Maria Mercè Marçal

Maria Mercè Marçal i Serra (13 November 1952 – 5 July 1998) was a Catalan poet, professor, writer and translator from Spain.

Biography Marçal was born in Barcelona but spent her childhood in Ivars d'Urgell (Pla d'Urgell), which she considered her home. Her mother was Maria Serra, a woman who loved theater and songs, and her father was Antoni Marçal, who had to leave college for family reasons. She had a sister, Magda.

She went to high-school in Lleida, at the Institut de Lleida, after receiving a scholarship. She then studied literature at the University of Barcelona, earning a degree in Classical Philology there. She went on to become a Professor of Catalan Language and Literature.

In 1980, her daughter Heura was born, an experience she would write about in her poetry. Witch in Mourning. Translation of Bruixa de dol, translated by Clyde Moneyhun. London. Francis Boutle Publishers, 2023. The Body's Reason. Translation of Raó del cos, translated by Montserrat Abelló and Noèlia Díaz Vicedo. London. Francis Boutle Publishers, 2014. The Passion according to Renée Vivien. Translation of La passió segons Renée Vivien, translated by Kathleen McNerney and Helena Buffery. London. Francis Boutle Publishers, 2020.