Alexandru Hrisoverghi

Alexandru Hrisoverghi (February 27, 1811 – March 9, 1837) was a Moldavian Romanian-language poet and translator, whose work was influenced by Romanticism. The author of few lyrical works, he was foremost noted for his association with political and intellectual figures such as Mihail Kogălniceanu, Costache Negruzzi, Vasile Cârlova, and Grigore Crupenschi.

Biography Born in Iași, Hrisoverghi was a member of the boyar category: the second of Vornic Neculai Hrisoverghi's four sons, he traced his origin to Greek Phanariotes who were present in Moldavia during the rule of Prince Dimitrie Cantemir. His mother was Elena Ruset, a member of the Rosetti family. According to his friend and biographer Mihail Kogălniceanu, "Hrisoverghi took absolutely no pride in this vain noble origin; he had sufficient personal merit, without needing any more from his parents". Neculai Hrisoverghi died in 1818.

In connection to his death, Gheorghe Sion later claimed that Hrisoverghi was severely injured after jumping from a window, when caught in his lover's arms by her husband; allegedly, his rival took him into his care. This account, which probably referred to Catinca Beldiman and her husband,

In later periods, literary critics took more reserved stands in respect to Hrisoverghi's contribution to Romanian literature. During the interwar period, Paul Zarifopol expressed disapproval of Hrisoverghi and many of his contemporaries (including Ienăchiță and Iancu Văcărescu, Vasile Cârlova, Gheorghe Asachi and Ion Heliade Rădulescu). While commending Kogălniceanu for establishing an influential school of literary criticism, he noted that the emphasis he had placed on "national specificity" had led him to overestimate the value of poets such as Hrisoverghi. In respect to this, he cited the stanza:

Besides his translation of Dumas' novel, Alexandru Hrisoverghi is noted for those of poems by Chénier (to which he notably added his own verses), Friedrich Schiller (probably, through a French-language translation), Alphonse de Lamartine, and Victor Hugo. He is the main character in a 1943 novel by Theodor Rășcanu (Fermecătorul Hrisoverghi).