Elena Farago

Elena Farago (born Elena Paximade; 29 March 1878 – 3 January 1954) was a Romanian poet and children's author. She also translated works by Ibsen, Nietzsche, Maeterlinck and numerous others into Romanian.

Early life and education Born in Bârlad, her parents were Francisc Paximade, who came from Tenedos and established a cereal export business at Galați, and Anastasia (née Thomaide); the two married in 1873. On her father's side, she descended from an old and noble Greek family; through her mother, she was of Greek, Turkish and Romanian origin. Orphaned at a young age, she was raised in the home of Junimist George Panu and briefly with Ion Luca Caragiale, through whom she came to know Alexandru Vlahuță and other contemporary writers. Between 1884 and 1890, she had an incomplete education at the Varlaam and Drouhet boarding schools in her native town. Through her husband, the bank clerk Francisc Farago, she was drawn into socialist circles,

Career She made her debut with the 1899 poem "Gândul trudiților", which appeared in România muncitoare. Her work also appeared in Adevărul, Epoca, Sămănătorul, Floarea darurilor, Revista noastră, Făt-Frumos, Luceafărul and Ramuri. She sometimes signed with the pen names Fatma, Andaluza and Ellen. From 1921 until her death, she headed the Alexandru and Aurelia Aman foundation in Craiova, which today is the Elena Farago Memorial House. She also worked as an inspector for children's charity homes. Farago founded Năzuința magazine in 1922. Her daughter Coca also became a writer.