John van Melle

Dutch-born South African writer (1887-1953)

John van Melle

Born| Johannes van Melle
(1887-02-11)11 February 1887
Goes
Died| 8 November 1953(1953-11-08) (aged 66)

Jan van Melle (11 February 1887 – 8 November 1953) was the pen name of a Dutch-born South African writer. His real name was Johannes van Melle.

Van Melle was born in Goes. He arrived in South Africa in 1906, and after a short sojourn in the Netherlands East Indies, settled in South Africa permanently in 1913. He worked as a teacher in many rural schools and soon started to publish in both Dutch and the newly emerging Afrikaans language.[1]

Van Melle's best known work is the novel Bart Nel, a classic of Afrikaans literature. It tells the tale of a farmer whose indomitable spirit allows him to survive the destruction and loss of his farm in wartime and being abandoned by his wife and family.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ DBNL. "J. van Melle, Kritisch lexicon van de moderne Nederlandstalige literatuur, Sander Bax, Hugo Brems, Tom van Deel, Ad Zuiderent". DBNL (in Dutch). Retrieved 2 November 2024.

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