hence, she decided to remain in the US.

She was granted asylum in the United States, and she currently resides in New York City.