On this day
May 11 in literary history
Literary history for May 11: 5 writers born, 5 writers who died and 3 literary events from 868 to 2002. Born on this day: Jeremy Paxman, Camilo José Cela, Saadat Hasan Manto.
Writers born on May 11
| Born | Writer | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Jeremy Paxman | English retired journalist, author and broadcaster (born 1950) |
| 1916 | Camilo José Cela | Spanish novelist, poet, essayist (1916–2002) |
| 1912 | Saadat Hasan Manto | Pakistani writer (1912–1955) |
| 1901 | Rose Ausländer | Jewish poet and author (1901–1988) |
| 1895 | Jiddu Krishnamurti | Spiritual speaker and writer (1895–1986) |
Writers who died on May 11
| Died | Writer | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Bill Peet | American illustrator and animator (1915–2002) |
| 2001 | Douglas Adams | English writer and humourist (1952–2001) |
| 1985 | Chester Gould | American cartoonist (1900–1985) |
| 1983 | Zenna Henderson | American science fiction and fantasy writer (1917–1983) |
| 1920 | William Dean Howells | American author, critic, and playwright (1837–1920) |
Literary events on May 11
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1919 | Uruguay becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty. |
| 868 | A copy of the Diamond Sūtra is published, the earliest dated and printed book known. |
| 868 | A copy of the Diamond Sutra was printed in Tang-dynasty China, making it the world's oldest dated printed book. |
Featured
Jeremy Paxman (1950) — Jeremy Dickson Paxman is an English former broadcaster, journalist and author, born in Yorkshire.
Camilo José Cela (1916) — Camilo José Cela y Trulock, 1st Marquess of Iria Flavia was a Spanish novelist, poet, story writer and essayist associated with the Generation of '36 movement.
Saadat Hasan Manto (1912) — Saadat Hasan Manto NI was a Pakistani writer, playwright and novelist from Punjab, who is regarded as the greatest short-story author in Urdu literature. He was active from 1933 during British rule till his death in 1955 after independence.
Sources & data
- Compiled from Wikipedia’s “On this day” selections (CC BY-SA 4.0), filtered for writers and literary events.