Anna Murià

Anna Murià i Romaní (pseudonym, Romaní; 21 April 1904 – 27 September 2002) was a Spanish Catalan narrator, translator, literary critic, and journalist who wrote short stories, novels, children's literature, and essays. A feminist activist, Murià i Romaní served as secretary of the Institució de les Lletres Catalanes, was a founding member of the Grup Sindical d'Escriptors Catalans (Union Group of Catalan Writers; 1936), and was an Honorary Member of the Associació d'Escriptors en Llengua Catalana.

Early life and education Born in Barcelona, Murià i Romaní was the daughter of the journalist and filmmaker, Magí Murià i Torner. She attended religious schools before studying commerce, accounting and English at the l'Institut de Cultura i Biblioteca de la Dona (1918–24).

During the Spanish Civil War, she was an official of the Generalitat of Catalonia, where she acted as secretary of the Institució de les Lletres Catalanes (Institute of Catalan Letters), collaborated in publications such La Dona Catalana, La Rambla, La Nau, Meridià and Diari de Catalunya. She was also a member of the Women's Union of Catalonia and a co-founder of the Grup Sindical d'Escriptors Catalans (Union Group of Catalan Writers).

Personal life Murià i Romaní met her husband, the poet Agustí Bartra, while in exile in the Château de Roissy, a 17th-century building in France, which was offered as a refuge for writers. They had two children, a son, the anthropologist, Roger Bartra, and a daughter, the philosopher, Eli Bartra. Before returning to Catalonia, Murià i Romaní and Bartra traveled through the Dominican Republic, Cuba and Mexico. Muria i Romani died in Terrassa in 2002; she was a close friend of the writer, Mercè Rodoreda.

Selected works