Essayist and Researcher Cira Romero Passed Away

March 17, 2025

The essayist, critic and professor Cira Romero, one of the most prominent figures in literary research in Cuba, died Sunday night in Havana.

A Member of the Cuban Academy of the Language, she was 79 years old at the time of her death.

The news of her death was confirmed on social media by the Cuban Book Institute (ICL), which highlighted her as an "unconditional defender of Cuban literature and culture."

The organization did not specify the cause of death, although the writer suffered from cancer.

Born in Santa Clara in 1946, Cira Romero earned a degree in Letters from the Central University of Las Villas and since 1971 worked as a researcher at the José Antonio Portuondo Valdor Institute of Literature and Linguistics.

In parallel, she was a professor for more than twenty years in the Faculty of Arts and Letters at the University of Havana. Additionally, she presided over the essay and criticism section of the Association of Writers of UNEAC.

An author of critical works, essays, research and compilations, among her notable titles are Moral and Society in the Novels of Carlos Loveira; The Complete Hours of a Cuban Writer of Galician Origin and Fragments of the Interior. Lino Novás Calvo: His Voice Among Other Voices.

The ICL also highlights her work as a prologue writer and the publication of her texts in various national and international publications. Also, that she was in charge of the critical edition of two Cuban novels from the nineteenth century: A Easter in San Marcos and The Rancheador.

A recipient of the Distinction for National Culture, Cira was also a jury member for different literary events and awards, and received recognitions herself such as the José María Chacón y Calvo Essay Prize, essay award and the Master of Youth, awarded by the Hermanos Saíz Association.

According to the ICL, her body will be cremated by family decision and subsequently the date and place where she will receive the posthumous tribute from friends, colleagues, students and Cultural institutions will be announced.