Ion Șiugariu

Ion Șiugariu (June 6, 1914 – February 1, 1945) was a Romanian poet.

Early life and education Born in Băița, Maramureș County, then part of Austria-Hungary, his parents were Ion Șugar, a miner, and his wife Floarea (née Griga). Following the union of Transylvania with Romania, he attended primary school in his native village and in Valea Borcutului, finishing in 1928. He then went to the normal school in Oradea from 1928 to 1932 and to the city's Emanuil Gojdu High School from 1932 to 1936. There, he was mentored by Octav Șuluțiu, who introduced him to the Familia circle. From 1937 to 1942, he attended the literature and philosophy faculty of the University of Bucharest, graduating with a thesis on the journalistic aspect of modern literature.

In January 1943, Șiugariu became a reserve officer and was sent to Ploiești for training, then to an infantry regiment in Bacău, in the Moldavia region. That July, during a two-week leave, he married pharmacy student Lucia Stroescu in Râmnicu Vâlcea. In 1944, after Romania switched sides to the Allies, he participated in the Romanian Army's push into Central Europe, reaching the Czechoslovak Front. He was killed in early 1945 during the battle for the Slovak town of Brezno. The same year, he was posthumously decorated with the Order of the Crown. In 1956, he was reburied in the Romanian military cemetery at Zvolen.