Goiás research project recovers forgotten female poets

A research project funded by the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Goiás (Fapeg) is working to recover the literary works of women who were omitted from official Goian literature narratives. Conducted by the Rede de Pesquisa em Leitura e Ensino de Poesia, the study found that female production in the state was significantly higher than what is recorded in reference books.

The initiative will result in a trilingual anthology—available in Portuguese, English, and Spanish—to be distributed for free in public and school libraries. Researchers have identified historical figures such as Honorata Minelvina Carneiro de Mendonça, who published a book in 1875, and Leodegária de Jesus, who published in 1906.

Researchers noted that historical access to intellectual circles was often restricted to women connected to prestigious families or recognized men, which influenced who could publish. Many poems survived only in old newspaper archives rather than formal books.