Hymne Weiss was born on 2 October 1910 in Goedemoed, Orange Free State. Her parents were Jozua Francois Naudé (1873-1948) and Ada Johanna Zondagh van Huyssteen (1879-1967).
Hymne attended school at Roodepoort, Piet Retief and Graaf-Reinet from 1916-1928. She was awarded a grant from Graaff-Reinet City Council in Standard 8 for highest marks in final examination, Hoër Volkskool. She matriculated with Afrikaans, Botany, English, Dutch, Geography, German and History (First Class). Hymne participated in tennis, basketball, cello, piano and theory examinations and was a member of the Hoër Volkskool orchestra.
She studied at Stellenbosch University : BA cum laude (1932), Majors in Afrikaans-Netherlands and German. Other courses: English, French, Psychology, and Anthropology.
MA: Afrikaans-Netherlands cum laude (1933) and Senior education diploma cum laude (1934).
She was awarded a stipend for post-graduate study at Cambridge.

Employment:
Denneoord Training College, Stellenbosch:Temporary lecturer in Afrikaans ( 1934).
Stellenbosch University: Part-time lecturer in Afrikaans (1935)
Standerton Industrial School: Teacher in Afrikaans (1935)
Graaf-Reinet Hoër Volkskool: Teacher in Afrikaans (1935)
Pretoria Technical College: Part-time lecturer in Afrikaans (1936)
Stellenbosch University: Part-time lecturer in Afrikaans (1958)
South African Nursing Association, Pretoria: Translator and Language Practitioner (1967-1984)

Special study tours and courses
Israel (1954): Met with various authors and poets
United States of America (1960):
Attended lectures in American Literature and Scandinavian Languages at the Universities of Pennsylvania and Philadelphia
Gave lectures on Afrikaans Literature
Conducted interviews with various American authors and critics
Met with authors and poets in Reykjavic, Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Darmstadt, München, Tübingen and Frankfurt
Attended courses in Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and Old Norse

Hymne was married to the late P. F. D Weiss, professor of Semitic Languages at Stellenbosch University.
Their three daughters (Ode Krige) were born in 1939, 1943 and 1946 respectively. Detlev Weiss died in 1999.

Hymne died on 6 October 2001 - four days after her 91th birthday - in Pretoria.

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Books:

Short Stories:

Verwaaide Bloeisels (1945)
Boumeesters (1953)
Die Geel Kruik (1958)
(Awarded First Prize in the national competition of the Vroue Lanbouvereniging of the Cape)
Skewe Fees (1974)
Bitterbessiebos (1977)
Nonet (1982)
Contributed to anthology: Vrouevertellers 1843-1993 by Annemarie van Niekerk (1994)

Essays:

Die Towertapyt (1958) (First Prize in the national competition of the Vroue Lanbouvereniging of the Cape)
Diep in die Blou Stilte (1976)
My Kontrei (Unpublished) Awarded 2nd Prize, SABC Radio Uit en Tuis 1990.
Novels:
Saaier Saai (1949)
Vergeet wat agter is (1949)
En wie is my naaste (1950)
Die Kleinste (1951)
Die wind het gaan lê (1951)

Youth Literature:

Published stories - some of them prize-winners - in several magazines
Contributed towards Patrys, a publication for Boys and Girls
Acted as Editor of Children's Column of Die Huisvrou for 18 months
Wrote Passion Radio Play at the request of the SABC

Hymne Weiss was awarded the Academy Award for the translation of
Barabbas by Pär Lagerkvist - Swedish (1953) : Barábas

Text by Milde Barnard-Weiss

www.StellenboschWriters.com © Rosemarie Breuer

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